Love for Elsa
by JTyrney6168
Summary: What if Queen Elsa's ice powers were the result of a chance meeting on a road where a stranger saves a dying woman after a wolf attack? What if Queen Elsa was never meant to be born? 1st four chapters set up the stranger.
1. Introduction

_Introduction:_

"Come on, Sam. The party has started."

"Why do I have to go? I don't know any of them," he fidgets.

"Hold still." She adjusts the collar of his ocean blue jacket. Her fingers lightly slide across the gold flower emblem on the pocket. She sniffles, "They are your extended family. This is the first time our whole family has been to one of these. You can tolerate the jacket for a little while." She kisses his cheeks. "Please stay with your sister. Most of your cousins are here and I do not want you to get lost in the crowd."

He wipes the tear from her cheek. "Why are you crying? I will behave. I promise."

She hugs him. "I know you will. Let's go to the party."

Several hours later, he sits on a bench tapping his head against the staircase. Other than school, he has never seen so many people in one room. He slowly shakes his head at the thought, they are supposed to be related to him. Why did they drag him here? This is no fun. He smacks his head harder against the stairs.

The main doors fly open and a gust of cold air sweeps into the room. The candles along the walls flicker. Everyone watches the doors. Do they not see the fog rolling across the floor? He watches the fog touch his shoes. It moves up his legs. A chill encompasses his body. It feels good. He removes his jacket and folds it onto his lap. The fog passes over his hands and slides up his arms. The cool temperature relaxes his body. His eyes fight to stay open, but they soon close and a snow-capped mountain beacons him to play.

"Sam wake up." A fiery hand rubs his arm. "You are very cold."

His eyes open and for a moment, everything has a blue tint. He blinks and the tint disappears. Most of the adults glance in his direction. Across the room his father with his left brow up, stares at him. His mother dabs a handkerchief to the corner of her eyes.

"Great," He sits up and starts to slip his arm into his jacket.

"What are you doing?"

"I must have done something stupid to embarrass our parents. It would have been easier if they had left me at home like last year."

She hugs him. "You did not embarrass them. You did exactly what needed to be done. I will hold your jacket." She runs her fingers through his hair. "Look up."

On the second landing of the stairs above him, his younger blonde cousin waves down at him.

"Liz is just as board as you are. If you will watch her, the two of you can explore upstairs."

He stares up at Liz and a twinkle flashes in her eyes. He hands his sister his jacket and hugs her. "Erika, you are the best." He glances across the room. While everyone continue their conversations, they pay him no attention.

He never did like crowds, so when an opportunity to get away presented itself, he took it. He follows Liz up the stairs. The noise of the festivity continues below. He tiptoes to the corner and slowly peaks around it. She is not in this hallway. He did not see her run across to the other hall. She could not have outrun him. He slides along the wall and stops at the first door. The handle feels cold just like when his sisters hold onto the door knobs without their gloves. He twists the handle and pushes on the door that creaks in protest. The hall lights cast shadows against the back wall of the room. A heavy drape covers a window, but he is able to see a table with two chairs. He steps in and peeks around the door. A fireplace hides in the darkness against the wall. A cold breeze enters the room from the hall and pushes the door wide open. Something moves against the far wall and he sees a second door. Another movement draws his attention to the flag hanging next to the door.

A golden rod with flowers on each end holds a triangular-shaped flag to the wall. The bottom of the flag has two tips. A golden flower with three petals and two leaves, similar to the flowers on the ends of the rod, sits in the center, evenly dividing the flag with purple on the left and green on the right.

Movement catches his attention again. The purple tip flicks up at an odd angle. He stares at it. It flicks up twice. He studies the drapes expecting them to move from an open window. A rapid flapping noise causes him to watch the flag. The purple and green tips point oddly up in the same direction. His eyes sweep up and he spots a tiny blue light above the door. It is not like the lights in his home. It glows brighter. It must have a motion sensor to turn it on, but the light is different. Before he felt the cold, but now, a warmth drapes over him like when his mother wraps him in the warm blanket just taken out of a clothes dryer. The noise from the party fades. A new sound fills his ears, but not just his ears, his whole body feels the sound. The light moves like a flame on a candle. It reminds him of the candles on his birthday cake.

A month ago, his family celebrated his birthday. He remembers it like it happened yesterday. As they had done the last three years, Mom and Dad took him to their bedroom and showed him a small crystal similar to that one over the door. They allow him to hold the crystal for several minutes.

They asked the same question each year. "Do you feel anything different with the crystal?"

Every year he would shake his head, no. Dad would take the crystal and place it in a box. He stuffed it on the top shelf where he could not reach it. He knew it must be important, but no one would tell him what it is or what he was supposed to feel.

On his last birthday when it was just him and Dad, Mom had asked, "Did it happen?"

Dad shook his head and walked past her. Mom cried.

Even his older sisters, Joan and Erika, would not tell him the importance of the crystal. He remembered, they hugged him for a long time. They also cried. He did not feel anything from the crystal, but his sisters made him feel very cold as if their arms were made of ice.

Erika encouraged him to talk to Mom and Dad. He found them in their study room hugging each other. The door was not completely closed. Just as he reached to push it open Dad said, "He may not receive the gift."

Mom sniffled, "I guess we are not going to the castle."

He pushes the door open. He had never seen Dad cry. When they saw him, they both wiped their tears away. Mom invited him to sit next to her, but he stood in front of them.

"What was I supposed to feel? Was somebody supposed to give me a gift? It is my birthday, today."

Dad hugged him and gave him an encrypted answer. Mom was no help. She just cried and smiled and cried more. She said the same thing except she said the time was soon. He did note Mom's arms were cold like his sisters.

He remembered it was the worst birthday yet. His friends from school did not come over that day. He considered cancelling all of his future birthdays if that was the way they were going to treat him. Later that evening, past sunset, he ran up the hill in the back acreage of the family's property. He jumped and ran and fell down and talked to the stars. He stopped and stared at a specific point in the sky. A meteor began to glow where he looked. He watched it streak across the sky and continued to watch it move deeper into the darkness.

He turned his head slightly. "I know you two are hiding behind the tree. What do you want?"

Erika and Joan walked the short distance to stand next to him. Joan pushed her hood back and fluffed her red hair. "I thought we were very quiet. How did you know we were there?"

"I didn't hear you. I just knew."

Erika placed her hand on the back of his neck and shoulders. He stepped away, pushing her hand off his neck.

"Did you carry ice in your hands and drop it behind the tree before touching me. The last time you did that I fell asleep before my bedtime."

Erika pushed her hood back and combed her white hair with her fingers as she grinned. Every time she grins like that, something strange would happen around their house.

Erika pointed her finger at him. "How did you know?"

He motioned to the fox running down the hill. "The fox told me you were behind the tree."

"It spoke to you the way we are speaking to you?"

"No." He taps his head rapidly.

Erika's left brow rose like Dad's does. Joan stared at Erika then her right brow rose like Mom's does. They touched their right hands to the left side of the others face. They both glance at him.

He stepped back as they grinned at each other. "Why do you smile when the blue spark touches your face?"

"Is this the first time you saw the spark?" Erika asked.

He shrugged his shoulder as he kicks at the ground. "I started to see the white light before the last winter. I thought it was the dry humidity causing it, but then you would smile and snicker and laugh without saying anything. I thought you were making fun of me. This time it was a blue light."

Their eyes widened as their lips pulled tight. Erika walked back down the hill as Joan kneeled in front of him. "So the blue light you saw was the first time."

He nodded to her.

"Why do you come out here in the dark?"

He looks up at the stars.

"What do you see up there?" He turned away from her. She grabbed his hand. "Do you think I will laugh?"

He was just thinking that. How did she know? He pointed to a star, four fingers above the horizon. "Do you see that star rising?"

"Yes."

"That is not a star." He glanced back at her. If she began to laugh he would run away, but she was not laughing or smiling. "Do you remember when they launched the shuttle before the New Year?"

She nods.

"That star was a little higher than it is now, but I saw the shuttle connect to it."

"That was in the news. They had video of the docking."

He shook his head vigorously. "No, I saw it here. I saw the mirrors reflecting the sunlight. I saw the shuttle firing its maneuvering rockets to connect to the space station." He points to the star directly overhead. "That one is a satellite. There is another one about to drop in the west."

"When did you start to see the satellites?"

"After my birthday."

"But you did not make the crystal glow."

"Is that what I was supposed to do? Why did they not tell me that before? I'm not a kid anymore. Next year I will be ten and almost a man. It was the third time. I was afraid of disappointing them."

He starts to turn away, but she pulls him back. He wipes the tears off his face. "I saw Mom and Dad crying. I thought they did not want me."

"Why would they not want you?"

"You and Erika are so smart. I know she is talking to the universities. She and Mom talks about going over there to study. End of this year you will be doing the same thing." He shakes his head. "I study and study and study and barely pass."

"Is that why you come out here? To create a separation so it will not hurt when we leave?"

His lower lip quivers and the tears flow down his cheeks. She pulls him to her and hugs him. "I am so sorry we have not been forthcoming to you. We did not wish to push, but we're waiting for you to tell us when you were ready."

"Ready for what?"

She pulls her necklace out from under her shirt and holds it in front of him. "Do you know what this is?"

"It looks like the crystal they placed in my hand on my birthday."

"Watch," she wraps her hand around it and blue light peeks between her fingers. She holds the tip and it oscillates like the beat of a heart. She drops it and the glow disappears. It dangles from the string. "Go ahead and touch it."

His hand reaches for it. It begins to glow before he touches it. When he finally does, the crystal sings to him and feels warm. His body tingles. The crystal mesmerizes him.

Joan places the leather string holding the crystal over his head. "You can wear it until Dad gives you your crystal"

He looks up as a faint blue line sweeps across her eyes. "What is the blue in your eyes? Erika's eyes do the same thing. Will I be able to do that?"

"It means you have my complete attention. Now that you can make the crystal glow, you will be able to do things beyond what you thought was possible."

His eyes focus on the crystal. "Will that include making the many voices in my head stop talking at the same time?"

Her right brow rises. "When did you start to hear the voices?"

"After my birthday. I thought someone was playing their radio too loud."

"That was about the time you were getting your headaches, wasn't it?"

He nods.

With a grin she peeks over her shoulder. "I told them you had matured and you were ready. I think someone owes me a favor." She brushes his short hair behind his ear and a miniscule spark leaps from her finger. "Do you still hear voices?"

He shakes his head, but continues to stare at the crystal.

She rotates him around and encourages him to sit in front of her. A cool northern breeze sweeps up the hill. The crystal emits a brighter undulating light. She slides closer behind him and wraps her arms around him.

"Joan, do you think I can become a starship captain?"

"At the rate technology is progressing, I believe it will be possible in your lifetime. Why do you ask?"

He gazes at the eastern sky. "Do you see the constellation Orion? It looks like someone is shooting an arrow down."

"Yes, I see it."

"I want to go there."

"To Orion?"

"Not Orion, do you see the three stars that make up Orion's belt?"

"Yes?"

"The bottom star, behind it is the Sariphan star. I want to go there." He holds the crystal tight in his fist and its light changes to blue.

"Interesting, why would you want to go there?"

"Sometimes when I'm up here alone, I pretend I command the Starship Aurora with a brave crew of humans and alien beings working together. The Queen of Sariphan contacts me and tells me a neighbor is being mean to her. I fly to the neighbor and make them play nice."

"Do they play nice?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "Sometimes they don't and I have to shoot a couple of laser beams at them then they behave."

"This is very interesting. Can you see the Sariphan star?"

He shakes his head. "No one can. It is too far away. Orion hides it."

"So how do you know it is there?"

The blue light from the crystal stops undulating as he looks to the star. "I don't. I feel it is there and she is waiting for me."

Her arms tighten around him as she whispers into his ear. "Tell me about the Sariphan Queen. Is she pretty?"

He smiles and yawns. "Yes, she is pretty like you and has blonde hair like Erika but not as muscular. When I visit, she gives me their version of chocolate-coffee and coconut cookies."

"Do you like her?"

"When I am with her, I have fun. I want to be with her forever. When you or Erika or Mom calls me to come in for the night, I tell her my commanding officers have given me a new assignment, and I will be back. She blows me a kiss and tells me, she will wait up for me." He lowers his head and yawns.

A frosted hand reaches over Joan shoulder and touches the back of his neck. He yawns and sighs as his body slumps to the side. Erika kneels and scoops him up in her arms. "Well, I guess you were right. I am glad Dad allowed you to use your gifts to encourage little brother. I still think you would make a deadly assassin."

Joan climbs to her feet. "Yeah, and we get to go to the castle. I bet Mom and Dad are happy."

They walk down the hill. "Like two little kids waking up on Christmas morning. And it was a good thing you silenced the voices in his head. It got noisy real quick when he mentioned the Sariphan star."

They walk in silence a short distance. Erika asks, "I don't think I'm that muscular."

Joan snickers, "How big was that boy you threw into the trash container at the mall parking lot?"

"Leverage, my dear sister, leverage."

"Yeah, when pigs sprout wings and fly."

"Well, I don't know about pigs, he sure sounded sweet on you, calling you pretty and me muscular."

"I'm his sister. He is not sweet on me."

"Let him find out he was adopted, then tell me he is not sweet on you."

Whoosh . . . ice rises from the ground and freezes around Erika's boot.

She hobbles on one leg until she regains control and is able to stand. She glares at Joan. "You would not be feeling so cocky if I had dropped him."

Joan flicks her wrist and the ice melts from around Erika's boot. "Sorry, is he awake?'

"When this young man wakes up, we will be in the castle and his adventure will begin."

"Just because he is asleep, he can hear you."

"To him it is a dream."

"Do you think she will be there?"

"We are counting on it?"

"I hear they may have a late winter storm over there."

Erika grins, "Are you challenging me? Snow balls at a hundred meters?"

"You're on."

"Psst, psst, Sam." A small hand, bordering on feeling cold, taps his arm. "What is wrong with you? Are you daydreaming?"

She grabs his arm and pulls. He follows her down the hall and into the next room. He was told not to go into the room, but he did not wish to stop. He wanted to know.

"Liz, you know you are not supposed to be in here. If they find out, we will both get into trouble."

He closes the door.

She pushes a chair against the bookcase. "Hold the chair." She climbs onto it and wiggles to make sure it does not slide.

He glimpses back at the door. "Come on, I think someone is coming up the stairs."

"Who?"

"I don't know. They don't feel like our family."

She stretches her arm, but her small finger barely touches an old book. "It must be one of our cousins looking for the bathroom." The chair wobbles.

Sam pushes the chair against the bookshelf and climbs up onto it. He reaches above her head and pulls on the book Liz was trying to reach. The book shines with different shades of a metallic green. The light reflects across it creating a rainbow. "Wow, did you see that?"

Liz places her hand on the book's cover and both of their hands glows a faint blue tint. "See. See, it did the same thing with Momma's hands."

He stares at the book and slides his hands across the raised symbols. "Momma's hands? How do you know her hands glowed?"

He climbs down and helps Liz to sit in the chair. He sits next to her.

Liz slides her hands across the raised letters, and they begin to glow a reddish color. "I saw Mommy do this. Not only did her hands glow blue, but this book also glowed green and the letter changed to red."

"When did you see your Momma doing this?"

"Before Aunt Anna showed up here before yesterday," She answers. "Do you remember when you said you saw smoke coming out from under the door? Then you said the smoke made your hands very cold."

With a nod, he answers, "Yes, I remember. Your dad came out of the room and told me the smoke was an ice fog. He said I, will know about it soon, that was yesterday evening."

"I did not see Daddy. I saw Mommy sitting in this chair. She was reading this book and she was crying."

"Why was she crying?"

"I don't know. When she saw me she closed the book hard and put it up there on the shelf." She points above her head. "You know what else I saw?"

He shakes his head no.

"When Mommy stand, smoke fell off her hands and feet. The smoke moved across the floor towards me. I ran to my room and hide under the covers. Daddy came in my room and laid on the bed with me. My eyes closed. I opened them. It was dark, so I closed them again until Mommy woke me up." She slides her hand over the book and the smoke rises from her hands."

"How are you doing that?"

"Mommy said to think about a mountain covered in snow and when I am ready I should read this book." She jumps down and closes the door.

Sam stares at the door and glances at the corner of the room near the door. He helps her back into the chair.

"I have been sneaking in here, but I could not get the book. Now you have it. Open it and read it to me."

"We will get into trouble if we get caught."

She holds his hands and both of their hands glow with a light blue tint. "I feel this book is singing to us."

He stares at her but the tension of fear melts, the more he watches her. "Now that you said it. I feel we should read it."

A floorboard creaks. They look towards the door.

"What are you two doing in here?"

His head snaps to his left. His nose is a few centimeters from the nose attached to a face containing a set of tranquil blue eyes. He stares not wanting to look away. She blows a cool, minty-mist into his face. He smiles.

She stands towering over them. "Are you deaf? I asked you a question. Why are you in here?"

He jumps out of the chair. Liz slides off and stands beside him with her head down. He answers, "We meant no harm."

The blonde haired woman places her hands on her waist. "Do your parents know you are in here?"

He shakes his head, but Liz barely whispers, "No."

"Then you should be punished for breaking the rules and being in here."

Liz starts to cry. Sam steps in front and pushes her behind him. She holds his hand.

"If we have to be punished for coming in here, I will take both of our punishments. I could have stopped Liz but I followed her in here." He stares defiantly up at her. "Punish me."

"For not knowing what the punishment is, you sure are brave for a little boy." She leans over them. "What are your names?"

"I'm Sam. This is my little cousin Liz." He looks up at her defiantly.

"Sam and Liz, I am sure they are short for another name." She peeks past him. "Liz, what is your full name?"

She moves to hide behind him. "My name is Elizabeth."

"Elizabeth? Who calls you Elsa?"

"My mom does sometimes."

She stands tall and starts to move towards the door. After a moment she turns back to them. "Does Sam stand for something else? Give your full name."

He tries to stand as tall as possible with his chin lifted. "My name is Samuel Christopher Ryan. Her name is Elizabeth Anna Bjorgman."

She leans close and examines his face. "You do have the facial features of the Admiral and her hair is similar to the Queen Elsa, I knew."

His head slightly shakes. "Who is the Admiral and Queen Elsa?"

She stands up with her hands over her mouth and walks towards the door. She pivots and points her finger at them. "I have decided your punishment."

She flicks her hand and the door closes. Marching past them, she picks up the book and a rainbow of colors float across its cover. She sits. "Sam sit next to me."

He hesitates, but climbs into the chair next to her. She hands him the book.

She points to Liz. "You little miss, sit in my lap."

Liz drags her feet with her head down, then the woman puts her in her lap. "I saw the two of you make this book glow. Do it again." Neither moves. "If you wish, I will march the two of you down stairs and tell your parents what miss behaving children you are."

Sam grabs Liz's hand. "We are already in trouble. Let's show her."

Liz lays her hand on the book. Sam places his hand on top and slides her hand over the cover. The book changes to different shades of metallic green. Their hands pass over the letters and they glow red.

"Is that all you can do? What do the letters spell?"

He glances up at her. "Letters? They don't look like letters."

She watches him. A blue line sweeps across her eyes. "Your alphabet letters are not the only written language. The symbols in this book are an ancient written language called Ruins. Let me help you."

She covers their hands with her hand and they begin to glow. She moves them to the top, then to the bottom. She moves them to the left, then to the right. The red letters transform in the letters he can read.

Liz says, "Emm, Wi, it reads 'my'."

"Very Good, read this one."

Sam and Liz stare intently and the letters change. Liz says, "Cue . . . Uu . . . Eee . . . another Eee . . . Enn."

Sam says, "Queen, My Queen?"

There is more.

Liz says, "Ohh . . . efff. I don't know that one."

"My Queen of?"

Liz reads, "Aaa . . . Arrr . . . Eee . . . Enn . . . Dee . . . Eee . . . Ell . . . Ell . . . Eee."

Sam mouths the words.

"Say it."

"Arendelle," He looks up at her unsure. "My Queen of Arendelle, is that the name of this book?"

"Yes, it is." Another blue line sweeps across her eyes.

He glances away, searching his memories. "Why does that sound familiar?"

She opens the book. "I will not make you suffer so I will read it."

Before she could start, Sam reads the Ruins. "To my beloved wife and friend, Queen Elsa of Arendelle"

"Hey, she has my name, Elsa," Liz says, smiling up at the woman.

Sam points to the signature under the dedication. "Samuel Christopher Ryan, Fleet Admiral, United Star Ship Aurora." His finger traces the letters. "We do not have starships. Is this a Fantasy novel?"

"Some may see it as nothing more than that. If you ever wanted to know where your family came from, this book is a testimony of your family's origins. This book shows the cornerstone laid for the bridge between –"

He interrupts, "Our world and her world."

"Yes, that is correct. How do you know?"

"I don't know. I just do."

The woman smiles when she flips to the first page.

A cold fog rises from the page and produces images. She whispers to them. "Open your minds. You will know who you are and where you came from and which path to travel that will take you to your future."

The page changes to a crimson red. Liz jerks her hands away from the book. Sam asks, "Why did it change?"

"It is a warning. Look." Word float above the page.

Live in the Present

Dream of the Future

And Remember the Past

'For the Past may

Become your Future.

"What does that mean?"

"I think it is warning to us," Liz still holds her hands from the book.

"Yes it is a warming, but all of us." She encourages Liz to place her hands on the book. "I believe the answer is in this book. Let us read." She turns the page.

Sam slides his finger across the numbers and letters below the chapter number. " '423 years 6 months until completion', until what is completed?"

"Do you write reports for your teacher in school?"

"Yes, all the time." Sam frowns.

"Does the teacher insist you write the date on it?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

"It is part of the requirement to get a good grade." He looks away as his voice trails off.

She slips her arm around his shoulders and pulls him closer to her. "The date is a reference that allows the teacher to know when you did it and approximately when it was due, if she needs to know at a later date. The Admiral, being a military officer, kept a log of events, so he could reference his notes at a later date, just like your teacher."

He shakes his head, "That does not look like a date. Why does he not write the date the way we do with the day, month, and year?"

"Even in this time, some write as you say, day, month, year, others write month, day, year, and other start the date with the year first. Are they wrong, no? The same information is provided. We interpret it differently." She does not move for a moment and sighs.

Sam holds her hand. "Are you okay?"

She forces a smile. "I have read this book to your cousins many times. It still affects me, thinking about what he, then they had to go through. I guess I'm just being a sentimental old woman." She sniffs back a sniffle. "Let me answer your question. The Admiral's travel covers many lands and people who reference the date differently. He needed a reference that all of his family in the future would understand. The do the words 'until completion' mean to you?"

"Something is to come," answers Liz as she sweeps her hand over the page and it glistens in the rainbow colors.

"It has not happened at this point in the story," Sam comments.

"You are both correct."

"Are you saying the Admiral was alive 423 years and 6 months before the completion date?"

"That would be silly. No one lives that long. He must have jumped through time."

Sam looks up at the blue eyed woman. "Is Liz correct?"

"It is a reference only." Her hands begin to glow as she sweeps it over their heads and the book. "I could tell you what happens in the last chapter, but then you would miss out on a great adventure."

An icy fog rises from the book. Sam and Liz stare intently into the fog. Liz's hands and arm radiate a snow white glow as does her eyes. Sam's eyes glow a blue. His hands and arms radiate a lighter blue. As the images change in the story, his flesh radiates the different shades of a metallic green with streaks of blue.

She begins, "Chapter 1: Aurora . . ."

 **End of Introduction**


	2. Chapter 1 Aurora

**Chapter 1: Aurora**

 **423 year 6 months until correction**

The Starship Aurora takes a needed rest hiding in an asteroid field. The asteroid's movement creates its own energy signature that masks the ship's energy. The once great Battle Carrier at slightly over a two thousand meters in length and configured with four star drive engines mounted on swept wings, contains a crew of three thousand. The ship carries enough fire power and four hundred attack fighter crafts to patrol a sector of space by herself. Three years of war between the humans and the Sariphan alliance has caused the once proud flagship to hide from the enemy.

Four years earlier, Aurora's Commanding officer, Admiral Ryan, lands his personnel shuttle on the Sariphan second home world. His mission was to meet with the local government for peace talks. When his contact failed to meet him, his capture revealed the government had been replaced. The new government was not prepared for a quick response. Admiral Ryan was rescued. Aurora's Captain prepared to destroy the shuttle on the ground, but the Admiral canceled the order as he hoped to restart the peace talks.

After several days of no response from the new government, the Aurora returns to retrieve the Admiral's shuttle only to find every piece of technology had been stripped from it. Unfortunately, a team of Sariphan scientists discovered a piece of technology that enhanced their ship's star drive.

While the Aurora hid behind the planets third moon, the scientist tested the new technology. All their tests produced the same energy signature, but rapidly morphed into many strange energy waves, until one day radiation burst from the planet followed by a massive explosion at the test site. Several days after the explosion the Aurora detects a micro temporal burst at the outskirts of the nearest city several hundred kilometers from the radioactive zone. A few minutes later the radiation disappears and the original test site shows no evidence that an explosion had occurred.

Thirty days after the temporal burst. A small ship leaves the planet. Aurora's sensors have difficulty determining how many beings are on the ship. At ten thousand kilometers above the planet a small ship looses power and drifts towards the sun. After an hour the ship emits an energy waves similar to the radiation produced at the test site. The ship focuses the energy to a point several hundred kilometers in front of it. The point expands rapidly. Admiral Ryan recognizes the energy pattern of the technology stolen from his shuttle.

The Aurora maneuvers around the moon to intercept the ship. Several ships from the closest moon launches on an intercept course towards the Aurora. The small ship's energy creates a green undulating wave. The engine flares and propels the small ship towards the wave. The energy wave rolls exposing a red underside and swallows the small ship. The temporal wave expands in all directions. The Aurora charges the wave, but it dissipates to reveal several warships firing weapons behind it. Only with skillful maneuvering and the return of weapon fire, the Aurora escapes, but not before it destroys the small ship's launch site.

Admiral Ryan will discover it is too late and the course of history has changed.

The war with Sariphan has entered a new phase. Six months later human ships are ambushed in overwhelming numbers with greater success. The number of Sariphan ships increases beyond their known shipyard capacity. With each attack larger ships better armed begin to out gun the Human fleets. Three months later the attacks become more targeted against specific human ships. A pattern develops. Each attack is preceded by the sudden appearance of a small ship followed a minute later by the Sariphan fleet.

The course of the war has altered against the humans.

A power spike in the ship's energy signature signifies the return of Admiral Ryan from his latest attempt to stop the small ship. Sam awakens with a jolt. The sound pounding in his head and the blood pulsating through his heart echoes the equipment monitoring his life signs. A hand taps his shoulder and his eyes open to blobs of white and yellow colors with distorted blue, red, and silver. His vision sharpens to individual objects. The monitor on the wall still has its burn marks when it exploded two weeks earlier.

He raises his head. The grim faces of the medical support team communicates the lack of success on his last mission. He drops his head back onto the pillow. He expresses what the others feel. "Oh, damn it. I thought this was going to be it."

"Well, if it is not my dear husband back from the future."

Somewhere past the end of his bed, the voice grates on his nerves as she speaks to him in that manner. He deserves her bereavement. Few times he did not listen to her advice without reasoning and sound judgement. This one time may have cost the human race. She, along with many of the crew knows the end is near. Maybe she should have left him those many years ago. This time his mistake is too big that even she cannot save him. With each big risk there are two possibilities, a huge reward or a huge failure that could cost you your life.

She continues, "You just couldn't follow your own protocol, could you?"

"What are you referring to this time?"

He did not wish to look at her gloating smile. She walks over to his bedside and shares a contemptuous expression at him. He stares at the face that subdued the beast in him a long time ago. After the recent events of the past year he still wonders why she had not left. There were so many opportunities. Yet with the anger in her eyes, it always diminished to the beautiful brown eyes, he fell in love, but this time, the anger is not going away. She has her strawberry blond hair braided. A sign she is ready to fly a patrol mission.

"How bad is it?"

Her smile gives way to the emotionless mask she puts on for battle. She stares through him. "The Yamato and Lexington were both destroyed near the star Wolf 1846. The enemy lost . . . no sacrificed, eighty-seven ships to take down those two battle-carriers."

A blink brings her focus back onto him. Her index finger repeatedly presses into his chest, "You know what that means? Sure you do, we are next. There is a major battle at Alpha-Centaury. We lose there, the Earth is next."

She leans close to his face and her braided hair falls onto his neck, "Game over, because you were careless in losing your prototype ship on the Sariphan home world. I said it a thousand times and I will say it for a thousand and one times. You should have launched a torpedo and destroyed the ship instead of trying to retrieve it, but NO"

Her quivering fist hovers over his chest. The glare of her anger fades as rapidly as it appeared. "You insisted on activating the jump portal and jumped right into the middle of an armed delegation stripping every piece of technology off your shuttle."

She stares at her hands, then rubs her palms together. Her head moves from side to side as she drops her hands to her side. "They used your device to go back in time three days to change an outcome of a battle. And here we are today. Four years ago, how many jumps did they do to get here?" She turns away.

He grabs her arm. "Did the Arendelle depart on time?"

Without looking at him, she answers. "They departed a few minutes late. The next time Captain Hans grabs at one of my female pilots, I will send a single strand of his hair to his precious Southern Island, he keeps talking about. He is a wolf in sheep's clothing. I don't know how the Queen could possibly make him Arendelle's Captain." She spits on the deck with an expression that her words soured her mouth. "I hope you said your goodbyes. Queen Elsa is gone."

"Cat, I'm sorry. I thought it was going to work this time.

She yanks her arm from his grip. "Four years, four years ago, we were practically at the table to witness their surrender." Her hands clench and she shakes her fist at him. The medical staff departs the room quickly. This scene has been played too many times after each defeat.

Her eyes squint as she yells. "Four years later and the human race is about to be wiped out of existence because you insisted on taking the one extra step. You will be the most hated being in this galaxy if they let you live. You killed them and now you have killed us."

She opens her hands and wipes them on her pants. "Just to let you know, Our Saracat turned sixteen while you were gone. Guess what else she can do. The fire and ice symbols are showing up on the back of her hands, like father like daughter. Unlike her father, she has better common sense of the here and now, and not the 'what if'. When they kick you out of here, go tell your daughter happy birthday before it's too late."

Her hands slip into a pair of teal color gloves as she approaches the door. She glances over her shoulder, "If she survives this war, maybe she will be able to clean up your mess." The door closes behind her.

He closes his eyes, trying to ease the pain in his head. It has been a long time since their energy levels were so far out of sync with each other. Only distance will ease both of their pains. He recalls the first time he took her to his snow covered mountain and the tranquility of the calm. He searches the mountain, but finds no one. The ground shakes and throws him down onto a hard surface. Lights flash and an alarm sounds.

His eyes with the deck next to his face. Someone rolls him over. He sees two shadows and two sets of hands grab his arms lifting him to his feet.

"What is going on?" his voice whispers.

"We are under attack."

"I thought we were in a safe zone." He tries to focus on a coconut fragrant near his face.

"We were three hours ago. A temporal ribbon appeared directly in front of the ship. They must have jumped back three days from now."

He steadies himself and recognizes the owner of the fragrance. He slightly bowed. "Your Majesty what are you doing here? Why are you not on your ship?"

Her braided blond hair drapes over her left shoulder. Her blue eyes focus on him. "Ladycat was correct with her concern about Captain Hans. I escaped in a shuttle. No doubt Hans went back to claim my throne. I came back here. I thought I would be safe, but I guess I am wrong."

He brushes the back of his hand on her cheek. "Where is Ladycat?"

Saracat pulls on his arm as she leads him out of the medical section. "She is out there with the few remaining fighters. They brought twenty-three ships, including eight heavy battleships."

He interrupts, "Call her back, recall all fighters. Expand the shield around them and we will jump to another location."

Saracat squeezes his arm and forces him to look at her. "Dad, I know how to fix the timeline, but we have to act fast."

He glances back and forth between them. "I'm physically not ready to jump. How will one more help?"

They move around a corner towards the science section. "Because you are going back to the beginning." The lights flicker as the ship shakes from another hit. Saracat pulls her father down the blue lit corridor.

"I tried that before. They have temporal detectors surrounding Sariphan. There is no way I can get there now."

A short distance down the corridor they reach the research room. Saracat holds her hand against a scanner. A green light flashes on the panel. She types her code numbers. As the door opens, the lights flicker, then go out for several seconds. The room glows yellow with the emergency lighting and red from the warning lights on the instrument panels. Glass doors to a square chamber emit a blue glow.

Another hit shakes the deck under their feet. Saracat holds onto the control panel. He helps his Queen to her feet and notices she is not wearing her royal garments. "Your white clothing will make you stand out."

She smiles and cups her hand to his face. "Not where I'm going."

Another warning alarm sounds and Saracat switches it off. He studies the panel for a moment as she makes another adjustment. "Why have you disabled all the safety controls? How far back are you sending me?"

His Queen slides her hand on his face and lightly turns his head towards her. "Your last sensor sweep of the temporal frequency shows it goes further than you thought. She has located the first temporal signal in a northern country close to the Earth's North Pole. There is where you will begin."

He did detects she is holding back. "How far?"

"About six hundred year, give or take a few decades," Saracat replies.

"Will I be able to get back?"

She steps next to him. "Father, there will be no coming back." She kisses his cheek and forces him to swallow an ice disk. The temporal chamber comes to life with clouds of color folding in on itself.

His Queen places her fingers on the four exact points on his face and neck. She pulls his head down and their lips meet. For a moment many key events flash through his mind. He inhales her fragrant that calms his mind.

She steps back. "Your mission is to build the bridge between my world and your world. Protect your Queen at all cost. We are depending upon you. Unfortunately, you will never know if you succeeded or not."

"But come with me," he reaches for her but she steps back holding her hand towards him.

He turns to his daughter, "Sara contact your mother we will go through together."

With her head down, she holds her pendent. Several tears glistening in the yellow lights run down her face. "Dad, mom is gone. She gave us the few minutes we needed to complete our task. To save us you have to leave now before the portal closes." The glass doors open.

"Gone? She can't be. I still feel the connection with her. She is alive." He reaches for her but she steps back and turns to the control panel.

The Queen blocks his path. "Be the good soldier, I know you are." She exhales a mist into his face.

He looks into her eyes and inhales her minty breath.

She pecks his cheek and pushes him through the portal. He reaches for the door but it closes. The portal radiates metallic green colors. A flash of red consumes the green. The red surrenders to the folding blue color.

The lights flicker out. A second later secondary lights come on. The portal opens again to blue folding clouds. The Queen looks back, "Sara, come with me. We can survive together."

She shakes her head. "I could have gone if the portal was powered by the ship's energy. Now that it is on backup power I have to stay here to make sure the temporal wave is steady or you could end up anywhere in time."

She wipes the salty water from face and forces a smile. "Queen Elsa, It is up to the two of you to change our future. If either of you fail, I will see you and mom," her voice wavers and she glances away. Her vision blurs, "And dad on the other side of the river. You have five seconds."

Elsa hugs her and gives her a peck on her cheek. She steps to the portal and the back of her hand sweeps across her eyes. "Let's change the future." She steps through the portal and the glass doors close. The blue transforms to the metallic green and a momentary red flash.

The ship jumps violently under her feet, throwing her to the deck. The lights blink out. An orange glow fills the room as the deck overhead sags from the intense heat. Saracat's holds the pendent of Ladycat and Admiral Ryan. A drop of water splashes on the pendent. In the moisture the reflection of the portal doors open and beckons her.

The clock chimes six o'clock. December 31, 2043 glows in red letters below the time. He stands at the window of the forty-third floor of an office building in New York City. Samuel Ryan watches an airship's light descend behind the distant buildings. Several minutes later the night returns. Without moonlight the stars appear brighter. The lights in the Federal re-education building across town are the last to go out. He shakes his head. Soon another sixty to one hundred Federal personnel will be the only one's roaming the dark streets below. He expects forty or fifty Federal guest to arrive within the half hour. This building is only one of a few buildings permitted to stay open at night. They believe they are his friends, if only they knew he uses them more than they use him.

The lights in the room dim to signal the alcohol bar is open. Behind him a banquet area with tables covered in fine white cloth and place settings wait for forty government officials. This year they are celebrating their conquest of removing a record number of undesirables. Highly polished and brain washed personnel from the government's education centers occupy most of the seats. They laugh and tell stories of their politically correct treatment of the undesirables. A few show off the metals. Their reward for becoming an expert at killing. A few of the older ones eagerly points out their metal with six stars across the top. Six hundred life time kill. They are so proud of their killing.

The entrance door opens. Two Captains and a Colonel enter followed by their dozen or two entourage. Of course, all the lower ranked personnel stand and greet the group. The door opens again and ten armed guards enter. They stand at strategic positions around the room. Their presence signal the City's Federal Marshal will be arriving soon.

The door opens again. Four more guards enter followed by an individual with a young female on each arm. This rooster struts around the chicken yard. Even the two Captains and the Colonel stand to greet him as he moves to the head of the table. One of the four guards moves to the door. She tucks a lock of reddish hair back under the military helmet and exits the room.

All pat each other's back for surviving another year. The loudest noise comes from those gathered at the bar stocked with the expensive alcohol. This is one of three times during a year when the federals are permitted to drink alcohol on duty provided they go home afterwards. The kitchen staff brings out steaming vegetables and hot rolls. Soon the fragrance of hickory smoke steaks will fill the room. Sam calculates how many people did not get their food allowance so these pompous thieves could get their steaks.

His vision blurs as a white light stabs into his mind. A rainbow of colors assaults his senses. He hears nothing, not even his own heartbeat. A blanket of silence covers his senses. The room and the occupants disappear. His nose detects the delicate fragrance of tropical flavors. His mouth salivates with the sweet flavor of coconut. The darkness consumes all around him. It saps his strength. He leans his head against the cold window and closes his eyes.

A comforting hand slides inside of his arm. She leans her head against his shoulder. His eyes open as the last of the rainbow colors fade. One by one his hyper senses return. In the dark sky his eyes spot a green star as it flashes its red belly at him. For a moment he sees his ship. The star rotates its red belly away and hides in the dark background of space, but his acute eyesight follows it.

A slow moving airship illuminates its spotlight on the street below. He is sure they spotted a disobedient citizen past curfew. A radio crackles to life from the guard by the door. He doesn't hear the exact conversation, but by the happy response of the government officials in the dining area, the city police has picked up another undesirable.

"I guess I'm going in to work tonight." He searches the city beyond the window. His hand grabs his chest as a vision of his ship explodes. A sharp pain strikes at his heart.

She lightly touches the thumb side of his wrist. "What's going on? Your heart is racing." He blinks and squeezes the excess water out of his eyes. She asks again, "What is wrong?"

With the saltiness at the corners of his trembling lips, he whisper, "I can't feel her. They're both gone. My connection to my family has been broken." The color in his other hand changes white from gripping the window seal. His eyes drift up to the heavens and spots the green star fading into the darkness. His senses cannot detect it. His voice quivers, "Oh my God, the green dragon took them. My Cats are gone."

Krystal slides her arm around his waist as she pushes him against the window seal to hold him up. "It happened with the temporal flux just a minute ago, didn't it?" He nods. "I'm so sorry, Admiral."

A reflection moving in the window draws her attention. "You have to get yourself under control. That idiot guard is coming this way. Do not give them an excuse. You are alive and I will help you. Play their stupid game a little while longer then we can leave here."

He rubs his eyes. His hand sweeps down his face and takes a deep breath. He knows Krystal is correct. His body tenses. Just a short time longer. Soon they will see the monster in him. He moves away from the window to a standing position and hides his emotions behind an expressionless mask. Krystal squeezes his arms and rubs his hand.

The guard approaches. "Excuse me, Admiral. I have been notified you have an appointment with a client at the police headquarters. A car is waiting for you downstairs."

"Is that what they called it, an appointment with a client?" His bitterness stares at the guard's reflection in the window. Nausea rises in the back of his throat. He turns his head slightly towards the guard. "Did the client have a choice or did your buddies break his arm to get him to volunteer to come in to the appointment?" A question he already knew the answer but he had to get the vile taste out of his mouth.

"Admiral," Krystal warns.

"Let's stop playing games. The government wants me to extract the life out of a poor soul, because he complained they," pointing to the Federal Marshal sitting at the head table, "were gluttonous while his family starves."

The Colonel and several party revelers look in his direction. The Colonel motions for the one talking to him to stop as he stares directly into Samuel's eyes from across the room. The Marshal maintains his back to him as the Federal chickens give their adulations and kiss the ring of the tyrant.

He glares back at the Colonel. "I can't wait to receive the order to rip your mind apart."

Krystal digs her fingernails into the inside of his arm. "Sir, they can hear you."

He raises his voice. "Good, let the vultures hear."

He turns his head and his bare right hand snaps to a few centimeters next to the guard's face. "Have you ever seen what is left after I forcibly extract information for someone?"

Despite the training the guard's eyes widen and he exposes a moment of fear. He backs away shaking his head. His finger fumbles to slide into the trigger guard and his thumb applies pressure to release the assault rifle's safety.

Krystal pulls his hand down. "Sir, he is only doing his job. Go downtown. Do what you have to do and come back here." She slips his teal color glove back onto his hand and whispers, "Please keep your gloves on. The snowflake is visible on the back of your hand."

"I know. I am the only one so there cannot be another like me." He continues to stare at the guard. "Would he be just as eager to pull the trigger if I denounced the government?"

"Please stop talking like that. You keep pushing the limits and the moment they think they don't need you they will push back."

He walks to the chair and slips his coat on. Krystal adjusts his coat and presses his collar down. His only friend in this twisted world touches the corners of his eyes before the tears escape. "She is gone. All that is left for me is to join them."

"Sir, I know it is hard for you right now. Let us get through the evening and we'll talk when you get back. Please do not do anything you will regret."

He kisses her forehead and turns to the guard as he points to the door. "Lead the way before I relieve my desire to throw someone out the window."

The guard leads the way. Sam stops by the door and glances back to her. "To receive a great reward one must be willing to chance a great risk. I suspect I will be finished in less than an hour. They're not going to let the driver pick me up before that hour is up. I'll be walking home."

She nods to him.

Thirty minutes later the government car stops in front of the newest fortified police center, Central Park Headquarters. Heavily armed guards and two not so heavily armed officers stand behind the blast proof doors and windows. "So much for the 'Let's look like we are the friendliest people'".

The two guards stare at the vehicle. One of them speaks into their headset. A second later the car door unlocks. He doesn't wait for the officer at the entrance. He steps out of the car and carries both gloves in one hand. The two guards give him a wide birth. Both watch his hands. Two officers escort him into the building. No one crosses his path. They automatically glance at his hands and scurry into any available room. The bland hallways designed to confuse any escaping prisoners only presents a mental challenge for him.

They walk down seven corridors, of which two they walk down twice. The two officers stop and two different officers take over leading him down more corridors. A tall, muscular officer with blonde hair walks towards him. The officer glances down at Sam's hands and quickens his steps to duck into a room.

"Was that officer wearing a _Krigskorset med Sverd_ from Norway?" Neither of his two escorts answer him as they continue walking. He stops in front of the door the blonde hair officer entered and places his hand on the door knob.

"Sir, we need to continue. They are waiting for you."

He snaps his head towards the officer speaking and holds up one finger. "Am I under arrest?"

The officer steps back quickly. "No, sir, but they are expecting you."

He hears a joyful squeak behind the door. "They can wait. I am quite sure they will not start without me." He opens the door and steps in.

The blonde officer holds a female officer in an embrace with her shoes dangling above the floor. He drops her to her feet quickly. They both face him and render a salute.

He glances at both of them and returns their salute. He speaks to them in Norwegian. "You are a long way from home. What is your name and why are you in this country?"

"Sir, I am Lieutenant Christoph Bjorgmen of the Hans Majestet Kongens Garde. I am here to observe the tactics used by your government to maintain peace in this beautiful city."

His head turns towards the female. "Your name?"

"My name is Lieutenant Anna Aren, I am assigned to the Field Marshals protection guards."

"You escorted the Marshal to my restaurant on the forty third floor, earlier."

"Yes sir, I did."

He glances over his shoulder. "You two can wait outside and close the door."

The escort officers hesitate, but they depart the room and close the door.

Her strawberry blonde hair stirs images in his mind that are more like echoes of events long past or maybe in another timeline. "Lieutenant Aren, by chance do you have Norwegian ancestry?"

Her eyes drop and with the slightest movement of her head they dart towards Christoph then she stares at the floor. "Yes sir, you are correct. My grandparents arrived here in 1913, before the European world war."

He sees a blood vessel in her neck beating rapidly. "Are you related to the Arendelle Castle?" _Why did I ask that? How do I know Arendelle?_

She draws her lips tight and takes a deep breath. A bead of sweat forms at her hairline. "Arendelle . . ." she swallows hard, "is my ancestral home."

He looks to Christoph. "Do you know where the Arendelle Castle is located?"

Christoph's shoulders slump. "Yes sir, I do?"

"Where?"

Christoph swallows hard. "On the south east coast of Norway near the city of Arundal."

His eyes slowly move back and forth between them. "My mind sees a castle on an island in the middle of a fjord." He shakes his head and glances at the desk. "I do not believe I have ever visited Norway. Are you going to visit Arendelle?"

They look at each other and Anna replies. "I was going to take a week's vacation and visit Christoph's family, but this morning I was told it had been revoked. I had already bought the tickets. I don't know if I can get my money back." She points to the desk.

He picks up the tickets and a letter falls out. The letter has the Field Marshal's stamp. He contemplates his action, then opens the door. "Don't stand there. Get me a travel request form before I blame you for my delay."

He closes the door and places the palm of his hand against the door frame. "I will get your vacation time, but I need you to do me a small favor?"

Anna and Christoph smile at each other and they say together, "Okay."

"The moment I leave this office." He pulls a form from his jacket and writes. "You will go to the International Air Terminal port eighteen and show the ticket agent this letter. If anyone takes this letter from you, tell them I have left my mark on the letter and I will know that it is not in your possession. I will sign a warrant for their arrest to be shot on sight." He folds the letter and hands it to Christoph.

"I have one more request. Do either of you have family here." Both shake their heads. "Good it will be easier on you. When you get to your destination do not and I repeat, do not come back. Two days from now I will sign an arrest warrant for the both of you for taking my pen. Please do not come back."

Anna steps forward and hugs him. "Thank you."

A knock sounds behind him. Anna steps away from him and stands at attention. He opens the door. A Major holds up the vacation request form. He snatches it out of the Major's hand and writes the name of Anna Aren and the duration of thirty days on the form.

The major comments. "Only the City Commandant can authorize thirty days of vacation."

Sam signs the form and hands it to Anna. "Are you arresting me?"

The Major shakes his head.

"What is my current military rank, Major?"

"Admiral," the Major snaps to attention.

"What is the rank of the Field Marshal, Major?"

"General, same rank as you, sir."

The left side of his lips angle upward. "You think so? What territory does the Field Marshal control?"

"New York, sir?"

The right side of his lips angle upward. "What area is under my jurisdiction?"

The Major glances to his partner. No doubt to remember who got him into this situation, but he answers. "Atlantic east coast?"

With a grin, "That's correct, along with the Gulf of Mexico states. What north eastern state falls under my Atlantic jurisdiction?"

"New York?"

"Correct again. So based on the information you have at hand, is the Field Marshal the same rank as myself?"

The Major quickly shakes his head. "No, sir, he does not."

"Very good, so do you think I have the authority to sign the vacation form and no one should question it?

"Yes sir, you do have the authority."

"Good," he steps to the door. The other officer sweating profusely stares at the wall. At both ends of the hall the local police and two heavily armed soldiers watch the scene. He steps into the hall. Everyone except the soldiers scurry out of sight. He glances at the name badge, "Major Dempsey, you are coming up for promotion, are you not?"

"Yes sir, I meet the board in two months."

"I believe you are a good soldier." He pivots to look back at Anna and Christoph. Another ghostly image of two individuals passes through his mind. The faces of the ghosts appear almost identical to these two except for their clothing is a century out of time. He pivots back to Major Dempsey.

"Major, I will do you a favor if you will do me a favor."

Major Dempsey quickly nods his head, "Anything, sir."

"I will recommend you for a promotion if you will escort Lieutenant Anna Aren to her apartment to obtain two travel bags. Escort Lieutenant Christoph Bjorgmen of the Hans Majestet Kongens Garde to his apartment to obtain two travel bags. Escort them to port eighteen at the International Air Terminal. You will escort them pass all check points. If anyone delays you or tries to interfere with you completing my instructions, you will notify me immediately and I will have them arrested. In one hour my plane will depart. They better be on it. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir, completely."

"When you get back, explain to the officer because he did not recognize me and caused this delay, it is a bad thing."

"I will gladly do so."

He turns to Anna. "You have less than one hour to get onto my plane. This kind Major, who I believe will get his promotion, will escort you to the International Air Terminal. I expect you to keep your promise to me."

"We will."

He continues down the hall. The armed soldier steps in line behind him.

City Commandant Bill, meets him in the hall outside of the viewing room. "Where have you been? They are waiting for you."

"Who is waiting for me, the two idiot Major and a Colonel pretending to be a Captain from Washington?" He pushes past Bill and enters the viewing room. "Gentlemen, so nice of you to be here. No doubt to watch me interrogate the criminal."

All three stare at him, but he watches the Captain. He looks through the one way window. The male client with an abrasion on his chin and bruising on the left side of his face sits on one of two chairs in the room and handcuffed to the table.

"Is that the number one terrorist or someone caught writing graffiti on the street about the government?"

The Commandant hands him a list of questions, "Get answers to these."

He grabs the paper. The Commandant yanks his hand away quickly. "I hear the Federal Marshal has plans to shuffle personnel. Is that right, Captain?"

He glances at the Captain standing between the two Majors. "You three were not invited to the Marshal's party. That is too bad." He reads the questions again. "Which of you baboons wrote these questions?"

No one answers. He nods to the client in the other room. "What is the truth about him? Should I rip the information out of him or use just enough persuasion."

"Just get the answers," Bill replies.

He steps to the Majors and stares at the Captain, "Which method do you prefer?"

The Captain does not answer. The closest Major replies, "Whichever method gets you the answers to all of the questions."

He purposefully looks at the two Majors with their hands in their coat pockets. He steps back to the door. "Since when are guests allowed to carry weapons in their pockets and with the safeties off?"

Bill nudges him out the door. "Sam, you know they are listening. Why do you tempt them with the noise you make? You continue to push and one day they will push back."

He stares at the Commandant for a moment, "I hear you. Whether or not they hear me, you can tell them. If they do not take me down with the first shot, I will do more than push back. Let me get this over with so I can leave early."

He steps into the interrogation room and drops the questions onto the table. The client does not move. He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a key. As he removes the cuffs, he touches the client's hand with a bare finger. The client looks up at him and nods once.

Sam picks up the questions and walks around the room without speaking. After ten minutes of silence, he places his hand on the back of the client's neck. "You have done well. For your family, it's time to sleep." The client lays his head on the table.

Sam walks out of the room and marches down the hall. The Commandant and a Major catch him by the front exit door.

"Sam, we need a briefing on your results," the Commandant says.

The Major asks, "What's your hurry, Admiral?"

He spins around and stands within two centimeters of the Major's face. "What's the hurry? Why did the Federal Marshal send the guard to be interrogated?"

He slams the paper into the Majors chest, forcing him to step back. The Major grabs for his arm and his eyes widen upon seeing he grabbed Sam's bare hand. The Major jerks his hand breaking the contact. Sam smiles at him. "A test, tell the Marshal he is not the only governmental department to pay for my services. This one just took me two months to complete."

The Major slowly steps back. Blood trails down his nose to his lip. He runs back up the hall.

The Commandant speaks, "What was that all about?"

"According to that Major, the Federal Marshal came here to verify the reports you have been sending to Washington. They are to place me in a location where they could keep a better eye on me."

"I told you they were listening."

He smiles at the Commandant. "Don't worry about me. You need to worry about yourself. The Colonel pretending to be a Captain is replacing you."

"You lie."

He slaps the gloves onto his hands. "We'll see who is still here in the morning." He glances at the clock above the door. A quarter after seven, barely thirty-five minutes, he walks out the door to the street.

 **End of Chapter**


	3. Chapter 2 Temporal Ribbon

**Chapter 2: TEMPORAL RIBBON**

 **223 year until correction**

Admiral Ryan walks past the two heavily armed guards and nods to the police officers hiding in their security booth. He stops at the edge of the road and slips his hands into his gloves. His eyes catch movement in the shadows of the buildings across the streets. No doubt the guards on the roof of the police fortress also saw the movement and are targeting it for elimination. With few locations in the city allowed to have lights on at night, the airships become invisible at night. The night-vision equipment allows the ships to see in the dark. Any unauthorized lights become beacons seen from miles away. If the movement across the street is human, a light from an airship will illuminate them for the sharpshooters. He searches the sky. Several stars blink out with the passing of an airship but no spotlight illuminates the movement. Two red eyes low to the ground shine as the animal stares at him. Even the animals know to stay out of the light. Lately, he has more compassion for the animals than the humans.

Not long ago, New York City night life had people shuffling from one night event to the next. The recent years have seen local and federal police arresting many individuals deemed deplorable citizens against the country. Very few people walk the nights. While a few, eating and entertainment businesses, are still open at night, most individuals will take the provided transportation or stay home. He grasps his hands behind his back and searches the stars. He detects the eyes of the two police officers upon him and partially closes his eyes. His mind focuses on them.

The female officer leans close to the male officer. "Take him over there. I have seen him walking around here and he is a head taller than most everyone here. Every time he does something that flexes his muscles the ladies giggle like a bunch of teenagers. They say he doesn't have an ounce of fat on him."

The male officer looks over his shoulder and snorts. "Chop him down to the same height as everyone else, takeaway his muscles and he is just another pretty face in the crowd." His head nods. "I bet I could take him. A gut punch and he's looking up at me for mercy."

"But look at the way he stands there, like he has all the confidence in the world. Even his clothes have sharp creases in it. Must have been ex-military."

"All the military personnel I know, don't wear all black long sleeve shirts and pants all the time. Those who did, were going on a special operations mission and they were heavily armed. He's not armed. If he is ex-military, he must have been behind a desk the whole time. Other than the green gloves I don't see any battle scars on him. He must be one of those boy geniuses. Maybe that's why he needs a bodyguard."

"I'd like to be his body guard every night," she comments flirtatiously.

The male officer turns his head back quickly and asks, "Have you seen his assistant? Now, there is someone I could take home to mama. She is one of those 'oh my god', drop dead gorgeous ladies with her blue eyes. She doesn't appear to have an ounce of fat on her either. I do recall when she first arrived here, she attracted unwanted attention at the station gym. Evidently, comments began to fly as her blonde ponytail swished when she moved. I never saw it myself, but every male in the gym, including a certain female lieutenant, stopped their workouts to watch her. I try to be in the gym along with all the other dogs when she goes there, but I have yet to see her working out. But still, she looks good in her red and black outfits. I bet if she stood on her toes, she might be able to see over his shoulders. But whatever you do, do not and I repeat, do not touch her. You remember seeing Officer Smith at the shift briefing?"

"Yeah, I bet he has brown eyes with his wavy black hair"

"I don't know about his eyes, but Officer Smith did not see his assistance's badge and stepped in front of her. Before I could tell him to stop, she broke his wrist, dragged his face down the wall, put her knee squarely into his back, and showed him her Federal badge. You should have been there. I thought she was going to make him eat it."

"Rookies, too bad I wasn't there. I need a good laugh."

"Yeah, Rookies are not the only ones who made the mistake. The mechanic for the police cruiser didn't think it was funny. He claims he accidentally brushed his greasy hand against her breast. After she broke his fingers, he picks up a wrench and swung it at her. She dropped, rolled, and planted her foot into his throat. While he lay on the ground gasping for air, she broke his hip bone and both upper legs."

Her face wrinkles as she puckers her lips. She smiles. "Sounds like someone I need to party with."

He rolls his eyes and points his thumb over his shoulder. "That guy over there, as far as anyone here knows, he is the only person she will speak to outside of business hours. The police chief gave explicit orders to leave her alone, not even to talk to her. She is a Federal agent and if anyone is stupid enough to get killed by her hands, their family will get a bill for their burial."

"Really, I figured she would have been reassigned for what she did to the mechanic. Don't they have a video to convict her?"

"They had the video. But from what I hear," pointing over his shoulder again, "when the police chief filed a complaint with the city attorney. The chief marched into the City Marshal's office, but his assistant was already there. A clerk in the adjacent office said they were not there five minutes when He walked in," motioning to Ryan. "The clerk said he and his assistance walked out of the office after a few minutes and nobody knows what happened to the video."

"I just notice something. It looks like a snowflake design on the back of his right glove and flames on the other. Why is he wearing gloves on such a warm night?"

"I don' think I have ever seen him not wearing them. Officer Jones said he takes them off just as he goes into the interrogation room and puts them on when he steps out of the room."

"You think he uses his gloves to beat a confession out of them?"

He snickers, "Whatever he does they keep calling him back to interrogate prisoners. He gets the information from them."

She points to the entrance door and gazes at Ryan. "If he puts them on when he leaves the room, why did he wait until he came out here to put them on?"

"Don't know. Maybe he had to intimidate someone before he came out."

"I hated it when the Federals moved in," shrugging her shoulders, she turns back to her post, "at least I'm getting paid for not liking them.

"I hear that." The male officer straightens his weapon belt and brushes dirt off his shirt. "I guess I better go over there and see if he needs a cab or something."

Sam blinks and continues to stare at the stars. A green shimmer distorts one star, then another.

The officer searches up and down the street. He stands next to Ryan and adjusts his belt as he looks at the sky. "What are you looking at?"

"Are you familiar with the archer constellation?"

"Archer?"

"The hunter, Orion constellation?"

The officer searches the sky. He points to Orion, "Right there, above that building."

"Do you see a distortion on the bottom star of Orion's belt?"

The officer stares. "You must have better eyesight than I do. They are twinkling like the others. Maybe a thin cloud is passing in front of it."

The shimmering green reveals its red under belly. "Any other time I would agree with your statement, but not this time." Ryan holds up his fist at the shimmer. "I see you. I will get my arrow and stab it into your heart."

The officer glances back at his partner and shrugs his shoulders. "May I call you a cab, Admiral?"

He lowers his fist and shakes his head. "I think I'll walk back to the office."

"Fifteen blocks is a long way at night. There has already been a shooting several blocks away. I'll gladly call a cab?"

He shakes his head again, "No thank you. I can take care of myself. I'm sure the city's police has clamped down on the hoodlums for the night. Please be safe. I'll see you next week."

The officer returns to the safety of the guard post as he walks up the street. In the distance an ambulance races in his direction.

A commotion stirs near the doors as an officer tells the two officers to let the ambulance crew into the building. He hears the officer say a Federal Captain has passed out in the lobby. Sam smiles to himself and keeps walking as the ambulance drives past him. The security cameras will follow him most of the way to his office building, except for the two blocks where the cameras were damaged by some unknown persons. As he walks past the third city block, he notes the object is still visible by Orion's belt. He does not have to scan the object. His whole body feels the energy radiating from the temporal ribbon.

Sam approaches the corner where the earlier shooting had occurred. Two chalked outlines show where the human bodies finally came to rest on the street. He glances at the partially dried pool of blood that ran down the street and the blood splatter a short distance from the outlines. He is sure these two were shot in the head at close range. He keeps walking as though everything was normal, but in his mind, he grows angry at the senseless killing. A fourth night in a row the police drew chalk outlines of people killed. He didn't have to read the police report to know it stated, 'An altercation with intoxicated citizens ended in an exchange of gunfire'. Usually a small caliber gun would be found in the victim's hands. The police was sending a clear message to the city's inhabitants, 'The police will shoot first and ask questions later'.

He continues past the next block and stops short as a large military truck pulls out of the alley between two buildings. The driver slows the truck enough to yell an obscenity at him. He reaches out with a bare hand and touches the truck as it passes. The quick scan reveals twelve bodies in the covered back and three bodies in the front cab of the vehicle. Two police officers down the alley remove their 'do not cross' barriers. He moves along the shadow of the building towards the officers.

The recent crackdown on the night life has left the streets cleaner, but the smell of rotting food still lingers in this alley, not even the occasional rodent trespasses during the night. He continues walking and glass crunches under his feet

One officer calls out to him. "What are you doing here, criminal? Leave before you get your head splattered all over the alley."

He continues towards them.

"Are you deaf?" the officer draws his weapon.

Sam steps out of the shadow and stands under a street light. The officer waves his gun at him. "Put your hands up where I can see them."

The second officer's eyes widen as he backs away from his partner. "Lenny, put the gun away before he takes it away from you."

Lenny smiles, "I would like to see him try." A gust of wind brushes by his face and a loud metal on metal sound echoes in the alley. Lenny barely squeaks a sound as he stares at his deformed hand minus the gun.

He stands next to Lenny, "You should have listened to your partner."

The second officer speaks. "Sir, he does not know who you are. This is only his first week on the job."

Sam glances past Lenny. "You know if he had pulled the trigger, I would have to draw a chalk outline for both of your bodies."

The officer steps behind his partner and nudges him to move towards the street. "I know, sir. I will take personal responsibility to make sure Lenny never does this again."

He grabs the officer's hand. "Wait. You two will stand here for fifteen minutes. If someone other than myself sees you, you will wake up. You will not remember me being here. Your partner fell and injured his hand. Before I leave you will tell me why there were twelve bodies on the military truck." He lets go of them.

Lenny speaks first, "We received a call about kids interfering with the Federal Marshal's vehicle returning to his office. When we got here a soldier told me the Marshal's vehicle had to stop because a child ran into the street to get his ball. The Marshal handed his driver some fruit to lure the children into the alley. The driver tossed the fruit into the air. Two soldiers shot the twelve kids."

The other officer speaks, "We were told to report criminals shot the children and the soldiers saw two criminals run out of the alley when they approached."

Pressure builds in his head from the anger to exact revenge against the soldiers, but they were following the Marshal's orders which explains his late arrival. "No doubt the morning news will show a sketch of the criminals. Another excuse to kill a political prisoner they just happen to catch."

He walks back to the street and continues towards his office building. He is sure some security camera saw him enter and exit the alley. He cannot stop thinking about those children's deaths because of a ball. History has demonstrated repeatedly when a government sees its citizens as an enemy, that nation soon falls into the trash heap of time.

He maintains a casual pace and scans the area for anyone who may wish to send him a message. At the next corner he stops and pretends to look around so multiple cameras can see him enter the two blocks with no camera coverage.

In an alley in the next block, he detects thermal waves rising from a vehicle's hood. He scans again and detects only people in the surrounding buildings. Prepared for an attack, he slowly walks towards the alley of the parked vehicle. As he gets closer he sees the Federal government emblem on the dark blue vehicle's door. He scans the closest building. If it is a raid on some poor individual, there should be two or more vehicles in a raid. With only one vehicle, he considers it is a new tactic to catch people unaware until it is too late. He picks up his pace to pass the alley when the driver's side rear door opens. His senses tell him he knows the passenger, but he stands in front of the vehicle. The driver's door opens.

Sam recognizes his former security chief, George. Before the Federals took over the Ryan Industries, George was very youthful and muscular. The past year cancer has eaten away George's life. He appears thin and brittle. Even his dark skin has turned a slight ash gray. Since the Federals took over the local medical university, their ninety percent success rate with the type of cancer George has, has dropped to near zero. The Federals took the best for themselves and their elitist friends leaving very little for the rest of the country or George. Sam walks around the vehicle and greets him.

"So this is what you do, drive Federal agents around town."

George motions the Admiral to stop talking and to get into the car. Sam slides into the back seat. George closes the door and slides into the driver seat. He starts the vehicle's motor and steers the car onto the main street. With no traffic to impede them, they make good time driving onto the Interstate road.

Sam notes the direction the vehicle travels and asks. "Krystal, where are we going?"

"Not to your office", she replies with a slight glint to her smile. "Your comments against the City's Federal Marshal did not go un-noticed. He was flustered enough to walk out of the diner."

Sam raises his left eyebrow slightly, "What orders did they give you?"

"Follow you and report back any pertinent information that could convict you in Federal court." Krystal's grins as she turns toward him.

"They do know you work for me, right?"

"Yes, the original order is to watch you. Unless they ask questions, I don't report what they are asking for."

He reaches over and lightly squeezes her hand, "so where are we going?"

"You had asked me to search for any land property you previously or currently owned that could hold a couple of large aircraft in this area. I found three." Krystal opens an electronic tablet and hands it to him. "The property on our first stop is one street up from the abandoned waterfront apartments. The other two are further out in the country. One has a large hangar at a small commuter airport. The third property, which you still own and pay taxes, is the closed parts factory. The Federals cleaned that place out when they cracked down on the insurrectionist. They even sent you a bill."

"They were not insurrectionists," he shoots back as he folds his hands in his lap. "They were not armed. I told the Federal police there would be no problems if I was with them." His head snaps towards her. "Do you know when they called?"

She shakes her head.

"Right after the Production Forman called, saying someone crashed the gates and were shooting at the workers. The Federal idiot I was talking to said it must be a mistake, because they were leaving, just now. Do you know what I found when I got there?"

"I read their report; 23 dead, 65 injured. 17 of the 23 dead were classified as armed insurrectionists. The rest were detained until they could be cleared of participating in the firefight."

The muscles in his face tense as he clenches and releases his hands, "One side firing weapons is not a firefight. It was an execution. The others were considered acceptable collateral damage."

"I know, sir. At least the others were freed after a couple of weeks."

He snaps at her, "Did you see their faces when they left the factory?"

"No, sir."

His anger builds to the point it has to be released, but not against Krystal and George. He takes her hand. The energy between them glows a white and gradually changes to a blue tint around their hands. Her energy calms him. He lightly traces the back of her hand with his fingers. Out the window in the mostly dark city one airship floats, probably watching them.

He shakes his head and takes a deep breath. As he exhales a cold mist brushes against the window. Tiny droplets of water form on the outside and group together to slide off the glass.

"I saw the fear in their eyes. The Federal troops pushed and shoved the workers with their weapons, threatening to shoot those who fell to the ground. They left the dead bodies lined up next to the fence for three days before removing them. Everyone who drove by, saw the bodies. News cameras from across the country and the world were allowed to take pictures."

He watches their hands. The glow dissipates and he squeezes her hand. "What do you think they were trying to say to the world?"

She stares at him.

"We mean business. Get in our way, you die." He focuses on the tablet. "You say they cleared out the factory?"

She frees her hand and wipes the corner of her eye, "Yes, they went over everything. If they could remove it, they took it. Every scrap of paper was removed. They brought X-ray machines to scan the floors, walls, parking lot, and the grounds. Whatever they were looking for, I do not think they found it."

Sam now smiles, "Tell George to go to the factory. Maybe I can find what they missed."

"And what did they miss?"

"I don't know. If I find it, I'm sure the Federal Marshal will be close by."

Krystal taps George's shoulder, "Drive to Admiral Ryan's factory past the commuter airport. We need to get there in a hurry."

George increases the vehicle's speed. "Yes, ma'am, but you might wish to turn on the network channel." He taps his ear piece. "They are looking for the Admiral."

Krystal takes the tablet and taps a couple of icons. The video shows the Admiral standing on a street corner looking at the surrounding buildings. The video zooms in just as he crosses into the dead zone, but the camera loses track of him. Videos flashes to other cameras but none show the Admiral leaving the zone. A voice demands to know the Admiral's location.

Admiral Ryan grins. "Now it gets interesting."

George interrupts, "Headquarters is calling us. What do you want me to say to them?"

He speaks before Krystal can reply. "Tell them the truth. You are taking Admiral Ryan for a ride in the country at his request."

George relays the message. A moment later, he hears someone yelling on the other end.

He taps the tablet and asks, "Can you get the City Commandant on this?"

She replies, "I'll try?"

He leans forward and speaks to George, "tell the idiot on the other end, you are hanging up, and I'm calling the Commandant."

George disconnects the communication link without relaying the message while the person on the other end was still yelling.

"That works just as well."

While Krystal adjusts the tablet for the correct frequency, a news report flashes on the tablet, "A terrorist's bomb kills 98 people at a diplomatic party. The bomb destroyed an old castle located on an island in the middle of a bay."

She changes the channel. "It's ringing to the Commandant's office."

Admiral Ryan points to the tablet. "Hang up. Go back to the bombing. Where was that castle?"

She adjusts the tablet to replay the News report. A news anchor repeats, "A terrorist's bomb kills 98 people at a diplomatic party. The bomb destroyed an old castle located on an island in the middle of a bay, 30 kilometers southwest of Arundel Norway. No one has claimed responsibility for the bombing. The castle is believed to have been built in the late 1600s. The last remaining monarch to join the nation of Norway was Queen Elisabeth of Arendelle. Rescuers saved a few historical artifacts, including a partially burned painting of the young Queen. The painting is believed to have been painted 10 years after her coronation. The fire destroyed the painting where a gentleman stood behind the young Queen. There are no records of the gentleman so he is lost in history. A sad note though, Queen Elisabeth was assassinated by a German assassin in 1913, who yelled before the police shot him, 'Death to the ice witch and her family'."

He takes the tablet and freezes the video on the painting. Staring, he traces the picture with his gloved hand.

Krystal comments, "You have the same style of glove as the person behind her."

He whispers, "Elsa, my friend, what happened." He hands the tablet back to Krystal and stares out the window as he slowly shakes his head. "I guess I need to go further back." With a hard swallow, he says, "Call that idiot Commandant."

She hands the tablet to him, "Admiral, the Commandant is online."

An image of the City Commandant, appears on the tablet and he speaks first, "Admiral, we were concerned something happened to you. Where are you?"

His teeth clenches as he glares at the Commandant for a second. "Am I under arrest?"

The Commandant rolls his eyes, "Admiral, do we have a reason to arrest you?"

He suspects there is a federal agent just out of sight of the camera with the Commandant. It would take too long to reach his mind. "If I can't take a leisurely ride out of the city to get a breath of fresh air, you can find someone else to do your interrogation sessions. I need a break."

"Admiral . . . Christopher . . . we can come to an arrangement that will let you travel for a short time if you need it. Tell us where you are and I'll send a helicopter to pick you up." Just then the tablet goes blank and begins to smoke.

The car window lowers and the tablet flies out. He glances at Krystal, "I'll get you a better one."

She gives him a slight smile, "Now what?"

He forces a smile. "Now the fun begins."

He holds her hand and watches the dreariness of steel and concrete race past the car's window. A thunderstorm unleashes a downpour of rain obscuring the road. George slows the vehicle, but after almost twenty minutes the rain lightens to a shower and George increases the vehicle speed.

"Must have been a cold front passing through. The temperature has dropped," Krystal says.

Sam slides next to her placing his arm around her. She lays her head against his shoulder. In silence they watch the suburban transform into what should be the lush greenery of the countryside. A few trees stand guard alongside the road. A burned out hull of a military vehicle still sits where rebels attacked it more than two years earlier. Breaks in the clouds allow a few stars to watch him. He feels a pull on his heart and mind. He knows it beckons him.

After a short time, Ryan Industries looms into view. A five story building dominates the property. The bottom three floors, a mile long and a half mile wide, contained the production equipment. Very few windows in the building remain intact. One of the large doors of a nearby hanger riddled with bullet holes lays on the ground. Even the fence surrounding the property shows signs of intruder entries.

"Stop at the cargo gate and let me out. The metal in the building will hide the vehicle's electrical signature."

George pulls up to the gate and the rear door opens. Sam walks quickly to the gate. It takes him a little longer than he wanted, but he gets the rusted lock to open. He pushes to get the gate partially open, when the car's rear door opens. Krystal runs towards him.

George yells out the window. "The car sensor is detecting a targeting radar signal. They may have already found us. Close the gate. I'll lead them away as far as I can."

Sam runs to the driver's door and holds out his hand. George looks at him for a moment, then shakes his hand. Neither had to say anything. They both understood. George backs the vehicle onto the road and speeds away. He closes the gate and places the lock in the exact position he found it.

Krystal grabs his hand and they run to the factory. The door easily opens and they hurry into the building. She starts to speak, but he motions her to stop. He pulls her under the metal stairs and they wait in silence. A familiar rhythmic thudding of an aircraft's blade chopping the air begins to grow in intensity. As the aircraft passes over the factory, a brilliant light shines through the windows and gaps in the roof. The light lasts a few seconds before it trails down the road.

He peeks out the door window. In the distant headlights move down the road they traveled. His eyes close.

"Six armor and two civilian vehicles are traveling down the road. I'm sensing two attack choppers. They will be here before the vehicles arrive. If they think we are here, they will do their usual tactics. The choppers will spray this building with high explosives and let it burn. Whatever is still standing the troops will enter with armor support." He opens his eyes.

Krystal snickers, "You weren't kidding when you said, 'Now the fun begins'."

He turns to her, "Did I mention we could get hurt." A thunderous noise sounds in the distant. He glances out the window for a moment and continues with a somber voice, "They killed George. A missile from the aircraft that flew overhead hit the vehicle. I guess they have no further need of my service."

He opens the door. "It's time for you to go. Wait by the gate and make it appear I hit you. May be they will let you live."

Krystal's stomps the floor as her body tenses. "Why don't WE go stand by the gate? I'll tell them the driver abandoned us here. Look around . . . ," she motions with her hands. Her shoulders rounds. Her head drops forward. A dark spot on the floor between her shoes.

"There is nothing here that the Federals did not get." Two glistening streaks from the corner of her eyes to her chin reflect the outside lights. "We can get through this again. What is here that you would die for?" Her chin quivers.

He takes her into his arms as she lays her head against his chest, "Krystal, this is not the proper timeline. This should not be. I had another vision where I saw myself pointing to the factory floor, but this one was slightly different from the others. My body sank into the floor. I don't know if there is anything in or under the floor, but I have to find out before it is totally destroyed."

Sam moves his hand without the glove towards her face. He takes her tear and rubs it between his fingers until it disappears. His fingers lightly stroke her cheek. Her hand shoots up and with all of her strength she pushes against his hand. With moisture filled eyes she pleads. "Admiral don't. We will do this together. I can help you."

The strength in his hand decreases as his heart bends to her pleas. "They see you with me they will kill you on sight."

"And if my death gives you a few more minutes to find what they missed, it will be worth it."

His hand lowers to her side. "I do not know if you will survive where I must go."

"You are wasting time. What are you looking for?"

They step out onto the production floor. He closes his eyes for a moment and opens them. Everything has a blue tint. He searches everywhere and everything, especially for something that does not belong. The Federal teams are methodical in their searches. If they believed there was something here, the floor would have been ripped up, or they believed they had found everything they were searching. He knows time is running out. His vision follows every seam and every crack in the floor. Quickly, a pattern begins to form, but it is incomplete.

Krystal holds a gun and follows close to him.

He needs to get up higher. At the end he finds the only remaining stairs leading up to the upper floors and the office areas. He runs up the dilapidated stairs to the second level and searches the production floor. The lines on the floor still do not appear definitive. Up to the third level and this time he recognizes the outline of his spacecraft on the factory floor. A light from an overhead aircraft illuminates the floor.

Krystal stands at the foot of the stairs as she points her gun at the aircraft. Time is up, but he continues searching until he follows two lines from his ship's outline to a utility door at the bottom of the stairs. Over the rail he jumps, landing on his feet with a thud a few steps from Krystal. It does not take much effort for him to pry the rusted door off its hinges. The lines lead to a circle in the center of a utility closet. Scratch marks mar the floor and walls where the Federals used their portable X-ray machines.

Krystal standing behind him, grabs his shoulder as they hear the clicking noise of the attacking chopper releasing a missile.

"Follow me," He yells as he slams his fist expelling a burst of blue energy into the circle on the floor. The floor gives way in front of him just as a missile explodes, throwing Krystal and him into the hole where they crash onto a large container, two floors below. Both moan from the sudden stop.

Krystal crawls to him and helps him to his feet. His blue vision penetrates through the dust. At the end of the platform where they landed, a set of stairs lead down into the darkness. On the second level down the stairs creak. As they start down to the third level a loud snap and a bang echoes in the dark. The stairs shift to one side and drops. He grabs Krystal and holds her tight to his chest. They crash onto a wooden crate two flights down.

They gasp to catch their breath. A light shines through the hole above them. Federals comment about the noise on the stairs falling. He rolls Krystal off of him and they struggle to get their feet onto the floor. Deeper into the darkness they move, then his vision spots his ship looming in front of them.

They lean on each other and hobble across the floor. A metallic object clangs against the stairs and bounces on the floor. Krystal pushes him to move faster. The metal object rolls to a stop behind them. An explosion slams them to the ground.

The concussion from the explosion continues to ring in his ears. The dust temporarily obscures the opening in the ceiling. A saltiness stings the corner of his lips. Through his blue vision a body lies a couple of feet behind him. Crawling to her he brushes blood soaked hair from her face. Another metal object falls through the hole. He throws himself between her body and the object. His hand sweeps over them. Layers of air compress together around them. The object explodes half way down spraying the area with shrapnel. A few of the smallest shrapnel passes through the barrier.

He slides her arm around his neck and wraps his arm around her side as he lifts her from the floor. A sharp pain burns in his calf as he struggles to reach the ship. His bloody hand slaps against his ship's hull and a small blue light flickers. Behind them soldiers lower ropes into the hole. The roof creaks and groans. A hull panel opens expelling a puff of air. The panel slides open and a ramp extends to the floor. Another interior, blue light illuminates at the top of the ramp. A rumble in the roof follows with several loud snaps like mini explosions. Parts of the roof fall to the floor. The attack chopper's light fills the hole, but does not spot his ship.

He wills his body to move up the ramp. The familiarization of his ship returns to his mind. His hands slap the wall and the panel closes behind them. Another overhead explosion rocks the ship. He does not have time to carry Krystal into the Medical room if they are to survive. These humans have lethal weapons that could destroy his ship. He carries her to the command deck and straps her into the co-pilot's seat. Fresh blood oozes down her face. He straps into the pilot seat as he touches the control panel. Several lights and displays flicker. The power cells barely have enough energy to lift the ship off the ground. It will not be enough for where he intends to go. The ship rocks from a thump on the hull. More lights fill the room. With his hand against the ship's frame, he detects a large section of the roof laying against the ship. Enough light fills the room for him to see the soldiers preparing to launch rocket grenades at him.

A drop of his blood glistens on the ship's frame. The engine status indicator begins to rise with a surge of energy. His fingers slide across the controls and the engines come to life. A soldier drops to his knee and fires his weapon. Bullets ricochet and spark tiny lights on the nose of the ship. He holds up his hand and points. An energy wave slams all of the soldiers against the far wall. Two soldiers climbing down the rope fall to the floor.

His vision changes back to normal. He slides the engine controls to maximum. Dust and dirt fly away from the ship as it struggles to lift off the floor. Debris slides down the hull. The ship lifts through the hole causing the rest of the building's floor to collapse. Soldiers fire their weapons. Bullets ricochet off the hull. A tip of the hull pierces through the building upper floors causing the building to crash into itself and onto the soldiers not able to escape.

An armored vehicle on the street rotates its missile launcher and fires an anti-air missile. A smoke trail from the vehicle trails to his ship where the missile skips off the ship's hull and hits one of the attack choppers. It falls to the ground exploding into a large fire ball. The second chopper circles around for an attack and fires its missile. One of the ship's engines takes most of the damage. The control panel alarms as that engine loses power.

With one engine the ship can still reach orbit, but the assent is slow. The constant maneuvering slows the assent more, but the ship evades other missiles. The attack chopper maneuvers around for another attack, then breaks off its pursuit.

He knows they will not give up. From the eastern horizon two aircraft approach rapidly. Those aircraft have larger missiles that can cripple his ship as it strains to continue the upward movement. He will have to wait until the aircraft are closer before he tries to take them out. At the distance and speed they are traveling, the ship will not be able to move out of their missile range. Any maneuvering to escape the missiles may prevent him from reaching orbit.

A smoke trail from each aircraft races towards him. He pulls the nose of the ship straight up to travel the shortest distance to orbit, but the maneuver slows the ship's assent. The maneuver gives him a better view of the incoming missiles.

He places the palm of his hand on the side window and concentrates. The first missile deviates from its course for a few seconds. It corrects itself back towards him. An arc flashes out the window. The missile trails off course and explodes. A few seconds later the second missile explodes. Both aircraft change course away from him.

Above the forward window, the blue sky gives way to the blackness of space. He takes the moment to determine if Krystal is still with him. Not detecting a pulse in her arm, he finds a weak pulse in her neck. He needs to get to a safe place to heal her.

A shadow passes over the window. He leans forward. Instinctively, he rolls the ship off the collision course and around the orbiting space station. He hopes no one saw him passing close, but the station fires its stabilizing thrusters to reveal someone is awake at the controls. The shimmering green dragon beckons him as he maneuvers his ship towards the edge of the new moon. Above the Earth's horizon, the solar sails of an orbiting satellite reflects the rainbow colors of sunlight. He focuses on the large satellite with its outer doors opened.

"So much for telling the other nations they did not have weapons in space." He comments to the satellite.

A light blinks on the satellite followed by an orange and red glow. He does not have to scan the object to know the satellite fired a large missile. It will not miss. Its nuclear warhead just has to get close to him.

He turns back to Krystal. They have been in many tough spots which could have gotten them both killed, but this time she may be correct that he will not succeed.

A flash comes from the moon's surface. A quick calculation tells him the moon's missile will hit his ship well before he can reach the dragon. Now he has no choice. With only one engine at max power, he places his still bloody hand on the ship's metal frame. Concentrating, the engine's energy indicator moves pass the maximum safe limits and continues to rise. Alarms on the control panel flash. The ship's computer tries to throttle back the engine's thrust, but he over-rides it. A vibration begins to shake the ship, but he does not relent. A little bit longer and the ship will pass through the dragon's mouth before the missiles hit, but it is not to be. A flash of brilliant light fills the flight deck. Several seconds later a shock wave slams the ship just as the dragon swallows it.

The small ship rolls erratically as though it was trying to toss the pilot out of his seat. The Sun flashes through the side window. A second later the sun flashes through the front window. His ship tumbles in space. If he cannot get the ship under control and it falls back into the atmosphere, the ship will disintegrate in a quick death, but for Krystal, he will not give up.

Sparks explode from every control panel and one by one the panels go dark. While holding onto his seat with one hand, he tries every panel within reach, but the ship continues to tumble. The Earth flashes through the front and side windows. Once again time is running out. With his free hand, he feels under the control panel until he finds the release mechanism. The panel pops open striking his chin. He holds the panel and searches the internal circuitry for any damage. The safety breakers had done their job. The shower of sparks was the results of the breaker shunting the excess energy to the ship's metal hull. He resets the breakers and the panel comes to life. He latches the panel closed. The engines do not respond to his commands. With only four of twelve thrusters still working, he still has a chance. Slowly the ship's tumbling, comes to a stop, but unfortunately the Earth fills the front and side windows. Still adjusting the thrusters the Earth's horizon slowly drops into the front window. But each time he makes another adjustment, the horizon drifts up. If he is too close to the atmosphere, the ship could take a nose dive and they would burn up.

He touches Krystal's neck. Even in his hyper state he barely detects her heart beat. He needs to stabilize the ship in orbit or land it as quickly as possible. By now the Federals should have his ship targeted or at least know where he is. He doubts they will come to rescue them, but try to take his ship.

The ship lurches and makes the decision for him. Flashes of red and orange meteors pass the side windows. A ball of fire engulfs the front of his ship. His minutes to live have now become seconds. Now that they are in the atmosphere, he holds both hands towards the front window. His eyes close for several seconds, then opens. The ball of fire flickers in his blue vision. He pushes the flames off the ship's hull, but the atmosphere fights back. The changing density of the atmosphere buffers the ship. His knee locks under the control panel. His foot push against the deck holding him in place. The ship rolls a couple of times before the flames finally disappear. He sits back into the seat as his eyes return to normal vision. Smoke pours out the seams of the control panel. He touches the panel, but it does not respond. The panel lights go out. He raises the panel. The safety breakers have burned. With no control of his falling ship, he does not know if it will survive a crash landing.

If they survive with injuries, he is sure the Federals would let him live long enough to extract the information about his ship. He also knows they will use Krystal as a bargaining tool against him. It would be better if they die in the crash.

He brushes her blood soaked hair from her face. "I will do whatever to save us, but we will not go back."

The ship slowly rolls as it passes through the clouds. Through the front window the ground approaches quickly. Even if he can place an energy shield around them, he may not be able to keep them from bouncing around the flight deck. If the hull does not collapse on impact, they may survive. The ship rocks and he grabs onto the panel. No viable alternative comes to his mind. Suddenly he hears crackling and turns to the side window, but his hand does not move from the panel. He stares at his frozen hand holding the panel. The other panels show no signs of freezing and this panel has ice crystal only where his hand touches it.

Memories from his youth flood his mind. Instead of trying to understand why, he knows what he has to do. He needs water. Out of the window, he sees the clouds filled with water. His eyes close for a moment, then opening them wide. Two blue orbs reflect in the window. His right frozen hand punches a hole in the side window. The hole sucks out smoke and debris. He can feel the moisture entering through the hole. He holds his frozen fist by the hole and points his other hand at the ships deck. Ice forms on everything quickly and continues to expand, filling every space possible. He releases Krystal's seat restraints and holds her tight to his body as the ice forms around them. He steps into a small cavity just big enough to hold them. The ice continues to encase him. At the last second he places both hands over their hearts. A clear solid block of ice fills every available space on the flight deck. The ship hits a rock formation and rolls. Inside the ice, he hears a dull sound and feels a thump that reverberates through the ice, then the ship stops.

 **End of Chapter 2**


	4. Chapter 3 Lost in the Forrest

**Chapter 3: LOST IN THE FOREST**

 **26 years, 3 months before Correction**

The cold and silence wraps itself around Samuel and Krystal. His ears translates the faint opening and closing of his heart valves, but he hears the faint sound of a second heartbeat. Unable to move he searches for physical injuries to himself, but finds significant injuries to Krystal. If he can get through the ice, he can reach the medical room. The ship's doctor can save her.

An explosion of color sweeps across his thoughts. He remembers the crash and the ice forming around them. His left hand generates heat and melts the ice. He moves his hands away from their bodies. With his arms extended he allows the water to freeze. His hand projects large amounts of heat and vaporize some ice into steam. The steam pressure increases and fractures the ice. The steam punches a hole through to the side window. More ice fractures. Water sloshes to the rear of the command deck. Enough melted ice allows his body to move. A glint of sunlight comes through the front windows. If the Federals do not know where they are by now, the orbiting satellites will detect the thermal of his ship after the sun sets.

A shadow passes in front of the window. It does not appear to have human legs. He continues to melt the ice and touches the metal plate of the control panel. He uses the ship's hull to scan his surroundings. Whatever walked in front of the window is not there. After several minutes he senses, he is not alone. Low to the ground glowing eyes stare at him. It blinks twice. A blinding light strikes his mind and collapses him into his ice cocoon.

In the dark lying on the cold deck with a stabbing pain in his head, he awakens. He blinks his eyes to his blue vision. Remnants of water trails lead to a lump of wet clothes and through the doors. He did not melt the ice, but considers if the small creature he saw, melted it? The lump of clothes looks familiar. He crawls to it and rolls the body over.

He detects no life. Her body has become stiff. The blonde female brings images into his mind that are more like a ghost or one of those antique faded photos. Why is she here? Who is she?

He moves to the control panels and does not detect energy in them. He slides across the floor to the doors and pry's it open. The ship is a sealed vessel. There should be a pool of water at the end of the corridor but there is none. All doors are sealed closed. There must be a crack in the ship's hull. He places his palm against an exposed metal beam. With caution he scans through the ship's hull and discovers earth covering the ship. He slides towards the rear of the ship and detects fresh air passing through the ship's airlock. Again, scanning outside of the ship, beyond the doors, he detects a cavern or tunnel. He forces the doors open and a gust of musty air blows past him. The smell of wet fur is followed by a low growl in the dark tunnel.

Several dog like creatures run across the tunnel floor. One of the creatures barks a series of sounds that causes the others to run further down the tunnel then around a corner. He closes the doors and moves down the tunnel.

Around the bend the moon lights the tunnel entrance. He crawls to the entrance and scans the area. He searches the sky. A spy satellite should have reported the crash and yet he detects no aircraft flying overhead. He should detect the satellites or any electrical signals, but finds none.

 _Did the crash damage my abilities?_

Cautiously moving out of the tunnel, he adjusts his sights for the moonlight. The terrain slopes down than rises up. Nocturnal life scurries across the ground. A short distance away a clump of bushes moves contrary to the other bushes. He senses the creature in the bush watching him. He walks a short distance from the tunnel searching for anything that might tell him where he has landed. The tunnel is nestled below the crest of the hill with trees. His crash did not disrupt the tree line. With no damaged trees, the area shows no signs or evidence that his ship crashed here. He scans for trails and roads, but there are no signs of human activities in the area. He climbs up a hill and stands on a boulder. Large and small depressions in the ground lead to the tunnel. He searches the sky again. Several familiar constellations, watch him, but their position appears further south.

 _Which northern continent have I landed?_

A wolf steps out from the bushes and howls a long wail. Several wolves dart out of the bushes and run into the forest. The lone wolf stares intently at him. A distance wolf howls. The lone wolf glances at the forest, then back at him. It growls and yips several times. It lets out a long howl and disappears into the forest. He scans down the hill and searches further out. No signs of humans, only the animal life of the forest moves.

If anything flies over the area, someone would notice the contours of the land has changed and will lead them to his ship, so where are the Federals? Why have they not retrieved their prized possession? He studies the contours and the tunnel. Before the flash of light, the ship was only partially covered. Now, it appears the ship has been buried for many years. He detects no lengthy passage of time, so who covered his ship?

He has one task to perform before leaving the area and returns to the ship. Without extensive repairs his ship will not fly again. With no survival provisions it was not prepared for a lengthy stay from home. He will have to forage for his food. A squashing sounds under his foot. He picks up his gloves and wrings out the cold water. In the last room he finds a folded blanket. The blanket is just large enough to wrap the female in it. He carries her body out of the cave. In case someone finds his ship he travels a hundred meters over the ridge. He lays her gently on the ground. With both hands frozen the top layer of soil peals back, exposing the dark rich soil. He digs deep enough. His hand reaches for the corner of the blanket and pulls. The blanket exposes her face.

The hint of a smile frozen on her lips brings the ghost image with greater details into his mind.

"You are so beautiful. What was your name? What was our relationship?" A yellow and orange color reflects off her face. He looks over his shoulder. Higher level clouds glow from the morning sun. He hurries to complete his task. Gently he lays her body in the hole and covers her face with the blanket. He crawls out of the hole and fills it with the dirt and lays the pealed layer of grass back into its original position. It appears as a small rise in the ground.

He falls to his knees and holds his arms up. "If there is a God, why have you allowed this woman to die alone? Why have you taken her name from me? If you had to punish someone, why did you not punish me? I have the blood of a thousand on my hands. Their blood will never be washed off. What did she do that, you would allow her to die alone?"

His ears hear the sound of rocks and gravel crunching under a weight. His mind and eyes search for the source. Other than the two small heat sources that could have been from an animal watching him, he finds nothing.

He shakes his head. "Maybe one day I will recall who you are, until then may God have mercy on you."

He finds a flat stone and lays it over the grave. He does his best to make the stone appear as though it has always belonged there. Again the crunching sounds behind him. His body shifts into attack mode, but does not find a target. After several minutes he returns to his ship.

In the engine room, he taps the power cells and draws energy from the earth around his ship. He leaves enough energy that it will last several decades. It will help him to find his ship again.

With only the clothes on his back, he closes the ship's doors and exits the tunnel. Scanning the area again, he detects no humans. He generates a burst of energy that collapses the tunnel. If the Federals have not found him yet, he will not make it easy for them to find his ship. He walks a short distance to a hill and looks back. He does not detect the ship's energy. Unless they have a contour map before the crash, the ground deformities would be explained as erosion.

His vision returns to normal. He follows the trail indentations in the grass where the wolf traveled earlier, but tries to stay near the edge of the forest, in case he encounters a human. Over the hill and into a valley he stops for every sound until he can identify it.

Leaves and twigs crunch nearby, but the tall grass hides the movement. He hopes the small creature is not territorial but lets him pass. A little further, he encounters a running stream and where there is a stream there should be animals. He kneels to create a small profile and observes the stream. After a short period of not seeing animals, he crawls to the stream. He cups the water in his hand and searches for signs of contamination. A branch flows by and thumps a boulder in the water. If the water is not safe, he will find out within the hour. His energy levels are too low for him to be more cautious. The water feels good on his face. It sends a shiver through his body. There is no immediate discomfort and he plunges his face into the water drinking his fill. The refreshing water taste natural with a hint of sweetness and no chemicals from the so call civilized world. The water helps to clear his mind.

He sits up and enjoys the moment. The sunlight touches the top of the surrounding hills. Despite not sensing humans, he does not wish to be caught in the open and returns to the forest. The tree line follows the stream further into the valley. If he does not run into a road, he will hear any mechanized vehicles moving towards him.

The sunlight fills the valley except for the few remaining shadows hiding behind trees and boulders. A spasm in his gut helps him to recall his last meal was with Krystal four days before crashing here. Hunger screams to be fed. He moves from tree to tree and comes across several bushes covered with red and orange berries. He eats two berries and savors the sweet and slightly sour juice tickling his taste buds. The berries satisfy his hunger. He crawls to the stream and scoops a hand full of water. With no contaminant in the water, he quenches his thirst. He searches the hill for any indication of his ship. The land contours from the crash blend with the hill. If he did not know where his ship crashed he would not see it.

Maybe they don't know where he is, but to play it safe he continues to evade and stay out of sight. Twigs break behind him. He drops on all fours and is prepared to leap on the stalker. A fox pokes its head out from a bush and freezes upon seeing him. _"Did you find who ate our berries?"_ A second fox pokes its head out and freezes.

"Did you ask who ate your berries?" Samuel asks.

The fox slowly lowers its head and disappears into the undergrowth. The second fox has also moved out of sight.

 _Is the water and berries causing me to hallucinate?_

He sits under a tree near the stream and waits for the foxes to return. He hopes to repeat the short conversation with them. The rest will give him time to determine if the berries are affecting him. He searches for anything that will tell him what country he has crashed. With each twig breaking and leaves falling out of the trees, he still expects Federal troops to show up. He identifies the foliage and animal life in the forest. This part of the stream appears to be the expressway for the forest animals. A family of hares and foxes run to the edge of the stream. An Elk stops for a drink followed by two different deer types. Behind him squirrels run across the ground, then jump from tree to tree. A shadow passes overhead. He crawls behind the tree and searches for the flying object. A screech draws his attention to an eagle flying south. He has stayed in the one spot for too long. Under the boulders shadows peek out. Shelter becomes a primary need before it gets dark. Still too close to his ship he continues in the valley as he follows the stream. He stops at an open field with a few trees dotting the land and scans for an alternate route. His shadow grows longer with each passing minute. He stares across the field again.

On the other side steep cliffs rise from a river with another forest. Near the bottom of the cliff appears to be a cave that would make a good shelter for the night. He sprints across the field hoping he does not step on anything and none of the animals decide he is an easy meal. About halfway across a herd of deer run. Their path leads them well away from him. To his right the grass moves. The herd changes directions. Their new course will take the herd across his path. It is too big to go around and too dangerous to go through. He slows to a walking pace. Four large wolves in the grass charge the herd. He crouches down, hoping to hide. The wolves separate three deer from the herd. A commotion allows two deer to rejoin the herd. He changes course not to draw attention. At least the wolves have their evening meal.

The last rays of the Sun fall behind the hills and the temperature drops. With the last bit of light, he dashes for the cliffs and does not look back until he reaches the cave. Near the entrance, he closes his eyes and blinks. He scrutinizes the dark. A hundred meters away the wolves devour their meal. He scans the cave for any occupants and finds no one home. He gathers wood in the immediate area. With the last load of wood, he observes several animals and other creatures moving. The moon peeks down into the valley.

The temperature drops rapidly after sunset. With his gloves tucked under his belt, he kneels next to the wood and sweeps his hand over it to draw out the excess moisture. The water gives him a refreshing drink. He holds a dried branch of wood in his left hand and generates heat. A couple of seconds later he inserts the flaming branch into the dry stack of wood. He blows air into the base of the stack until the rest of the wood catches fire. With a nice fire and enough wood to last through the night, he lies close to the fire. He does not want to fall asleep and let the fire burn out, but with little food and the expenditure of more energy than he planned, he falls asleep quickly. Sometime during the night the howls of several wolves nearby awaken him. He places more wood on the few flames and blows air near the base. The fire roars back to life.

A growl draws his attention past the fire. A wolf sits at the edge of the cave. He hears a whisper and searches the back of the cave. He closes his eyes and concentrates. The whisper becomes louder, but in a language he is not familiar. The whisper comes from outside of the cave. He scans the area expecting to find humans, but only detects five wolves. All stare in his direction. A distance away another wolf howls. Four of the five wolves look towards the howling then run into the darkness. One wolf continues to stare at him. He concentrates on the wolf and for a split second he appears to be seeing himself through the wolf's eyes, which snaps his vision back to normal. The wolf disappears into the darkness. He does not recall ever being able to make a mental connection with an animal. If it was a connection, it would be a useful tool to spy on others. He scans the area again and does not detect the wolves. He throws more wood on the fire and lies down. Again he falls asleep quickly.

The sun shines in his eyes. His fire has been out for some time. He remembers the wolf, but his thoughts are clouded. A hunger pain draws his attention for food. He stands in the cave entrance and searches the sky. His low energy level limits his ability to reach extended distances. If a satellite passes overhead, they would see him long before he would detect it. He moves towards the stream and searches the surrounding area to make sure he does not become something's breakfast. Near the stream he does not detect any animals. He kneels and drinks the water. It does not have the sweetness he tasted the day before, but it does quench his thirst. He splashes his face and detects movement in the water. He freezes for a moment, then his hand darts into the water and pulls out a fish.

"Thank you for your sacrifice." He bites off a chunk of white meat. The fish calms his hunger. He does not spot a wolf walking towards him. Gravel crunches together and he knows he has made a mistake. The wolf is from the previous night. He takes another bite and tosses the remains of the fish in front of the wolf. The wolf sniffs the fish and stares at him. It eats.

"Are you the one who watched me last night?"

He does not expect an answer, but a whisper replies, _"Yes . . . here."_

For a moment he considers if there is something in the water, but asks, "Did you speak to me?"

The wolf raises his head, _"You not first to hear me."_ It picks up the fish and runs into the undergrowth.

He scoops water and drinks, but keeps an eye out for the wolf or its pack. For a moment he thinks of Krystal. This is the type of event she always loved to participate. She always helped him out of tight circumstances, but this time he is on his own and talking to a wolf. She would have laughed at him. He closes his eyes, hoping her memory will soon pass. He opens his eyes. The morning shadow that followed him now lies under the water in front of him. The sun exposes the other side of the stream. He drops his body into a defensive position and blinks twice. His whole body tenses for immediate action. His eyes sweep the area and looks at everything. Two small boulders sit on top of a large boulder at the edge of the river. He does not remember if they were there before he caught the fish. Both rocks vent a slight pulsing thermal wave as compared to the constant thermal waves radiating from the surrounding rocks. He picks up a river rock and measures the distance. Stepping forward two steps he throws the rock into a high arch. A few seconds later the rock crashes on the boulder in front of the two smaller boulders. The thermal wave pulses increases from the smaller of the two boulders.

A rough voice speaks, _"Wait, not yet."_

He picks up another river rock.

The rough voice says, _"Go now."_

A flash of light charges at him. This time he is ready and closes his mind. The flash passes. The two small boulders have disappeared. He does not detect their thermal vents. Still not able to determine his location, a creature that can see him, but he cannot see it, puts him in a very dangerous situation, especially now that he cannot account for the lost time, today or the previous night.

He refocuses his vision to normal and returns to his cave gathering wood along the way. Each trip out of the cave, he creates a mental map of the area. His third trip he stops by the river and catches a fish. He cuts the fish into pieces. In the cave he places the pieces of fish on sticks and ignites a fire in the stack of wood. He leans the fish over the fire. Outside of the cave, he sits with several pieces of fish.

After the sun sets the temperature drops dramatically. More wood is added to the fire. He replaces the fish with raw pieces and carries the cooked pieces back where he sat. A breeze stirs up the ground leaves and interferes with his ability to hear the night life. Through the noise he detects a four legged animal moving along the path from the direction of the river. He tosses a piece of the fish at the edge of the fire's light. The animal stops. He blinks once for the blue tint. A wolf crouches to the ground and sniffs the air. He hopes it will come closer without attacking him. On the top of a distant hill a wolf pack stares in his direction.

He slips on his gloves so he does not inadvertently injure the wolf. He waits.

The lone wolf crawls to the fish and eats. He tosses another piece of fish and the wolf eats it. "Were you here last night?"

This time he receives a clear response, _"Yes, me and my family. You can hear me?"_

"Yes, I can hear you," but his replies are growls and yelps.

The wolf speaks between bites of fish, _"How do you hear me now, when you did not hear, when you chased my family from the warm den?"_

"Sometimes it takes me longer to understand a new voice. Is that your family on the hill?"

" _Yes, they are afraid of you."_

"Why are you not afraid?"

The wolf steps into the light of the fire. _"Because you are not afraid. You are different. The others like you are always afraid of us. They kill us, so we attack them first and then they stay away."_

"I can sympathize with you, but not all humans will kill." He tosses a cooked piece of fish in front of the wolf.

" _They all kill, if not us than themselves."_ The wolf steps more into the light and eats the fish.

"Does your family feel the same way about humans?" Five wolves approach from the side.

A large male steps into the light showing its teeth and growling, _"Leave this river and den. Go back to your kind."_

He slips off his right glove. "I will leave, but I do not know where they are."

The male stomps the ground. _"Go back where you came and follow the open field in the direction the wind blows. Go too far and you fall. At the bottom your kind lives."_ With a low growl the wolf slowly steps towards him.

His right hand touches the ground and extends his fingers towards the male wolf. A sheet of ice moves from his hand to the wolf's path. With a yip and growl the wolf darts into the darkness with the others close behind it. The wolf pack runs over the hill.

If there is a human site nearby, he will have to explore it from a distance to determine who they are and what type of threat they pose. He decides to set out for the site before dark the next evening.

As he slips his gloves on he studies the night sky. The star patterns appear familiar.

"Everything tells me I'm still on Earth, including the stars. Even the northern lights are a little further south. If I am on the Earth, where are the satellites?"

He searches three points in space where satellites should be but does not find them. He spends several hours searching for any signs that humans have been in space. He also notes he has not seen an aircraft vapor trail since his crash.

Halfway through the night he detects a thermal wave similar to the waves emitted by the two boulders he saw at the river. This thermal wave was not at its current location an hour ago. Instead of adding more wood to his fire, he closes his eyes to concentrate then opens them. He walks deeper into the darkness. The thermal wave is as visible as a light in a dark room. He walks directly towards the thermal source. It rolls a couple of meters away and transforms into a short creature that points its rocky finger at him. He is prepared for an attack. A flash of light strikes at him, but deflects around him.

"Stop! I'm not here to hurt you. Tell me where the other humans are and I will leave."

The creature responds, "You are not like them. Why do you wish to go there?"

"Because I need to contact my friends. They will take me home."

"Are your friends like you?"

"No, they are not like me, just as you are not like the rocks around here. What are you that you can speak to me in my mind?" He receives no answer. The creature transforms back into a small boulder and rolls away. He moves towards the cave and the ground rumbles. A boulder knocks his legs out from under him. It rolls into a depression in the ground. The searing pain in his broken leg demands his attention.

He stares intently at his injury. His ankle and foot have displaced bones. The pain intensifies. He removes his right glove and encases his injured leg in a block of ice. An ice pole rises from the ground for him to grip. He struggles back to the cave, but constantly scans the area for the rolling boulders or a predator who may wish to make a meal of him. He has been warned before, but not with a broken leg. Maybe they were protecting their territory like the wolves. This was an intended action and not an accident. An intended action implies the creatures are intelligent enough that he might be able to negotiate with them. An accident will have to be dealt with the harshest manner.

Back in the cave, with his left hand, he reignites the fire. The ice eases the pain, but he has to remove it to heal the bones. With an agonizing grown he moves his leg into a position to set the bone and melts the ice. He channels his energy in his hands and places them over the broken bone. A deep blue glow escapes from under his hands. A half hour later the glow changes to a light blue followed by white a short time later. He encases the injured part of his leg with a thin layer of ice and repositions it to work on his injured foot. The blue to the white glow continues the healing. He encases his leg, ankle, and foot in a thick layer of blue ice to finish the healing process. Most of the pain is under control. He scans the immediate area outside of the cave and detects no movement. He adds more wood to the fire and lies on the ground further inside of the cave. A short nap before the sun rise will do him good and he closes his eyes.

The night's events cause sleep to evade him. He rolls and twists not able to find a comfortable position that will let him sleep. With his ice pole he walks outside the cave and searches the night sky, but still does not find evidence of aircraft or satellites. He has not detected any signs of the advanced civilization, he left a week ago. He does not recall a planet where rocks transform into a small creature, but the Earth does have its legends of trolls. What is the year? Is Krystal here? He was told his ice powers would return only when there is another with ice powers. He was in the upper atmosphere when the power came alive in him. They must be powerful beings to reach that great height. Where are they? Are they looking for him?

For three days, at sunrise, he only goes out of the cave for water and gathers firewood upon his return. As the sun sets on the third day clouds move in from the south. Lightning strikes nearby. He feels the static energy building in the area. He hobbles to the stream and gets his fill of water. Suddenly, the hair on his arm and the back of his neck stands up. Electrical ozone fills the air. He forms his body into a small ball and plugs his ears. He closes his eyes and barely gets one foot off the ground when the lightning bolts strike several meters from him. A wave of static passes through his body. A log and grass burn where the lightning struck the ground. Near the log the remains of a small animal smolders. Static in the area builds again. He runs to the cave and moves his wood further in the back. A downpour drenches the area. He starts a small fire. Two wolves run into the cave and shake their fur of the water. The bigger wolf bares his teeth and growls.

He recognizes the smaller wolf. "We are both out of the rain. I will not bother you if you leave me alone."

" _Agreed._ " The two wolves settle and lay near the entrance. One watches the storm and the other watches him.

He keeps the fire burning. Halfway through the night small stones crunching awakens him and the wolves. He steps in front of the fire and stares into the darkness. Four sets of eyes stare back at him. A lightning flash reveals only boulders that were not there before the storm. The two wolves raise their hackles and emit a low growl. Another lightning flash reveals a troll pointing at the wolves. He calls out to it, "Leave my friends alone. You attack them and I will destroy all of you."

Stones crunch. A few minutes later, another lightning flash and the boulders are gone. The wolves settle down again and close their eyes. He lies down with the fire between him and the wolves and waits for the morning.

The next day Sam wakes to the sound of water running over rocks in the stream. His guests are nowhere in sight. The ice has melted off his leg. He stands and shifts his weight from one foot to the next. He feels no pain. Obviously this land has new dangers. He will be more cautious. If he was searching for someone like himself, now would be the time to spring a trap and capture him. Complacency is an enemy that will strike with devastating disaster.

He moves to the cave entrance. A mist of fog blankets the area, which explains why he hears the distant stream. He desires to visit the nearby human village, but moving in the fog begs nature to attack. He will wait for the fog to burn off if it does at all. The warm temperature with no breeze will keep the fog in place. On a rock outside of the cave, he sits and waits. His eyes close and he focuses with his other senses. Near the stream rocks and gravel crunches under heavy weight. He hears children laughing, but not human children. An adult's voice tells the children, it's time to leave before the fog lifts. For several seconds the ground vibrates through his feet and the seat of his pants. A faint bell rings in the distance.

Several hours later the fog retreats. A white ball shines almost directly overhead. The mountain top peaks above the clouds and the mist marches towards the human village. He travels in the direction he came several days earlier. At the open field, he moves into the wind as the wolf had said. A few rodents scurry in the tall grass, but he detects nothing larger. He takes a chance and runs. Barely an hour passes when the ground slopes down. He stops near the edge of the cliff. In the distance a gray horizon separates the clouds from the ocean.

Below him a castle sits on an island in the middle of the bay. He peeks over the edge, "The wolf is right, go too far and you fall."

Laughter draws his attention to the village. Children run in an area that connects a bridge to the castle. A man yelling draws his attention to a tall sail ship fading into the mist. At least they appear to have some commerce.

His position above the village gives him a good view to note the streets and buildings. He looks at his clothing. He would be hard pressed to explain where he got them, let alone why they will not discover the material for another one hundred and fifty years. He will have to replace them to blend in with the community.

Several houses have clothes drying on a small rope. He spies one house where the clothes are away from the streets. It will be an easy target to borrow the clothes for a short time. His eyes trace the wall surrounding the village. He spots the first road since he crashed here. The road passes near him. He observes the people and waits for sunset.

The sun drops behind the hills. A disturbance outside of the village draws his attention. Two white or light gray horses pull a wagon that appears more like a prestige carriage than a worker's wagon. The clatter of the wagon wheels and the hooves on stone attracts his attention to the stone paved road.

"Interesting, you're not just a simple village. Do you have anything close to modern tools that will help me to repair my ship?"

The carriage moves quickly through the village and over the bridge. The horses run through the gates and stop in front of the castle. He stands on a boulder and barely sees over the walls. A well-dressed male exits the castle doors and walks past two uniformed individuals holding the doors open. The male opens the carriage door and a slender younger male dressed in a slightly different uniform steps out. They speak to each other and the young male assist a young, dark hair female from the coach. A band sparking on top of her head glitters when she moves. The uniformed individuals at the doorway bow to the two arrivals. The castle appears to be the home of a king and queen or whatever royalty titles they use here.

Suddenly an updraft from the village brings the odor of burning wood and the hinted fragrance of cooked food. He closes his eyes and blinks to view the blue tint. Thermal waves rise from the chimneys of several homes. The tops of the hills surrender the last of the sunlight and small lights flicker throughout the village. The castle has more points of lights passing through the windows, but even they illuminate very little light.

Other than the guards on the castle walls, very few walk the streets. He moves from one shadow to the next along the road. The sky reveals no artificial objects or anything that transmits radio waves. He continues to glance skywards, as he approaches the village. A flash followed by a clap of thunder lights up the area. Clouds gather over the ocean. He stays in the shadows of the village searching for clothes. A few rain drops fall. He spots a small building behind a home and slips inside. A horse neighs and a cow moo's announcing his presence. He waits by the door for the owner to check on the animals. When they do not he sits in a corner and waits out the storm. He peers through small holes in the building. Two young boys run up the street caring fish over their shoulders. At the first house a woman meets the boy and wags her finger at him. The second boy runs into the house next to the barn he is hiding. A wall of rain from the ocean sweeps through the village. In a matter of minutes, small streams of water run down the street back towards the sea. Another flash of lightning reveals what he has been searching. Three houses down the street, he spots a pair of pants and a little farther a shirt flaps in the breeze. He estimates they are his size. One way or another he will get wet. He slips out of the barn and walks through the streams of water to cover his steps. Despite the rain noise an unrecognized language comes from many houses. Usually in these situations, he has a translator until he learns the language. Once again, he misses Krystal. She was well adapted at learning new languages.

He searches the clouds as his emotion for Krystal nearly escapes. "She is not here, so it will take you a little longer. You did it before you met her."

Despite the rain, the corner of his eyes stink. He wipes his face and continues down the street. He grabs the pants and the shirt. Under the open pavilion near the bridge he changes into the borrowed clothes. As he slips on his shirt he estimates the distance from the square to the castle gate. Leaning against one of the pavilion's post to minimize his profile when the lightning flashes, he uses his time waiting to map the village, paying special attention to the port and the movement along the castle's walls. The rain slows to a drizzle. With his old clothes under his arm, he treks back up the street and maps the village.

The following morning the first rays of sunlight breaks over the cloudless horizon as he reaches the top of the cliff. A slight chill fills the air. The first sounds of the village brings life for the new day. He observes them.

"Ladycat, you and Sara would love this view. It is a place we could live in peace. If I find you I'll bring you here."

He continues to his cave and studies his clothing. A lot of irregularities fit with a time period before mass production. The quality is not like his clothing, but someone took the time to make them. He will have to pay for them as soon as he learns their barter system. He searches the sky and still does not detect any satellites or aircrafts. Unless he crashed into an isolated area without modern conveniences, the village appears to be from the late 1700s or 1800s.

He shakes his head. "I must have gone through the temporal ribbon and traveled into the Earth's past." He snorts. "That means my little ship isn't going to be repaired, let alone fly for another three hundred years. I wonder if their religious leaders speak Latin."

He remembers a sail ship leaving the bay, "Maybe, they speak a language I know."

At his cave, he removes his clothes and lays them on the rocks to dry. The short time he has been here, other than the village with the castle, he has not seen any evidence the villager's travel in his area. He is confident they will not find him in his birthday suit. He proceeds to the stream.

The water level is higher than it was the previous day. He moves further down the stream to a shallower area. Near a bend in the stream several large boulders are almost submerged. They would make a good hiding place for fish to capture anything small floating by. He steps into the water and a cold shiver ripples through his body. He wades towards the boulders. A small school of fish swims past him, then they scatter. He stops. A dark shadow moves under the water surface and passes close enough for his hand to dart in and pull the fish out. The fish splashes water and floating debris. Some of the dirty water splashes into his mouth. The gritty, muddy taste also most causes his body to convulse. He spits and washes his mouth out. The fish wiggles for one last attempt to escape, but he holds on to it and leans against a boulder. A sparkle flashes in his eye. Sunlight reflects off a shiny yellow rock in the water. Holding his breath he pulls the rock out of the water and holds it up.

"I bet they barter with gold."

He marks the rock and carries the gold and fish back to his cave. A short distance from the cave entrance, he meets a familiar wolf. "Did you come to have dinner with me?"

The wolf follows behind him and does not act afraid. _"Alpha will not like you being here. Why did you come back?"_

He continues and glances over his shoulder. He does not recall communicating with Earth animals. On other worlds he learned to communicate with different species, but he never had an Earth animal initiate conversation with him. Except years ago at his uncle's house, a deer came out of a wooded area and spoke to him. It left a warning that others were coming for him. The deer saved his life that day. He peeks back at the wolf. Is it trying to give him a warning? In the cave he stacks the wood and builds a fire. He cuts his fish into chunks and skewers them onto a stick. With the sticks leaning towards the fire he cuts up the rest of the fish. The wolf sits outside of the cave. He tosses a couple of pieces to the wolf. The fire crackles and startles the wolf, but it continues to eat the fish. A light breeze blows into the cave swirling the air. He hopes the cooking fish does not attract anything he can't handle. The wolf lifts its head and sniffs the air. He places his borrowed wet clothes near the fire and tosses another chunk of fish to the wolf. He steps closer to the entrance. The wolf grabs the remains of the fish and runs to a nearby bush. A few minutes later the wolf pokes its head out of the bush.

Sam sits on a boulder still cold from the night air and speaks to the wolf, "Did you come here for a meal? Why are you here and where is your pack?"

A branch crunches and the bush moves as the wolf steps out, _"Why are you here? Why are you not with your kind? I saw you with the others like you."_

With the wave of his hand, he motions the wolf to come closer, "I'm here because I'm lost. Those at the bottom of the hill are not my kind. I don't know them."

" _Why did you go if you do not know them?"_ The wolf takes a step closer.

A half smile forms as he stares at the ground, "I thought they could help me, but I was wrong."

" _Why?"_ the wolf takes another step closer.

"They do not have the materials I need to get home, let alone the technology."

" _Where is home?"_

He hesitates to answer. "The village sits next to the water. Have you seen the ships float into the port, people get off the ship, others get on, and then the ship sails away?" He stops for a second thinking he just saw the wolf nod its head once, then he continues, "There is a specific ship that will take me to the other side of the water. It is there that my people live. Those below the hill do not know me and if they knew I was talking to you, they would not let me into their group." A puff of warm air brushes his nose with the flavor of fish causing him to stand.

" _Who can help you?"_ The wolf stands just outside of his reach.

"I don't know." He walks back into the cave and checks the fish. He removes a chunk of fish and tosses it towards the wolf. His guest lets the fish hit the ground before it nibbles and then gulps the fish down. Sam watches the wolf and takes several small bites of the fish. The wolf stares at him from outside the cave's entrance. He splits the remaining piece of fish in half. He tosses half to the wolf and he eats the other half.

He looks at the sky. The Sun above the horizon has burned off the few morning clouds. The air has warmed. He covers the fire with sand. The wolf walks past him into the cave and curls up close to the warm sand. It closes its eyes. "That's a good idea. A short nap will help to clear my thinking." He puts on his gloves and lies down on the opposite side of the fire pit, deeper in the cave. In a matter of minutes he falls asleep and his eyes move to the first stage of ream sleep.

Outside of the cave sand and small stones crunch under a heavy weight. A meter above the ground two eyes blink and looks into the cave. Green light crystals glow and blink on a mesh cloak made of grass. The wolf raises its head. The lights disappear and the sound of a heavy stone rolls across the ground.

 **End of Chapter**


	5. Chapter 4 Pabbie

**Chapter 4: Pabbie**

 **26 years, 3 month before Correction**

Sam awakens to the sound of tree branches cracking. The darkness approaches as the sunlight retreats to the west. His wolf friend is not in the cave. More branches break and rocks crunch under a heavy weight. He takes his gloves off and tucks them under his belt. With a few minutes of twilight remaining before the stars become his only light, he edges close to the cave entrance and prepares for an attack. He sees none and blinks his eyes to the blue tint. As a fire glows in the darkest night, seven thermal waves rise above seven boulders near the forest. His short creatures have returned.

He calls, "What do you want?"

He waits several minutes before scanning the area. The seven thermal waves continue unmoved. "What do you want from me?"

He waits several more minutes considering the creatures may think he cannot see them. "I know you are there. I know you can hear me. If you do not respond, I will point you out."

Still no change in the thermal waves, he bends down to pick three large rocks. Now there are six boulders. His senses go to high alert. He is determined he will not be ambushed by a boulder rolling over his leg again. He measures the distance between himself and the boulders. His arm swings behind him and launches a rock high in the air. A few seconds later the rock breaks in half crashing on top of the closest boulder. He arches again and launches the second rock. A few seconds later the rock splinters as it crashes on top of a boulder behind the first boulder.

"Does anyone have anything to say to me? No?" He arches way back where his hand almost touches the ground behind him and launches the rock into the air. He counts silently, one, two . . . seven, a boulder rolls a meter to one side. The rock crashing into the dirt causes a small dust cloud. He points to the boulder that moved. "Who are you? Why are you here?"

The third boulder rocks back and forth and transform into the small creature he had seen before. It answers, "We are here to determine how dangerous you are to this valley."

"Dangerous. You attacked me. That makes you dangerous."

"You talk to the wolf. See things in the water that others do not. Create fire and ice from your hands. Hear my thoughts and see us. Your accuracy with the rocks, all of these things make you more dangerous than anything here in this valley."

He nods in agreement, "I see from your perspective that I could be dangerous, but I know I'm not and I will defend myself. Why didn't you try to communicate with me before rolling over my leg?" He hesitates for a moment, "Why are you afraid of me?"

The small creature motions upwards, "We saw you fall out of the sky in your ship."

"How do you know it was me who was on that ship? Wait, the depressions on the ground. You and your friends made them." He recalls the events after the crash. "It was you, I saw."

He points his finger at the creature. "You shot the white light at me and when I awakened, my ship was covered with earth."

"Yes, the humans in the valley would not understand how you came here. We cannot take a chance your ship may cause the humans to fight each other to control it."

He interrupts, "No humans in this valley or any other valley, let alone you and your friends are going to take my ship away. Destroy it and this valley will freeze a million years in another ice age."

The small creature with a grass cloak and crystals tied around its neck, walks over to him, "It seems we are at an impasse."

"I guess we are," he replies and the other five boulders encircle him. They transform into similar small creatures like the first. "Maybe we can start again." He kneels and holds out his hand. "My name is Samuel Christopher Ryan. I am from this planet, but not from this timeline."

"I didn't think you were from this timeline. My name is Pabbie. The humans call us trolls." He points to his fellow trolls.

"Trolls uh, I don't recall Earth every having trolls beyond story books," he withdraws his hand.

"You didn't know we were here until we revealed ourselves to you. Who is to say we are not a part of your timeline. How much truth is there in your recorded legends that your kind believes are nothing more than fairy tales. You humans are very distrustful of each other. Even when you see the truth, your kind is easily persuaded to believe differently in order to be with a group."

"That I do not deny, but as you can see I'm not with a group. I went to the village by the water hoping they may have something I can use to repair my ship. A repaired ship means I can leave you to whatever it is you do here." He observes the trolls for signs of an attack.

Pabbie waves the others away. They transform back into the boulders and roll into the forest. He motions to him, "You have powerful magic. More powerful than the two who arrived in the other ship. Why are you eager to leave?"

"Anything I change here could have a ripple effect into my time and could change all that I know."

"Just by your presence, you have already made changes here. No human has ever talked to a wolf, yet, you have. The balance of nature has changed. The longer you stay, more will change. The humans will not trust someone with your powers. There are a few mature humans in the village, whom still remember what happened when the other male and female landed here. Many humans die as a direct result of their actions. What makes you different from them?"

"I don't have enough information about them to answer you. Where is their ship?"

"Why? So you can finish conquering the land your friends did not?"

"It is because of them I am here. I can salvage parts from their ship and repair my ship then I'll leave. Despite what you think of me, we have a common enemy in their ship. Where is it?"

"Go back to your ship. I'll meet you there." Pabbie transforms into a boulder and rolls into the forest.

Sam blinks into the blue vision and runs towards his ship. After several hours of running he stops where his ship is buried. The ground has many more depression trails than when he left the area. Ten boulders of varying sizes vent thermal waves. He recognizes Pabbie in his boulder form and stands next to him, "How did you get here before I did?"

The boulder transforms into a troll, "Does it matter? We are here."

"No, it does not matter. Where is their ship?"

Pabbie motions to several boulders. Four boulders fifty meters in front of him dig a large tunnel into the side of the hill. Either the ship has been there for some time or there was a controlled landing. The hill blends so well with the surrounding area, he never would have known a ship from his time landed there, but he did notice no trees or anything with long roots grew over it. Several minutes later the four boulders roll out of the tunnel.

Pabbie points. "This is the first ship that crashed here."

"Truce! We both go in and both come out."

"Truce," Pabbie replies and they walk into the tunnel.

The slight breeze that had accompanied him in his run to the site increases to a strong gust blowing in the direction of the tunnel, as if it was trying to keep something from getting out.

Sam is prepared for the other boulders to attack, but they did not move. He follows Pabbie into the tunnel. The deeper he travels pressure builds in his ears. He sweeps his hands by his ears and the pressure equalizes.

Pabbie comments, "You can control the wind."

"In localized pockets, yes, clearly I can't control earth and wind the way you do. What is down here that makes you afraid?"

"Why would you say I'm afraid?" Pabbie moves a rock half his size out of the way.

"The exposed roots in this tunnel have previous damage. Unless the plant life takes a long time to heal itself, the damage was done recently." He stops walking. "Should I be concerned, I will not be exiting this tunnel?"

Pabbie turns to him. "You are correct about the roots. We check the ship every twelfth full moon rise. The last one was ten days ago. I agreed two of us come in and two of us will leave."

"Excuse my paranoia, us is you and I correct?"

"Correct." Pabbie continues down the tunnel. The crystals around his neck glow as the light from the entrance fades the deeper they travel.

Sam blinks to his blue vision and the tunnel illuminates brightly. "No wonder I never detected it. The minerals in the soil masked the ship. Did you do this?"

Pabbie does not answer, but continues walking.

"I hear you loud and clear little troll."

"My name is Pabbie."

"So Pabbie has feelings, interesting." They continue the rest of the way in silence. At the end of the tunnel an unnaturally smooth surface appears. Pabbie steps aside. He walks past and places his hand on the surface. His hand sweeps along the surface removing the dirt and finds an engraved symbol. He steps back and stares at the symbols.

"Do you understand these markings?"

Sam unconsciously nods, "Yes, these belong to the Sariphan race. I did not know they had come this far into the past. If they are here, I need to find them before they change the planet's history."

"What do the markings mean?"

Sam holds his hand close to the marking and generates an air pressure to remove the dirt. "It is the name of their ship. Their arrogance named it the 'Time Travelers'." He slides his hand across the smooth exterior of the ship's hull. His finger slides along a seam in the hull until he finds a depression. Pressing the depression the seam separates creating a meter wide opening. The escaping air assaults his nose and he covers his nose and mouth with his shirt collar.

Pabbie asks, "What's that odor?"

He steps into the seam and pushes the door open, another meter and he replies, "That is death."

"It smells like a rotting carcass on a hot sunny day."

He peers into the dark ship. "The big question is, a carcass of what and how many?"

They both enter the ship. A small light flickers at the end of the corridor.

Pabbie walks past him, "What is this place?"

"This my friend is the inside of a starship. I think we will find our answers down there." His boots and Pabbie's feet echo on the metal floor. He notes all of the doors he passes and pays special attention to the larger door marked 'Chambers'. Below the light, he presses a depression in the wall. The door barely opens and he pushes it the rest of the way open. A light on a control panel near the middle of the room blinks. Several other lights flash. The panels come to life. An orb above the room glows.

Pabbie hesitates. "What is this place?"

He observes Pabbie's reactions. "You have never been in here, have you?" He kneels and motions between them. "You and I came in here. You and I will leave here together. Let me show you their world of technology." He sets him in an oversized tall chair.

Next to the side panel he presses a sequence of switches. "This is where the Sariphans controlled the ship." He stares at him for a moment. "Did you see the creatures that came out of this ship?"

"No, my father saw them. He would tell stories of these strange humans. They caused the humans in the surrounding area to war with each other. The stories said there were two of them, male and female."

He interrupts, "Male and female, was the female the taller of the two." Pointing to his shoulder, "Was she this tall and had blond hair?"

"Yes, one of the stories said she was twice and a half tall to father."

"And the male had light brown hair with a hairy face and twice my size?"

"Yes, how do you know this?"

"Because I knew a blond Sariphan female. Her name was Krystal. I helped her to break free from her handler. The Sariphans are very good at disguises. I have never heard of a Sariphan team spying on a planet with just two members. They usually traveled as a team of eight to ten members. The brown hair male was the leader. Due to the power and control he had over the team, some ruled harshly instead of leading by example. He had very little contact with his home world so he did whatever he wanted to the world and team. Where ever the team landed, they had a mission and would not be pulled from the planet until the mission was completed. They lost a few teams as a result of no control from the home planet."

The thought of Krystal and her willingness to work for him after he freed her from her master creates an ache in his heart. He looks back at the control panel and searches for anything that would reveal this team's mission.

"What if they did not complete the mission?"

"They either assimilated into the population or died. The team knew the greater probability they were not going home. They claim to take only volunteers, but Krystal said virtually all in her training group were forced into the team." He touches the control panel hoping the reserve power would activate.

"If they were prisoners why did they not band together to overthrow the leader?"

"Each team member had a device implanted into the back of their necks at the base of the skull. When triggered the device injected a deadly poison into their brains. Krystal said it is a very agonizing death. Before you ask, the leader could trigger the poison or if they came within a certain distance of another team member, the poison would be triggered. The leader could also turn off the device in one member and have the member meet another."

"The intent was to kill the other member." Pabbie shakes his head.

"Yes, it was very effective at controlling them. None of the members would ever know if their device had been turned off or not until they saw the other member die."

"No wonder the two from this ship seemed so ruthless once they befriended a supporting king."

Sam finds the switch that activates the reserve power. The light in the room increases as other panels come to life. A small screen in the center panel flickers on. "At least it still has some power and I think I have found the ship's log."

Adjusting several controls the screen scrolls through the data. He searches for their mission. "What did you mean these two were ruthless? They were supposed to have very limited contact with the local population. If they received a second set of instructions, they would contact specific individuals in the population. Even if they believed they were lost, the leader had instructions to kill all the team members then himself."

"These two did not kill themselves. There are stories how they lived for many years helping one king take over other kingdoms. When they were finally stopped, there were more of us," Pabbie taps himself, "than there were of humans."

"How were they stopped?" He asks without taking his eyes off the screen.

"It's not how, but who stopped them."

Sam looks at Pabbie, "Ok, who stopped them?"

"The great-grandfather of the current king of Arendelle."

"Arendelle! Where is Arendelle?"

"The castle you saw on the coast. You visited Arendelle last night."

"What powers did the king have to overcome the Sariphan team and their supporting king?"

"They were marching through this valley to Arendelle when a snow storm came over the North Mountain and covered the area with two meters of snow. Arendelle's soldiers had the proper foot protection that helped them to walk on the snow. My father and his friends kept the enemy soldiers off their feet by rolling under the snow. When the storm ended the snow on the ground was red. Father said none of the enemy went home. He tracked the two humans to this ship and they buried it here. Since then, we have guarded this place waiting for them to come out."

"I suspect from the smell when I opened the ship those two are still here."

Pabbie looks around.

"Don't worry, if they were alive, I would have detected them." He returns to his search then points to the screen. "I found it."

"What?" Pabbie struggles to see where he is pointing.

Sam pulls his chair next to him.

Pabbie looks at the screen, "I don't understand those symbols."

Sam slides his finger across a control, "Let's go to the beginning of this log entry and see where they started." After a few seconds the log displayed the current entry date. "What! . . . That can't be."

"What cannot be?"

He points to the numbers at the top of the screen, "This is the current day and time for this ship right now." He points to a set of numbers in the log. "This says the log entry started six hundred years from today." He quickly runs through the log.

"Six hundred years! The stories with my father are less than two hundred years. Do these humans liv that long?" Pabbie ask with a slightly higher pitch voice.

"No. I have never heard of a Sariphan living more than a hundred and twenty years."

"So how can it be six hundred?"

Sam faces Pabbie and points to text on the screen, "This says the ship was in a research building east of the capital city on this date. I know that is not possible. It was one of the first targets hit in the invasion."

"Maybe they built it back."

"No, there was a very large crater after the initial attack. The invasion occurred seven days prior to this date. The log describes their king coming to wish them well on the short voyage." He shakes his head, "The six hundred years is not in your past. This ship will be launch six hundred years in your future."

Pabbie shakes his head. "How can a ship be here if it will not leave its home for another six hundred years?"

"You will have to take my word on this one. It is possible. The log says this was a test ship, but the launch was delayed so it would not interfere with the arrival of peace delegates. Five days later their land was invaded by a massive armada of ships. They launched the day their leaders surrendered, seventeen days after the initial invasion. Their instructions were to go back and convince their king of the coming invasion prior to the peace delegates' arrival."

"I guess they did not succeed."

He rests his arm on the control panel and clasp his hands together to hold his head. He closes his eyes and tries to determine why the log records their history different from what he knows. The logs says they surrendered to the invaders, but they did not surrender. They defeated the Armada and began their own conquest of that region of the war torn space. They were on the verge of conquering Earth when he began his odyssey into the Earth's past. He studies the screen again. Could it be this is the correct history and what he knows is the alternate history that was never meant to be? For a moment joy flickers in his heart. Maybe they will live after all.

"I don't know if they succeeded or not. If this is their history and not a deception on their part, the history I know is different, then they succeeded in changing it. Then every moment that I'm alive, I'm skewing history more. I shouldn't be here."

"Who is to say that you being here is the correct action. Maybe history puts you here for a reason that it wasn't just an accident."

"Now that is a scary thought. What if I'm being manipulated and don't realize it?" His eyes dart around the room. "There should be enough parts here to repair my ship, then I can leave you to your business and the people in the area will never know I was here." He scans the log. "It talks about their mission here and what they were trying to do."

"Get the local kings to fight each other?"

"If it leads to the means that would achieve their goal, yes. It's what I would do." Sam nods his head.

"It's what you would do! Kill humans?" Pabbie asks.

"Understand, these two were not human. If you knew that your entire family and friends were about to die, would you do whatever you could to save them, even if it meant you died before knowing if your efforts succeeded or not?"

"Possibly."

"For whatever reason they knew this ship was not leaving after it crashed. Maybe they believed changing this land's history would save their family in the future. The log says they were here a year before choosing a side. Unless there was another fishing village nearby, Arendelle should have been the first place humans they encountered. They visited many kingdoms to find the strongest then approached their king. They proved their usefulness with their magic. Your stories back up their success and ultimate failure. The log mentions a device they had taken from another ship. They were not sure if they would be able to launch before the invasion. Two volunteered to go just in case the ship was captured or destroyed. They launched six days after the invasion." He shakes his head in disbelief.

"What?"

He holds his head in silence for a moment.

Pabbie touches his arm. "What did you read?"

He points to the log. "According to this, they were still fighting for their land when an Alliance shuttle landed near one of their secret research buildings. They were ordered to distract the pilot so they search his craft for any useful technology. They were discovered by the pilot and they detonated an explosive to disable his ship but the whole ship exploded. The invading army discovers the research facility and destroys it. Several individuals hid a small device in another location. They were given a few days to make the device work or destroy it. At the last moment they got the device working on their ship. They received the news their King had surrendered. They set the device to go back in time twenty-one days. They flew the craft into orbit where it was attacked by an invader's ship. Upon activating the device, everything external to their ship moved backwards. The longer the device was active the faster they moved back in time. The ship vibrates. An oscillation affects the time device. They disable it. The ship is caught in a planet's gravitational field. They were barely able to get their ship under control when it lands." Sam stops scrolling the log and shakes his head at Pabbie. "This ship has the time device."

"So you can repair your ship and leave?"

"Yes . . . and no, this is their history. The pilot of the ship that landed on their planet was Admiral Ryan of the Alliance fleet." He looks down. "I have no memory of visiting their planet."

"So there is another Admiral Ryan?"

He scrolls through the log and finds a picture. Moving his face next to the screen, he asks, "So who does that face look like?"

"You."

"So which time line is the correct one?" Sam stands with his arms crossed in front of his chest. He struggles with the possibility there are two timelines. "Is it possible by their presence here, they changed the Earth's history to what I lived. I always had a nagging thought in the back of my mind that my world had changed. But with the war I never had a chance to discover what was out of place in my time."

A pain stabs his heart. "My Saracat found it. She tried to send me to the location where the event was out of time. If she found this ship, she knew I would recognize them and stop them. If I cannot repair my ship and be here when they land, anything I do now could be the catalyst that changed history to what I know." He glances at Pabbie, "When did your father meet the strange humans?"

"Many season cycles."

"How many season past when the stars lined up in the same location in the sky?"

"You mean how many times has this world gone around the sun?"

His left brow rises, "Yes."

"Two hundred times."

He looks back at the screen. "This ship has been here two hundred years." He reads the data on the screen again. "Wait, this says there were eight chambers." He switches off the screen and puts Pabbie on the floor.

Running down the corridor, he enters the 'Chambers' room. A console stands in the center of the room. At four locations along the wall two chambers are stacked together.

Pabbie rolls into the room and transforms into himself. "How many chambers are occupied?"

Sam searches the chambers and stops at the fourth set. "These two have bodies in them." He kneels and looks in the lower chamber, "This must be the female."

Pabbie waddles to it, "How do you know?"

"She has a wooden stake in her heart. This must be the male," pointing to the upper chamber. "If they thought the mission had been compromised, the male would kill his team."

"Very gruesome, just like many humans, submit or die," Pabbie speaks with disdain.

"Yeah, looks like she did not put up a fight." He stands and glitter of light reflects in the male's chamber. "What is this?" He opens the male's chamber and removes a medallion. He holds it up in the light to view both sides.

"May I see it?" He hands the medallion to him. Pabbie studies it. "I've seen these symbols."

"Where?"

"In a cave, Father drew these symbols on the wall so we would remember. He said it was on their flag they carried into battle."

"Those are Sariphan symbols. They honor nature. Most of their kind rejected science and technology, but there were enough Sariphans who wanted to know what was beyond the bounds of their lands, so they needed the technology to find out."

"Like this ship?" Pabbie continues examining the medallion.

"This ship, that medallion and the ability to cross time . . ." He sniffs the air and detects an ionization. He takes several deep breaths, trying to detect the direction of the source of the ionized air. Walking around the room, he sniffs the air. He leans down and sniffs the chambers. Other than the aroma of death, it's not coming from them. He moves along the wall searching for a vent. Walking past the door he does not detect the ionized air. He continues searching the room high and low. Back at the center console the hairs on his arm stand up. An arc jumps from the console to his hand.

"This light was green. Why did it turn yellow?" Pabbie holds up the medallion.

He stares at it and energy builds on the surface of his skin. A metallic taste sours his mouth. The medallion light turns red.

"Toss it away quickly."

Before Pabbie could let go of it, a white electric arc jumps from the control panel to the medallion. A fraction of a second later a clap of thunder echoes in the room. The pressure wave throws Pabbie into one wall and slams him into the other wall. A ringing deafens his ears. He rolls onto his side. Pabbie lies motionless against the wall. Small wisps of smoke rise from the troll's body. He crawls to him and rolls the troll onto his back.

Pabbie's eyes flutter open. "The last time I felt like this, I got caught in the open during a lightning storm. For several days no one could get close to me until the energy dissipated. I did get a lot of work done without the distractions of running the family."

He rolls onto his back, "I'm glad it didn't hurt you. I would have to waste a lot of energy to dig myself out once your family buried me alive." The hairs on his arms stood up again. He searches for the medallion then pushes Pabbie off of it. He switches it off just as the light on it turns yellow. The raised hairs on his arm relax and the ions in the room dissipates. He throws the medallion back into the male's chamber. They lie on the floor for several minutes.

The crunching sound of rock against metal entices Sam to roll to his feet. Pabbie sits on the floor watching him.

"How are you feeling?"

"The charge is dissipating faster than the lightning."

Sam investigates the other six chambers. "If there were others in these chambers I'm not able to detect their bio-mass. I need my equipment to scan for their presents."

"You mean their hair and flakes of skin? So your abilities are limited?"

Sam glances back, "Usually, my targets are still alive when I make contact with them. When I walk away, they're dead."

"You sound like what those two did."

He glares at Pabbie. For a second he points a frosty finger growing a thick layer of ice at Pabbie. He takes a step back and shakes the ice off his hand. A thud sounds in the room as a baseball size clump of ice hits the floor.

"I'm nothing like them. They kill indiscriminately. They kill in mass. I strike individual targets." He returns to his search. "To date, there has been no collateral damage as a result of my actions. They wipe out whole cities, men, women, and children. I don't wipe out families. There is one that could be described as a family. They started as a family, but they destroyed their family unit before I made contact."

"You killed many humans?"

"I wasn't thinking clearly at the time. I did what they trained me to do from the beginning." He goes back to the center console and presses buttons waiting for anything to activate, but the console remains silent.

"How is it humans do not appreciate life that they will train others to kill their own?" Pabbie walks to the door.

"I don't know when or where, but is it in our nature to want that which is not already in our possession. The only difference between humans and animals is we have a conscience to choose right or wrong." He turns his head to him. "Do you worship nature or the one who created nature?"

"We worship, he who provides us with everything we need."

"That is one area we agree. I have read a book that tells of two brothers who present a burnt offering to God. One was accepted and the other was not. The brother who failed to understand the intent of the offering chose evil and from his heart he killed his brother. We learn to kill for what we want, but at what cost?"

"Why did God not accept the brother's offer? Was his offering not good?"

"Because God knows our hearts, his offering was rejected. It is not the offering that God wants. He wants us to love him. The offering is to show us that we can love. Since we cannot read each other's minds, it is the outward action that will show our love. He said he would not take away our pains as a result of our actions, but he would forgive if we truly turned away from our evil ways. I'm sure you already know humans are creatures of habit. It takes twenty-one continuous days of change to change the habit, but even if we do, we have to be on guard that the habit does not sneak back into our lives."

"And what do you offer?"

He lowers his head. "A lifetime of repentance for accepting blood money as payment from governments who pointed to a person and said they forfeit their lives. My punishment is a conscience that remembers each life I took. I thought I had broken free of them until I lost my family. Sometimes the pain becomes intense."

He chuckles to himself and looks at Pabbie. "When my ship broke through the atmosphere, I thought it would finally end, but I saw the ice and my body took over to save itself." He moves past Pabbie to the control room. A few minutes later he passes Pabbie in the corridor. "Don't go too far little toad. I need to retrieve the certain device. No sense letting a future generation of humans discover it."

Pabbie follows him into the engine room.

Several minutes later they walk out of the tunnel. Sam sweeps his hand across the entrance way and a low rumble sounds and the tunnel collapses. A cloud of dirt blows out of the former tunnel. He glances at Pabbie, "Do your magic. No human is to ever find it. Eventually you will have to push it deeper and fill in every space so there will be no void that can be detected." He chuckles, "Humans may be stupid, but get their curiosity up and they will do whatever they can to satisfy the need."

After a few minutes of Pabbie holding his hand out, the vegetation completely covers the tunnel. The hill restores its natural beauty. He looks up at him, "What is your desire that needs to be satisfied?"

He sits on a clump of grass and leans against a small boulder. He twirls the cubed device in his hand. "My desire," he shakes his head. "My desire is to find my family and go home." He glances at Pabbie. "You should have buried me in there when you had the chance. You are right to fear me. I have lost all that I had. Whether I kill one at a time or hundreds, I am a killer, a monster."

He hands him the cube. "Use your magic to extract the natural minerals from this. What you can't convert to its natural form, I will break it into a powder and send it to the bottom of the ocean so no humans will find it."

"If you destroy this, you will not go home?"

"I have tried many times to go home only to fall into the hands of another tyrant, who uses my abilities to remove their foes. I may be able to get my ship to fly, but where will I go." He shakes his head again. "I'm tired of searching and failing." He sweeps his hand across the valley. "This is a nice place to live. I could build a cabin over there among the trees and live for however long my lot is to be."

Pabbie holds the cubed device and it emits a slight hum. The cube deforms and collapses in on itself. A liquid drips and dissipates into colorful dust. When the last of it dissipates, he drops the remains on the ground. "Are you through feeling sorry for yourself?"

His eyes narrow at him as he clenches his hands. "Self-pity was never my intent, so I'll state the obvious. If you really wanted me dead, I would be dead. I was a child the last time I controlled ice. My mother told me only when I'm near another with the ability would I have the ice power. Shortly after her death, I lost the power. As my ship fell I was in the atmosphere less than a minute before the power came back to me. Either my mother misinformed me or someone here has the ice power. Everything my mother told me had come true." He glares at him. "Are you going to tell me who this other one is?"

"If I knew I would not tell you, but since I don't, I'll tell you I don't know."

"Why am I still alive?"

Pabbie crunches the remains of the cube. "Because I have seen into your heart. There is a void. You have the compassion for others. You are sincere in your desire to amend your ways. No creature, including you, does not deserve a second chance, but if you revert back to the killer, then I will not hesitate to end your life."

"The problem is the trigger word that has been used to revert me to an assassin. Unfortunately, I don't know what the key word is. Whoever has the key will have control over me."

"If the key is in your mind, I may be able to find it and remove it."

"And what prevents you from using the key to control me?"

Pabbie points to the tunnel's location. "How many others have you seen who have the abilities to do what we did?"

He stares at the ground where the tunnel was located. "Before coming here I thought I was the only one. I guess we are two very unique creatures."

"Yes, we are. Soon there will be a third."

He turns his head towards him with raised his brows. "Will I meet this third creature?"

Pabbie places his stone hand on his arm. "Eventually you will, but it will seem like a lifetime from now." The troll applies pressure to his arm. "Are you ready for me to proceed?"

He observes the countless stars and searches for the one star he does not see. A light breeze blows with a hint of a salty fragrant. Flashes of light reveal clouds gathering in the south. An empty bowl of the crescent moon sits above the Western mountains. He watches the moon. A green and red color twinkle winks at him. "There is a storm coming."

"May be not. If certain events occur and the truth is revealed, the storm will pass and no one will notice."

"You see the moon?" he points to the sky. "When it is almost full, near the top or bottom you will see the door I passed through."

Pabbie touches his temple and a minuscule spark leaps from his finger. Sam closes his eyes and falls back onto the grass. "You are the cornerstone for those who will build the bridge between our world and theirs. First my father searched. He told me to search the sky every night, watching for the colorful doorway to open. I can't make you believe but there will be another who will capture your heart. Together the legend will become fact."

 **End of chapter**


	6. Chapter 5 Stranger Saved

**Chapter 5: Stranger Saved**

 **26 years, 1 month before Correction**

A clap of thunder awakens him. The water falls into a nearby pool. Cold raindrops pelt and chill his body. He keeps his eyes close and scans the area, no predators, humans, not even birds. He remembers a troll with the grass cape. Another clap of thunder disrupts his thoughts. The rain pelts his body harder. He rolls to a sitting position and wipes the rain from his face. Water fills his shoes as he sits in a small stream. He detects movement behind him and turns for an attack. A flash of light followed immediately by a clap of thunder disrupts his ability to scan the threat. A few seconds later another flash followed by thunder. Each clap of thunder gets louder. The storm moves from over the hill. He runs to the forest and slips and slides halfway down the hill. A tree stops his slide. With the aid of the tree he stands and moves several meters away from the tree. With his energy there is no sense letting the tree act like a lightning rod. He spots a depression trail leading back up the hill to where he woke up. There is only one who could have made the trail.

"Leave me out in the rain, I could have been struck by lightning."

"But you did not get struck by lightning," answers a gruff voice.

"I'll get you for this you little toad. Come out where I can see you and I'll hold you up so the lightning can strike you."

"Interesting, you can't see in a thunder storm."

A gust of wind blows the rain sideways into his face. The downpour prevents him from detecting anything beyond a few meters. "Should I be concerned?"

"No, we have a truce. I stayed near so nothing would drag you off for a meal."

"Well, that's nice of you."

He searches in the direction of movement. A flash of light reveals a troll wearing a grass cape several meters away. "Why didn't you kill me when you had the chance?"

Another flash of lightning shows a tree stump where he saw the troll. The rain lightens for a moment and he detects movement up the hill. "Why didn't you end my misery?"

The gruff voice answers to the side and above him. "You are alive because you are not like the ones who fell from the sky. You are lost. If you search carefully, you will find that which will set you free."

"If you know what will set me free, why don't you tell me and I can leave?" he struggles to climb up the hill.

"Have patience my friend. You will find it soon enough and not recognize it. Only when you're about to lose it, will you appreciate it more. It will take your pain away."

A branch striking the ground draws his attention. The rain increases and reduces his visibility into the forest. He continues moving up the hill slowly. He stops for a moment and searches downhill. Other than the rain, he hears no movement. Over the crest of the hill waves of rain sweep in from the sea. "Looks like it's going to be raining all day". He searches the sky between the heaviest rains. "Must have been a weather front passing."

Gray clouds cover the valley. Sheets of rain stretch from the clouds to the ground. "I wonder how they survive in the village. They must struggle with mudslides."

A flash of light and a thunderous crack of the air sends the top of a tree crashing to the ground. The lightning struck too close. He runs through the forest, hoping he doesn't surprise anyone or anything. A half hour later, he finds the small river has more than doubled in size due to the rain. He walks along the riverbank and finds the clearing where he caught his fish. He moves up the path towards his cave. Along the path He spots two distinct wolf tracks leading to his cave. Near the entrance he finds a recently made depression trail. The wolf tracks do not cross the depression. He has no desire to stay in the rain for the night. If it is an ambush, he will take his chances in the cave.

Inside of the entrance, he kneels into a defensive position and scans the cave for intruders. No trolls or animal has taken up residency in his cave. His few possessions remain where he left them. With no food or enough energy to dry wood for a fire, he takes his clothes off and rings out some of the water. At least the floor of the cave is angled for the water to run out. He sits behind a boulder to block the breeze and waits for the rain to stop.

Well past sunset the rain finally stops and the cold temperatures drop. Below the top of the cave entrance, a star stares at him. He doesn't wish to spend the rest of his life in a cave and contemplates his next move. He may be able to blend with the humans if he learns to speak their language. A cabin would be nice, but eventually the humans will find him. With no fire, he will have to stay awake, most of the night, just in case.

The next day, with few clouds in the blue sky and the sun cresting the hills, the temperature is warmer than the previous night. He hopes the sun will dry his clothes so he will not have to expend his energy drying them. He cautiously steps out of his cave.

The area is covered with large and smaller paw prints. He recognizes the wolf prints, but a larger print indicates a heavier wolf. After the rain he heard movement, but hoped they would not come into the cave. The print patterns indicate the wolves were passing through the area. He will have to be on alert and not get caught out in the open. He always said to blend in and act as though you belong there, but with wolves they will not be easily bluffed. He gathers the wet wood and stacks it inside the cave.

He walks down the path and meets the river before reaching the bank. It will be easier to catch a fish, if they are moving, but he sees several warning signs that today may not be easy. He is thankful he is close to a water supply and takes several steps into the water. He squats to get his fill of water. It's not as cool as it has been but it is refreshing. He constantly searches the water's edge for wolves and any others whom may come for a drink.

By midday, many minnows swam by but nothing large enough than his little finger. If he had a small mesh net he could have caught enough for a decent meal. Maybe later in the day or when the river is back into its banks, he may have better luck fishing. He returns to the cave and puts on his mostly dry clothes.

With most of the day past and not having luck on his side, he scouts the area for berries and other edible substance. He finds several berry patches but they are not big enough to sustain him for more than a day or two and only if he gets to them before the local animals eat them. He recognized some plants that are edible, but again he would be taking the animal's food source. He finds the tracks of several different animals, including one animal he hopes to avoid but may have no choice. Sooner or later there will be a confrontation and he better be prepared.

He walks through waist high grass of an open field. Several grass blades have been twisted. He bends down and positions his eyes at the top of the grass and sees many blades twisted from the other grass creating a path. He also notes a thin line where the grass has been pushed to one side. Something has moved down the path. He follows the path in the grass a short distance. He stands on a boulder and the trail of twisted grass appears to have started on the north side of the field. He also notices many paths of twisted grass lead in the direction of his cave. He jumps off the boulder and returns to the trail.

As he searches for evidence of the passing animal, he spots several strands of hair caught on broken twigs waving in the breeze. He studies the hair. While they are several shades of gray hair, he finds two strands of red or brown hair.

If a wolf pack moved through the area recently, it would explain why he has not seen any other animals. He scans the area again. Several barks and yips sound in the distance. Did they encounter the human who made the tracks he found? Another yip sounds closer. He trots out of the tall grass and moves along the forest edge, then heads towards his cave.

Near the end of the path he kneels searching for wolves. The tracks lead directly to his cave, but there are new tracks. Small depression trails caused by rolling trolls, lead into his cave. Did the troll Pabbie change his mind and lay a trap for him. He closes his eyes for a few seconds and opens them with his blue vision. The troll's trail followed the path he took from the northern hills. Wolf paw prints stand out like beacons in the dark. He edges closer to the cave. Upon finding no intruder, he enters. Someone has left him a shirt and pants made of animal hide. They stacked wood next to his burn pit along with several filets of fish. He searches his cave and the outside area for thermal vents, but does not find them. His vision changes back to normal. He cups his hands around his mouth and he yells, "Thank you. I hold the truce in effect."

He doesn't expect a response and enters the cave. A small bowl sits next to the fish. He takes the bowl to the river and gets his fill of water. With the bowl full of water, he carries it back to his cave and sits and eats the fish. Shortly afterwards he slips on the animal skin clothes. They feel comfortable and fitted.

The morning arrives a few minutes later than it did last week. The day temperatures are not as warm. A chilling breeze has decided to accompany him to the human village by the sea. Two months ago he visited them in the evening and observed them shutting their doors at sunset. For a moment a thought passes, He didn't see any guards, except those in the castle. If he had a target who lived outside of the castle walls, it would be easy for the villagers to find him dead in the morning. Sam concentrates and speaks to himself, "Stop thinking like that. You are not in that business anymore."

 _Will there be someone who I can communicate?_

He glances at his clothes. If he had access to his ship he would have a selection of clothing to choose. Ladycat was the smart one. She always knew what the proper attire, he should wear to a first meeting.

"Well, she is not here and your only choices are what you're wearing or going without clothes. No doubt clothes will leave a better impression on them." He looks at his clothes again. At least they had him color coordinated.

Sam arrives at the edge of the village as gray puffy clouds descend from the north. The chill in the air has dropped the temperature many degrees since sunrise. If it continues to drop, it may snow by the end of the day. He follows the cobblestone road towards the center of the village.

Just ahead four riders wearing matching uniforms ride similar horses. With a slight smile he waves at them. As they pass him one of the riders stare intently at him. The rider speaks to the others. He ducks behind a tree and peeks out. They look in his direction, but continue riding. He waits until they are out of sight, then steps back onto the road. He noticed these riders had cutlets, but no firearms. They could be a guard unit and not actually military. Maybe he should allow himself to be captured and taken to the authorities. It would be a chance to determine the type of government. How they patrol the village will also give him valuable intelligence.

No rash decisions are needed at the moment, but he will keep it in mind. He walks past several homes and observes the people performing their routines. Most stopped long enough to watch him pass before they continued their work. The closer he gets to the castle more people gawk at him. Even when he smiles and waves, none wave nor speak to him.

At the center of the town, he observes the bridge over the water to the castle. Voices draw his attention. Merchants set up their produce and product displays. Most of the produce he does not recognize, but the individual opening a wooden crate, he recognizes a small fish that looks like a halibut. He slowly walks past them and listens to their unfamiliar language. A couple of them glance at him, but continue their setups.

The breeze changes direction and blows past the individual setting out the fish. The saltiness in the air identifies his trade. A young lady wearing a full length dress and a bonnet carries a cloth bag. A small child trails behind her as she walks past the merchants. Each one in turn greets the young lady, but she stops next to the fisherman. Obviously a relationship has developed between them when she boldly kisses him. The fisherman places his arms around her, but she wrinkles her nose pushing him back. The other merchants distract the child. The boy opens his hand holding a small metal disk and a small cloth bag. A merchant takes the disk and slips it into his pocket and takes the cloth bag. He stares intently at the transaction. The merchant hands the boy the filled bag. They have a monetary system, for trade which is not going to help him since he has no coins.

A two wheel cart bumps him as the owner speaks waving his arm. He steps out of the way and the tone of the owner does not change, but the laughter from the others would indicate he has been insulted. The others point at him and continue laughing. The young lady uses her hand to cover her giggles. "For now you can laugh at me, but I will remember all of you."

Several horses with riders similar to the ones he encountered earlier trot across the bridge. He crosses in front of them and heads for the wharfs where he saw the mast of a ship. The village people pay him no mind. He stops where three smaller boats are tied together. The crews pass their fish to the individual packaging the fish in the crates.

He waves at them. "Sir, what type of fish do you have?" They continue their work. "I'll give you a gold bar if you tell me what type of fish you have."

"Say good fellow," comes an answer behind him. "If I tell you what type of fish they have will you give me the gold bar?"

He faces the voice, "You speak English?"

A uniformed sailor stands at the rail of the sail ship. "I speak the King's English. Not the humdrum you speak. Do you have a gold bar?"

"Humdrum, wait a hundred years and we'll see who's English is still spoken. No, I don't have a gold bar, so will you tell me anyway?"

"It doesn't matter. Since you cannot communicate with them, they will not sell to you. I have tried."

He glances at the fisherman. "That's too bad. These people don't seem to be very friendly."

"They are a close knit group. It takes them a long time to warm up to strangers." The sailor steps on the bottom rail and leans over it. "Your height and voice says you're not from around here. Are you from the new world?"

He moves closer to the ship, "That depends on which monarchy this ship serves under."

The sailor stands at attention and salutes. "King George the fourth, Long live the King."

Sam speaks under his breath, "Too bad he doesn't live for very long."

"What did you say?" asks the sailor.

He mimics the sailor's salute and stands at attention for a moment. "Long live the King." He drops the salute and glances down the wharf. "When do you sail?"

"With the next tide, if we don't get frozen in from the coming snow." He points towards the mountain. "Hopefully it will hold off until we sail tonight."

He gestures towards the men speaking at the end of the wharf. "Are they part of your crew?"

"No, they came off the schooner at the end of the pier."

He watches the four men move up to the street level and meet with six other men. His senses tingle giving him a warning, but it does not appear to be directed at him. He searches the villagers for an obvious target, but does not see one. One of the men pass out cutlets and daggers to the others. His senses edge into a state of hyper alert. Someone or many will be getting hurt. He turns to ask a question, but the sailor has moved to other duties. He looks back at the men. They split into three groups. Each move in a different direction. He walks up to the street level and follows the closest group.

Two groups quickly disappear into the village. No doubt moving to preassigned positions. Across the square three men from the group talk to the merchants and local people.

 _They are blending into their surroundings._

A fourth and fifth member talks to the merchants in the center of the square. The three he is following makes eight, so where are the other two.

 _Are they stealing or is this a kidnaping?_

One from his group walks over to the two boys fishing near the bridge. He scans the square and one of the men stare directly at him. He keeps his eyes moving and hears footsteps behind him. A fisherman with a box of fish walks past him.

"Nice day." He receives a grumble. He spots another box of fish sitting on the pier. Waiting until the fisherman is a short distance away, he gestures with his hands. "Alright, I'll carry the fish."

Purposefully walking down the pier, he picks up the box of fish and holds the box away from his body to keep the fish water from getting onto his clothes. He walks a path that takes him closer to the man who was staring at him. His pace allows him to meet the grumbling fisherman next to the two men. The fisherman grabs the box of fish screaming something at him. He does not let go of the box just yet.

"No, this is my payment, we agreed upon." The fisherman continues yelling. Sam pulls on the box moving the argument closer to the two men. "No, No, you thief."

As he lets go of the box he stumbles into the men. His hand touches the hand of one of the men. In the instance from their mind, he sees their target is a young woman. The fisherman walks away with the fish. He makes a gesture towards the fisherman then nods to the men as he walks up the street. "I'll find those uniformed men and get my fish back."

At first he didn't think they understood, but then one of the two men follow him. He walks a short distance and moves down the alley behind a building. Pressed against the wall, he stands motionless. His follower quickens his pace. Despite the ambient noise he does not miss the deadly sound of a blade drawn from its sheath. He blinks his eyes to the blue tint. The attacker gets close to the corner. A group of riders up the street will pass his location in several minutes. He walks slowly towards the other street. His follower hesitates at the corner. He entices him to act quickly.

He speaks to no one, "I told you this is the wrong street. You made me turn too soon."

He slightly angles his head and tilts up. "No, this is the correct street. We have to cross the street ahead, then turn right to the bridge."

His head rotates the other way and slightly down. "Every time I listen to you, you get us lost. I'll go back to the street and go down to the next alley."

His follower takes a deep breath and his shoes rapidly scuffle across the stones. Sam spins catching his attacker's wrist at its apex. He places the tips of his fingers on the specific points on the man's face to extract the maximum amount of information without killing him. They stand frozen in the pose for several seconds.

He whispers, "You tripped and fell." He removes the dagger from the man's hand and pushes him to the ground. His vision returns to normal as he examines the blade and the designs on the handle. He places the blade in the sheath on the owner's belt, then moves to the street. Uniformed riders stop at the shop next to the alley and assist a cloaked rider off the horse.

The cloak shifts and reveals blue eyes and brown hair. Who is she that she would need six uniforms for protection? Is she royalty? Is she the daughter of a prominent politician, a general's daughter? Who is this beautiful woman? Suddenly he senses the presence of two individuals standing behind him. At the corner of his eye, he finds the two missing men from the group. Both have their hands inside of their coats. He steps towards the door and taps on the lower corner of the window pane motioning to his mouth like he is hungry. One of the uniformed riders step out the door and walks towards him. He stays slumped over pointing to a fruit in the window. The rider grabs his arm, pulling him away from the window. For a short moment the two men retreated across the street.

"What are you doing here?"

"I hope you understand me. Your guest is in danger."

"What are you speaking?"

A second rider approaches them. He grabs the rider sleeve and motions his hand to his mouth. This rider has a leaf on his shoulder, but he does not understand him either. "Private, who is this man?"

"I don't understand what he is saying. He sounds like the sailors on the British ship. He is motioning like he is hungry."

"Get him on his way, we have to stay on schedule." The officer returns to the shop.

The private pushes him to the ground. He tries to get up, but the private kicks his bottom. He gets to his feet and glances at the two men watching the scene from across the street. He walks up the street and darts into the alley.

A short distance down the alley, he presses his back against the wall. A glance towards the street and he does not see the men. He slides along the wall until he catches a glimpse of them directly across from the guards.

The two move as though they are having a conversation. They are blending into the background. One motions with his hand as though he is pointing behind himself as he continues to talk to his partner. Sam spots a signal as the man's hand makes the numbers three, four, one and five. The second person nods his head as he watches the uniformed riders.

A minute later, yells and screams erupts from the square. Four riders on horseback race pass the alley towards the square. The two men are not across the street. He steps to the edge of the alley.

A commotion by the shop draws his attention. The two men attack the two uniformed riders. The female rider falls off her horse. Both uniformed riders fall to the ground with blood on their uniforms. One man grabs the female and places a dagger to her throat. The other man runs into the shop.

The assailant twists her arm behind her back and pushes her towards the alley. She does not resist, but holds the man's arm holding the blade. He squats against the wall and frost forms on his right hand.

The assailant glances up the street before starting down the alley. The female locks her eyes on him. His hand thrusts forward, grabbing the man's wrist and freezes it. He pulls the blade away from her throat. The knuckles of his left hand connects with the side of the assailant's head. Bones crunch from the impact. The assailant falls, dragging the female to the ground. He physically lifts the female and carries her to a doorway. His arm presses her against the door. He opens his other hand and sweeps it from the ground to over his head. The air distorts and becomes extremely dense between them and the alley.

With his finger to his lips, he whispers, "Don't make a sound. There are more of them." With no response except her stare he says, "I will protect you until your guards get here. I hope you understand."

The second assailant enters the alley. He motions to someone at the other end and checks his friend on the ground.

As he releases the female he still holds his finger across his lips. He slowly brings his right hand up between them. He turns his head towards the second assailant, but catches the female's expression as her eyes widen. He looks at the back of his hand as ridges form in the shape of a snowflake.

The second assailant moves and he lunges at him. The man pivots with a dagger in his hand. He barely catches and freezes the assailant's hand. His left hand shoots out and connects with the man's jaw staggering him back. He twists the frozen hand and stabs the dagger into the man's heart. The man collapses. The men at the other end of the alley run back towards the street.

He drops his right hand to his side and creates two short spikes of ice. His hand swings over his shoulder and snaps forward. A second later the closest man falls face down into the ground. The second man reaches for the back of his right shoulder. Sam draws his hand back to his shoulder and shoots it forward with a snap. A second later the second man falls to the ground. He scans the four men in the alley and looks at the doorway. The female has departed.

Several boots run across the stones. He moves to the alley corner and a sword swings at his head. He grabs the blade and freezes it. The guard drops his sword grasping his hand. He runs back up the alley, but two guards on horses draw their swords and charge at him. He turns back to the street. Three guards with swords drawn move towards him. He raises his hands and surrenders. He is prepared to freeze them if they attack. Not understanding what they are saying he gets the impression from their yelling, they want him to do something. He points to his ears and shakes his head. "I don't know what you are saying. I saved the female from these two men."

He points to the men on the ground. They stop yelling but motion for him to get on the ground. He does not move.

From around the corner, a female's voice speaks, "They are telling you to kneel down. They will not attack if you obey them."

He drops to his knees and holds up his hands. Two guards move behind him. The third continues to point his sword at him. The female steps out from the corner and tosses a round fruit at him. He catches it with one hand. The sweet-tart fragrance of the fruit motivates the saliva glands in his mouth. He sinks his teeth into the fruit, drinking the juices as some runs down his chin. In less than a minute he licks the fruit juice off his finger.

The female holds out another fruit. "What is your name and who do you work for?"

He glances back and forth between her and the fruit. He points to the men on the ground. "There were ten individuals. Six were in the square with the merchants. No doubt they created the commotion to draw your guards away from you. A sailor on the large ship docked at the wharf said he saw several of the individuals depart from the schooner at the end of the pier."

She speaks to the guard and he yells out commands. Two riders race their horses out of the alley.

She asks, "Are you a part of the English crew?"

"No, I'm not from the English ship, but it is interesting, other than the sailor, you are the only one whom I can understand."

"Many kingdoms come here for trade, I help the royal court with my skills to speak several languages. I ask you again. What is your name and who do you work for?"

"I am Samuel Christopher Ryan, Currently I am unemployed. My small ship crashed on your shore." He observes the sky, "When the moon is full, it will be a month that I have been here." A gust of wind blows down the alley, bringing the first signs of snow.

"Come back with me to the castle, they can get you a warm meal and a place to stay before we get snow."

"Ma'am, if you will call off the guards, I will go back to my shelter before the snow gets too thick."

She motions the guards to back away. He stands and walks to the street with the three guards watching him closely.

"Maybe we'll meet again in the spring." He says over his shoulder and trots up the street. After a short distance he breaks into a run heading out of the village.

The sergeant of the guards approaches them, "Sir, I discovered something very odd with those at the other end of the alley. The closer of the two has a round holes through his chest. The other one has two round holes, but not all the way through his body."

"So our guest is an excellent swordsman."

The female comments, "He did not use a sword."

"Then I would love to see what he did use." He holds up his fingers. "The holes are larger than my thumb. I have seen my fair share of bleeding sword wounds. There is no blood coming out of their wounds."

The sergeant kneels and pulls the dagger out of the assailant's chest with snaps and crackling sounds. "This criminal does not bleed. It is the same as those two. It looks like the flesh is frozen."

He hands the lieutenant the dagger. The Lieutenant studies the design on the handle. "Weselton."

The female takes the dagger and rolls it in her hand, "Seems the Spring Trade negotiations are about to get very interesting."

"Shall we follow him?" the Lieutenant asks, looking up the street.

She watches Samuel run. "No, if he was with them, his actions have put a bounty on his head. When you send out patrols, search the shoreline for any evidence that will collaborate his story. I think we will be seeing him again." She glances at the sky as she pulls the hood over her head. "Let us get back before Agnarr hears about this."

"Yes your Majesty."

 **End chapter**


	7. Chapter 6 Wolf Attack

Chapter 6: Wolf Attack

 **Date: 25 years, 9 month before Correction**

The local trolls said spring came earlier than usual. A warmer winter did not produce as much snow. Whatever the reason Samuel enjoys the thaw. New plants bud and bloom. He transplanted several root vegetables closer to his cave. Soon the fish will be running the rivers. Just thinking about smoked fish causes his mouth to water.

Most of the winter he scrounged for food or explored the area. Overlooking the fjord he discovers a plateau which would be an ideal place to build a house. He can watch the village and watch the incoming ships. During the days of no snow fall, he visited a couple of hamlets and a larger village further north along the coast. The larger village had better resources to meet his needs, but this village with its castle kept drawing him back. It had a magical quality. The people appeared happy without the modern comforts he once knew. He took the troll at his word no one would be allowed to find his ship. Even during a snow storm there was something special about Lookout Plateau as he watched the snow drape its blanket of white over the village and the fjord. On clear days, he sat on a boulder at the edge of the plateau and listen to the children play and ice skate.

With his ice powers he covered his footprints in the snow. On several occasions humans interrupted his search for food. On just one occasion after a fresh layer of snow blanketed the valley, he was almost caught. An older child became lost for several hours before he located the child and directed him back to the adults. The child must have said something about him. The adults searched the area and found his tracks before he could cover them. He made the sound of a wolf and they departed quickly. The short time he had been here, he had never seen a wolf attack a human. Even the lost child was not in danger from the wolves, but the humans had a strong distrust of them. It had to have been a misunderstanding. Unfortunately, it will be nearly a century before human's attempt to study the wolves in their habitats.

Above the southern hills upper level wisp of clouds gather. He sits on his favorite boulder that gives him a good view of the fjord, below. Village life returns for the new day. The castle gates open. A team of horses race across the bridge. His two friends who usually join him in the morning have not arrived. Even peace has not arrived at the plateau. The air is not crisp or clean. Even the sunrise appears different, not as warm a welcome for the new day. He watches a ship move up the fjord towards the village. A breeze along the water displays an unfamiliar flag at the top of the main mask. His two friends approach, but they stay at a distance. He turns his body. The two wolves watch him. He motions with his hand for them to get closer, but an unfamiliar howl draws their attention. He searches for the stranger, but its howl echoes through the hills.

Two horses neigh near the village. They pull an odd shaped wagon. It wasn't just a cargo wagon. It had several shades of yellow and green and purple with lanterns on each side of a window. As it travels through a curve in the road, it had a longer wheelbase and a covered shelf on the back. The few times he observes the villagers they used smaller wagons with one horse or pushed small carts with their produce. It is the first time this type of wagon appears. The four horses snort pulling the heavy load. Two mounted guards ride ahead of the colorful wagon with four mounted guard behind it. Someone of importance must be in the wagon. Maybe it is an overnight wagon used for business.

He hides behind a tree near the road to get a closer look at the wagon when it passes. None of the horse riders make any indications of his presence. Either they did not see him or were not interested which could be bad for the passenger. The wagon speeds by his location and continues down the road. He walks towards his perch on the boulder when he hears the unfamiliar wolf call from the previous day. The call sounds closer.

He changes his plans and heads back to his cave. Along the way rocks crunch together and fallen twigs break. He stops. A growl whispers to him. He continues walking and the sound of movement on his left also continues. He searches for the sound, but the thick vegetation does not reveal the source of the sound.

He shifts his mind to a higher alertness. The source moves when he moves and stops when he stops. Are they tracking him or are they the distraction. He blinks his eye to shift his vision to the blue tint and scans the area. Four wolves move along the ridge to his left. He discovers three wolves closer at ten meters to his right. With his normal vision he sees the three wolves. He looks back up the trail. No wolves follow.

The unfamiliar wolf sounds again, but closer than before. He continues down the path and spot two wolves at the intersection of the path that leads to his cave.

 _Is this your plan, ambush me? Why? You have never done this before, why now?_

He notes their body language has changed. The heads of the two angled to their left and appear to look past him. One moves its head and its eyes reflect a reddish tint. He glances behind him searching for a light source to cause the wolf's red eyes, but finds none. With the disadvantage of the open area, he will have to pass, his eyes view the area in greenish tint and runs. A howl sounds behind him. The rustling of shrubs and twigs breaking, sound as the wolves close in on him. A long howl causes the two wolves on the path to charge him.

The distance closes rapidly and frost layers on both of his hands. He will try to deflect their attack. The unknown wolf appears to be directing the others, but why. Spotting movement to his right, he shoots a ball of ice. A cry of pain sounds. He sprays the area left and right with ice balls. By the yelps, the ice has hit several targets. One of the two wolves in front slows up. The other leaps at him. He throws his elbow into the side of the wolf's head, knocking it to the ground but not without three claw marks across his chest. The second wolf leaps at him. He sweeps his hand from the ground upwards. An ice pole forms and he sends the wolf over his head, leaving most of its fur frozen. The attack slows him enough for the other wolves to attack. One clamps its jaw onto his upper arm. His free hand touches its side and it falls to the ground motionless with a mostly frozen body.

His cave comes into view. With a burst of speed he breaks free of the attackers, but a heavy thumping on the ground with claws scraping across the rocks, moves closer to him. A low growl sounds like it's behind his head. He trips.

A large paw swats at him and leaves claw marks on the back of his head. He rolls and the wolf runs over him. The paw that combed his hair freezes. He sprays small ice balls in all directions. With saliva dripping from its jaw, the fiery red eyes of the large red wolf stares at him. The red wolf drags its frozen paw into the forest. The other wolves trail behind it, but two wolves do not move from where they fell. He did not wish to kill the two. It should have been the red wolf. Other animals will detect his blood running down the back of his neck.

He crawls into his cave and scans for intruders. His hand sweeps across the entrance and creates an ice barrier from the ground up, but leaves enough space at the top to vent out smoke. He sits next to the pit and starts a fire. He fills each puncture mark on his left with ice and drags his fingertips across the claw marks on his chest. Four lines of ice layer his chest. A blood droplet lands on his shoulder. He sweeps his hand across the back of his head and leaves a layer of ice. His head and neck become immobile until the healing process completes.

He lies down on his makeshift bed. A life in a cave was never his plan let alone for the rest of his life. He has no choice but to align himself with someone. Each time he has made this decision, disaster follows, except one. The humans in the village appear to have a limited technology which will be a distinctive advantage for him.

Every morning he peeks out of his cave, and every morning a gray wolf with red eyes sits at the end of the path. It is as though they are sending him a message, 'we are watching you'. He scans the area and detects only the one wolf.

With the expenditure of energy for the healing process and not eaten for more than forty-eight hours, he has no choice but to venture away from the cave. He ties the rope tighter around his trouser.

Other than the lone wolf who waits for him each morning, he has not seen the Red Alpha or his pack. He loads the three baskets he made during the winter onto his back and steps out of the cave. Not wanting any uninvited guest he sweeps his hand covering the entrance with ice. He sweeps his other hand near the ground blowing dirt over the ice. At a distance the humans will not see the cave and he does not need to evict animals from establishing a residency. At the river he gets his fill of the slightly sweet, but still cold water. After a quick scan of the area he does not see the lone wolf. He adjusts the baskets and continues south to the valley where the flowers are in bloom and he should find plenty of root plants. The warm sun on his face causes him to look at the sky. A light breeze near the surface with a few clouds in the upper atmosphere should make a nice day for an adventure.

His travel became too predictable so he takes an alternate route into the hills. The direct route takes him to the valley sooner than expected. He digs for edible roots. After an hour he has one basket filled and the second basket partially filled. Overhead, clouds drift from the north and diminishes the sunlight. He sets the second basket down and fills the third basket with edible plants. Determining which plants are safe takes a little longer. More clouds congregate overhead and a steady breeze blows from the north. The temperature drops. After three hours of working the field and filling his baskets, he slings them onto his back and walks home.

Movement near several small boulders ahead draws his attention and he scans for the red wolf pack. The weight of the baskets slows his progress. He constantly searches every sound. He is prepared to drop his baskets and run. If they are watching him, they may catch him in the open. He may have no choice but to move closer to the human village or leave the area. His indecision could make it worse for him. He will need to find a food source closer to his shelter. Despite stopping several times ready to attack, he does not encounter the wolves or any other animals that should be in the area. Around a bend he sees the path leading towards his cave. Off the path the bushes rustle. He does not need his blue vision. The distinctive features of six wolves step onto the path. They do not appear to be looking directly at him, but looking past him. The wind blows harder swirling loose leaves and swaying the tops of trees. The wind creates waves swirling through the vegetation. The clouds cast a dark shadow over the hills. In the distance rays of sunshine move in his direction.

More movement rustles the bushes to either side. The red wolf with the fiery eyes leaps onto a boulder behind the first six wolves. The leader lowers its head, baring its teeth and emits a growl. The others lower their heads baring their teeth emitting the same type of growl. More wolves step into the clearing. They also appear to be looking past him. Each emitting the same growl.

Sam glares directly at the red wolf on the boulder. "So this is how we solve our problem."

He throws off the baskets and gets down on all fours. Arching his back, he lets out a loud howl and bares his teeth. He challenges the wolf with a growl. The red wolf growls and howls in reply. The pack charges him.

He does not wish to kill the wolves and yet the fiery eyes of the Red wolf have control over them. For a fleeting moment, it reminds him of the human leaders who send the innocent peasants to fight and die while they watch from a distance. With this encounter the Red Wolf's energy appears strangely familiar. He generates enough of an energy force around himself that only scratches get through. He easily blocks and throws each wolf, but these wolves show signs of intelligence. They time their attacks. As he throws one wolf off, a second one hits him. He has to expend more energy. A layer of ice forms on his hands and where he touches the wolf, they crawl away with a frozen hand print on their fur. After many minutes they have not forced him to move from his spot.

The Red Alpha yips and growls. Multiple wolves attack at the same time. Several of their hits leaves trails of blood running down his body. He slowly gives ground to them. They are pushing him away from his cave. When he grabs one wolf to freeze part of its body, two or three more hit him. If he can't stop the attack, he may have no choice and kill a few of them. Six wolves charge him at the same time in three directions. He claps his hands over his head and rapidly sweeps his hand down to the ground. A micro-burst of air accelerates away from him along the ground blowing loose dirt and vegetation in all directions, including the wolves. The rapidly moving air draws the air out of the wolves' lungs. All lay on the ground gasping for air. His heart pounds against his chest wall. The microburst also removes part of the air from his lungs. He gasps for a moment. Too many wolves lay between him and his cave.

He moves towards the river where there are trees. A growl sounds behind him. The Alpha wolf paws the ground and several wolves stand next to it. They move towards him. More wolves get on their paws and follow him. He can't outrun them in the long run. If one wolf trips him the others would catch him. He spots a suitable tree a short distance away. If he can climb up it, he would be able to take his time at freezing enough of them to chase the others away. He sprints as fast as he can and jumps onto a lower branch. A wolf swats at his foot. Several scratches burn across the back of his leg.

He climbs higher and rest his back against the tree trunk. He covers the scratches on his leg with a layer of ice. The wolf that scratched his leg, tries to climb the tree. He fires a small ice ball at it. The wolf yelps and falls to the ground. It limps away licking its paw. The air temperature has warmed up enough with the sun his ice melts quickly off the wolf.

Several wolves pace around the bottom of the tree, but none try to climb it. Each one in turn looks up at him and growls. Are they saying they can't wait for him to come down and each explain how they will shred him to pieces? He tries to reach out to them, but gets no responses. It is as though the Red Alpha is blocking his thoughts from reaching them.

He studies each wolf and is thankful his two friends are not among this pack. Where ever they are he hopes they do not try a rescue. Red Alpha is too strong to be attacked by the other wolves. A short distance away Alpha watches him. When the time comes he will have to take the red wolf down. If they leave him alone his wounds will heal and he will be able to recharge his energy. He takes the moment and layers ice over his wounds. He positions himself so he does not fall out of the tree and closes his eyes. Several times he repositions himself but is not able to get comfortable. A vibration radiates through the tree and into his back. The wolves still pace around the tree, but none of them have tried to climb it. He notices one wolf twitching its ear and sniffing the air. The Alpha sniffs the air with its ears twitching. All of the wolves sniff the air and turn their ears in the same direction of the breeze. He hears a new sound.

He detects, at least three, possibly four distinctive animals straining and they are moving in his direction. The Alpha and two other wolves track the sound. Now all the wolves around the tree face the sound. Hooves clop against the hard surface. They sound like horses snorting as they pull a heavy load. Are they the same group he saw leaving the village a week ago? If they are, he hopes they do not stop, but they will have to slow for a bend in the trail.

Several wolves move from the tree and join the Alpha. After a few minutes the Alpha and five wolves race towards the trail. The other wolves do not pay him any attention. He closes his eyes for a second and opens them to the dark green tint. With his feet set directly under himself, he explodes out of the tree and he lands several meters beyond the wolves. Many of the wolves duck and look around by the sudden motion. They yip and snarl at each other. Their distraction gives him a head start before they regroup and chase after him. His sprint keeps him ahead of the pack, but it is not enough to gain on the six wolves ahead of him. He jumps over vegetation and side steps around trees and boulders. The wolves do the same thing. He crests a short hill. Ahead sits the trail on the opposite side of a dry river bed.

The Alpha and wolves run through the river bed between the hill and the trail. They head for a clump of trees, past the bend in the trail. The Alpha shows signs of intelligence for choosing the trees for an ambush. He has to get to the trees before the horses come out of the bend. The humans will not see the ambush until it is too late.

He estimates the wolves will be on the trail before the horses pass. He runs along the ridge, then races down the bank. As he reaches the river bed, he grabs several rocks and throws one at the Alpha. The rock hits another wolf causing it to roll into a small boulder. It lies where it fell and pants. Two wolves and the Alpha continue their run. He runs across the river bed and jumps onto the bank. His arm swings back to throw at the wolf standing at the top of the ridge. The one unaccounted wolf steps out from behind a tree. It is too late to maneuver around it and he plows into it. The wolf yelps and lies where it fell from him. He does not waist time and rolls to his hands and knees struggling to climb the bank. He gets to his feet and rocks slide down from above. He looks up when a second wolf lands on him. He and the wolf roll back into the river bed. Three more wolves attack him, even amongst the noise he can hear the horses approaching. Others of the pack run down the bank towards him. He has no choice in preventing the ambush. He expands a blue field around himself and disorientates the wolves. The one further out runs around the blue field. Each takes a turn and runs into the field. Their momentum carries their bodies into him. They are pushing him away from the trail. If the riders do not stop and he can keep the wolves attention a little longer, he will be able to run. The Alpha and five wolves run in the river bed parallel to the trail.

In a fight you don't keep track of time. For a moment the wolves stop their attack. Three men brandishing swords and yelling, charge down the bank towards him. They wear the green and tan uniforms. The wolves look around disorientated. The lead soldier strikes the hind leg of the wolf with his sword. The wolf yelps and limps away. The second soldier strikes his sword at the two wolves sending them running. The pack scatters and Sam fall to his knees, gasping for air.

Two soldiers stand guard watching the wolves. The third soldier kneels in front of him. He speaks in an unfamiliar language, "Are you ok? We need to leave this area? You can go with us to Arendelle."

A soldier points to several wolves standing near a clearing. "Captain, the wolves are regrouping for another attack."

The Captain peers past him and looks where the Private points. "So it would seem." He places his gloved hand on his shoulder. "I don't think this fellow is from here."

The second guard points to more wolves. "There are three more over there. They are trying to surround us."

The Captain acknowledges the privates. "We need to get out of here."

Sam takes deep breaths and watches the wolves gather for another attack. The soldiers observe him. He makes the motions of running but they do not respond. He could extend his energy around them if they stay in a small group, but the one who steps out will be torn to shreds. They do not move. He grabs the back of the soldier's neck and his head and pulls him close. He stares into the soldier's eyes searching for their language. His eyes change to the blue tint. He discovers the soldier is the Captain of the Guards at the castle outside of the village. His language is a dialect of the two exchange security officers from Norway he encountered at the Central Police fortress. For a fraction of a second he wonders if the young couple made it home.

A growl behind him brings his attention to the now. The cold from his hand slides down the soldier's back, causing him to shiver then Sam lets him go. The Captain falls back onto the ground. The Private helps the Captain to his feet.

He tries to speak to the Captain in his own dialect, but he mangles the word. "Captain Thorsen, we need to run before it's too late."

They stare at him. "What is he saying?"

"It sounds like he said we need to run," Thorsen replies.

Two wolves charge at them.

Sam jumps to his feet and pushes the guards towards the ridge. He scoops up a large rock and throws it at one of the charging wolves. The wolf stumbles and rolls onto the ground. The second wolf stops. The other wolves watching the event move towards them.

He waves vigorously at the Guards. His dialect gets better. "Don't stand there. Run."

All four run up the bank and over the ridge towards the road. Sam looks over his shoulder expecting a wolf to jump at him. They climb up to the road near the coach with the window curtains drawn closed.

Thorsen calls out, "Where are the other guards?"

The coach driver yells, "Wolves scared your horses. Two guards rode after them. Two more wolves chased after the guards. The third guard rode after them." The driver points up the road. "They went that way."

The guards and Thorsen scan the road as they approach the horses.

Sam spots movement across the road and squats to look under the coach. The red wolf scowls at him. Behind the red wolf two wolves charge the horses. The coach lurches forward with its locked wheel. Two horses neigh as they try to get away from the wolves. Thorsen and the guards with swords attack the wolves. A third wolf jumps onto the coach pushing the driver off.

He charges the wolf and land several blows until the wolf backs away. The wolf runs up the road and back over the ridge. The coach lurches sideways. Two distinctive female voices scream from inside of the coach. A guard tends to the driver. Another calm the horses.

He runs to the other side of the coach. The red wolf jumps and slams its body against the door but gets the front half of his body through the window. This time a scream of extreme pain comes from the coach. He grabs the wolf's tail and pulls, but most of the wolf's body is in the coach. He locks his arms around the wolf's hind legs and positions his feet against the side of the coach. He pulls with all of his strength and most of its body slides out. The wolf locks its front legs inside of the coach and fights against him to get into the coach.

Thorsen with his sword in hand runs around the coach. He hesitates to strike the red wolf. Another scream of death moves Thorsen to hit the wolf's side with the hilt of his sword. The red wolf releases from the window, falling onto Sam. It claws and scratches Sam's side and arms, trying to get away. It runs down the river bed and escapes over the ridge. The remaining wolves run after their leader.

The three guards return with the runaway horses. Sam rolls onto his knees, clutching his side. Thorsen helps him to his feet. The Private walks towards them and stops short. He places his hand over his mouth and points at the coach door. A bright red liquid seeps out from under the coach's door. Sam opens it. Blood covers a brown hair female on the floor.

The Private steps to the side of the coach and heaves an empty stomach. The young female pants rapidly with a wild-eye expression. Her pale face changes whiter. She moves with a groan and blood pulses between her fingers clutching her abdomen.

He grabs the door and places his foot on the step when Thorsen stops him. He snaps his head around. "Do you have a doctor here?"

Fixated on the blood he barely shakes his head.

"Where is the nearest doctor or healer?"

Thorsen just stares at the blood.

The private wiping his mouth answers, "Forty-five minutes away in Arendelle."

"She will be dead in a matter of seconds."

Thorsen does not move.

He grabs the back of Thorsen's neck. "You and the guards get on your horses and ride as fast as this coach will travel." He grabs the Private's collar. "This man will sit in the coach with me as I try to save the woman's life. If I do anything inappropriate, he will kill me and you can explain to your boss how this happened."

He steps into the coach and kneels next to her. Blood overflows from the gaping wound in her lower abdomen. He whispers to her, "There is no time to be modest."

Her body rapidly goes limp and her eyes partially close. With a blink to the blue tint where only she can see, he sticks his hand into her open wound. He finds the artery and pinches it close. With his other hand, he drags the private into the coach. "Captain, order the guards to ride before she dies."

Thorsen yells and runs to his horse. "We ride as hard and as fast as we can. Selmore ride ahead to Arendelle and tell them we need the doctor when we get there.

The Private closes the door and the coach lurches forward. It sways from side to side traveling along the trail. He touches behind the guard's face and a spark causes the guard to pass out on the seat. Sam observes the young woman as what little color in her face slowly changes to an ash white. He places his hand over her hands. "Before you pass out, what is your name?"

The young woman locks her eyes on him and her lips move more than she whispers. "Ingrid." Her breathing becomes shallow and rapid. The blood vessel in her neck, barely pulses.

"Ok, Ingrid, I have to stop the bleeding or you will die." He squeezes her hand. "This will hurt." She does not move. He places one hand on top of his other hand and closes his eyes. A pulse of blue energy shoots from his hands into her wound. Ingrid gasps and passes out. Her lower abdomen glows white as a blue mist envelops her body. The mist travels up his arms. He slides his arm under her back and legs then moves Ingrid to lie across the seat. He rests Ingrid's head in the other young woman's arms. On the floor, he places one hand inside of Ingrid's wound and places his other hand, in the blood on the floor. With a mischievous smile he speaks to the young woman, "Medical science will not appreciate what I'm about to do, but it will save your friend's life." He touches the pinched artery and floats the blood off the floor into his hand.

 **End of Chapter**


	8. Chapter 7 Queen Injured

Chapter 7: Queen Injured

 **Date: 25 years, 9 month before Correction**

The Young woman holds Ingrid in her arms and yells as tears flow down her cheeks. "Ingrid. Ingrid, wake up. Please, wake up."

Sam touches the woman's arm. "She will be ok. I need to repair her wound." He stares at her for a moment longer then she slowly nods.

The coach rocks from side to side as the horse team races for home. He steadies himself leaning against the seat. At the moment it takes the coach to return to its rhythmic movement, a familiarity about this young woman rings in his mind. He thwarted a kidnapping of a brown hair female six months earlier when the first snow storm passed through the area. Due to the circumstances of the event he did not have time to perform a complete assessment of her. He examines her face as his hands continue to heal her.

 _Are you the woman I met last year? If you are that person I hope this is not a trend that we keep meeting on potentially tragic events_.

He sits back on his heels. Sam pulls Ingrid's hands away to reveal her torn flesh where the Alpha wolf tried to get into the coach. Ingrid moans as he opens the wound to determine the depth of the damage. His blue energy stops the bleeding, but he needs to repair the torn blood vessel. Ingrid's time is short with the loss of so much blood. Her blood on the floor drifts up and into his hand. He pours it into the wound and repeats the process several times. His blue energy filters out all contaminates. The torn blood vessel draws in the blood.

 _Maybe it will be enough to keep you alive_.

He leans back for a moment and repositions himself to move in sync with the rocking coach. The young woman strokes Ingrid's hair. The back of her hand wipes her own cheeks as she sniffles. He touches her hand. "You may not understand, but I can save your mistress' life and I need you to be awake, okay."

The woman nods as more tears run down her cheeks.

"What is your name?"

She tries to smile. "Gerda."

"Okay Gerda, she needs more blood. Please do not panic for what you are about to see." He gives her a reassuring smile. His eyes close for a moment, then opens them to see in an emerald tint. His hand cups above the floor and a blue mist forms above the floor. Droplets of blood float up and collect in his hand. He pours the blood into her wound and wipes contaminates onto his trousers. For several minutes he continues the process and pours more of Ingrid's blood into her wound. The blood pools and he forces blood into the blood vessel.

 _This does not feel right. There is an imbalance_.

He detects another energy signature other than Ingrid's and Gerda. It is a miniscule amount of energy, but it is there. He slowly moves his hand in and around her wound. The energy stays in one location.

 _It can't be._

He moves his head from side to side in disbelief.

 _It has to be. It can be only one thing._

"Wake her up there is a problem."

Gerda lightly taps her mistress's face. "Ma'am, please wake up." She taps a little harder, "Ingrid, please wake up."

Ingrid groans as she moves her head. Sam changes his eye color back to hazel. "Ingrid can you hear me?"

Her eyes barely open, but there is a noticeable nod. "Ingrid, I know you are hurting. I will help you with the pain, but I have to ask you a very important question. Do you understand?" She nods again. "Are you with child?"

With wide eyes and a slight smile she rolls her head towards him. Ingrid whispers, "Morning sick."

Gerda beams. "Yes, she has been sick in the morning the past week and other female stuff not on time."

He forces a half smile. "Your baby has been injured. The probability of survival is very low. Because it is early in your pregnancy, terminating it now, will greatly improve your chances of survival in which case you can become pregnant again."

She clenches her jaw and stares at him with her brows down. She grabs his hand and shakes her head vigorously. With a forced raspy voice she replies, "No. No, please save my baby . . . please!" A tear runs down the side of her cheek and disappears in her brown hair.

 _I don't have the skills to repair the damage even if I could see it. Even the future science would not be able to save this baby. I could say I tried but the baby died. The truth is always the best course of action, even with consequences. If I did nothing nature would take care and the baby may die anyway. I could let both of them die. No one would blame me. Gerda would say I kept Ingrid alive for a short period of time, maybe long enough for her to see her husband and family. The female's body would dispose of the fetus. It's not like I killed her. The red wolf is to blame. If I had not been where they located me, the coach would not have stopped and the wolf would not have attacked them, but I was there. I caused these events to occur. How do I save this baby?_

A spark on his finger gives him the answer. He does not have to know how, just do it.

Suddenly energy leaves his finger. He searches the wound as his eyes change to a crystal blue, he gasps at what he sees. _It can't be possible. It's too young, but she is doing it._

He grins at Ingrid and holds his breath to control his emotions. He nods vigorously. "I will do as you say."

He presses his thumbnail into his finger and breaks the skin. He squeezes his finger. Concentrated white blood collects into a large drop. He touches the drop to the miniscule source of energy. Her baby draws in his blood. His energy decreases.

Years ago, his baby girl took his heart. She skinned her knee. Her lips puckered and quivered. She tried to be strong, but the pain over whelmed her defenses. He sat her on his leg. His hand applied a layer of ice over the scrape. Her body flinched. Her eyes released the tears. He curled her into his arms. She created dark spots on his shirt. He tried but her pain overwhelmed him. His little girl was hurt. He generated a blue energy barrier around them. She pulled on his shirt collar to rest her head against his neck. He felt her breath against his neck. Ladycat laughed at him. "I told you she would take it, you big baby."

He didn't care. He needed to protect her and he would.

With a big grin moisture splashes on the back of his hand. A finger taps on his knuckle. His vision blurs a she looks at her.

"Is my baby okay?"

He glances down. The star dust sparkles as it performs its magic. A child . . . she still has time to grow before she will be called a child. No, she is not just a clump of cells randomly put together and by chance forms into a human baby. He watches the dust merge into her blood.

 _Is this what happened to me long ago? But I was already a child when they injected me and the others with the star dust. Have I just condemned you to a life of misery? If they reject you I will take you with me. We will find a home. I will teach you all you need to survive and to control your powers._

He looks back at Ingrid. He cheeks rise higher as the corner of his eyes wrinkle together. "She will live."

Gerda clamps her hand on his shoulder. "She, you said she."

He wipes the corner of his eyes with his torn sleeve. "Her genetic material is female." He grins. "You have a daughter."

The coach rocks bringing Sam back to the now. His hands glow a cool blue. "Assuming I can get you closed up before we get back to your home, you need to understand. Ingrid, you have a daughter, but I don't think she will be like other little girls. Her appearance will be the same. Her mind may process information differently. Please don't take it that she may be dumb or stupid, but she could be the opposite, very intelligent. Do not be surprised if she does things earlier than other children."

Gerda kisses Ingrid's forehead and whisper's, "You're going to have a little Princess. The king will be very happy."

The word slams into his chest. Now, he understands why the Captain hesitated to let him into the coach. "This is a royal coach?" He stares at them. "You are a Queen?" She smiles at him. "You are Queen Ingrid of Arendelle?"

She nods slightly with a bigger smile.

A moment ago, the joy and happiness danced in his heart. Now, images of his past mistakes, where he allowed himself to be involved in other's lives, flash through his mind. Only time will know if this is another mistake. "The first snow of the season near the square, it was you. Does your King know?"

She places her hand on top of his hand and whispers, "It will be okay."

"Are you kidding me?" He closes his eyes for a moment and takes several deep breaths. "There is no way I can explain to the King why I have my hands inside his wife's side. Are we close?"

Gerda replies, "We have a little ways to go. When you hear the coach rolling over the cobbles, we will be a few minutes from the castle's gates."

He stares at the healing wound. For a moment he thinks about what could have been. "At least when the King has me executed, I know there will be another."

"Another what?" Gerda asks.

He grins at Ingrid. "In four or five years you will have your answer."

Ingrid asks, "Why do I not feel any pain?"

"My energy creates a nerve block. You will feel sore and tender on this spot. If I have not done my part in the healing process, you may be laid up in the bed for several days to a week. Once you get to the castle, take it slow until you know how well the healing progressed." He observes his handy work in the healing process.

 _Cat, I think I have done it again. Did I just change their future?_

About a half hour later, the clatter of the coach's wheels rolling over the cobble stones echoes inside of the coach. The time could not be more perfect as his hands change from the white back to the normal flesh color. He leans back against the seat and moves her dress to cover the healed wound. He helps Queen Ingrid to sit up. She presses on the former wound, then leans against Gerda.

With a smile Ingrid comments, "If it was not for my torn dress, I might not know you had your hand under my dress."

Sam pushes himself off the floor and onto the seat next to the sleeping guard. He grins. "Your Majesty, you will have a little scar. Your doctor should have no problem with your pregnancy, you are quite healthy. But I must ask you a small favor. When the King asks what happened, please wait until I'm long gone before you tell him."

"As Queen, I make no promises without the Kings approval about his subjects," she replies with a wink.

"Subject!" he shakes his head, "I don't live in Arendelle. I was doing fine in the hills until your coach stopped where it did."

Gerda asks, "Your accents says you're not from around here. From where do you come?"

"That is a little harder to explain." He notes Arendelle's colorful building as they pass by.

"We have a few minutes, try anyway," Ingrid almost commands.

He raises his left brow as he stares at her. _Obviously she has no knowledge as to who he is, so she has to be bluffing._

She stares back at him and her right brow gradually rises up.

 _A good tactic my dear, so unless you can read my mind, it is a bluff and your expression may have worked for others, it will not work on me._ She raises the left brow. He squints his eyes at her then she does the same thing. "Are you mocking me?"

"A Queen does not mock. I am waiting for your answer as to where you are from."

"If you must know I crashed here in early summer before we met the first time." He watches very closely for a revealing expression, but she gives none. "I wasn't planning to meet your subjects. If you had left me alone, I could have departed in a year's time and you never would have known that I was ever here."

"If that is the truth, why am I alive with my little girl?" Ingrid asks.

He watches the passing houses and contemplates an answer. It has been some time since he last had to explain his actions.

 _Is your mind capable of understanding who I really am? Can anyone in your fair kingdom make the claims that I have done? I have seen rulers come and go. I have seen too many claim their right to royalty and use their subjects as a tissue to blow their nose then throw them away. Do you rule with a kind and compassionate heart? No, you will not know who and what I am, until I know who and what your royalty is._

The coach lurches as it starts over the bridge towards the castle. His body shift forward as he looks directly into her eyes. "Because it is not your fault. If your driver had not stopped or if I was not in the clearing when you came by, we would not be having this conversation."

Ingrid lifts her head off Gerda's shoulder and leans towards him. "You have not answered my question?"

"What are you hiding?" Gerda asks.

"Two on one, very clever. Create a distraction. I have been to this dance before. I will not underestimate you. You're good, but you're not as good as I am."

"You took the words out of my mouth." Her left brow rises up slightly. "I will watch you."

"As I will to you," he retorts back at her.

The coach lurches to a stop. He elbows the sleeping guard awake. The coach door opens and a distinguish gentleman wearing a uniform walks down the steps towards the coach. Sam offers his hand to Ingrid. "Your King awaits."

Two guard assist their Queen and Gerda out. Sam pushes the sleepy guard through the door. One of the guards moves his hand over the damaged area on the door then spots him. He points his finger and motions him to get out of the coach.

 _Well, let's see how long it takes them to throw me into a cell._

He steps out and his foot slips off the step. He falls to his knees and looks back at the partially dried blood on the steps. The guard watches him with his clenched fist on his waist. Sam stands to his full height a head taller than the guard.

He points to the steps and motions wiping it. "Water?"

The guard points to a water barrel at the far end of the steps. He walks towards the barrel with the guard following a few steps behind him. He glances at the castle. "So this is what it looks like up close, nice architecture."

He scoops water into his hand and washes the blood off his arms and the front of his hide shirt. At the bottom of the barrel a ladle lays. He positions himself between the guard and the barrel. He reaches into the barrel up to his shoulder and forms an ice hook to retrieve the ladle. The ice melts when he pulls the ladle out of the water. He pours water down his trouser legs and pools of red liquid forms around his boots.

A shadow crosses his boots. An older male wearing two different shades of green clothing holds a bucket. Sam holds out the ladle. "Trade."

The male glances at the ladle, then back at him.

"I need the bucket to remove the stain in the coach." The male holds up the bucket. He trades the ladle and scoops a bucket full of water.

He walks back to the coach and hears Queen Ingrid explaining the wolf attack to the distinguish gentleman. Her comments urge him to move quickly to the coach. A small amount of little water splashes onto the coach floor. The dried blood swirls as it liquefies. Water pools in the corners and is determine not to be pushed out the door. He looks at the water beading on his animal hide shirt. Taking it off, he wipes up the excessive red water.

Next, he washes off the steps and rinses the blood off his shirt. An exchange of words causes him to glimpse back at the Queen. An elderly man with a leather satchel tries to escort her to the castle. The specific words in the exchange encourages him to quickstep back to the water barrel. He hands the bucket back to the male holding the ladle. He peeks over his shoulder as the stern voice causes the queen to step into a regal posture with her eyes down. The King's posture signaled, it is time for him to leave while he still can. He flips his wet shirt over his shoulder and marches towards the gates.

A commanding voice echoes against the walls, "Stop him. Don't let him through the gate."

Three gate guards draw their swords and move towards him.

He holds up his hands as he continues to walk towards them. "Take it easy guys. I'm unarmed. I'm not here to fight you."

The lead guard raises his sword towards his face, "By the King's orders, Halt."

He stops and takes a step back. A sword slides through its scabbard. He turns and stops with the point of the King's sword less than a couple of centimeters from his nose. A reddening face with flaring nostrils glares at him from the other end of the sword. The King's arm at full extension causes the sword to sway side to side. Not a proper position to be standing if his intent is to strike. Obviously the King has not had to fight in his fancy clothes binding around his shoulder. The King's next movement will betray him before he attacks. The question becomes will he be able to disarm the King and defend himself against the three swords behind him, instead he jokes, "I guess this would be a bad time to sneeze at the situation."

The King's brows move together. "I understand, you save my wife from a wolf attack and I greatly appreciate you saving her." He barely moves his head. "I do not believe it was a coincidence you were there."

Captain Thorsen steps next to Sam. "Sir, your Majesty, if he was not there when we stopped, we would all be in mourning."

He peeks past the King. Ingrid stares at him. Sam pushes Thorsen away. "If it is a crime to save your Queen from a wolf. I am guilty for touching your wife. Had I not, your Captain would have been delivering your dead wife to you, instead of a beautiful, full of energy and intelligent wife. I can see why you are attracted to her. Did she tell you everything?"

"She told me enough. Her words convict you that you put your hands on her." The King touches the tip of the sword against his nose. "I will pardon your crime and forego the punishment of execution, but hear me on this. The moment has passed. Touch my wife and I will execute you myself. Your head will swing on a post over the bridge while your body feeds the fish."

He does not move and the sword presses into his skin. He stares down the length of the sword. "Maybe she did not tell you everything that transpired."

Thorsen pleads, "Sir, I don't know if he touched her or not, but I know when we opened the door, she had a gaping wound and was bleeding out. Please sir, have mercy on him and my men. If I had not stopped when we heard the wolves attacking him, this never would have happened. I take full responsibility for all that has occurred the last hour."

"Captain, you will get your punishment soon enough," the King replies and he looks Sam up and down. "If he was attacked by the wolves, where are his wounds? Are all of you conspiring with him?"

Sam closes his eyes for a fraction of a second longer than normal to scan the courtyard. _Captain, you're not ready to defend your king. The guards are too far away and will take a couple seconds before their swords will be in the range of effective use. The good king has taken his eyes off the target he threatens._

He stares directly at the King's eyes. _How are you still alive if you conduct yourself in this manner?_ In one fluid motion, he moves.

Ingrid yells, "STOP!"

She is too late. He leans back to break the contact between his nose and the sword. His left hand clamps onto the blade, then twist and pulls it from the King's hand. His right hand grabs the sword's hilt and the blade stops moving with the point of the sword within a centimeter of the King's nose. Swords clang as they are pulled from their scabbards. He hears a breath inhale behind the King.

He yells, "Don't do anything stupid that will get your king killed. Captain, is your king not worth more than a stranger?"

For several seconds no one moves. The blood vessel in the king's neck pulses rapidly. He hears the distinct sound of a bowstring being pulled tight. "Your majesty, if this is how you meet people, why are you still alive?"

He does not wait for an answer and drops to his knees as he bowed his head. He holds the sword flat in the palms of his hands above his head.

The King takes the sword and steps back. Sam drops his hands to his side and expects to hear the sword slicing through the air towards his head. He will defend himself and move to the northern kingdom, but waits for the King to make the next move. Hopefully his jester with the sword will be seen as peace and not war.

A distinctive sound of metal scraping on stone from the top of the wall signals a change of mind. He hears two voices on the wall as the sound of a taught string release.

"Charles," comes a sweet voice behind the King. "If you think they are conspiring, you will have to include Gerda and myself with them. I cannot explain how an hour ago, my side was ripped open by a wolf and with his touch I am healed. How will we explain to our daughter why you executed a stranger because he healed me?"

Sam tilts his head up. The King stares down at him. The anger in the King's face fades away as he faces Ingrid. Charles touches her abdomen and looks at her smiling face. Charles voice stammers, "You are with child, our daughter?"

He hands his sword to the Captain and hugs his wife. He cups her face with his hands and kisses her from her cheek to her ear. "You are not showing. How do you know?"

Ingrid kisses his cheek. "Do you really want me to explain it with the guards standing here?"

Charles gives her a peck on the lips. "No, I can wait until we get inside." He pecks her lips again. "Captain, I need a complete report of this incident. You and your men are dismissed."

Thorsen bowed, then motions his men to return to their duties.

Sam rises to his feet.

Ingrid nods in his direction as she asks, "What about him?" Charles turns his head towards him. "He can explain what happened in the coach."

Charles stares at him for several moments. "Where do you live?"

He points his thumb over his shoulder. "Up in the hills."

With a twitch of her brows and a grin she shakes her head. Charles surveys the hills. He commands, "I need you to stay around here until this has been resolved. Captain get him cleaned up and locate clothes that will fit him."

The King and Queen slowly walk towards the castle. With a smile Ingrid glances over her shoulder. With raised brows and slightly wide eyes, he drops his head a little and starts to speak, then she winks at him and turns away.

He speaks to Captain Thorsen standing next to him, "She's good, she is really good."

"Aye, she is. Follow me." Thorsen walks in front of him and breaks his stare.

He follows the Captain. "Does she always do that?"

"Getting her way? You should be happy she likes you. If she didn't you would be dead now." Thorsen leads him towards the Guard's barracks.

He scans everything in sight and specifically counts the number of guards. He notes the position of the guards in complete uniforms along the walls, in the castle and those in the two buildings directly ahead. The others he presumes are the castle staff.

"I guess I'll have to thank her the next time I see her."

Thorsen snorts at him as they reach the barracks. "If you see her again, it will be at a distance."

"Why?"

Thorsen pivots and grabs his arm. Even on the second step the Captain is only at his eye level, but he replies, "Because they are the royal family. If she had died, the king would have put a bounty on all of our heads. I never should have stopped for you." He continues into the Royal Guard's barracks.

He detects a touch of loyalty to the royal family. Thorsen will be a good source of how things are run in the castle. He needs specific information. "Personally, I wished you hadn't stopped. I was doing fine until the wolves heard the horses and six of them broke from the pack to chase you." He follows the Captain. "So why did you stop?"

Thorsen opens the door and steps through. He follows the Captain into a small office with nothing more than two chairs, a small table and a bookshelf in the corner. A small fireplace sits in the corner on the outer wall. Thorsen walks into a back room and answers him. "The Queen ordered us to stop. When I suggested it is too dangerous to stop for too long on the road, she said she heard someone yelling and ordered me to investigate."

He enters the room and tosses him a large gray shirt and brown trousers. "I want this back after you are finished using them. You will wash them before returning them to me. I do not expect you to be around here any length of time. Until they tell you otherwise, follow me."

He follows him out of the room. Thorsen closes the door and glares up at him. "Our King said to clean you up and you will stick around until he dismisses you. Around here everyone works for a safe place to lay their head and a meal. For the duration you will be treated as a new recruit. The other guards will test you. I will find out what is in your metal. Starting right now you will address me as Captain or Captain Thorsen. You will not address me by any other name. Do you understand?"

"Yes sir, with exceptions," Sam replies.

"No, exceptions, you follow my orders or you don't." He stands with his feet shoulder width apart and his fist on his waist.

He holds the clothes out in front. "Then you can explain to your King and Queen why I left."

The Captain glares up at him and after a few seconds, he asks, "What exceptions?"

He pulls the clothes back to himself. "I will follow your reasonable orders. I will not be bullied by the other guards."

After a few seconds Thorsen replies, "As long as you do not kill or seriously injure them."

"Agreed."

The Captain points his thumb at the door behind him. "This is my office. Do not let me call you in there or there will be trouble. If you wish to speak to me stand here before I arrive in the morning or after the evening meal. If the door is closed, knock once and wait for me to invite you in."

Thorsen walks into the large open barracks as he follows. Twenty double bunks line each side of the room. At the end of each row is a single bed with a small table. "All the beds with folded blanket are occupied." He points to the beds on each side, "These with the folded mattresses are for the new recruits. I don't care which one you take, but choose wisely. The single bed belongs to the sergeants. When more wood is needed for the heating stoves, it will be your job to stoke the stoves."

Thorsen taps his arm. "A friendly warning, don't wake those who are asleep. I have met a few recruits with a split lip, waiting at my door."

They pass through the doors at the end of the rows. He points to his left. "This side you do your bodily business. When you're through, make sure you pour this bucket of water down the hole. Go outside to the barrel by the door and refill this bucket of water. Place it in this spot for the next person. If you forget, you will do it only once."

He points to the other side of the room with the two half barrels. "You will wash here. You may use your personal soap. If you do not," Thorsen lifts the lid of a small bucket. "You will use this. While it does not smell the greatest, it smells better than some of the other you may encounter. You will be assigned to keep this barrel filled almost to the top."

Thorsen points to the back door. "This barracks is for those who are assigned to the day duties. Out the door is a half size barracks for those who guard the castle at night."

He looks up at him. "Assuming you will be here long enough to prove yourself trustworthy, you will not work the night shift. Out the door to the left is a small cabin with a kitchen. Weather permitting the sides can be raised and tables placed outside. When the sides are down you stand to eat."

Thorsen walks back to the front of the barracks. "Pick a bunk." He looks at Sam's hide boots. "I'll see what I can do to get you a pair of shoes. We eat in fifteen minutes out that back door. You have that long to clean up and get into your clothes. I recommend washing what you're wearing and place them in the trunk at the foot of your bed. Any questions?"

He shakes his head. "No Sir."

The Captain walks out the door they came in. He observes the other bunks, along with anything and everything in the barracks. "It's been a long time since someone had command over me. I'm sure the new recruit will be tested immediately." He selects the lower bunk next the single bunk and changes into the uniform.

"Let the fun begin."

 **5253**

 **End of Chapter**


	9. Chapter 8 Choose a Side

**Date: 25 years, 9 month before Correction**

"Any Questions?"

Sam grins and shakes his head. The Captain walks out the back door.

He searches the area, then takes the lower bunk next to the sergeant's bunk. He rolls the mattress onto the bed and a dead rodent flies out at him. The rodent have a string tied to the end of the mattress. A good laugh at the new recruit's expense. He expects nothing less, but how many more pranks should a recruit expect. Hazing seems to have a deep root tradition throughout the centuries. Maybe he could turn the tables and dish it out to them. The other beds have a uniformity in appearance. This is not the first bed he had to make. He quickly makes it look like the others. Time is running short.

He cleans up the best he can with what he has and steps out the back door. Several guards stare at him and other stand in the meal line. Other than his height, he appears to be a new recruit. His clothes are a little tight in some areas and loose in other areas, but overall the Captain chose correctly. He does note one obvious fact that everyone, including himself can see. Captain Thorsen is taller than all of the guards and he is taller than the Captain. While his height attracts attention, he will use it to his advantage. History has taught him that in any large group there will be the formal leaders, the Captain and the sergeants, and there will be the informal leaders. He is sure the informal leaders will make their presence known soon enough. He will have to be careful not to prejudge anyone who approaches him. A normal tactic is to send a follower to test the new recruit. How they respond will determine if the informal leaders will be a friend or foe.

He walks slowly to the end of the food line searching the faces of all. Few of the younger guards laugh and point at his bare feet. One makes the comment he must be a dumb ox from the hills. Another says he is so poor he does not have any shoes. Quite a few of the guards laugh. The comments are meaningless. He has to find those who are watching him. He notes a small group eating quickly at a table. They look around nervously. He spots three guards at a table alone. They watch him.

He moves with the end of the food line. Someone approaches. He turns his head and one of the three steps in front of him. He stares at the back of the guard's head. Another approaches behind him. After a few seconds the guard behind him coughs.

The one in front speaks over his shoulder. "Excuse me, I didn't know trees could sneeze." He laughs, but does not move with the food line.

Sam grins to himself. _A very poor diversionary tactic, obviously the attack will come from the rear._ But he plays along. "It was a cough not a sneeze."

The front guard turns around. "What did you say tree?"

"It sounds like it was correcting you. Maybe, it was implying you don't know the differences," Answers the second guard.

The front guard grinds his heel into his foot. "Are you saying I'm stupid, worm?" Sam does not answer. "May be you are the dumb one." He tries to push him, but Sam does not move. The guard steps back. He shows a toothy grin and lunges towards him.

Sam twists his body and leans to one side. He grabs the front guard's wrist and continues the guard's momentum over the kneeling guard behind him. Both guards fall to the ground. Several other guards hoot and holler at the scene. The two get to their feet, holding their fist up for a fight.

A sergeant steps in front of them. "You two get back to your table and eat. Stop wasting my time. He will not be here long enough for you to use him as a practice pole. After seeing how he easily handled the two of you, you will be first on guard duty starting at sunset. You have an hour to get ready." Snickers and laughter follow the two guards as the one glares at him. The sergeant asks, "What is your name?"

"Samuel Ryan, sir."

The Sergeant pushes a pair of shoes into his chest. "Ok, Samuel, these should fit your big feet. You might wish to sleep with one eye open until those others go to sleep tonight."

He peeks at the Sergeant as he inspects the shoes. "I promise not to hurt them badly."

"Don't say I didn't warn you." The Sergeant walks towards the barracks. He ties the shoe strings together and loops it around his neck. Stepping forward, he holds out his plate. The server plops a very thick soup onto his plate as another server puts a piece of bread on his plate. At the end of the line he takes a cup of muddy water.

The server states, "Its Grog. It takes a little getting used to it. Sit anywhere you can if they will let you. Don't expect Otto and his two thugs to let you sit."

He walks to the first table, but the occupants spread out preventing him from sitting. At the second table he receives the same treatment. All the others watch him. Soon he will make his point. If he has not missed calculated there is another guard who is the informal leader. He walks pass the others and stands in the shadow of the castle wall. He slowly rotates his head, making sure he scans the eyes of every guard who looks at him.

He holds his plate to his chest and eats the meat and vegetables. As he eats, he counts the guards. Fifty are eating and if he accepts the Captains word, twenty are asleep in the night barracks, which leaves thirty for the walls and the castle. He shakes his head, hoping there are more guards or a military force to protect Arendelle. If this is all there is. Arendelle is ripe for an invasion, but he recalls the troll said Arendelle has a sizable force that other kingdoms would not challenge, or survive if they did.

The others eat their meal and ignoring him. The two guards, he encountered earlier, sit at a table with a third guard who has his back to him, but he does notice a slight hand motion from the third guard. The other two must be the thugs. He notes when the sergeant is around, they behave themselves. Since neither sergeant is here, those two walk through the other guards and take food off their plate. They push the few slower ones. Three guards try to stand up to them, but are easily intimidated into submission. Others get up and move out of the way.

 _Does the King know about the poor quality of his guards?_

He finishes his meal which was not that bad. Since crashing here he has been eating nothing but vegetable and fruit. He places his cup and plate on the ground and sits as he slides his shoes on. Again the Captain selected the correct size. He takes his plate and cup to the cleaning table. Two guards wash and stack them. He tries to talk to them, but they keep looking past him. He peeks over his shoulder. The face of the third guard watches them. The dryer asks him to move along. He walks back to the shadow of the wall. The third guard must be the ring leader.

 _If he is the informal leader? What does he hold over the others and the Captain?_

A sergeants walks over to him and nods. "What have you learned so far?"

"Which sergeant are you?"

"Sergeant Njord, answer my question."

He continues to watch the other guard. "I suspect you already know, so why are you asking me?"

"You better get rid of that attitude or I'll knock it out of you. You show me respect and answer me," growls the sergeant.

He looks directly into the sergeant's eyes. "I know how this game is played. You make a move towards me and I'll embarrass you in front of your troops whether now or later. It will happen."

"You think you are the only one who has challenged me?" The sergeant steps back.

"There is a difference between respect and fear. Pummeling someone into the ground never earns respect. They just fear you." He nods to the guards. "I have seen the looks on their faces. Their fear is not of you. So far I have seen one leader and his two thugs, but I may be mistaken."

"I am no ones, lackey," growls the sergeant as he closes his hands into a tight fist. "You think your tough, tree?"

He snickers. "And yet you walked all the way over to me. How long has it been since someone stood up to you?"

"They all have tried at some time in their careers, yet I'm still here."

He motions to the guards. "Point out the one who gave you the most trouble before you subdued him."

"If you think he will give you tips on beating me, I dare you to try."

"For such confidence, you have yet to point him out," He rebuffs.

The sergeant points towards two tables. "He is over there."

"The table with the three?"

The sergeant hesitated and rubs his chin. "No, the big man at the table to the right of the three."

He glances past the sergeant. One of the two thugs watches him. "Are you sure?"

The sergeant grabs his collar and tries to pull him into his face. He doesn't move, but the sergeant growls, "Are you calling me a liar, tree?"

"I know what you are trying to do. Just make it look good."

The sergeant swings his right hand connecting his fist into the side of his head. He falls to the ground. The sergeant stands over him and whispers, "you're too smart to be here. Why don't you disappear by morning? No one will search for you. Until you leave be careful of Ulf, he is the one who tried to push you over Sverre kneeling behind you."

The sergeant walks towards the barracks.

"You were the one looking out the window and did nothing to stop the two thugs. What does he have over you?" The sergeant continues walking. The two thugs laugh and throw insults at him. The other guards go about their business. He rolls to his knees and rubs the side of his face. The big guy shakes his head and glances at the two still laughing. He scans the area.

 _Let's see if they take the bait and don't see me as much of a threat_.

The leader of the three walks into the barracks. Several seconds later, Ulf walks into the barracks. Sverre, moves among the other guards poking his finger in their chest and face.

He gets to his feet and brushes off the dirt. The corner of his eye watches the others. The big guy motions his head towards the bully in the yard. He decides he will have to make his point and walks over to the thug. "Why do you bully them?"

Sverre snickers, "Because I can. Why don't you go back to the mud-hole you came from before the sergeant chops you down, again?" The thug puffs out his chest as he had done to intimidate the other guards, but Sam does not respond. He stares at Sverre with no emotions or deflections in his face. The thug takes a step back then lunges at him with both fists into his chest.

He does not move. "Does the Captain know you and your friends are bullying the other guards?"

Sverre backs up looking at his hands, then at him. "That fool should have left years ago. He lost his edge in a fight. Maybe he will show you the knife wound that almost took his life."

Sam detects someone approaching behind him. He steps to one side to see both. Ulf walks towards him with a thick pole with red stains on it.

Twisting the pole in his hands Ulf speaks to Sam, "Had the Queen not interfered, the King would have gotten rid of him. And now look, she has caused the poor Captain to get on his knees and grovel to the King because she insisted he stop for your sorry hide."

Sverre laughs, "What a stupid bitch the Queen is." They enjoy their laughter, so much they do not see him moving.

He grabs Sverre by the neck lifting him completely off the ground. Ulf steps back and swings the pole hard enough that upon impact it echoes a ringing sound across the courtyard. The sound is loud enough that the guards at the gate and on the wall stop to see what is going on. Sam holds the end of the pole in his hand and shoves it into the Ulf face. Ulf collapses onto the ground with blood running from his nose. He scorns at Sverre bringing him close to his face as he whispers, "Despite your personal feelings for the King and Queen's politics, she is still your Queen and you will show her respect at all times. If you do not like it, you should leave immediately."

Sergeant Njord runs out of the barracks. "Put him down." He reaches for the sword on his hip. "I will not tell you again."

Sam glances at the Sergeant. "As you wish." He tosses Sverre several meters across a table and onto the ground. Sverre clutches at his throat, gasping for air.

"Come with me now," Sergeant Njord commands.

He follows the sergeant. As he passes the big guy's table, the guard nods with a smile. He glances over his shoulder and no one helps the two injured guards. He follows the sergeant into the barracks and watches the informal leader Otto glare at him.

The sergeant yells at Otto, "Get out before I bring charges against your two friends. Not even your father's money will help them for speaking treason against the Queen."

Otto runs out and closes the door behind him.

Sergeant Njord marches quickly to the other end of the barracks and closes the doors. He checks under every bed and around every corner as he marches back to Sam. The sergeant shakes his head and waves his fist at him. "Do you know what you have done out there? Of course you don't or you would not have done it. The father of Otto and his two friends are three of the four richest families in the kingdom. They will use any excuse to diminish the King's authority."

The sergeant moves like he is expecting an attack. He points his finger at him. "I will advise you to sleep with one eye open tonight. If you are lucky they will be quick before I wake up."

"If they retaliate tonight. Would it not be the excuse you need to get rid of them?"

"You don't understand. They come from very powerful families. Most of Arendelle's economy goes through one of the three of them. If they wanted to, they could shut down Arendelle and depose of the king."

"So nothing will be done to them and they create havoc on the guards. Why don't you and the other guard's band together against them?"

"The knife that almost took the Captain's life came from Otto's older brother. The brother was banished and is rumored to live in Weselton." The sergeant continues to look around.

"Then it is true." He stares at the back door.

The sergeant grips and releases the hilt of his sword. "What is true?"

"You are all afraid. If this castle comes under attack, will anyone defend the King and Queen?" He notices the rapid pulsing in the sergeant's neck.

"All the guards will defend our King." Njord focuses on the window.

"I already know that's a lie. Three have a disdain for the Queen. How many others will follow Otto?"

"A few maybe."

"And which side will the sergeants be on?"

He grips his sword and snaps his head around. "How dare you make such an accusation of me?" His sword barely moves from the sheath and stops. He looks down at the hand covering his hand. His face reddens.

"Stop playing this game before you cause someone to die needlessly. Your actions and theirs tell me, if this goes on any longer, the current monarch will fall soon. This place is ripe for an invasion." His hand squeezes a little tighter and a slight blue glow surrounds their hands. "What are they holding over your head and the Captains? And the King?"

A short time later, the latch on the door moves. He drops to his knees and twist his hand as the back door opens. His face distorts as if in pain and begs, "I promise to never mention what happened here. I will not disobey again." He pulls his hand from the surprised sergeant and quicksteps out the front door. Stepping to the side, he places his hand flat against the door.

"Sergeant, should we go after him?" asks Ulf.

Njord replies, "No, he understands I will follow the King no matter what. I better not hear anyone going after him. He will work in our cause." He barks "Now get your chores done before lights out." The barrack back door slam shut.

Sam moves down the steps and walks towards the stables. A sensation sweeps over him as though someone is watching him. He searches the walls and glances back at the barracks. A flash from a castle window catches his eye. He stares at the window, but the glare prevents him from seeing in. A shadow behind the glass moves. His eyes shift his focus to see past the glass. He bows to the Queen and continues to the stables.

Entering the building, silence meets him. Every horse looks in his direction. The dark haired stable boy pops his head above the rail. "What's wrong with all of you? You have seen strangers come in here before."

He walks over to him and looks him up one side then down the other. "Show me your hands?"

Sam shows him the front and back of his hands.

"I don't care why you were sent here. Have you ever worked with horses before now?" Sam shakes his head no. The boy pinches the bridge of his nose. "Great, Okay, follow me."

The boy walks over to a cart with a shovel. He wheels it to the first stall and removes the shovel. Several minutes later, he cleans the second stall. "You will do exactly as I have done with the rest of the stalls. Remove all of the little gifts the horses leave or you may have to clean a stall the second time. I will fill the stalls with hay. You do know what gifts I am referring?"

"The same thing I have been dealing with all day, only these have a greater substance and can be removed." All the horses neigh together. He and the stable boy behold the horses with amazement.

The stable boy comments, "They're laughing at you. When you are finished here you can leave."

Sam picks up the shovel and comments, "I don't think they were laughing." He goes into the first stall and scoops up the horse pellets. After a couple of hours Sam finishes cleaning the last stall.

The stable boy brings the last load of hay to the last two stalls then stops. He waves his hat to create a breeze on his sweaty face. He sits down on a stump. "I was sure I would still be here well after dark. After I finish putting this hay in these stalls, we will be done and I'll get home before it gets completely dark."

"Hopefully, I have proven myself to be a good worker. I can spread the hay between the two stalls. You go ahead and head on home." Sam grabs the rake. His small finger momentarily touches his coworker's hand. Sam retrieves valuable information.

The stable boy lets go of the rake and moves halfway down the aisle to retrieve the second rake. He returns and Sam finishes raking the last stall. The boy checks each stall. "Okay, we're done. Go back to the barracks. I'll give the Captain a good report."

They walk out of the stables. The sunlight illuminates the peaks and the northern mountains. The temperature has dropped noticeably since he entered the stables.

"What are you going to do with your extra time this evening, Mikkel?"

Mikkel stops. "How do you know my name?"

"I'm not the only guard who worked the stables. I'm sure one of them told me your name." He continues walking and Mikkel quickens his pace to catch up to him. "Either that, or when I grab the rake from you I extracted the information from your mind."

Mikkel stops.

He continues towards the barracks and glances over his shoulder. "Unless you can think of another reason, I have provided you two possibilities. I assure you, one is correct. It will give you something to think about on your way home provided you do not take a detour to the wharf." He watches Mikkel walk through the gate.

A guard walks along the wall and lights the torches. Another lights the torches by the castle doors. The flicker of the fires makes his shadow and others dance. Near the wall in the lower hills a few lamps burn in homes. A side of Arendelle he has not seen up close.

The dancing shadows would make it easy for an assassin to move unnoticed. His vision adjusts to a slight blue tint and most of the shadows disappear. He stops at the water barrel at the back of the barracks. For the moment he is alone. He removes his shirt and splashes water onto it. His shirt freezes as it slides through his left hand and he lays it across the top of the barrel. With the light diminishing rapidly, an unwanted guest may seek him out. His mind monitors the immediate area and the barracks. He splashes water onto his trousers and boots. His hand sweeps over his clothes. Dirty ice particles fall to the ground and melt.

The front door of the barracks opens and closes. Three distinctive boots step down the front stairs.

He sweeps his hand over his shirt and ice flutters to the ground. He touches the water in the barrel and increases his detection range. Two men walk along one side of the barracks and a third walks along the other side.

 _One creates the distraction while the others attack from behind. Come on boys. I have a surprise for you._

Just as the last light disappears, he walks into the barracks. Several guards stop what they are doing and stare at him. He walks past the sergeant at his desk.

The sergeant calls, "Samuel, go wash up. I don't want the smell of a horse in here."

"I did sergeant. I washed outside." He holds out his hand

The sergeant slides his finger across his hand and sniffs his finger. He sniffs his finger again. He gets up and grabs Sam's shirt and sniff. "That smells cleaner than the new clothes. How did you clean them? They smell like mountain water. Where did you get them?"

"They are my clothes. I poured water out of the barrel on to them and flapped them in the breeze."

"Fine, you don't want to tell me, that's ok as long as you do not smell like the horses." The sergeant returns to his table and continues reading.

Sam lies on his bunk and closes his eyes. He listens for comments about the three goons who went after him. Otto tells someone not to speak. Sam smiles to himself.

The next morning as the first rays of sunlight starts its trek across the mountains, a night guard runs into the barracks and wakens the sergeant.

His mind's eye wakes him upon hearing the guard talk to the sergeant.

"They are two of Otto's men. I don't know the other one. They are tied up to the table in an unusual way." The guard says.

"What do you mean unusual way?"

"Sir, you have to see this."

"Okay, I'll be there in a minute."

The sergeant slides on his trousers and boots. A few seconds later the back door closes. Three guards slip out of their beds and sneak to the door. He opens his eyes as one guard runs to the other end of the barracks. Otto jumps out of his bed and runs towards the door. As he passes Sam's bunk he glares down at him. Sam only follows him with his eyes. He rolls out of the bed and gets his feet into his boots. A commotion causes the guards to run back to their bunks but one.

"Well, Otto, why are your friends asleep on the table, naked? Have you issued mushrooms for their entertainment?" The sergeant pushes past him and marches towards the Captain's office.

Otto stares at the sergeant then his eyes stop on him. Sam stares back. Otto walks past and murmurs, "Mushrooms, why did I not think of that?"

He watches Otto rub his hands together as he walks back to his bunk. Sam folds the covers on his bunk to meet the guard's standard. He walks out the back door and assists the kitchen guards to set things up for the breakfast. The group leader tells Sam and two others to go into the castle kitchen and retrieve the guard's meal. On his second trip to the kitchen, he picks up the bread and milk container.

As he reaches the door a familiar voice catches his attention. "Samuel."

The guards have already started lining up for their breakfast. He needs to get the food to them.

"Samuel Ryan, please look at me."

He turns towards the voice. At the counter stands the smiling brunette female he saved the previous day.

"Aw Samuel, do not tell me you have forgotten who I am."

A guard behind her motions for him to bow.

He bows to her. "No, ma'am, I have not forgotten you are the Queen of Arendelle."

"That is right and as your Queen, your presence is needed back here as soon as you deliver the bread to the guard troops."

"Yes, ma'am." He bows again and backs out of the kitchen. He hurriedly delivers the food to the guard's table and marches towards the castle.

Sergeant Njord steps out the barrack door and barks, "Ryan where are you going?"

He continues towards the kitchen as he replies, "Your Majesty the Queen has requested I go back into the kitchen."

"Hang the bitch," a quiet voice speaks.

Sam pivots on his left foot between the tables and lifts Otto by his throat off the bench and slams his body onto the table.

A couple of centimeters from Otto's ear he whispers, "Make a statement like that again and you or your friends will be floating in the fjord face down. I don't care which. Someone will be stupid. Make sure you don't disappoint father."

The point of a sword touches the back of his ear. Sergeant Njord pushes the tip into his ear and commands, "Let him go."

Sam spins knocking the sword out of the sergeant's hand. For a moment, no one moves. He picks up the sword and hands it back to the sergeant. "He threatened your Queen. If he was on my ship, he would be hanging from the yardarm."

Njord glances at the other guards. "Can anyone, collaborate this threat towards our Queen?"

No one says a word. All of them look away and move to other tables. Fear turns their eyes away from the truth. A low growl sounds from his parted lips as he releases Otto. He marches to the kitchen.

Njord grabs Otto's arm lifting him off the table. "Get inside and clean up. Next time you will keep your mouth shut. Do not push him. He will be out of here soon."

The Queen's lady meets him at the door. She hands him a small wet cloth. "Fight the wolves, save the Queen, beat up three councilman's sons, and stir up the castle guards in less than a day. Wipe the blood from your ear. What are you going to do for the rest of the day?" She bumps him with her arm. "I haven't seen this much excitement around here in years." She smiles and lets him into the kitchen.

The Queen sets her cup down on the counter and approaches him. She reaches up and turns his head as he removes the cloth exposing the cut behind his ear. "What happened? Who did this to you, and I want names?"

He tries to reassure her, "Majesty, it's just a small cut."

She rebuffs, "A cut made by a sharp knife or sword."

"It's being taken care of as we speak."

She takes the cloth from him and points to a chair. "Sit." He hesitates just long enough for her to raise her right brow and drop her left. He sits. With one hand on his shoulder, she dabs the cut. "Is this your normal mannerisms?"

He lowers his brows, "I don't understand the question?"

"I asked you the 'what and who' that caused this cut and you have not answered. Is this your normal mannerism, not to answer questions?"

He turns his head towards her. "The circumstance of the cut has been removed. This is a minor event well below the attention of the King."

She glares at him. "When you had your hand inside of my abdomen did you not notice that I was not the King?"

A gasp quiets the kitchen.

She continues to glare at him. "Your statement is correct if it is just a minor event. My King does not have to know about it. I take care of the minor things, but if this cut is the results of something major that is about to happen then I will notify my King."

A quiet murmur drifts through the kitchen staff. A tall young male enters the room and chastises the staff, "What is this? Do you not have enough work that you can stand around clucking like chickens?"

Ingrid replies, "It is okay. They are responding to a comment I made to Sam."

Kai moves quickly around the room to stand next to his Queen. "Majesty, I did not see you here. I apologize for my comments. I'll escort the guard to the doctor."

"I will take care of him. You can go about your duties." Ingrid rinses the cloth in a bowl of water.

Kai steps around her and folds his ear forward. "That does not look so bad that you deserve our Queen's attention."

Sam flexes his arm and extends his fingers down. Under Kai's shoes a layer of ice forms and Sam expels a burst of air that starts the shoes moving. Kai's feet slip out from under him with his face kissing the floor. Sam closes his hand dissipating the ice.

Two staffers and Ingrid help him to his feet. "What happened?"

Kai rubs his chin. "I don't know. I was just standing here looking at his small cut and the next thing I know my chin hits the floor." The staffers help him to a table across the room.

Ingrid studies the spots on the cloth. "That is strange." She pushes his chin to the side. "It is in your blood." She pulls his chin and stares into his eyes. "The sparkles are they the reason your hands glow?"

He glances around the room to determine who is trying to listen to them. He leans closer to her. "Yes, it is. I'm rather surprised you can see it at all, but I wouldn't touch it."

He speaks too late. She touches his blood. It sparkles for a few seconds then disappears. She rotates her hand. "Where did it go?"

He searches both sides of her hand. "Uh-oh."

Both brows rise and she frowns at him. He grins. She asks, "What do you mean uh-oh?"

He lets out a long sigh and watches the others. He whispers, "When I healed you and your child, I used part of my blood in the healing process. You absorbed the sparkling energy from my blood. It will not hurt you."

Her brows angle together and her lips part.

"It's not like you will grow a horn in the middle of your head." Movement comes from the side and an open hand slaps the back of his head.

Gerda points a finger at him. "You leave him alone. He was only trying to help you." She walks over to Kai.

He stands. "Let him twist your ear the way he did mine." He looks at Ingrid.

"Maybe I should flick my blood on her to see if a horn will grow out of her forehead."

With a smile Ingrid places her hands on her waist. "Are you through? Is there anybody whom you have not alienated?"

He shakes his head. "Not your King, but give me enough time I'm sure that will change."

"Do you have a problem with authority?"

"Only with those who use their powers to suppress their people. I get along with most others, but there are definitely two factions vying for power here."

Her smile fades quickly. "Our King will be available to meet with you. Have you eaten?"

"No, ma'am, I have not."

She drops the cloth in the bowl. "Good, come with me." She walks around the counter and across the kitchen. He follows close and they exit the room.

 **End of Chapter**


	10. Chapter 9 Threat to the King

Chapter 9: Threat to the King

 **Date: 25 years, 9 month before Correction**

Sam mentally takes notes of all he sees to create an internal map of this castle, specifically the floor plan and the location of each guard. Ingrid leads him into a large room. A spiral staircase rises at one end and a split staircase ascends at the other end. A short foyer extends from the main doors. Across the room under the split stairs, she leads him down a short hallway and into a large room as compared the Captain's office. A large, sturdy wood desk dominates the room. Two smaller tables, one with four chairs and the other with maps occupies a quarter of the room. Books occupy a third of the room. The window behind the desk appears to face the wall across the courtyard. She watches him observing the room.

"Most people who come in here usually admire the desk or ask why this table has chairs while the other table does not, but you studied the window, why?"

He points an open hand to the window. "May I?"

"Yes," she answers with a nod.

He slides past the desk and glances at the chair pushed under the desk. In front of the window, he notes everything, then moves to the left side of the window. He bends his head down to the height of about one and three quarter's meters. A person at this height would see the back of the barracks and the area where the meals are served. If she was at the window, she would have seen him attack Otto. He notes the position of the guards on the wall. The person sitting in the desk chair would be an easy target. He presses his face against the window and closes his eyes for several seconds. The energy in the castle and the wall transmits into him, but more importantly he feels the people. He moves past the desk and stands by the map table.

"Why did you look under the desk when you went to the window, but not when you came back?"

He turns to her and observes her mannerisms. She stands with her hands crossed in front of her. Her weight is evenly distributed, but her left foot is mostly in front of the other. Her stare is intense, but not hostile, almost as though she is studying him for his responses. He clasps his hands behind his back and shifts his weight with his feet at shoulder width apart. She watches him the whole time. Other than slight movements of her head she does not move.

"I survive because I look where others do not. While I did not see anyone under the desk, if there is someone there, they have great skills in contorting their body or they are very small. So which is it?"

"Neither, no one is under there and yet I have no doubt you have learned a lot about us and I know very little about you." She moves to the table and sits in the largest chair. She motions to the chair with its back to the door. "Come sit."

"I like standing."

"Suit yourself." She watches for several moments. "Why did you hold your hand against the window and close your eyes?"

"It helps me to become one with the castle."

"Why?"

"So I will know what the castle knows."

"And the blue glow reflecting on the window where your eyes were, helps you to see what the castle sees?"

He stares at her with intent. Her posture has not moved except the slight upward curvature of the corners of her lips and her head position is more towards the door.

"I have seen those who use a slide of hand to perform tricks and call it magic. The blue is not a slide of hand. It appears to be a part of you. What magical creature are you?"

 _How do I explain that science did this to me? Do I tell you the truth?_

"That would be nice."

"What would be nice?"

"The truth." Her lips curve higher.

"I am a human male. There is no magic about me."

Her head slightly moves side to side. "It is personal to you. I understand. Answer the easier question. Why did you bend down by the window?"

He glances to the window. _Are you Sariphan? If you are, why do I not detect your traits?_

She continues to stare at him.

"I was determining what a person would see if they were there a half hour ago."

"And what would they have seen?"

"Me."

"What would you have been doing?" Her right brow flicks up.

"Defending the Queen's honor, it seems not all like you." She does not move nor does she blink at the comment. _You have heard these things before, haven't you?_ He gives her a slight smile. _Are you probing for the king?_

"Before the King arrives, what was done that my honor needed defending?" She looks at her hands.

"The private made a disrespectful comment about you. I don't know you or your husband's politics well enough to form an opinion. Even if you are the present rulers, I need more information to determine if his comments are justified. In the meantime the King and Queen of this kingdom will get the respect deserving of their positions."

She does not flinch at his comments.

 _Has she been threatened before? She is staring at me as though she is searching my soul. Are you a creature in human form only? Reveal yourself, who are you?_

A knock from the door breaks the staring contest and both blink to the reality. She waves the servant girl to bring in the tray. The server places a plate and cup in front of Ingrid and one of each in front of the two empty chairs. She curtsies to the Queen then leaves the room. He looks at the seat with its back to the door, then glances back at Ingrid.

"I'm not sitting there."

"Then you do not eat," she commands.

"Then there is no reason for me to be here." He bows and moves towards the door.

The King meets him at the door. "Ah private, I heard you created a disturbance this morning." He points to the chair with its back to the door. "Come sit with us. I am sure you have not had breakfast yet."

"No sir, I have not eaten, but I will not sit in that chair."

The King stares at him for a moment. "I could order you to sit there."

"Go ahead, I will not sit there."

The King lowers his voice, "I am your King and you will obey."

He slides his left hand behind his back and his body stiffens. "You rule Arin-de-Elle. You're not my king." His voice increases in volume as he points to the window. "You rule them."

Ingrid touches the King's arm and comments to Sam, "The kingdom is named Arendelle. I am familiar with Arin-de-Elle."

Sam turns his head sharply towards her. The sudden movement appears to catch Ingrid off guard by her flinch. He sighs. "Has this been a test?"

"What are you talking about?" she asks.

"You're a terrible liar."

"How dare you," protests the King as he places his hand on his waist where the sword would have been.

"Go ahead and call the three guards standing just down from the door. You will be responsible for their deaths. If you don't believe me, ask your wife what happened on the day of the first snow storm that lasted six days. Or did she forget to tell you?"

Ingrid stands next to the King as she grabs his arm. "My dear, he is right. My statements were not correct." She looks at Sam. "My King is fully aware of the incident. We had to make sure." She takes her husband's hand and places her other hand on his shoulder. "Is he not what I said?"

The King squeezes his wife's hand. "You are correct my dear." He speaks to him, "How did you see the deceit?"

He gives her a slight smile. "You're very good. If you do that to the other visitors, I see you taking advantaged of them. Maybe we were at a standstill with neither willing to give. To break the equilibrium one must do the unexpected." He nods to the King. "I took a chance. I believe Arin is your great-grandfather."

The King asks, "What do you know about him?"

"He rallied the people here and the surrounding area to fight a lost battle with the Warring King. That is until the trolls helped him."

"What trolls?" the King asks.

"You two stop. You invited me here. If you had not stopped along the road, we would not be having this conversation." He glances away from them. "And maybe the wolves would not have attacked your coach. I would still be out there and you feasibly would be dead by now."

"Then why are you still here?" Ingrid asks as she touches his arm.

He stares at her hand. "I don't know."

"Now who is the liar?"

He stares at her abdomen for a moment, then looks up. "The logic says it's impossible and yet I was there and saw it happen." He glances between them. "You will have a little girl very different from all of the girls in your kingdom. She will stand out and everybody will see who she is."

The King asks, "Why did you not leave last night?"

"It is because your little girl has touched my heart and I can't leave. You're in danger which puts her in danger." He shakes his head. "Somehow she is a link to my mission of building a bridge between our kingdom and hers."

He steps back and stands tall. "Either I'm a threat to you or I'm not. I can walk out of here and wait for the next rulers to take over." He steps closer to them and speaks with a whisper, "Hopefully you know your castle has ears, but do you know who is listening?"

He motions to Ingrid. "You have a vested interest in her health as your wife. I have a vested interest in her health due to your child. Before yesterday's encounter on the road, I had no interest in the monarch of Arendelle. I would have watched from the hills and have seen your castle burned by those who wish to remove you. Today is different. The one who strikes down the Queen will die along with a hundred of the assassin's immediate families. There will be no place for them to hide. The one who starts this, will see the results of their deeds that I promise to the both of you."

A knock on the door sounds behind him. "Your Majesties, please pardon the intrusion, but I have been requested to retrieve this private back to the Captains office."

"It is no trouble sergeant. We are through here." The King replies.

Sam bows to the both of them and follows the sergeant out the room.

Several minutes later, he stands in front of the Captain's door. In the sleeping area Otto and another guard talk as they stare at him.

"Get on with it, private," commands the sergeant.

He knocks on the door and waits. A minute passes before the door opens. He hesitates barely a second to scan the room. Sensing only two humans he enters and stops in front of the desk. The door slams shut. In the chair behind the desk sits a defeated man. With his shoulders forwards and a sunken chest, Sam sees the blood vessel in his neck pulsing rapidly. His chin touches his chest and he appears to be reading a one sentence note. He doesn't try to hide it. Sam glances down at the note.

A couple of minutes passes. The sergeant behind him clears his throat. "Sir, Samuel Ryan is here."

With a deep breath and a long sigh, Captain Thorsen leans back in his chair as he looks up at him. "Would I be wasting my time asking what you saw last night before coming into the barracks?"

"No, sir, you would not be wasting your time."

"Tell me what happened?"

"I finished washing the horse smell out of my clothes when I heard three individuals walk down the front steps. I focused on the three. A few minutes later it was almost dark. One walked down the near side of the building and the other two walked down the far side. The back door opened and I ducked behind the wash barrel, obviously to create a distraction then the door closed. The one walked towards me. We talked while his two friends tried to sneak behind me. I forced the private's face into the water. I let him up for air just as Ulf and Sverre charged me. I flipped the private into the two and they laid on the ground. I could have left them there, but if I'm going to stay around here, I will not be the bottom rung of the latter. I'll move up to the top, so I had to send a message to the informal leader."

"You should have left when you had the chance." Thorsen slightly nods as he continues, "The intended target received the message."

"Could you have chosen a discreetly better method than leaving them without their clothes?" Sergeant Njord asks standing by the door.

"What did they say?"

The Captain shakes his head. "They don't remember walking out the barracks, let alone how the mushrooms got onto the table next to them. No one has complained nor said anything about you. As far as I'm concerned, unless someone files a complaint or provides additional information, this is closed." The Captain takes off his guard's hat and he nods to him. Sam understands the hat off means everything said until he puts it back on is unofficial. "Questions, comments, or any other information you wish to speak?"

He agrees to the Captain's conditions. "When I walked into the barracks last night, four guards actually seemed surprised that I walked in. This morning Otto appeared surprised to see me in my bunk and his friends outside."

"Be careful of Otto," comments the sergeant. "His family has enough money to buy all of the guards."

He glances over his shoulder. "Including you two?"

"I have been approached several times, but for what they want they are crossing the line," Njord comments.

He watches the Captain, but Njord continues, "They tried to bribe the Captain when he was a sergeant, but he did his duty and reported them to the previous King. Otto's older brother ran the ring just like Otto does now."

Thorsen interrupts, "His name was Peter. I thought he could have become a sergeant then a Captain, but he did not wish to wait. He started recruiting the other guards. After several months they talked about taking over the castle. I reported it to the King. The trial lasted one day. Five of them were hanged, but Peter's father bargained for his son's release, so the King banished him. Last I heard he was living in the kingdom of Weselton. A year after King Agnarr took over, Peter's father thought he could get the King to revoke the banishment, but he refused. Peter's father, Councilman Jens was in poor health and could not travel. He developed a venomous hatred for the King."

The Captain stares at him as if he was staring through him. "Did you know the ship the previous King and his Queen traveled belonged to the Jens' company? It's too bad they did not know that before they sailed. The official report said the ship capsized in a storm."

"You don't believe it, do you?"

"No, I do not. Losing one ship only inconvenienced Jens. I don't have any proof, but I believe Jens was involved. I didn't watch my back when I confronted the old man. His youngest son stabbed me in my side with a short blade. If it was longer I would not be talking to you now."

"The Jens family has always given King Agnarr's family problems," comments Njord.

"Have you reported this to the King?"

"He knows," Njord continues. "Three of the four richest families are partners with Jens being the richest. They could collapse Arendelle's economy overnight. That's why they are treated more like royalty than the King and Queen."

The Captain blinks and focuses on him. "You are here at the wrong time. Saving the Queen yesterday threw their plans off. That's why you were attacked last night. You are the unknown variable. They had to get you out of the way before proceeding. I can do very little for you. Most of the day guards have accepted their bribes."

He interrupts, "You have to tell the King his life is in danger."

"The moment I walk outside the barracks, they will wait. When I'm halfway to the castle they will attack."

"You're going to sit here and do nothing," He growls at him.

Njord interrupts, "As long as he is in here, they wait. It will give you some time to get the King and Queen out of the castle, but they will not wait long. You want to help them, go now."

Sam gradually nods. A knock on the door breaks the tension. The Captain puts on his hat and Njord opens the door. A guard hands him a note. Njord closes the door and reads the note. He hands it to the Captain.

Thorsen reads the note. "The king is asking for you. It's up to you." Njord opens the door and Thorsen yells, "Get the hell out of here before I throw you into a cell."

Sam marches out and the door slams shut. He turns his head to the right. Other than Otto watching him the other guards move about their normal routines. He steps out the front door and marches across the yard.

Several minutes later he enters the throne room and walks towards the King and Queen. He bows to them and asks, "You wished to see me?"

From behind them Kai and Gerda are pushed into the room. Agnarr slowly shakes his head. "I did not ask for you."

Sam closes his eyes for several moments and opens them. "These are not the same guards who were by your study room."

The vein in Ingrid's neck pulses. "They were reassigned."

"I hear you." He whispers, "I will push for an attack." He pivots on his heels and marches past Kai and Gerda towards the door. A guard steps from his post and stands in front of the door with his hand around the hilt of his sword. The second guard moves behind him. A sword draws from its scabbard. Sam steps into the first guard slapping his hand off the hilt. He grabs the sword with his left hand. He steps to the right and spins around drawing out the sword. He grabs the blade of the second guard's sword and freezes it. His momentum forces the frozen sword into the chest of the first guard reaching for him. The first guard's sword nearly decapitates the second guard.

A third guard charges him. The fourth guard reaches for Ingrid. Sam swings his right arm up and two spikes of ice shoot from his fingers. The first spike embeds into the third guard's arm above his elbow as he reached for their Queen. The second spike impales into his neck. He staggers behind the royal couple and falls to the floor. He gasps and gurgles as his blood drains out of him. Sam watches the third guard make a sequence of steps before he lunges at him. The distance between them closes rapidly. He waits for the guard to commit himself to the lunge and swings his swords up. By holding the sword in the unconventional position with the blade at the bottom of his hand instead of on the thumb side of his hand, he forced the guard's blade to angle up above his head then he plunges his blade through the guard's heart. He lets gravity pull the body off his blade and the guard falls to the floor.

The adrenalin pumps through his body as he stands over the slain guard. His muscles ache in the remembrance of actions long past, but it is a good ache that snaps the rust off his armor. His body tenses for action as his mind searches for an enemy. He focuses on the four humans in the room.

Ingrid holds onto Agnarr's arm as she partially hides behind him. He has seen her specific expression many times. When fear and disbelief show up it signifies it's time for him to leave the area. He slides his sword across the floor towards the King and speaks two words, "Stay here."

He moves to the door and places his hand on the frame. With his eyes closed, he detects no other guards in the castle. He slips out and closes the door behind him. As he runs through the kitchen, he spots a chair leaning against the pantry door. Inside of the pantry he finds most of the castle staff wedged inside. They protest when he does not let them out.

"If they wanted you dead, you would not be able to protest. You are not their target. You're safer in here than to be caught in the open. I'll come back for you."

He leans the chair against the door as he found it. At the servants' door, he scans the courtyard and detects no one. He slips out the door and expects a crossbow arrow to fly at him. With no one shooting, he does not detect any guards on the walls or by the gate. With more than enough light to see him, he sprints directly to the front of the day barracks. He detects many guards inside of the night barracks.

As quietly as possible he sneaks into the barracks. The Captain's door is partially opened. The rest of the barrack appears empty. Ready to strike, he places his hand flat on the door frame and scans the Captain's office. Two bodies are in the room. He pushes the door open and enters the room. A trail of red leads to a pool of blood next to Sergeant Njord face down behind the Captain's desk. A sword left a gaping wound in his back. He steps to the open back room door. Captain Thorsen lies on the floor. He kneels and touches the Captain's neck, but barely feels a pulse. He touches specific points on Thorsen's face. "Show me your last thoughts."

In the few seconds the Captain's heart stops. No time to mourn him. Boots echo on the wooden floor. He runs out of the Captain's office and out the barrack's doors.

"What is he doing here?"

Otto's voice responds, "Who cares, kill him."

He leaps to the ground and encounters a guard at the corner of the building. He grabs the sword as he thrust his elbow into the guard's face and sprints towards the castle's main doors. At the foot of the steps he faces the crowd of guards approaching him.

King Agnarr calls from behind him, "Samuel, get in here, we can bolt the door."

He peeks over his shoulder. "Majesty, they saw me as a threat to their plan. When they attacked me last night, I became a part of their war against you. I will end it now."

"Then I will fight with you."

"Sir, please stay there. You have a future Queen to protect. I'll make a deal with you. You can fight all those who get past me." He turns his head towards the guards.

Otto motions for the others to stop as he laughs, "How many do you think we need to get past you?"

His hand touch above his hand arching his arms down, his hand snap against his legs. Glancing left then right, he sees an undulating barrier of air form around all sides of the step to a three meter height. He scans the faces of the guards standing behind Otto. "You don't have a hundred. Why don't you go into the village and recruit a hundred to make sure you have enough. I'll wait."

Otto's face blossoms red as his sword hand quivers. He screams, "Fifty gold coins for the one who brings me his head."

Ten guards yell in unison and charge him as they wave their sword. Sam intensifies his focus. Their movement slows and he sees each individual movement of the guards. He calculates all will hesitate at the last second except one. He shifts his weight and steps back. One sword passes next to his face and reflects two dark green orbs off the blade. He grabs the guard's hand with his left hand and takes the sword. His right elbow jams under and up the guard's arm as he throws him into three guards. He continues his spin to the left as his sword swings down then up. Two guards fall to the ground with gashes across their chest. The others hesitate as he hoped they would. He grabs another sword from the hand removed from its owner, his blades slice flesh and break bones. Ten guards lay at his feet dead or soon to be.

He grins at Otto and taunts, "Are you sure you don't wish to recruit a hundred men to do your fighting, I'll wait."

"A hundred gold pieces for his head, Go, Go, Go," Otto yells and motions with his sword.

Swinging two swords, Sam charges into the guards. Metal on metal crashes into each other, but his blades rip into flesh and bones.

The guards who tried to bypass him encounter the air barrier. Their hesitation as to why their sword could not go any further, was the time Sam needed to cut them down. Many minutes later he pulls the sword from the last guard's body. Moans, whimpers, and cries for help remain of the few guards still alive.

Trails of blood run down his arms and body. He points his bloody sword at Otto. "In the name of King Agnarr and Queen Iduna, you are charged with treason against the crown."

"Who are you? I should have killed you the moment I saw you last night. I would have been shoving the king's body off my sword."

"Otto no, not like this," Maltz Jens calls out to his son from the gates.

Sam laughs a mocking laugh. "How does it feel to dishonor your father, no wait? Now, you know exactly how your brother Peter felt when he dishonored your father." He yells, "Jens, how does it feel to have your two oldest sons betray you? Do you feel like killing your third son so he will not betray you?"

"Kill him." Otto screams. He, Ulf, and Sverre charge him. No metal on metal sounds just metal ripping through flesh and bone.

"Nooo," screams Jens as he falls to his knees. The fathers of Ulf and Sverre also fall to their knees with the heads down. They wail.

The other guards escape the night barrack door. They run into the courtyard. Several turn from the carnage to empty their stomachs. Ingrid holds her hands over her mouth as tears stream down her face. He looks at his bloody swords then drops them to the ground. Flicking the palms of his hands back, the barrier drops with a rush of air sweeping across the guards.

Agnarr speaks, "Ingrid, no."

A sharp burning crosses his abdomen. He slaps the knife from her hand.

Ingrid whispers, "I want to see the color of the monster's blood."

Agnarr pulls his Queen back up the steps.

"Open the gates," Comes a cry from over the wall and several guards run to the gates.

Sam wipes his hand across the wound and holds out his hand revealing a bright crimson red. "I bleed the same as they do." He turns away from her and slowly rubs his finger along the cut. Ice crystals trail behind his finger.

Military troops on horseback charges into the courtyard. The Colonel points to Sam. "Seize him."

Gerda and Kai escort Ingrid up the steps.

King Agnarr stands next to him. "He is not a traitor." He points to the bodies. "These are your traitors."

Sam moves his head to Agnarr. "Your Majesty, your Queen is correct. There was no fear of failure. I gave up my previous job because I could not satisfy the hunger. So long ago I kept it at bay, but just then, I enjoyed what I did. It's time for me to leave."

He walks towards the gate. A horse neighs in pain. He walks over to it. Grabbing the rider's heel, he flips him off the horse. His finger slides under the saddle's strap and lets it fall to the ground. He throws the blanket off and removes a spiny shell from the horse's back. The rider runs around the horse and Sam throws the shell into his face. "Put this in your boot and see how well you can walk."

The horse shakes its body. It neighs and presses its head against his chest. He presses his face against the horse and rubs its head and neck. "You will be alright my friend. Not all humans are stupid."

A few seconds later he walks towards the gate. All of the military horses turn their heads towards him and neighs. Sam walks out the gate.

A few days later, Sam sits in the troll communal circle as the first of the new day light brightens the valley.

Pabbie rolls up to him and asks, "What are you doing here?"

"Getting information."

Pabbie snipes at him, "I don't have anything you want."

"Really, I do recall the troll who attacked me and broke my leg, had fiery red eyes."

Pabbie snipes at him again, "Get to the point so you can leave,"

"You said you banished the troll who attacked me. The wolf that attacked me and Queen Ingrid several days ago had fiery red eyes. I know I can see what others see and influence them. Could it be that some of you trolls have similar abilities, maybe even used the red wolf to control the pack that attack me and the Queen?"

For several seconds he hears only silence. Pabbie rolls away. Sam stands and wipes the dirt and grass off his clothes. He walks in the direction of his cave. He knows they are listening. "Does the lack of your response confirm my accusation?"

He does not walk very far from the troll area when he detects another presence. A short distance up the path three horses without riders stare at him. Two riders try to hide behind the trees. He continues walking down the path as he watches them. He stops at a fork in the path and smiles to himself. "Obviously the guards were meant to distract me so you could catch me by surprise. That only works if you assume I am a simpleton. You could have asked me to stop."

"After what I said and done to you, I was afraid you would hide and I would never find you again," she replies.

"You hurt my feelings by calling me a monster, even though the description was quite accurate at the moment."

"I apologize. I regret acting on a moment of disdain. I had never seen such carnage happen so quickly." Queen Ingrid steps out from behind a bush. "Obviously we have failed to properly review the guards before accepting them inside of the castle."

She walks towards him with a scabbard and sword strapped to the belt holding up her black trousers. She pushes back her hood to reveal her long brown hair. She removes her dark green gloves and tucks them under her belt. As she stares at him, she places her hands on her waist. "How long did it take you before you knew the guards were up to no good?"

"Actually, I suspected something was wrong right after the wolf attacked you. They were hesitant to help you. Very uncharacteristic of someone sworn to give their lives to protect you. In the courtyard I heard a bow string pulled tight. I assumed it was meant for the King, but after the events of the evening, I believe you were the target and I would have been the excuse they needed to shoot the wayward arrow that hits you by mistake." He peaks over his shoulder towards the troll area. "When they tried to attack me the night before, it wasn't because I was a new recruit. They were told I would interfere with their plans or stop them. The one named Otto had left the barracks during the night. At breakfast, I discovered he had a red stain on his trousers and the barbed seeds found near a certain river." He points to her boots. "In his case the red stain comes from berries further down the path. Your boots have the same barbed seeds."

She observes her boots and smiles. "So he was in the area. Meeting the trolls?"

"Not trolls, a wolf. The same wolf watching us now."

She searches the area with her hand gripping the hilt of her sword.

He points to the hills. "Up there on the shorter ridge, next to the bush with mostly brown."

"I see only one thing that looks brown and it looks more like reddish-brown."

"That's it." He closes his eyes for a moment then opens them. "Its pack is not in this valley. It gives you a good time to leave." He glances at her staring at him intently. "Is something wrong?"

"When you closed your eyes it felt like a very short burst of air hit me. I thought I was feeling sick because of my pregnancy, but since you have come here, there were times I thought someone had thumped my head or thrown something at me. It was always very brief and it happened again. Are you a wizard?"

He looks at the ground. "I'm not a wizard nor do I have any magical powers, but I understand how my science could be interpreted as magic only because you don't know. The science behind who I am or what I am will be difficult to explain without a common reference."

"I know about science and fantasy and dreamers."

His left brow rises. "And which one of those words would apply to the trolls?"

She nods with a slight smile. "All of them and none of them, depends on who's doing the talking."

He snickers with a grin, "Maybe you do understand, but let's find out. I'll turn my back to you. The instant you feel the thump or a gust of air let me know."

"Agreed."

He turns his back to her then scans the area in front of him, no response. He scans to the left of her then circles around to scan to the right of her, still no response. He sweeps his scan from her left to her right.

"There, I felt it."

He tries to determine how close he could get without her knowing. After a minute he twists around and she holds up her hands wiggling her fingers and thumb. "Five times, the first two times you felt it almost immediately. The last three I purposely scanned close, from your right then left then in front. You have a radius of three meters before you can detect it. That is very interesting indeed."

"So are you going to tell me what the red wolf has to do with the trolls?"

He places his hands behind his back and for a moment he stands motionless. He answers, "One of my skills is to see what others see and to secretly influence them to do what I want."

She tightens her grip on the hilt of her sword and moves her head slightly while still staring at him. "You accuse the troll of controlling the red wolf?"

"In not so many words, but yes."

"What did he say?"

"He didn't say anything. He rolled away. I'm sure it's his way of saying he will look into it."

"You do not think he will?"

He searches the hills. "I believe he will try. The troll, he seeks is the same troll who attacked me when I first crashed here. If he is controlling the red wolf, I can track him. One of my previous jobs was to track a target and eliminate them with the least amount of collateral damage."

"If you stay out here will it attack you again?"

"Probably yes."

"You could come back to the castle. The stable boy said you were the best help he has ever had in years. You will be safe there. If the wolves get too close to Arendelle, a bounty will be placed on their heads, especially the red wolf."

He turns his head towards her. "But out here I can track him."

She takes two steps towards him. "I will not make you come back," she rubs her abdomen, "but due to the circumstances of my child, I request you be available should we need you."

He watches her abdomen. "We?"

"My child and myself."

"Human females have been birthing babies without my help for a long time. I remind you I wasn't there when your husband got you in the condition you're in now."

"Before the attack I would agree, but you were there to save my child. I know she will be special."

"You have no clue as to how special she is going to be." He shakes his head at her.

She releases the sword and touches his arm. "And that is why we need you for those moments when she shows the world how special she can be."

He chuckles and lets out a long sigh. "I have this feeling you have practiced for every reason I could possibly give."

She does not change her expression, but asks, "I am not asking you to come back for me. Will you come back for my little girl?"

"On one condition, if she begins to show skills not normally associated with humans, I will explain my actions, but there may be a time when you will have to let me teach her to use her skills safely."

"What skills are you referring?"

A wolf howls. He searches then spots the red wolf on the ridge. "It's time for you to go." He nods towards the wolf, "It is calling for reinforcements."

"Are you coming back with us?" She grabs his arm.

"I will escort you back, but don't try to hold me prisoner. I will promise to be there when you need me."

"Deal." She walks up the path towards the guards and comments over her shoulder, "I was wondering how long it would take me to convince you. The wolf's howl helped."

"An opportunist!" He follows her to the horse. The two guards are already on their horses. He asks, "Do you need help getting on your horse?"

She gets on her horse easily. "Did I ask for help?" she asks as she adjust herself in the saddle.

He scans down the path and looks up at her. "Why do I get the feeling this is not the first time you have manipulated a man to get what you want? Are you using me?" her horse neighs and nods its head. He nods back at the horse, "I think you're right."

"If you are through talking to my horse, you can ride back with me." She slides forward in the saddle.

"That would create more controversy with the people if they saw their Queen sharing her horse with a stranger. I'll walk." He steps off the path and walks through the forest.

She calls out to him, "I thought you were coming back to the castle with us?"

"I am. I'll meet you at the bridge."

At the foot of the bridge Sam watches two boys struggle to pull in a fish. Their line breaks as the fish jumps out of the water as if mocking them for trying to catch it. "Maybe next time boys," he says to them. Several horses walking behind him. The sound of their hooves clopping on the street stones stops. The two boys look behind him and their eyes widen. They gather their fishing poles and run away.

"I wonder what scared them." The clopping sound moves closer to him. Something large butts his back. It puts its head over his shoulder. "Hey, big guy, did you bring her with you?" The horse neighs in reply. "That's good. I didn't want to tell her the wolves watched her come down the trail." He feels the bottom of a small boot push on his back forcing him to take a step. He spins around.

Queen Ingrid asks from the top of her horse. "Why did you tell me they were not in the area? What if they had attacked?"

"Three things," he replies. "One, at the time they were not there. Two, they were not looking for you. Three," he glances at the two guards, "Did either of you notice the wolves near the road?" They look at each other, then shake their heads no. "Your horses did."

One of the guards asks, "How do you know our horses knew?"

"Because the Queen's horse knew, but don't take my word for it." He steps onto the bridge, "Let's go guys. I'm sure there is a bucket of oats waiting for you."

The horses follow him through the castle gates. Many military guards are posted where the traitorous castle guards would have been posted. He was sure the others are being investigated. He stops in front of the main doors and holds Ingrid's horse.

She commands him, "Take my horse to the stables."

"Yes, Majesty," he replies. He walks her horse to the stable gates and ties him the hitching post. She swings her leg off the horse, but her other boot slips through the stirrup. He catches her with his right arm around her waist as she wraps her arms around his neck. He lifts her sufficiently to get her foot free of the stirrup and lowers her to the ground. She holds on to him an extra moment before letting go.

Several military guards watch him. He barks at them, "The show is over, everyone back to your post." The few who were watching continue what they were doing.

The stable boy steps out. "Well, it's about time you got here. I have a lot of work for you. Take the Queen's horse into the first stall. Remove the saddle, brush, water, and feed him."

He nods to Mikkel. "Yes."

He leads her horse into the first stall and removes the saddle and reins. Queen Ingrid stands just outside of the stall. He raises his left brow and asks, "Is there something you wish to know?"

She smiles. "Obviously you have a voice of command. You have been in charge." He does not comment. She steps into the stall and asks, "What skills were you referring?"

He hesitates for a moment and searches for anyone at each end of the stables. He kneels to look under the horses for anyone hiding within hearing. Stepping closer he scans her eyes. "She may do this." He holds out his right hand with the palm up. His hand closes and opens. A delicate six point snowflake floats above his hand.

 **7245**

 **End of Chapter.**


	11. Chapter 10 Queen at Six Months

**Title:** Chapter 10: Queen at Six Months

 **Date: 25 years, 6 month before Correction**

The morning warms with no clouds in the sky. A breeze flowing in from the south has the temperature warmer than usual. The warmth on the back of Sam's neck entices him to ride up to Lookout Plateau, but he did promise to train several young guards using his close combat techniques. A year earlier, unsavory characters tried to kidnap a young brown hair lady in the market square. His techniques were reported to the King and he insisted Sam train several guards. Who is he to refuse the King's request after he offered him a job?

As the trainer, he wears a gray shirt while the guards wear white shirts. All wear the black training trousers and boots. He insists they be able to maneuver with minimum clothing restrictions. Once they become proficient they will practice in different clothing and expect to meet the same proficiency. Sam walks around the group as they go through their sequences. His constant moving gives him the chance to observe other castle members and to learn of their normalcy. Everyone who moves about the courtyard, he observes keenly, especially when the King or Queen or both are in the yard. The past few days he has been a little surprised Queen Ingrid is out before lunch, now that she is visibly showing her pregnancy. By mid-afternoon she usually sits in the rocking chair drinking her tea as she observes him walking the horses. If she is consistent she should be appearing soon.

He pairs the guards to defend an attack from behind. Immediately he senses them standing near the castle doors, he moves to stand between them and the guards. As they approach arm in arm, he detects stutter steps. The guards continue their training until the King and Queen of Arendelle stops behind him. The young guards stop their training and bow to their King and Queen.

Sam responds to the guards, "How many times have I told you not to bow to me in the yard. You bow only to our lustrous King and Queen."

The King clears his throat. Sam turns to them with raised brows and slightly wide eyes. He bows. "Majesties, I did not know you were there."

Queen Ingrid nods to him with a slight smile. "Why do I not believe you?"

Sam bows his head to her. "Because you are as intelligent as you are beautiful."

"Oh yes, that is why I like you," she replies.

He points to the King's left leg. "I noticed you were favoring your leg when you walked over here. Still sleeping with your feet hanging out the window?"

Slightly narrowing his eyes as his brows move together. "What?"

Ingrid turns her head away as she snickers. "Charles, I told you he would notice."

Charles glances to his Queen. "No, I do not sleep with my feet out the window." He looks back at Sam. "My foot slipped through the stirrup as I dismounted my horse yesterday. The doctor said the swelling will go down eventually."

With a slight tilt of his head and his left brow raised, he asks, "Eventually, did the doctor also tell you, walking on it will delay the swelling going down?"

With a grin, Ingrid touches Sam's arm. "Yes he did."

"I cannot stay off my feet. There are too many things that need my attention around here."

"Sir, you have a great staff that can take care of most things. Unless it is urgent it can wait a few days or it could be brought to you." The King appears to either ignore or not understand his comment, he continues, "At least put ice on it. It will help to reduce the swelling."

"I will take your assessment under advisement when I go back inside. Show me their progress." The motions to the guards.

He nods. "As you wish." He faces the guards. "Gentlemen, Eivind is the target. Tormod is the escort." He hands Eivind a blue twenty centimeter rod, "Don't lose this or you will go swimming to get me another one."

"Protect at all cost, right?" Eivind asks with a smile.

"Correct, the end goal is past the gates."

Eivind's smile fades. "And time started when I took it."

He grins his reply.

"Tormod gate," Eivind says as he runs and grabs hold of Tormod's shirt. Tormod slams an elbow into a chin and an ear, but the other four guards overwhelm the two and one stands holding the blue rod.

Sam picks up another stick and hands the end of the thin rope to a guard who walks it to where the blue stick was removed from Eivind's hand. Sam call's out, "Twenty-two meters, a good try.

Charles comments, "Why didn't he run for the gate while the guard had the others occupied?"

He glances at Charles then at Ingrid. "Because the target may not be able to run very far, if at all."

Ingrid holds her abdomen and moans. She rubs the slight bulge that moves.

Charles asks, "Are you ok?"

Her face wrinkles in pain as she bends forward. "I think she is very restless today."

Sam snaps to the guards, "Everyone back to the training area, move." They pick up their equipment and trot back to the area.

Ingrid falls to her knees. She grabs Charles' arm and rocks back and forth. "Something is wrong. She has never done this."

Charles calls a castle servant to get the doctor. He bends down to try to help Ingrid to her feet. He grimaces in pain and hobbles with his weak ankle.

"Sir, hold her hand. I'll carry her." Sam kneels next to Ingrid. She rocks back into his arm, he slides his other arm under her legs and lifts her straight up. He rolls her slightly towards himself. Charles holds her hand and they walk towards the castle.

Ingrid coughs several times, "I am sorry, I got your shirt dirty."

A very red face with a runny nose stares up at him. "Don't worry about it. It will wash out." Behind her red eyes, he sees the pain as she rubs her abdomen. At the door he maneuvers sideways and carefully steps through without jostling her any more than possible. A staffer meets them in the foyer and follows with a cold cloth wiping Ingrid's face. Another staffer uses a cloth to wipe his sleeve. He whispers to her, "You will be alright."

With a slight smile Ingrid starts to reply, but her face contorts in pain as she cries out. Her pain echoes across the room.

As he walks across the floor, a sharp pain stabs his upper arm. A muffled cry of pain escapes Ingrid's teeth clamped onto his sleeve. He stops at the bottom of the stairs.

Charles holds the rails and struggles to ascend the stairs. He calls back to him, "Take her upstairs to our chambers."

The staffer holding the cloth asks, "Why have you stopped?"

"To give our King a chance to get out of the way, when I start up, I will not be stopping."

"I am sorry," Ingrid whispers.

He lifts her up to touch his cheek against her forehead. He whispers, "Do you want me to ease the pain?"

She barely nods and another moment of pain shoots through her body. She bites into his sleeve and a tear jumps off the tip of her nose.

He shifts her weight higher to maintain her in a level position and positions his hand on her side. A barely visible white glow surrounds his hand. His fingertips, press into her side. The pain in her face diminishes. He carries her up the stairs in a fluid motion.

At the top of the stairs, she whispers, "Thank you."

He slightly moves his head then they both watch her baby move in her abdomen. The small bulge moves to touch his hand. His left brow rises and Ingrid smiles. He follows the King into the royal chambers and into their bedroom.

Charles points to the other side of the bed. "She sleeps there."

A staffer pulls the bed covers back. He walks around the end of the bed and carefully places Ingrid onto her side. Charles kneels down beside the bed and holds her hand. He brushes her hair out of her face.

The staffer hands Sam a small bucket. He hands it down to the King. "Sir, she will need this."

Just then Ingrid gives the indication she needs the bucket, but Charles is a little late at positioning it. He starts to stand but Sam places his hand on his shoulder.

"She is not finished." And she was not.

He peeks over the King's shoulder. Flakes float to the bottom of the bucket.

Kai and the Doctor enter the room. Ingrid draws her legs up in the fetal position and lets out a loud groan. Kai orders everyone out of the room and pushes Sam out as he closes the door.

He touches the door frame and scans into the room. He sees the Doctor inspecting the contents in the bucket. The Doctor kneels beside the bed. Sam slowly walks out of the royal chambers and down the hall.

Gerda meets him half way down the stairs. "I see Ingrid got sick on your sleeve." She looks closer at his sleeve. "What are those large flakes?"

He peels a flake off and holds it up to the light. "I'm not familiar with it. Looks like a plant."

The doctor runs past them. "That is a mushroom. I have to get to my books and try to identify it." At the bottom of the stairs the doctor glances up at them for a moment. "She is asking for you." He continues across the floor and out the doors.

He and Gerda look at each other then he asks, "Was he talking to you or me."

Gerda starts up the stairs and he starts down the stairs. She stops. "And where are you going? Our Queen would have asked for me by name but the doctor does not know you. She may need your help again, but do not be self-conscience if you are turned away."

He follows Gerda to the Royal couple's door, but does not go in.

Kai stands inside of the door and points to the bedroom. "Your Queen is asking for you." He sidesteps past Kai and follows Gerda into the Royal bedroom.

Wiping his hands on a towel, Charles grabs his arm and pulls him to the side of the bed. A young maid gets up from cleaning the floor. Charles pulls down on his shoulder. He does not move.

"Please," Charles asks.

He kneels next to the bed.

Ingrid barely opens her eyes and reaches for him. With a weak voice she forces a smile, "Did you feel her move?"

He takes her hand and notes the warmer temperature, but returns her smile. "Yes, I did. How do you feel?"

She tightens her grip on his hand. "She responds to you when you use your powers."

His smile slowly disappears as he glances up to see the King raise his brows. A partial smile returns as he asks, "How do you feel?"

"Please make it stop. I do not think she likes it either." Her grip tightens as she closes her eyes.

He looks up and speaks to the King, "Sir, I know you have an herbalist working in the garden. Please send for her and a larger bucket." Charles commands a staffer to fetch the gardener.

Ingrid opens her eyes as her tears drop onto the pillow. She whispers, "Please use your cold hand." She holds his right hand.

"What did she say?" A concerned Charles asks.

"She feels very warm and wants me to cool her down."

Charles shakes his head as he squints.

"Sir, Watch." He takes a clean cloth and dips it into the water pail. He pulls the cloth through his right hand twice and hands it to Charles. He forces Charles to kneel next to the bed as he moves out of the way. "Lightly touch her face and the back of her neck."

He retrieves the bucket and moves to the window to search the bucket's contents.

A few minutes later the herbalist runs into the room and bows to the King. "Majesty, how may I be of service to you?"

He points his thumb over his shoulder. "Not me, Sam by the window."

She runs over to the window and stops short looking up at Sam with her wide-eyes and her mouth open. "You are way too tall. I have seen you around my garden a few times. What is your name?"

"Samuel Christopher Ryan, Admiral, flagship Aurora."

She shakes her head. "I don't know about any flagship. I guess Admiral is a title for the military. Do you have any influence over the brutes in the castle guards? Someone is sneaking into my garden and stealing the herbs." With a slow response from him she prods, "Well, will you?"

He replies. "I'll check into it. If they are stealing your herbs they will pay retribution. Your name is?"

"I'm Kaia. My herbs are used in the royal family's meals. So what do you have in the bucket?"

"A lover of nature."

Her eyes narrow. "How do you know that?"

"Determining the meaning of a name is a clue to the person or their past history. It helps me to determine if they are friend or foe," he replies with a slight smile.

"Friend or foe . . . I guess I better do what's right. I hate to have you fall on me. So what's in the bucket?" Standing barely up to his chest, she rises onto her tiptoes and peeks into the bucket. He lowers it and she turns her head with a wrinkled nose. "That is gross, whose is it?"

"Our Queen"

"I bet they called the doctor first, didn't they?" He nods to her. "There looks to be stuff at the bottom. Let's take it into the sunlight." He follows Kaia onto the balcony. She tilts the bucket in the light. At the bottom a small gray and red disk leaf sticks to the side.

"What is that?"

As she reaches into her pocket, she comments, "Let me get my stick." Struggling for a few seconds to get her stick out of her pocket. Sam holds the gray and red leaf in his left hand. She wrinkles her nose. "That is just plain gross."

He lays the leaf on her stick and sets the bucket on the rail as he replies, "I did wash my hands."

She grins at him. "You're funny."

"I like you too, so is this a mushroom?" He studies the leaf.

She moves her stick to view both sides of the leaf. "You are correct. It looks like the mushrooms I grow in the back of my garden. The cook uses them in his soups."

He glances at her. "Can you eat them raw?"

She vigorously shakes her head. "Heavens no, if you are lucky you will just get a belly ache. If not, it could be worse. Though I know the cook sautés them to be served before a meal. They are quite tasty." She looks up at him and she places her hand over her mouth. "Oh, that fool, I bet he left them on the table and she took one."

"Or two or three," He says, looking into the room.

"Three?" She grabs his arm. "Three will make you deathly sick. Do you know how long it's been since she ate this?"

"If she eat them before going into the courtyard, barely an hour," he replies.

She taps her forehead as she rattles off plant names. "I have everything I need in my garden to counter the mushroom." She drops the stick into the bucket and runs into the room.

He steps into the bedroom and calls after her, "Bring back a hand full of mint leaves." Kaia waves her hand over her head and she runs out the room. He wipes his left hand on his trousers as he steps next to the King and leans over his shoulder.

"She is burning up. What did you find?"

He places his hand on the King's shoulder and takes the wet cloth from him. "Sir, as long as her temperature does not get too high, we should be able to get a drink to counter her discomfort." He slides his hand over the cloth chilling it and hands it back to him. He steps around the King and touches the back of his hand to Ingrid's forehead. The moisture on her pillow has spread considerably from her sweat.

"Sir, with your permission, I have a backup plan." He moves to the royal washroom.

Kai sticks his arm across the doorway. "You can't go in there."

He steps back and looks at the tub. "Is there any other location to place our Queen in a large container of ice water?"

Kai glances at the bath tub in the washroom then back at Sam. "Will she be in her clothes?" Kai points to the tub. "This is all we have."

"It's either this or a horse trough. I don't know if I can drop my body temperature enough to draw the heat from her."

Kai stares at the tub for a moment. "How much ice do you need?"

"Enough to fill the tub with her body in it."

Kai raises his brows. "Oh, we don't have that much ice, this time of year."

Sam studies the tub, then glances at Ingrid, then back at the tub. "New plan, place scaffolding over the tub and cover it with a canvas. Fill the tub half full with water and some ice. Put large blocks of ice around the tub. The canvas must be able to reach the floor, but initially be lifted up enough to create an updraft to remove the heat from inside of the canvas. She will be placed in the tub. When the fever breaks we'll have to get her out quickly and warm her up."

"Before you do anything crazy, let's try this first," Kaia says as she holds up plant elixir.

He hands the elixir to Kai. "Keep stirring it with your finger." He asks Kaia, "Did you bring the mint leaves?"

She holds out a cup. "Of course I did."

He breaks up the leaves into the cup, releasing the minty fragrant into the room. From the vase he pours water into the cup. Positioning himself so the others do not see, he heats the cup in his left hand. After several seconds he hands the warmed mint drink to Kai and takes the elixir. He moves to the fireplace.

With a grin Kaia moves next to Kai. "Did your finger go numb?"

Kai stares at his non-moving finger.

She steps next to Sam.

He kneels and breaks off small pieces of charcoal from the burnt log. As he grinds the charcoal in his hand, he asks, "Now, who is being funny?"

She bumps his arm. "It's funny every time I see it done to someone new." She moves close and peeks over his shoulder. "What are you doing?"

"The charcoal will absorb most of the remains in her stomach. Your elixir will bring it all out and numb everything in between." He pours the charcoal powder into the elixir.

"How much charcoal?"

"About this much for this amount of liquid, don't let it become a paste or get too thick. The patient has to swallow it without it coming back up too quickly." He sticks his finger into the elixir then holds it up. "Enough coating, but not enough to be completely absorbed in the charcoal. Ok team, we have work to do."

He moves to the bed followed by Kaia, Gerda, and Kai. Standing next to Charles, he smiles at Ingrid. "My dear, this will be over soon."

His hand rests on Charles shoulder. "You're in the right spot. Just stay in front of her."

He takes the mint drink from Kai. "Kaia, stand next to our King. You will help to swing her legs over the bed and hold her up. Kai come around to my side. You will lift her up to the sitting position and hold her."

He bumps the King. "Sir, it is imperative you have the bucket ready. It will be quick. Gerda, you have the task of catching the overflow."

He searches for confusion in each person. "Any questions?" With no response he touches the back of his hand to Ingrid's forehead. "My dear, do you understand what's about to happen."

She tries to smile.

"We will get you into a sitting position. You will drink this elixir. Your first impulse is to throw it up, but you need to swallow as much as possible and hold it in. If it comes up let it go, hopefully your aim will be in the bucket. Gerda will help to keep you as clean as possible. After it comes up, Kai and Kaia will hold you up. I will give you the mint tea. It will help to calm your stomach. Ready?"

A tear splashes onto her pillow.

"On my mark of three lift her. One," Kai places his hands in front and behind her shoulder. "Two," Kaia grabs her feet. "Three lift."

Kaia swings Ingrid's feet over the edge of the bed and Kai lifts her to the sitting position. Kaia holds her arm and shoulder. Charles moves in front of his wife. Sam holds the elixir drink in front of her.

Ingrid takes the drink. She guzzles the whole thing, then shakes her head as she closes her eyes tight. Her mouth salivates.

"Get ready, sir."

Ingrid speaks, "Oh God that is the most . . ."

Charles catches almost all of the Queens contents in the bucket. Gerda darts her hand in with a wet cloth and wipes Ingrid's face. A second round expels the rest of the Queen's contents.

Sam searches the bucket. Gerda wipes Ingrid's face again. He holds the mint drink in front of her but she turns her head away. "My dear, this will calm your stomach and your baby girl will love you more for it."

Ingrid gulps the drink. He takes the cup from her and eats the mint leaves. Kai and Kaia let her sit up under her own control. He asks, "How do you feel?"

Gerda wipes Ingrid's face as she looks up at him, then to Charles. "I feel so much better than I did. My sides hurt."

"Great job team. The elixir has numbed your insides. It will last for a couple of hours. When it starts to wear off, you will feel some soreness." He takes the bucket and spots two more of the gray and red leaves. Kaia looks in the bucket and nods to him. They both walk towards the door.

Ingrid calls to him, "Samuel, please do not go far."

Gerda cleans up Ingrid then gets her another shirt. Kai gets a pair of trousers and a shirt from a bureau for Charles. He looks to Kaia. "I guess I'm staying." He hands the bucket to Kaia, "Don't drink this. Save it for the chef."

"I was right the first time. You are gross, but I will save it." She carries the bucket out of the royal chambers as he steps into the outer room. The bedroom door closes. He stops by the fireplace and stares up at the painting of another royal family with a light-brown hair teenage boy. The bedroom door opens and closes. Boots lightly scuff across the floor.

"The painting was done several years before I met Ingrid. She is one of the happiest days of my life."

Sam tilts his head down to observe the King of Arendelle. "You don't look very happy in the painting."

Charles looks down and rubs his chin. "I was not. Before meeting Ingrid I spent my younger years searching for a bride. I did not have time to enjoy myself." He looks at the painting. "Standing still for so long for a portrait was the last thing I wanted."

He grasps his hands behind his back. "Soon there will be three or more. Will you stand for another portrait?"

For a moment Charles does not answer. "Yes, I will. Have you had a painting done of you?"

He continues to stare at the painting. "Not that I am aware of."

"Maybe someday you will find a lovely bride who will insist you and your children stand still for a painting." Charles pokes at him.

Without turning his head, his eyes peak at the king "Only if she helps me to build a bridge."

Before Charles can respond, Kai opens the bedroom door. "Majesty, our Queen is asking for Samuel."

"Our Queen awaits." Charles moves to the door. Sam follows and Kai follows them.

In a light blue maternity shirt and many pillows to support her, she rests against the headboard. The Queen's cheeks glow a slight more pink then she appeared several minutes earlier. Gerda stands at the head of the bed.

He stops next to Charles at the end of the bed and bows to her.

With a smile she pats the bed next to her. "Please sit." He does not move. She commands again, "It is okay, please sit."

Not understanding the reasoning or the circumstance of her statement, he turns to Charles.

"It is ok, twice now you have saved my Queen's life and our soon to be born child. Please sit next to her."

With everyone watching his comfort level gradually drops. He rolls his head to the other side.

Kai comments, "Don't look at me. The command was directed to you."

"Command?" Just as he was getting comfortable as the stable boy, he may have to leave in a hurry. He turns his head and his eyes locks on to a set of determined eyes that appears uncomfortable from a defiant servant.

Her lips part and her chest increase with the intake of air. A grin forms across her lips, not a smile of understanding or compassion, but a grin of 'I accept your challenge and I have a secret that will utterly crush your spirit'. She drops her hand forcibly on the bed. "Sit!"

He shifts his weight to balance equally on both feet spaced several centimeters apart. Clinched fists drop to his side with the top of his thumps forward. He rolls his shoulders back and holds his head up. He replies, "Not happening."

The air in the room moves with the unison inhale from everyone's gasp. Even the non-flappable Gerda shifts her weight away from the Queen. Two shoes slide across the floor to either side of him. It appears everyone is getting out of the line of fire of the Queen's wrath that is about to explode on him.

She slightly tilts her head down and replaces her grin with a cold glare. With no inflection she calmly states, "A month in a cold cell will change your mind."

"Fine," He replies not breaking eye contact.

She shifts her body. "In the cell for a year."

"The child is born and your command becomes irrelevant."

She crosses her arms. She does not blink nor does he. If their glares were swords, the strikes of the swords would spark with lightning followed immediately with the sound of thunder.

"The King could command your death. The guards would drag you through the gates to be hanged."

If she was not pregnant, he has no doubt that she would leaped off the bed and would be stand with the door open commanding the guards to get him. "Again, your command becomes irrelevant and you don't achieve your goal. As for the guards how many of their deaths will you sacrifice before you order the rest of them to let me pass?"

Her left hand grips the edge of the bed as her right hand slides across pregnancy. Her head rolls back against the pillows and she whispers, "you win."

All in the room seems to gasp for a second time, followed by the noticeable silence.

"That has never been my objective. Maybe you are unaccustomed to a servant questioning your command. Years ago, I followed the commands issued to me without hesitation. Years later, I saw the effects of my actions. I asked questions and yes, one or two governments tried to eliminate me. As you can see I'm still here. I don't know what happened to those governments." He slowly turns his head towards Charles. "I have a few lines that I will not cross. Sitting on the bed with another man's wife is one of those lines."

Charles grins, but does not look up at him. Gerda smiles. Ingrid lifts her head up and grins.

"I'm not even going to look. I can hear you grinning, Kai." He locks eyes with Ingrid. "Okay the jokes on me, so why are you smiling?" With the release of tension from the others, the urge to run diminishes.

Her smile changes as though to say, I've got you. She asks, "Do you remember when we met?"

He glances at her abdomen. "I told you, you were pregnant."

She rubs her pregnant abdomen. "You said my baby is a girl. In due time, we will find out if what you said is the truth or not. Do you remember who you met less than a year ago?"

He turns his head in Charles direction.

"King Agnarr already knows."

"Agnarr? Is Charles a nickname?"

"It is my Christian name," King Agnarr answers.

Looking back to her his left brow rises. "I willing to guess other know you by another name."

"Iduna," Queen Iduna answers. "I am still waiting for your answer."

Still processing the information his finger points to Ingrid. "You were the brown hair young lady momentarily kidnapped by the thugs."

"You do remember. As I recall you came out of nowhere killing the one who had a knife at my throat then pulled me into a doorway. You did something with your hand that caused the others not to see us. I saw your hand glaze over with ice. You punched and killed the second man."

She points her finger at him. "I saw you throw a spike of ice killing a third. You threw two more spikes to kill the fourth man. The captain of the guards said there was evidence all four men died of puncture wounds, but they did not find any weapons. Can you explain it to us?"

He narrows his eyes at her. "Well, not at this moment."

Gerda comments, "Maybe he can explain how he knew you were pregnant and why he says your baby is a girl?"

He looks past Kai at the bedroom door and a moment later glances past Charles at the balcony doors.

"If you are about to run, we will not stop you." Ingrid tilts her head slightly and narrows her eyes at him. "Are you afraid?"

His body tenses and prepares to fend off on attack until he can get out of the room. "There is a difference between having a concern and being afraid. I have concerns, none of you will understand my answers. After the things I have seen and done, I'm not afraid of anything you could possibly do to me. If you are not trained to deal with your fears, being afraid comes to you and those around them."

"Then what do you hide?" she asks.

He closes his eyes for a moment. Takes a deep breath and holds it for several seconds. The air rushes past his lips. The decision is made. He opens his eyes and answers, "For one hour I will answer your questions, but do not ask a question if you are not prepared to hear the answer. I will ask the first question to set the bases. Am I a god or spirit? The answer is no. Everything about me is the results of the science of men." He nods to Ingrid. "Ask your questions."

"You are obviously not from here or the surrounding hamlets, so where are you from and how did you get here?"

He nods several times and stares at her abdomen. "You are correct. I'm not from here. Across the Atlantic is the United States of America. I was raised in an area that one day will be called the State of Arizona. It is there I developed my motivation for life. How I got here is a little more complicated. This is one of those answers you will not understand. I crashed landed here a year ago."

Charles wrinkles his forehead and looks up at him. "I received no report of a ship running ashore near here."

"That is because I did not crash here by water."

"You were coming across the land and crashed here?" Kai asks.

"Across the land, no"

"Over the land, you fell from the sky?" Gerda asks.

"Your description is the most accurate as to how I crashed here." He looks up at Ingrid with her slight smile. _Is this how you do it? Initiate the questions or conversations and let the others continue while you observe the target._ He bows his head to her. You are using the same technique I use to collect information.

Charles stares up as he taps his chin. "Hum, a balloon, you crashed in a balloon."

He glances at Charles for a few seconds. "That works. I fell from the sky."

"What did you do with the balloon?" Gerda asks.

From his peripheral vision Ingrid drops her right brow. He answers, "I didn't do anything with it. I did say I crashed here a year ago."

Ingrid asks, "Where did you learn to kill those four men?"

He remains silent for a moment. "I perceive that is not the question in front of your thoughts, but . . . you did ask and I will answer it. As I have seen around Arendelle the children are trained early in their lives with the skills they need to pass along the family traditions. I was raised in a similar manner."

Kai snorts, "You were raised to be an assassin." Kai snorts again. He does not reply, but studies Ingrid's face for any response.

Charles touches his arm. "Is Kai correct?"

"Yes."

Charles and Kai take another step away from him.

He continues, "I don't remember when I arrived at the military facility, but I was eight years old when I left. That is when they found they trained me too well." He looks down at her child again. He tries to suppress the memories.

"What happened when you left the facility?" Ingrid asks.

"What do you think happened?" His eyes shoot up at her. "The program I was under had been terminated. They needed to remove all evidence of the purpose of the facility. That meant we had to be eliminated. I disagreed with their decision. It was the first time I killed another human being." He glances at his hands. "I ran up a hill behind the facility. I met a man who claimed to be my uncle. I took his name so they could not find me."

"How many?" she commands with a whisper.

"Three hundred and sixty-five souls, five were children my age."

"That is awful," Gerda says as she touches his arm. Now, he sees Charles is at the head of the bed and did not detect their movements.

Ingrid strikes, "How did you get here and it was not by balloon."

He clenches his hands behind his back. "So the cat thinks the mouse is helpless, okay. My ship is not a balloon. My ship has powered-flight. I came into the upper atmosphere without power. Through all practical logic, I should have died, but I rediscovered one of my lost skills. The ship still crashed but I was alive as you can see."

"Can you show us the ship?" Gerda asks.

He twists his head towards Gerda when he catches the slight rise of Ingrid's brows. He turns back to her with a raised left brow, but he answers, "I would gladly show it to you if I knew where it was, but I don't, so I can't."

Charles asks, "Why not?"

"Because the troll in the hills has hidden it from me."

"You know about the trolls?"

"Shortly after I crashed, they attacked me. It seems I'm not the only one to fall from the sky. They fought with one of your great-grand-father. They changed the tides of war. Arendelle should not exist today." He glances back at Ingrid smiling. "I gave Pabbie permission to hide the location from me. I agreed with his assessment of my influence on the local inhabitants. While the location is in my head, he has blocked the thoughts."

"What other skills do you have?" Ingrid asks.

He waits a moment before answering, "To be a good assassin, one must have certain skills to track a target, kill the target and escape. To kill as many as I have and still be alive to tell the story, a good assassin is not good enough. A good assassin is lucky if they are still alive after their third target."

"How many have you killed?"

He glances at Charles. "Is ten thousand a big enough number for you? It is nothing I'm proud of what I did. It's all I knew for a period in my life." He looks back at Ingrid. "I didn't keep a record of the kills. I just did it and was paid for my services. Do not worry. I don't do that anymore, but I will use the skills to defend those whom I deem worthy."

"What skills?" Ingrid asks.

"Watch closely." he closes his eyes and opens to see all with a blue tint. "The blue allows me to scan great distances or look at the details." His eyes change to all with a light green. "If you see green, I'm either defending or about to attack."

"You can't prove your ship or that you have killed anyone, let alone a thousand. The color of your eyes, let others know what you are about to do. Why should we believe you?" Kai asks.

"A test, okay, three guards with their swords drawn stand at the hall door. One has his ear against the door. There are three guards at each end of the hall. Six stand at the top of the stairs. Twelve wait at the bottom of the stairs and another fifteen are outside the main doors." He places his hands on the back of Kai and Charles' neck. He turns to Charles. "In a few months you will know if you have a girl or not. You can find out now if I saw the correct number of guards. Instead of counting them, you could shake their hands and thank them for the excellent job they are doing for you."

"That is a good idea." Charles moves towards the door.

He leans towards Kai. "You could accompany your King to make it look more official to the guards."

"You are quite right." Kai follows the King out of the royal chambers.

Ingrid nods to him. "I am impressed. Should I be worried?"

He shakes his head. "Not from me unless you intend to harm me."

"You understand why I am doing this?"

"You are doing nothing I have not done myself. As a matter of fact, you are very good at it." He rolls his eyes up at the ceiling, "What did you tell me last year? You speak multiple languages to assist the king in negotiations." He looks back at her. "I believe language is only one of your skills, observation must be another. What are your other skills?"

She smiles at him. "I do believe your hour is not up. How did you get those two to leave?"

"The human mind is easily influenced. I suggested and they agreed."

"What else?"

He bows to her again. "It has been a long time since I did this and it was in anger." He places his left fist on top of his right fist. As his fists separate an ice sword forms. He drives the tip into his left hand and pulls both hands apart forming a bow. He touches his right hand and pulls back five ice arrows in the bow. Slowly releasing the arrow back into this hand, he slides both hands to the ends of the bow. It disappears into his hands as he brings them together.

"And of course you saw these." He holds his hand to his side and three ice spikes form between his fingers. He lifts his hand holding the spikes. "These are the weapons used to kill the four kidnappers." He tosses them into the air and they evaporate. He watches her reaction, but receives the expression of a mask. "You're not impressed?"

"Oh, I am," Gerda says.

Ingrid shrugs her shoulders. "So you can make a weapon, I would guess you are very good at using them. I am sure if you believe we were threatening you, you would use your ice to kill us."

He shakes his head vigorously. "No, I would not. I would leave first. This is your home. If you attacked my home, I would defend it. Currently I don't have a home and there is really no reason for me to stay."

She pats the bed next to her. "Sit, please."

"Why is it important that I sit next to you after I told you that is a line I will not cross?" She looks at him with a big smile. He feels like a rabbit about to stick his head through a noose as it tries to get a carrot.

"Since you have been honest with me, I will tell you this. When I was attacked last year I did not think they were going to kill me until the knife touched my throat. The next thing I knew you had the kidnapper on the ground and pulled me into the doorway. I became afraid then. I did not know if you were one of them or a rival kidnapper, but the longer I stood with you, I was not afraid."

She flattens the bed covers around her then looks at him. "Despite what was happening to me at the time, I felt calmness from you. I was not afraid. Six months ago when the red wolf attacks the royal coach, I was afraid. When I saw and felt my blood leaving my body, all I could think of is not leaving an heir for Agnarr."

She chuckles to herself. "When I opened my eyes and saw your hand in my side." She places her hand over the spot where the wolf clawed her. "I was not afraid. You were there and I knew everything would be all right. You gave me the greatest news a hopeful mother could hope. You said my baby is a girl. I do not know how you knew, but I believed you." She pats the bed again. "I want to test a theory I have about you and my little girl."

He lowers both brows. "What theory?"

"I believe she responds to you when you are near. That is why I need you to sit here." She pats the bed again.

He moves to the side of the bed and kneels on the floor. The door swings open and Charles gleefully announces, "He was right. There were forty-two guards in the quantities and in the locations as he said." He walks over to him a slaps the back of his shoulder. "Do you know they are very friendly and were glad I came out to talk to them?"

"Imagine that," Sam comments.

"So is your theory correct?" Charles asks.

"Your timing is perfect. We were about to find out."

Sam asks, "What do I do?"

She pulls her shirt up exposing her abdomen. "All you have to do is touch her."

He glances up and Charles nods to him. He rubs his hands together to warm them. Just as he is about to touch Ingrid's abdomen, a clear, distinctive bulge extends towards his hand. He stops as his eyes grow wide. Ingrid places her hand on top of his and presses his hand onto her abdomen. His body tenses like it had been touched with an electrical shock.

"What is wrong?"

"There is nothing wrong. You will have a very healthy little girl." He leans back and holds his hands together.

She touches his hand. "What is wrong?"

Looking away quickly and before his hand can catch it, a dark spot on his sleeve form. "It has been many years since I last held my little girl." He rises to his feet and marches out the door before they could say anything to him.

At the bottom of the stairs Gerda calls down to him, "Samuel wait."

"Why? So she can make a fool of me. My family is gone. I need to get back to the stable to tend to the horses." He extends his stride out the castle doors.

 **End Chapter**


	12. Chapter 11 A Queen is Born

Title: Chapter 11: A Queen is Born

Date: 25 years before Correction

Sam arrives at the castle an hour later than usual. No one bothers him when he walks to and from his home in the northern hills. A late snow storm blankets Arendelle with a half meter of snow. Near his home the snow reaches a meter and a half along the trail he takes every morning and evening. This day, instead of the military, new castle guards challenge him for proper papers for entrance. He patiently answers their questions. He knows they are doing their jobs and they are being scrutinized. Any mistakes will have them removed from the castle. They finally let him in and he heads directly to the stables. Since he arrived late his scheduled work will take him well into the evening. He steps through the stable side door and expects the royal horses to neigh at him, but they just stare at him. He touches the cold wood stove.

Removing his shirt and looping the leather body apron over his neck, he kneels and places several logs in the stove. After the second failed attempt to light the logs, he glances around then places his left hand under the logs and concentrates. Wisps of smoke rise from the logs, then they burst into flames. He closes the stove and open the heat and intake air vents. The blacksmith came up with the idea of piping air through a heated stove and into the stable area. The only problem is the small size of the stove. The blacksmith said he is working on a larger stove and a different method of delivering the heated air, but it would not be ready until spring.

He stands and steps back to bump into the kitchen staff, Maren. "My apologies, I did not see you were there."

"That's okay, I was enjoying the view," she answers with a smile and a wink. "You could come to my place to start my fire."

"Your fire?"

"Yes, the fireplace." She hands him his morning drink, "and anything else you find interesting." She winks at him again.

He wishes he had not helped her get the water out of the well last month. Mikkel had warned him she is hunting for a husband. He didn't take the warning seriously until she began to bring him his evening meal before he left at the end of the day. She has a nice enough personality, average built for the females in this area, flowing light brown hair when she takes the ribbon out of her hair at the end of the day. If circumstances were different he could grow an interest in her, but the circumstances are what they are. He needs to stay focused. Several times Gerda had caught her watching him instead of doing her chores. He didn't wish to shoo her away, but she has brought him a drink for the last seven mornings.

The door opens and Gerda steps into the room. "Little Missy get back to the work and leave him alone."

"Yes, ma'am," Maren leaves quickly.

He leans against the only furniture in the room with the two chairs. The table creaks, "Did you follow her here?" He asks as he sips his drink.

"Oh yes, I have nothing better to do than to follow the staff around to see if they are misbehaving." She shakes her head, "No, that's Kai's job." She moves into the stable area and searches then she turns back to him. "Where is Mikkel?"

"I haven't seen him, even the stove was cold."

She walks towards the stalls, "That's strange. He is usually here an hour by now."

He sets his drink onto the table and follows her. "Do you think I should go look for him?"

"No, you will have to do his work as well as your own until he gets here. I'll send a staff to his house. He may have over slept." She walks back towards him and stops as she grabs his arm. "Do you know what tomorrow is?"

He contemplates her thoughts of what she is searching. "By your calendar, Saturday?"

"What else?"

"I don't get to sleep in?"

She pinches his arm. "No, Our Queen's delivery date is tomorrow." She moves to the door.

"Oh, I thought you might say tomorrow will be a bad date for your Queen to give birth."

Gerda spins around. "What do you mean tomorrow will be a bad day to give birth? What do you know?"

He shakes his head with a half-smile. "I don't know if it will be a bad day or not. I thought you might know of a superstition about giving birth on the shortest day of the year, winter solstice." He stares at her for a moment. "Is there?" he asks.

She frowns at him. "Don't make fun of us. I'm sure the solstice will have no effect on our Queen or her child." She opens the door. "At least I don't think there has been a problem on that day."

He shakes his head and walks back to the small room. He opens the door and calls out to her. "I'm sure she will be fine."

He picks up the tools to remove the horses nightly deposits and moves to the first horse stall. With the shovel in hand, he notices the horses looking at him. "What? She will be fine, unless you know something."

A horse, three stalls down, neighs. He glances at the others, "Do the rest of you feel the same way?"

He receives a choir of neighs in reply. "Okay then, eat first, move waste later."

Several horses nod. He pushes his removal tools to the side and loads up the small wagon with hay and other vegetables.

Several hours later, the side room door opens and closes. A barely audible voice comes from the room. He stops what he's doing and moves towards the door. A small candle lantern casts flickering shadows on the walls as it floats in the stable area.

"Holy Mary of God," Mikkel holds up the lantern, "Sam, you scared the life out of me with your blue eyes. Why do they have to glow like that?" He asks as he leans against the wall holding his hand over his mouth.

He stands to one side, but out of his reach. The unmistakable fragrant of where he spent the night radiates from Mikkel. "Where did you go last night?"

He snickers, "I went to the scowl near the wharf to meet my honey and then she showed me her room." She must have been very entertaining the way he was smiling.

"Does your honey have a name?" he asks as he steadies Mikkel against the wall.

With a smile he replies and closes his eyes, "I call her honey because she is so sweet on me."

"How many others call her honey?"

Mikkel's smile fades as he stands away from the wall. He clinches his fist and answers, "No one does, she belongs to me."

"Really?"

"Yes, really, Every time I go in there, she greets me at the door." He raises his fist, "I know what you are thinking. You are wrong."

He pushes on his shoulder. Mikkel staggers to the side and falls into the hay. After a few seconds Mikkel snorts and begins to snore. Sam returns to his work of the feeding the horses and cleaning stalls.

Less than an hour later the sunlight peeks through the holes and doors in the stable walls. He stops to get a drink of water. At the other end of the stables Mikkel snores. Two horses neigh in Mikkel's direction.

"You're right about that. He's not going to be feeling well when he wakes up.

A sharp pain stabs his right side. The next pain similar to the first, but more intense stabs under his rib. He checks his side half expecting a knife injury, but finds none, not even blood. He closes his eyes and scans the area for anything or anyone who may be attacking him. He opens his eyes as Kai opens the gate.

Kai steps in the stable and searches the area. "Where is Mikkel?"

"Listen."

Kai stops and slowly turns his head in the direction of the snoring at the other end of the stable, "Is he passed out down there?"

"He was out a little later the normal."

Kai glares at him, "Don't take up for him. Has he told you why he gets stupid drunk?"

He shakes his head, "no."

Kai faces in Mikkel's direction, "Yesterday was the tenth anniversary. He was madly in love with a young woman. She walked out on their wedding day. Or at least that is the official report. Every year on the anniversary he would get partially drunk at his home, then go to the shack on the wharf. That is where he met her. First couple of anniversaries someone would say something about her and he would fight them or get beat up. Over the years different girls would pretend to meet him the way she did the first time they met. He would get drunk. They would help him to get home. I guess number ten was too much for him. A guard found him this morning asleep on the bridge. They brought him to me. I told them to put him in the stables. I guessed you would find him and put him in a safe place."

Kai looks directly at him. "You did not hear this from me. The woman he loved refused the advances from a certain prominent citizen's son. Her body was never found. There were four people who knew. Three left Arendelle, shortly afterwards. The owner of the place was paid off. A couple of years later he mysteriously disappeared, but you did not hear it from me."

"I understand."

"By the way Queen Iduna may have gone into labor. You seem to have a connection with her. Do not leave the castle. She may call on you and for the rest of us, be available if she does." He glances at him and shakes his head. "If you are called quickly wash the sweat off and put on a shirt. Do you understand?"

"I don't understand the why, but I will do as you say."

Kai walks out.

He stands by the gate and watches Kai walk back into the castle. His eyes change his vision to the light blue tint as he searches. She is leaning against the second floor wall. Others are with her. He hopes at least one of them has experience delivering babies. He puts his hand over the stabbing pain in his side. Clouds build to the north and appear to drift over the area.

"Great, Kai's right. Saving the Queen has put me on her speed dial for her pain. Ladycat, I bet you're laughing at me now." He focuses his eyes to the normal and returns to cleaning the remaining stalls.

Midday, Sam rolls the still asleep Mikkel onto a hay bed to get him off the cold ground. He takes a bucket outside and scoops the snow hiding in the shadows from the sun. He walks back to the stables and sees someone watching him from the servant's door. Inside the small side room, he sets the bucket on the table. After scanning the area for an unwanted intruder he places his left hand into the bucket and melts the snow into cold water. He lays his leather apron across the back of a chair and uses the ladle to pour the water over each arm. The water freezes almost instantly. He breaks off chunks of the ice and places them in a second bucket. The ice contains the removed dirt and sweat. He pours water over the front of his body and it freezes. He breaks off the dirty chunks again. As he pours the water over his back, he does not hear the presence of another enter the room. He bows his back and the ice falls to the floor.

"And to think I clean the hard way."

He snaps around.

Gerda snickers, "Don't act surprised. I understand why the young ladies gaze at you." She looks him up then down. "I'm not here to ogle you. Queen Iduna has requested your presence." She looks him up and down again. "If I were you I would not keep her waiting. The military is not as lax as the previous guards."

He raises his left brow as he slips on his shirt. "I know you are not trying to intimidate me, so what's up?"

As she turns, "You have been warned," and she exits the stables.

He continues the washing process for his bottom half. Several minutes later he pours the water out of the bucket by the steps. A cool breeze escorts him across the yard to the castle. In the kitchen area, he prepares two containers of water with honey in each container and crushes ice into a bowl. He fills a cloth bag with husk leaves. His left hand warms the bag and tosses it in the air to distribute the warmed leaves. He places it under his arm.

Gerda stands by the entrance hall and flashes a smile to say he is cutting it close. He moves next to her and hands her the bowl of ice. With the bucket of water in one hand, he motions with his other hand towards the hall. "Lead the way. Your Queen needs you."

Gerda leads him up the stairs to the residential floor.

In the royal couple's room, he walks pass two female staffers and a burly woman glaring at him. He intends to stay long enough to verify the Queen is in good hands. He places the water and ice on the side table next to the bed. With her eyes closed Iduna tenses and moans as she places her hand on her enlarged abdomen. He flexes his left hand a couple of times and places it on top of her hand. She moves her hand on top of his hand and the corner of her lips curl. "I knew you would know what to do."

"Why are you on your back?"

She opens her eyes. "How should I be?"

He walks around the bed and is met by the burly woman standing in his way. He moves to go around her when she grabs his arm.

"You are not required nor desired to be here. Women have been delivering babies without men's help since the beginning of time."

He moves his face close to her face, "Who are you?"

From behind him a staffer says, "She is the jordmor."

"You're the Midwife. Is the child passing through the birth canal at this moment?" he asks as he glares at her.

"That will not happen for several hours."

"Then you are not needed for several hours," he comments and walks around her.

The jordmor retorts, "I'm preparing the mother for that moment when the child is born."

"By positioning the mother that will cause her the most pain." He shoots back.

"Well I never."

"And you probably haven't. How many live children did you help bring into this world?'

"In the last twenty years I have brought in most, if not all the children in Arendelle."

"And how many did you give to the parents to bury or tell the husband 'sorry they are both gone'?"

A soft hand grabs his arm. He covers the soft hand. "My apology Majesty, I have a vested interest in your child. You need the most advanced medical knowledge at this moment. When she starts to move out, I will leave. If I feel your child is in danger," he glares at the jordmor, "I will step in and throw you out the window." He looks at Iduna. "Your Majesty, you do not need royal protocol to interfere with the birth."

"On that part we agree," the jordmor comments.

He rolls the quilt and pulls up. Iduna lets out a small squeak as she rolls onto her left side. He reaches for a couple of pillows and stuffs them against her back. She frowns. He places his hand on her hip and asks, "Where are you hurting?"

She looks up at him, "Now my leg and hip your hand is on."

"And somewhere else, it's radiating." He reaches across her and grabs another pillow. Lifting her knee, he places the warm bag of husk as low as possible on her lower abdomen and places the folded pillow between her knees. He places his hand on her hip again. "How do you feel?"

With a slight smile she answers, "I am feeling a lot better, but my back still hurts."

He slides his hand to her lower back and moves it in small circles. Iduna partially closes her eyes. "Better?"

She barely nods.

"Where is the King?" No one answers. "You by the door, tell the guard to pass along a message to the King, his Queen needs him now."

The staffer steps out the door and returns several seconds later. He continues to massage Iduna's back. He leans close to her ear. "Your Majesty, royal protocol needs to stay out of this room until your child is born, okay?" She nods. "Has your water broken yet?"

The jordmor answers, "No."

"This could take a while."

The jordmor crosses her arms and grins at him.

"Well let's see if we can't speed this along." He grabs the arm of staffer, "Take the pins out of her hair. Let it hang loose." He pulls her shoes off.

Gerda moves next to him and asks, "What are you doing?"

"Until this baby is born all royal protocol can stay out of this room. I'm making her as comfortable as possible."

The door swings open and Agnarr runs into the room. "What is the urgency? What is wrong?"

Sam glances at the King's dark gray jacket he conducts his daily royal activities. "Take that off and roll up your sleeve. The person you will be meeting here will have a far greater importance to your kingdom than any dignitaries you have or will ever have met. By the way, your little girl will not care what jacket you wear as long as you hold her."

Agnarr searches the other faces. "I should not be here. The jordmor can help in delivering our baby. This is woman's work."

"Really, Charles, who in this room was there with the two of you when you got Ingrid in this condition?"

Agnarr places his hands on his waist, "I do not like the way you are talking to me. You will show respect."

"Show your wife respect and I will gladly show you respect. I promise, when you witness the birth of your child, you will thank me for a memory that you will have until the day you die. For the duration put your royal protocol and jacket on that chair and stand here." He points to his left.

Agnarr hesitates for a moment. He takes his jacket off and lays it on the chair. He stands where Sam pointed.

Sam places Agnarr's hand and moves it in a circular motion against Ingrid's lower back as he had been doing. He places a chair behind Agnarr and moves the ice and water to the table next to the bed.

"Depending how long this takes, you will need to get comfortable. Charles, when she gets thirsty, offer the ice or help her to sit up to drink the honey water." He places his hand on the King's shoulder, "Until the baby is born, your soul mission is for the comfort of your wife, which includes helping her up to pee and do any other bodily functions. Massage any part of her body, she wishes and now is not the time to be bashful. After an hour or so, get her up onto her hands and knees for ten minutes, then take her for a walk down the hall."

He asks the jordmor, "What do you give when she is hungry?"

"Mostly water and a little soft fruit."

He turns to Agnarr, "Sir, she is in a hormonal fluctuation. She may say things that she would not say under ordinary conditions. Do not take offense. There will be a point she may verbally attack you. Again, do not take offense. She will be happy you are here and barely a minute later, she will complain. Do not take offense. Give her reassurance you are here for her and she can do it. Give lots of positive compliments and don't make it up. When she asks you a question, answer it honestly, but it may be with discretion. Women are capable of asking a very specific question where regardless of your answer, it's a no-win situation for you. They are trying to pick a fight with you." He touches Ingrid's shoulder, "And you miss, don't pick a fight with your husband. Wait several weeks after the birth, then fight all you want."

The jordmor watches him and comments, "Sounds like the voice of experience. You have been where the king is?"

"Let's just say, I almost missed my little girl's birth. A couple of hours before the birth, her friend and I were playing cards, no talking and gently laying the cards on the table. She demanded to know what we were doing. The table was twenty feet from the bed. I said we were playing cards. She responded with 'stop doing it'. I stared at her and she stared at me. If she demanded that I leave I would have, but her pride would have prevented her from calling me back into the room."

He looks down at Ingrid. "I was absolutely ecstatic when our little girl finally arrived." He glance at Agnarr, "The indescribable feeling . . ." he chokes as moisture fills his eyes. "The feeling I had when they allowed me to hold her the first time. When times are stressful," his voice cracks as a tear runs down his cheek, "you remember that feeling. You will long for it. It will get you through the times."

Ingrid places his hand on her abdomen. The child presses against his hand. He closes his eyes, remembering the feeling from long ago. As his eyes open, he wipes them with his shirt collar. With a nod of his head he retrieves his hand and glances at her. "I need to step outside for a few minutes and rein in my emotions." He stands. "I will be close by if you need me, but with your husband here, I should only be called if it is urgent."

He sits on the top step of the spiral stir case. He remembered when his little girl was born. She was so small and frail. The nurse asked him if he wanted to hold her. He remembers telling the nurse he has never done that before. What does he need to do? The nurse positioned his arms and hands and placed his child in his arms. Their child opened her eyes at him. He felt like she was trying to see into his soul.

He introduced himself to her, "Hello Sara, I am your father. Welcome to our world." She yawned and closed her eyes. "Yes, you will need your rest. We have an adventure waiting for you."

He remembers carrying her when she was several months old. She would grab the collar of his uniform and pull until she could rest her head against his neck. As the years passed that became her comfortable position to rest her head against his neck. Ladycat said she was learning to sync with his heartbeat.

The floor creaks behind him and he hides his eyes.

A calming voice asks, "Are you okay?"

He sits in silence for a moment, then slowly shakes his head, "No I'm not. I miss them very much. The pain is supposed to lessen over time, but it hasn't." He looks up at Gerda and tries to smile through the blurriness of his vision.

She puts her arm around him, "I'm sorry. By being here you have been giving Iduna courage. We heard you chanting so no one wanted to bother you, but I thought you would want to know. She broke her water a few minutes ago."

"That was quick. I just sat down." He swipes his shirt collar across his eyes.

"Just sat down, you have been sitting for the last three hours. You don't remember Iduna coming over here and talking to you?"

"No."

"You told her about how you felt when your little girl was born."

"Three hours, my bet is the new queen will be born after midnight."

"Sounds like a fools bet, but why after midnight?" she asks.

"Tomorrow will be the winter solstice. And no I do not believe anything magical about it. It's just the alignment of the planet to the sun, but I'm sure the moment will be magical to the parents." He takes a deep breath and lets out a long sigh. "Three hours, I better check on the horses." He stands and assist Gerda. They walk back to the royal couple's room.

Iduna lies on her side and holds up the husk bag.

He walks to her side of the bed and warms the bag. "I'm not going to ask you how you feel, but are you ready?" He hands the husk back to her then places his hand over the child.

She places the bag on her lower abdomen and answers, "She is hardly moving."

He moves his hand to his side. "Her head is positioned correctly against your birth canal, Maybe she is resting up for the final push. At this point you are in good hands. I do not for see any problems. I'll step out and see you when you are holding the new princess."

Iduna does not look at him. A new spot on her pillow darkens and slow expands and another tear lands in the same spot as the first.

He looks to Agnarr, "With your permission I would like to give your wife a good luck kiss," he taps his cheek. Agnarr nods his approval. He leans close to Iduna and whispers, "With your permission I will create a link with you. If you or your child gets into any distress I will be here in the blink of an eye." She smiles and nods. He kisses her cheek. And whispers to the child, "It's time, Princess. I'm waiting for you to start your new adventure."

He steps into the hallway and closes the royal couple's door. With a nod to the guards, he walks past them and leans against the stair rails. His hand covers his heart and his lips chants a song for peace. The floor creaks behind him, but he does not stop his chanting. Two staffers edge their way along the far wall as they move past him. They hurry down the stairs. He waits until they are out of sight before stepping down the stairs. Everyone scurries and hides upon seeing him. They clear the way for him to the main doors. He holds the doors open and closes his eyes for a few seconds as he listens to the castle. Staffers guess if there will be a prince or princess. The chef in the kitchen complains about his help not helping. His heart quivers and the queen echoes the sentiment of pain as her child moves.

He walks across the yard and a cold breeze circles inside of the walls. He looks to the North-Mountains. Streamers of clouds sweep the mountain face preparing for a fresh blanket of snow. The temptation to run pulls at him. He glances back at the castle. A promise is a promise he will keep. He heads for the stables. An electrical surge of energy collects on his skin. He searches the sky and the tiny sliver of the moon. He finds the source of his irritation.

"I see you, green dragon." As if to respond the dragon opens its mouth revealing the red fire of its belly. "I'm not going in. Our war will continue at a later date." He continues his walk to the stables.

Smoke streams out of the chimney. He steps through the side room door and finds Mikkel pushing a broom. He watches him for a few minutes and lightly knocks on the wooden post.

Mikkel staggers and barely waves to him.

"What are you doing?"

"I'm cleaning my home." He moves, but the broom does not.

"Mikkel, you are in the stables. Why don't you go to your house?"

He lets the broom slide from his hands. He sniffs twice and wipes his eyes as he moves to the fireplace. He leans against the mantle. "Yesterday, we would have been together ten years. I decided I did not want to give the rent money to the greedy dog. I gave the money to the lady and told her to spend it wisely. I really liked her. I know she was only pretending." He takes a deep breath. "Sam, I'm tired. I just want to lay down and go to sleep."

He has heard that statement many times from those who have given up. They were tired of living. "Do you have friends or family here or close by?"

He barely shakes his head. "I don't have a family. People are always looking to take from others. The previous King was gracious enough to allow me to take care of the guard's horses. A lass arrived off a ship one day. I took a shine to her when she spoke to me. I knew she was a working girl, but every time I went into her workplace, she always took care of me. I wanted to get her out of that line of work. We made plans. We were going to get married. I saved every coin so I could buy her out of her work." He lays his head against the mantel. "Ten years ago yesterday I had enough money. I talked to the owner and he said she was not there. I sat outside by the wharf. One of the other workers told me, she had been killed by a drunk."

"Do you know who the drunk was?"

"Yes, you have had a run in with the family. Their eldest son killed her because she refused his desires. They are the same family who own the room I rent. You killed the younger brother in the Guard revolt. Peter Jens was the eldest son."

"Otto's brother, why was he not arrested?"

"Being the riches family and having the only cargo ships, Jens could refuse to sell to anyone. I heard old man Jens paid the owner what I would have paid for her." Mikkel kicks at the floor. "If you have money you can do whatever you want. Well, he is not getting this money." He throws the coin bag into the fire.

Sam watches the fire burn the cloth. The coins fall to the bottom. What does one say to the person who has given up? "You could stay here. It wouldn't be much. I'll talk to the castle staff."

Mikkel mumbles, "No, I'm tired. I want to go to sleep."

"Ok, don't do anything rash. If you get sleepy, go lie down in the hay. I will make some arrangements for you to stay here. The horses will love you for being with them at night."

Mikkel does not answer and stares into the fire.

He walks back to the castle to find Kai and discuss arrangements for Mikkel. A half hour later, he returns to the stables and finds Mikkel asleep in the hay where he was earlier. Sam continues to clean and feed the horses as he walks through the stable. Late into the evening the tower clock strikes twelve times. A gate opens and closes. His first thought is Mikkel is awake, but discovers him still asleep in the hay. The movement draws him into the side room. Agnarr sits at the small table with a bottle and two glass containers.

He holds up the bottle and motions him to sit. The King appears stressed. Sam sits across from him. "You're past your bedtime. Why are you here?"

Agnarr pours a shot in each glass then holds up his glass. "To the Queen's baby."

He holds up his glass and counters with a proposal, "To the royal couple's little girl."

Agnarr narrows his eyes at him. "How do you know the baby is a little girl?"

"You will know soon enough." He holds his glass up.

The King clinks his glass to his glass. "Whether it's a boy or a girl, I will see." Sam nods to him and they both drink their shot. "The jordmor threw me out on the last scream. I have never heard Iduna scream the way she did, nor as loud. The jordmor had pushed me out the door before I realized what she was doing."

"Your Queen is in good hands. If I had any doubt about her skills, I would be in the room right now."

"But you seemed hostile to her when she questioned your knowledge. What changed your mind?" Agnarr pours another shot in each glass.

"I just made sure she knows that I know not all births go well. I have the knowledge to save the mother and child's life. In this time of age, one out of four children will die of complications that the jordmor has no skills to deal with the circumstances. One out of ten mothers will die from complications. It is extremely sad when the child and mother's number comes up in the same family." He swallows his shot.

"Do you think that number might come up tonight?"

"The best I can answer is those odds are very low, but they have not been eliminated. If God decides to bring your little girl home with him, she will not have to face the hardship of this life, no matter what the odds are. Will it be painful for you and your wife, yes?" He pours both another shot. Agnarr stares too intently at his glass. Sam changes the subject. "Have the two of you picked out a name for your little girl?"

Agnarr stares at him. "Iduna likes Elizabeth."

"God is my oath"

"Yes, how do you know?"

"The bible, Elizabeth was John the Baptist's mother."

"I kind of like Elsa." Agnarr swallows his shot.

"Elsa," he tilts his head back and gulps his shot as he leans back in his chair, "I like Elsa. That would be a fitting name for a Queen."

As he sits back and observes him, Agnarr asks, "Where are you from? I don't recognize your dialect."

 _Have you forgotten? We discussed this already. Are you on a reconnaissance mission? Are you hoping the alcohol will loosen my tongue? Let's see how he responds._

He replies, "I'm from the Americas. I grew up on a military station in a southwest region of the United States of America, but I believe the region is part of Mexico at the moment."

Agnarr stares at him. His head slightly nods, "I'm not familiar with that part of the world. What brought you here to Arendelle?"

"My ship crashed here."

"I don't recall reading a report of a shipwreck near here."

Sam sits up straight, "Unless the trolls report to you, you wouldn't have heard of it." He observes Agnarr for any deviations upon hearing the word 'troll', but with Agnarr's lack of response they could have been talking about a common friend. "What do you know about the trolls?"

Agnarr pours them another drink. "They stay to themselves. We stay away from them."

"Really, you don't have any contact with them?"

He glances around as if someone may be listening to them. He leans on the table as he gulps down his drink. "They are magical creatures. They helped my great grandfather repel an army. The troll said the warring king commanded the lightning to strike his enemies."

"If he was that powerful, didn't your grandfather know his cause was lost before the battle started?"

"The troll said they observed the king could not control the lightning during a snow storms. The troll said they could create a snow storm and assist if the humans would attack. When they produced the snow storm my grandfather attacked. He said he had never seen so much red snow. So I don't bother them."

"But you could contact them if you had a reason?"

Agnarr looks at the door, "If I had a compelling reason, yes." They sit in silence. In the background the tower clock strikes three times.

A gust of wind blows against the stables and the door opens, drawing out the air in the room.

Agnarr covers his ears and moves his jaw around. "Did you feel that? My ears popped."

"Yes, I did." He steps into the stable area and looks at Mikkel's body. The breeze bangs a gate against the side of the building. He rushes over and grabs the gate before it spooks the horses any more. He steps outside and quickly scans the area for anything out of place. Other than the wind all appears normal for that time of the night. He glances up and a lone small cloud moves among the twinkles of the stars.

Agnarr steps out from behind him. "What do you see?"

Just then the castle servant's door opens and closes a few seconds later. He pats Agnarr on his back, "I see you are a new father." A staffer runs up to the King, bows and announces the Queen had a baby girl.

He wonders if the king heard what she said, but the smile on his face tells him he heard. He pushes Agnarr. "What are you waiting for? Go meet your new baby girl."

Agnarr and the staffer runs across the courtyard. He quickly scans the royal bedroom and the queen cuddles her new baby. He fights the urge to see her, but his presence may confuse the baby girl. She needs to know who her parents are. In due time she will learn from him. He glances up into the sky as the small cloud dissipates. "Is this how you do it Father? A soul returns to your kingdom and you deliver another to a baby"

Shortly after sunrise an orange glow illuminates the undersides of the gray clouds over the hills north of Arendelle. A cold wind blows from the northeast as the gray clouds block the last of the morning sunlight. By midday a light snow falls. Sam walks a horse caring a package neatly wrapped in a blanket. A gate guard removes his hat as Sam passes. Near the time of sunset with an additional half meter of new snow layering the snow already on the ground, Samuel walks his horse through the gates.

Kai rushes out into the courtyard. With his hands on his waist, he watches Sam walk by him. He asks, "Mikkel?"

Sam stops with his head down. He looks back at the northern mountain. "He went home. He is finally with his young lady. No more pain." He continues into the stable.

End of Chapter


	13. Chapter 12 Scoundrels

**Title: Chapter 12 Scoundrels**

 **Date: 24 years 6 months before Correction**

The full time job of two people taking care of the royal horses gives Sam little time to focus on his situation. He arrives before sunrise and many times leaves well after sunset. Several of the new guards assist him in making sure the horses get their exercise. The guards and the military have given him an unofficial title, 'Royal Horse's Arse'. At first he thought it was an insult until the recently promoted Lieutenant Larsen explained, the Captain of the Guards and the military commander threaten to send the misbehaving troop to him as punishment. The Lieutenant said the threat in most cases was all that was needed to persuade the troop to comply with orders.

In one of the few times he had finished early, he considered the Lieutenant's comments. He expected nothing more from them than what he did. A clean stall meant a happy horse and a happy horse cooperated with the guard. If he received a report the guard needed extra attention, he made sure the horse gave them the extra attention. While he had no problem with the horses, he was the only one who communicated and understood them, so he wore the 'Royal Horse's Arse' with honor. Even the military saw an improvement of those who returned from horse duty.

With the upcoming Spring Trade, he had to work his help harder, so he could get the horses primed to show the guards at their best for the merchants.

The last two months the Queen thought he was not eating properly and sent a midday meal to him. Gerda or a staffer brought him a sandwich and a leftover fruit if one was available. He did not care whether he received noon-time meal or not. After being there almost three years, he became accustomed to eating two meals a day. Over that time his body shed many pounds, allowing a more toned body to show through. One afternoon he sees an old man's reflection looking up at him in the water barrel. A white cloud drifting overhead contrasts with gray and stubble face. His mind wondered about the 'what if'.

Another cloud passes overhead. A young lady peeks over his shoulder. "Did you drop something?"

He grins at her and takes his sandwich. He sits on the steps and Gerda sits next to him. "I guess it has been a while since my body regenerated. Of course it would explain why the rebel guards did not hesitate to attack an old man."

"Princess Elsa can stand. She has not walked on her own, but she is progressing."

He nods as he bites his sandwich.

Gerda watches him. "Ingrid has asked about you. She wonders when you will come to visit Elsa."

"In due time, but not now. Princess Elsa needs to bond with her parents. I will be a distraction."

She asks as she stands. "Do you have a message for Ingrid?"

He wipes his hands together and searches the sky. "Yes, tell her the horses will be ready for the Spring Trade. I will stay in the stables until the Trade is over." He walks back to the stables and Gerda returns to the castle.

During last year's Spring Trade he stayed away from Arendelle. He watched the many ships bring merchants to sell their wares. Arendelle's rich women received the latest news in fashion. Throughout the summer these women would prance around with their noses so high in the air, he wondered if they knew they were getting remnants from the previous season's fashions. Most of the other women and men tolerated the merchants. They must have sold enough goods to return again this year, except this time Sam would have a front row seat in the middle of the snootiest of the snoot, even the class of merchants in the castle were of the snootiest. The horse's schedule does not change. They become irritated if they are not fed on time. At least in the stables he will not have to fight the crowd, everyday.

On the fourth day of the Trade negotiations, Sam ventures out of the stables before the guests and merchants awaken from their slumber. The warm air blows in from the south. High level feathers of clouds create a haze on the surrounding hills. He glances towards the north mountain with its new coat of snow. If he was in his cave, he would go to the stream and commune with nature but today he is not. He enters the castle through the servant's door and enters into a beehive of activity. "What's going on so early?"

A staffer says, "I am not completely sure, but there is a British ship in the harbor and their king maybe on it."

"Really," He stares at two very familiar uniforms. "What about those two standing directly across the entrance hall?"

The staffer glances in the direction he is looking, "you mean the two goons standing with the Duke of Weselton?"

"Weselton! Now it gets very interesting. Does the Queen know he is here?"

"She does and she will not have anything to do with him not even to say hello. Our instructions are that she will be unavailable."

"Fascinating, maybe I should introduce myself to them." He moves towards the hall.

"You will do no such thing. Go tend to your horses," Kai commands.

Sam hesitates for a moment, then nods to Kai. He leaves the kitchen. The few awake merchants give him little notice when he passes. The couple who notice him do not return his greetings, but rotate their snooty noses up. He smiles at their stupidity. Class designations are not limited to the humans. He shakes his head at the many times society is built on the backs of the less fortunate. How little they know their actions bring the hatred that will take it all from them.

Movement catches the corner of his eye. He steps between two tents and watches for a moment. A young boy crawls out from under the tent. The boy carries a small bag in his hand as three other smaller boys join him. They run towards the gates. He senses someone watching him. As he searches the tents, he hears the word 'up'. Queen Iduna watches from the window of the king's study. She points to him, then points towards the gates. He bows to her and runs towards the gates as he shouts, "Stop those boys. Don't let them out."

He gets to the gate and the guards hold four boys.

"What have they done?" asks the guard.

"We have done nothing. He is the thief," answers the older boy.

Sam asks, "Why are four boys out so early in the day with gold in their pockets?"

The guard looks at the boys, "Empty your pockets or we will shackle you then empty your pockets." The two boys pull out small bags. The guard empties the bags to reveal a hand full of gold coins. "Lock them up." The two youngest boys begin to cry and the third boy tries to hold back the tears as he looks to the fourth boy who stares straight ahead.

"Sergeant, before you make this situation worse by dragging these children to their cells where they deserve to be," pointing to the older boy, "I know where this one took the gray bag. If they will tell you where they acquired the green bag. You could march them to the individuals and have the boys return the gold to the current owners. It makes you look good in front of the King and his guest. The boys are humiliated and learn a valuable lesson. Your Queen saw you taking the coins. I hear she has a soft heart to forgive with repentance, but you will have to work for her forgiveness. I caution all of you. Make a scene that disrespects your Queen and she will tell the sergeant to punish you as with any thief." He nods to the sergeant, "What is the going punishment for a thief?"

Without hesitation he answers, "Five lashes for the first offense, unless she lets the owner of the coins decide short of death." The sergeant grins at the older boy, "There is a couple of merchants from the Asian area. I think they cut off the thief's hand. Everyone will know the one handed person is a thief."

The blood vessel in the boy's neck noticeably pulses faster. The guards march the boys to the first tent and the owner of the green bag is grateful. They stop at the second tent. This owner was not as grateful. He steps past the sergeant and hits the boy with the back of his hand. He reaches under his garment and raises a leather belt over his head. The buckle on the belt swings towards the boy's head. The leather slaps against flesh. The owner jerks the belt off of Sam's arm, drawing beads of blood.

"Really," Sam replies and shoves the owner back into his tent. "Your Queen is watching sergeant. The money has been returned. Let's get these boys to her so she can pass out their punishment." Three of the four shed their tears as they march into the servant's door. They walk past the delegates in the entrance hall and into the King's study.

They stand in front of the large desk. All is quite except for the sniffles. Queen Iduna writes on a piece of paper and hands it to the sergeant. Setting the quill down and closing the ink well, she interlaces her hands together and stares down at the desk.

After a few seconds the sergeant speaks, "When you are in the presents of a monarch, you will bow in respect." Then he barks the command, "Bow you thieves."

The guard pushes the boys to bow. Sam bows of his own.

The sergeant continues, "Your Majesty, these boys were caught stealing from a couple of the merchants this morning. The stable boy alerted us to the crime and we captured them. The money has been returned to the owners. They are waiting their punishment."

"Stand so I can see the faces of the criminals," she commands.

The two younger boys continue wipe their faces of tears. The third boy sniffles, but the older boy stares at the window. Sam has seen people like this boy in maintaining a neutral expression. That is how he was taught. Take the punishment, but give them no satisfaction they had beaten you. There is only one way a boy at this time would have learned the trick. Personal experience of getting caught was his practice.

Iduna points to each boy, "How old are you?"

The youngest starts, "I'm seven,"

The next boy replies, "I'm eight," pointing to the younger boy, "He is my brother."

The third boy replies, "I'm ten."

The fourth boy does not reply.

Sam comments to him, "Not answering does not help your cause. Asking for mercy will."

The older boy turns his head towards Sam and answers, "No, it doesn't, it makes the punishment worse. I will take whatever she gives me."

Sam slips his glove off his right hand and places his hand on the boy's shoulder. "With such arrogance, maybe he needs to . . ." he stops for a few seconds and looks down at him, "sit in a cell to cool off." He pushes the boy over the desk and pulls up his shirt.

Queen Iduna gasps at the scars on the boys back.

He lets him up and kneels next to him as he takes his other glove off. The boy tenses as Sam grabs his shoulders. The other three boys huddle together. He glances at them and asks, "Have all of you received the same beating." The next two older boys nod.

A guard closes the door and Iduna kneels next to the youngest boy and removes his bindings. "Have you been beaten?"

Through his tears he barely nods. His brother speaks, "he did more than just beat him."

"Quiet," the older boy snarls. Sam places his hands on his face and searches his mind.

After a few seconds he stands and steps back. "Majesty, for their safety, please put them in a cell until the trade negotiations are over." He moves towards the door.

Iduna asks, "Samuel, where are you going?"

He faces the door with his hand on the door handle. "To protect the King's sovereignty and a plausible deniability, please do not ask. It is best if these guards take the boys to a cell. Afterwards, they could casually return to the courtyard."

He steps out of the room and marches down the passageway. Across the entrance hall, he exits the castle. He scans the area for the one he encountered earlier. The individual has made a hasty retreat, leaving most of his wares. He marches towards the gate and stops. He turns his head slightly. One of the Weselton goons glares at him. With a half-smile he continues out the gate. He trots across the bridge and scans everyone. A disturbance draws his attention between the town square and the wharf. He spots his intended target and side steps through the growing crowd. He reaches the wharf. His target talks to a uniformed gentleman. The target glances back and looks directly into his eyes. The target tosses the gentleman a small bag. By the time he gets to the wharf his target has disappeared.

He calls to the gentleman on the ship, "Sailor, where is the fat pig that ran over here?"

The sailor moves away from him and speaks to another sailor, "You there, come here. Did you hear a noise like a mouse squeaking?"

Sam picks up a small rock and throws it at the gentleman sending his hat into the water.

The sailor turns to him, "Did you knock my hat off?"

Sam replies, "Squeak, squeak."

The sailor stomps his foot and places his hand on the hilt of his sword. "How dare you attack an officer on a British ship. I can have you flogged."

"Why don't you come down here and try it."

The officer sneers at him, "I have more than enough sailors on this ship alone to overrun that little castle of yours."

Sam shoots back, "I hear a lot of talking. Why don't you muster the whole crew so I can teach them to swim?"

The Gentleman commands the Marines standing by the rail, "You four, drag the rat aboard ship."

Sam meets the Marines at the gangplank and assist them into the fjord.

"All hands on deck," the gentleman commands. The ship drummer beats for all hands on deck. The crew crawls out from below deck and run to their preassigned positions.

"Captain, are we under attack?" asks a Germanic feminine voice.

"Nothing we can't handle from this peasant."

A beautiful woman wearing an elegant dress of royalty steps to the ship's railing. He bows to her as he struggles to recall her language. She nods to him and asks the Captain, "You're calling out all hands for him?"

"Princess, he did send four of my Marines into the water as they tried to apprehend him."

"What exactly did he do that he needs to be apprehended?" she asks.

"He attacked me."

She looks him over. "Where are you hurt?"

"In his pride," Sam answers in his best broken German. He quickly disarms three more Marines and sends them into the fjord.

"Captain, unless this is your way of getting the Marines to wash their uniforms, there is not going to be any left to protect your ship." The Captain motions for the Marines to stop. She leans over the rail. "You there, what is your name and why are you throwing the Captain's men into the water?"

He bows to her and answers in German, "My name is Samuel Ryan. I maintain the royal horses of Arendelle."

"A stable boy holds the British Marines hostage on their own ship," comments the Captain.

"We are here for the trade negotiations Captain, not to start a war."

The Captain nods to her, "Yes, your highness."

"And who is the strong flower that commands the respect of a British Captain?" Sam asks.

"I am Princess Victoria of Saxe-Coburg-Saalfeld."

"A German Princess on a British ship, are you being held captive?"

"No, nothing like that. My home is on the British island."

"Really, I just thought since the Captain allowed an unsavory passenger to board the ship, maybe it is the British way to increase its population."

She glances at the Captain as she motions to him. "What is he talking about? You let someone on board from here."

The Captain replies, "Princess, I have no idea what he is talking about. I did allow a British citizen to come aboard. We were scheduled to pick him up anyway. He was a little earlier than planned, but he is no unsavory person. Maybe the boy needs to go back to the stables and do what is best for a stable boy."

"Enough, Captain, we were invited here. There is no reason for you or your men to step ashore," the Princess commands.

Sam rubs the back of his neck as if a needle pricks his skin. He searches the wharf. A hooded person walks towards him. He watches the person for a moment and recognizes the same person he saved a year and a half earlier. He faces her and leans his head down. "Where are your guards?"

She looks up at him, "I had the feeling you were down here so I took a chance. Unless you're not going to protect me, my life is in danger and MY Princess will be without a mother."

Her smile gives her away. He would never leave her in a dangerous situation. "You were taking a big chance that I might not have been here."

"I told you. I had the feeling you were here. If I did not have the feeling, I would still be in the castle, but you are here so it was a good feeling and MY Princess still has a mom." She continues to smile at him.

"You don't play fair."

She pushes the hood back, "As Queen, I don't have to play fair."

Princess Victoria bows to her, "Majesty, it is very pleasant for you to meet me here. I would have waited for an escort." She looks towards the town square. "Where are your guards?"

Queen Iduna answers in perfect German, "I only need one guard. I'm sure Samuel has demonstrated to your Captain that he is more than capable of handling any situation."

"I'm satisfied with the security arrangements. I will get my bundle of joy and join you in a moment." Princess Victoria walks towards the gangplank.

Sam glares at the British Captain.

Iduna bumps his arm, "What are you doing?"

"Captain, tell that British citizen who boarded your ship, I spot him on land and he will be fed to the fish."

The Captain leans on the rail, "Threatening a British citizen may see you in the water without your head."

"Is it customary for British men to use boys as a wife?"

Iduna sinks her fingernails into his side. "Don't start a war today. Wait until everyone has left, then you can fight the snow creatures all you want."

Princess Victoria walks on to the wharf followed by a pretty little girl. Behind the two Princesses a slightly taller, blonde, short hair male carries a leather satchel. To the untrained eye, he would easily pass as Princess Victoria's servant, but Sam spots traits that only another like him would recognize. The man walks with purpose. He doesn't just carry a satchel. He locates at least seven locations in his clothing to hide various forms of knives. The gentleman scans the area before departing the ship and he scans the area again. He hesitates slightly, looking at the bridge to the castle. No doubt, measuring the distance and searching for alternate routes of escape. The gentleman locks his eyes on him. He barely nods and the gentleman barely nods back then he speaks to his Princess, "Ma'am, I have everything for the little princess, we may proceed."

"I recommend we proceed along the water's edge to the bridge and cross over. I'll lead for the obvious reason." He glance to Iduna, "madam, you directly behind me, then the Princesses," looking to the servant, "and your servant can cover the rear."

The servant barely nods, but Sam did notice. He pivots and moves along the waterfront. He glances back and spots the four following them. Near the end of the wharf, he performs a slow blink then stops.

Iduna puts her hands on his back to stop herself. He turns around and drops to one knee. Placing Iduna's boot on his upper thigh he looks up at her covered face. "Princess, do you trust your servant to do his job to protect you?"

She steps next to them. "Yes, I do, he saved me twice."

He smiles at Iduna, "A common trait wouldn't you say? Do you see a stranger from the past about twenty meters directly behind me?"

The Princess's servant glances at him, then looks past him. He nods. "His partner is a few meters to his right."

"I do recognize him from the alley." Iduna comments.

"They want us to see them," the servant says.

"Yes, they do."

"A distraction to hide their partners, do you see them?" the servant asks.

"There is one to your immediate left, five meters. He has a yellow flower in the lapel of a brown coat. I suspect there are more, but we need to move," he says.

"Sam, we cannot put the Princesses in danger," Iduna says as she places her hands over his eyes. Instead of questioning her motive his eye change to green and he sweeps the area. His eyes blink to their normal color he leans back. "You will lose your cover."

"So be it."

"You three stay extremely close. This will be a frontal assault. Servant at the appropriate time make sure anyone behind you sees your knife." He stands showing his pearly whites. "Ladies are you ready?" They both nod to him. "It will be bumpy and fast."

With a glint of a smile Iduna comments, "I like fast."

He speaks a little louder so certain individuals will hear him. "Madam, you should get that buckle fixed at the earliest opportunity. When we get to the stables, I can fix it." He walks towards the aggressor closest to the water. "Let's go ladies. We are burning daylight."

He constantly moves his eyes back and forth trying not to make eye contact. From his peripheral vision the second aggressor moves towards the first, but more importantly three aggressors reveal themselves by moving quickly towards them. He quickly glances over his shoulder, "Servant I hope you have seen the three closing on your left rear?"

The servant spoke one word, "Aye."

Sam takes several quick steps towards the aggressor closest to the water's edge, when the sunlight reflects off a blade pulled out of the second aggressor's sleeve. He grabs the hand, revealing the knife and pulls the hand across his body as he spins. His momentum helps to propel the aggressor off the wharf and into the fjord. He continues his spin with the back of his right hand striking the chest of the first aggressor even though he put up his hand to block the blow. The first aggressor follows the other aggressor into the fjord merely by a couple of seconds later.

Iduna and Princess Victoria reach the bridge and quickly march towards the castle. The few people on the bridge point and comment on the men in the water. He follows close behind the ladies and glances back for the servant. Still a ways from the bridge the servant stands his ground against three aggressors.

Sam picks up two rocks and measures the distance. "Please don't move."

He rotates his arm whipping a rock towards the aggressors. The small rock hits the aggressor below his left eye, staggering him back. Sam launches the second rock just as the servant moves across the rock's flight path. He freezes for a second. The rock passes the servant's head flicking his hair up, but the rock hits square in the second aggressor's nose. It causes him to hesitate long enough for the servant to land his fist into the side of his head where he falls back onto the ground.

The third aggressor retreats and returns to help his friends after the servant reaches the bridge. Iduna and Princess Victoria stands near the gates as the servant stops next to Sam. "Took you long enough to get here," he comments.

"I had to say hello to a few friends, but you have a good arm to hit them from here," the servant replies.

"Lots of practice lately." Wrinkling his nose, he turns to the servant. "You smell like milk."

"Unfortunately, A container of milk sacrificed it's self in the fight."

"I'm sure the castle staff will replace it." Sam watches several others fish the two aggressors out of the water.

"Do you know who they are?" the servant asks.

"I encountered then almost two years ago, but they have become emboldened to attack with so many witnesses." He glances back at the two royals. "Stay with your mistress."

"Sam, what about you?" Iduna asks.

"There is still the problem of the pervert who likes boys on the British ship. I'm going to see if I can get him to walk off the ship."

A small warm hand touches his arm, "Be careful."

He pats her hand, "I always do." She raises her brow at him. "Okay, most of the time." He grabs her hand. "Majesty, Please do not leave the castle without an escort."

She watches him. "Do I have to say it?"

He stares into her eyes, but they show no signs of wavering. "If I'm not here, who will protect you?"

With a hint of a smile she replies, "Wrong, if you are not here who will protect Elsa?"

"Touché, my Queen, I will not be gone long. Now that they have fished their cohorts out of the water, I will ask who their target is."

"And if they refuse?"

He smiles at her. "This is when I'm at my best." He reaches down and picks up a small rock. Measuring the distance, he drops his hand to touch the bridge deck and launches it seemingly straight up into the air. "Listen to see if I hit my target."

He walks towards the town square. At the crest of the bridge a loud snap echoes across the fjord followed a second later by a very high pitch scream. A commotion stirs the British crew into a frenzy. He glances back and nods to a wide eyed Queen Iduna staring in the direction of the scream.

He walks between the merchant's displays and creates a conversation with both local and visitors as he scans the area. He moves down a familiar alley. Behind him the steps that follow stop at the edge of the alley. No doubt they are looking for an opportunity. He slows his paces allowing them time to make their decision. At the other end of the alley, he stops and covers his blue eyes to scan into the street. Only one waits in the street and the one following him down the alley stops. He steps into the street and looks directly at the Royal Guard's Lieutenant Larsen. He glances back into the alley, "A friend of yours?"

Larsen steps away from the building and motions to the one still in the alley. "I told him he would not be able to sneak up on you. When did you see him?"

"When I turned down the alley," he answers as he searches the faces of everyone he can see. "Why are you following me?"

"Queen Iduna said you had a run in with a couple of Weselton men."

"I counted five, two were Weselton and the other three were in civilian clothing. Do you know who the three are?"

Larsen faces the alley, "Ben, come on out. He led you down here." He turns back to Sam, "I don't know who they are. Could you identify them if you saw them again?"

"Of course I can, so what are you going to do about it when I do?" he asks as he walks up the street towards the square.

Larsen steps in line next to him. "It will be reported back to the Captain and he will decide." Ben falls in line behind them jingling his sword as he walks in step with them. With each step the sword rattled.

Sam looks back at Ben, "Place your hand around your scabbard and anchor your thumb on top of the handguard." Ben does as he says and the sword rattle stops. "Tell me about the new Captain."

"Not a whole lot to say, he is a captain in the regular military. Obeys orders without questions. Very particular in the way he wants things done," Larsen answers.

"Such as?"

"He turned over three recruit's beds for not having the corners tight enough."

"Attention to details, good."

Larsen continues, "When two guards failed their uniform inspections, we all ran around the courtyard for an hour. Six men went to the infirmary for exhaustion. Now I'm not complaining, but he can cut back with the yelling."

"Any one grumbling about him?"

"No, everyone is afraid to say anything."

"Is it because of him I have had the extra help in the stables the last month?" He nods to a merchant.

"Could be but then again, he does not ask my opinion."

"Is he a danger to the crown?" he asks as he scans the square.

"I do not believe so," Larsen looks in the direction Sam is focused. "What do you see?"

"On the quarter deck of the British ship, there is a pervert with his right hand wrapped."

"Pervert, what did he do?"

He glances back at Ben, "He uses young boys in place of a wife."

"Oh," Ben says and lifts his sword up a few centimeters.

"Charge the ship and you could instigate a war with England," Larsen comments. "Until he leaves the ship, there is nothing we can do legally about it." He nudges Sam to look to his left. "Are they, who you are looking for?"

At the corner of the square closest to the bridge, three men in Weselton uniforms watch the people cross back and forth over the bridge. One appears to be writing something.

Ben asks, "Is he counting how many are in the castle?"

"Well, Lieutenant, if you were preparing to storm the castle, would you count the number of people?"

Larsen rubs the back of his neck. "The exact number would be useful if they were guards or military crossing the bridge." He wags his finger at the Weselton men. "The one doing the writing, marks when someone of the upper class walks over."

Sam watches an individual on the Weselton ship, watching him. "What is the significance of the number of rich people going to the castle?"

"Ransom," Ben comments, "They could get rich from the ransom."

"Lieutenant?" He maintains eye contact with the officer on the Weselton ship.

"This would not be the best action. Too many of their own would be injured or killed." He places his hands on his waist. "They are not counting all of them. Two rich individuals, just crossed over." Larsen points to the three by the bridge. "Jens, nodded to them and they marked the sheet."

The Weselton officer glances at his three men and stares back at him. A moment of tensing in his face and the clenching of his fist against the ship's rail betrays a clue.

"Lieutenant, what if they only mark certain rich individuals? Who would they be? I'll give you a clue of a possibility. They are rich and have power over the citizens of Arendelle."

Ben answers, "He marked his paper for three council members."

"If not for a ransom tactically for what?" He does not wait. "What if Jens was the last council member to enter the castle?"

At an octal higher Ben's voice asks, "Capture the council and the monarch?"

Larsen answers calmly. "No, not capture, place the King in a compromised position. The council highly encourages him to step down for the sake of Arendelle. Weselton creates the compromised event. In front of all the people, we lose trade and Arendelle's economy collapses."

"And the council picks up the pieces," Sam grins. "You have found the kill spot." He points his finger at the Weselton officer. "Lieutenant, you and Ben go and investigate the three by the bridge. I will be nearby. Let's see what the officer does."

Larsen and Ben spot the Weselton officer on the ship then they march towards the bridge. The officer runs down the ramp to the wharf. Sam walks several steps behind Ben and watches the officer.

A sharp whistle attracts the three men's attention at the bridge. The one taking notes stuffs his paper into his jacket and marches towards the Weselton ship. The other two spots Larsen and Ben and walk in their direction.

Sam alters his path to cut off the note taker before he can get to the ship's gangplank. He glances at Larsen conversing with the two Weselton, so who is the distraction.

The Weselton officer spots him and changes course. He moves his right hand behind his back. The note taker quickens his steps towards the ship.

Sam waits until the officer has committed himself to move down a row of merchants. Sam leaps over a table, almost knocking a merchant to the ground. He hesitates to ensure the merchant is not injured before running to the Weselton's ship. The note taker reaches for the gangplank rail when Sam locks his hand around his arm and pulls him away from the plank.

The note taker swings his free hand, but Sam catches the hand and squeezes. "How dare you touch an officer of the Weselton Royal fleet? I will have you flogged peasant."

A sharp object pokes into his side as the officer stands behind him.

"Be a good horse's arse and let go of him." Sam releases the note taker's hand. "See, with the right motivation even dirt can be reminded of their station in life at the bottom of a Weselton's boot."

"Well, I'm not satisfied. He had a tight grip on my hand." He swings his fist which impacts Sam's chin. The note taker shakes his hand. "You piece of horse crap. You broke my hand."

The officer grabs the note taker's arm and pulls. "Let's get out of here before you draw more attention to us."

"Did you see him? He barely moved his head. He should have been laid out on the ground." He shakes his hand and rubs his knuckles.

"Then it's a good thing I came along and stopped him." He pulls on his partner's arm.

Sam removed the layer of hard ice frozen on his face the Weselton struck him. He flings the ice towards the gangplank. "Gentlemen, be careful walking on the gangplank. Someone spilt water at the bottom of the plank."

The two Weselton officers continue towards their ship. Sam meets with Larsen and Ben. They walk towards the bridge, but Sam keeps his eyes on the Weselton.

The note taker spots the water at the foot of the plank and points to it. "There is water exactly where he said."

"We are on a wharf. Where do you think the water came from?"

They walk up the plank. Half way up, the plank slides away from the ship. The one in front race up to the ship while the one following tries to get back to the wharf. The plank separates from the ship and drops both Weselton officers into the water between the ship and wharf.

"Man overboard, man overboard," yells a crewman.

After several minutes the crew fishes the two officers out of the water. The crewmen on the wharf sets the gang plank back in position. The note taker looks across the fjord towards the bridge, directly at him.

Sam shrugs his shoulders and open his arms out, then he spews a stream of water into the fjord. He points to the officer then points to the water and grins.

 **End of Chapter**


	14. Chapter 13 Royal Gathering

**Title: Chapter 13 Royal Gathering**

 **Date: 24 years 6 months before Correction**

Several hours later, Sam returns to the castle. Four guards stand at every entrance. Near the main entrance, Lieutenant Larsen motions him to come over. The door opens and a rush of many conversation billows out. He stops next to Larsen.

"Queen Iduna demands you see her the moment you get here."

Sam shakes his head with a slight smile. "Demands? I'm not sensing anyone in distress. If anything, it sounds like the King opened the wine barrels sooner than he planned."

"Maybe, but our Queen was very adamant that you see her." Larsen gestures towards the door. The other guards check the guest before allowing them through the door.

"I do not have an invitation like the guest. I'm sure the snoots will be offended if I went in there like this. I did not get a chance to clean up." Another guest holds their little glasses to their face to look him down. Their noses point up and they walk in. He points to the guest, "Did he say the King should make sure the help stays behind the scene?"

"That's what it sounds like from here," a guard comments as he turns away.

"As you were private," Larsen admonishes.

"I better clean up so my filth does not spill onto the royal drips." He walks towards the stables.

"Don't take too long. She is waiting for you." Larsen watches the next guest approach the doors.

Thirty minutes later, Lieutenant Larsen grins and comments at Sam walking up the steps. "Don't be yourself. Just be gentle, don't embarrass the King or Queen."

Sam pulls on his sleeves and sweeps his hand across a shadow dancing on his shirt. "If they do not attack me, I will not attack them."

"That's what I'm afraid of," Larsen opens the door.

Sam steps into the foyer. A few guest stare at him. They continue their conversations. He sweeps the room looking at each individual noting any peculiarities associated with the person. Near the kitchen, he spots Kai pointing at him, then he points at the stairs. On the second level in her full length purple dress decorated with flowers, Queen Ingrid stands with her hands resting on the rails.

She watches him.

He searches for King Agnarr and sweeps the room again. He detects motion on the stairs. She points in his direction. He does not wish to hear the comments from the guest that will surely come his way if he has to cross the room. He glances behind himself, then back at her. Her head shakes as she points more fervently in his direction. He makes a complete circle and looks back at her as he shrugs his shoulder. Kai moves next to him as Ingrid motions with her fist hitting her hand, then points in his direction.

He glances at Kai. "I think she wishes to hit you with her fist. What did you do to upset her to violence?"

Kai snorts, "She said she will hit you if you don't get over there."

He squints at Ingrid and motions to his chest. She smiles and nods as she motions for him to come to her. He points to himself and back at her as he holds up six fingers. His hand slaps against Kai's arm. "If she asks I will be back in six minutes." He walks out the door.

"That was quick. What did you do to get yourself booted out?" Larsen asks.

"Nothing yet, despite my disdain for snooty people who think they are better than others, I have one thing to do so as not to offend the delicate nasal cavities of the guest before approaching our Queen," With a jump from the top of the stairs to the ground, He jogs to the stables.

Four minutes later he walks back and nods to Larsen as he enters the castle. The crowd of guest had not moved from when he saw them earlier. A roar of laughter erupts from the small hallway as more guest billow out with King Agnarr leading the group.

Kai steps next to him and asks, "What are you waiting for? Don't make our Queen wait."

He sweeps his hand across the crowd. "Who is not here who would normally be here?"

Kai places his hands on his waist. "What do you care?"

Sam slowly rotates his head to Kai.

"Are you serious?"

Sam nods, "Well?"

"I would have to find last year's list and compare it to this year's list unless you wish to do it."

He smiles, "But you do have a list?"

"Yes, I do." Kai replies with a hint of disdain.

"Since you have two list to compare as to who was here last year and who is not here, the logic would imply from the two lists that if someone is here today, you would be able to determine if they were not here from last year."

"What?"

"One of the best places to hide something is in plain sight." He glances across the room to Ingrid. "A tactic of an assassin is to hide in plain sight by being seen by many prior to the act. A bonus is if a stranger arrives after them so the stranger would be the first to be questioned."

Kai slowly looks around the room. "Do you know if something is about to happen?" They part to let guests pass them. Kai steps across and grabs his arm. "If you know something, speak up."

He rotates his head to scan the room and catches the Queen staring intently him. "I can only show you the pieces. There are still many pieces missing from the whole picture, but let's try anyway. Slightly more than a year and a half ago wolves attacked the Queen's coach. Had I not been there, what do you think would have happened to King Agnarr if he opened the coach's door to see his Queen's body?"

"He would have been devastated."

"Enough to give up his crown?"

Kai gradually shakes his head, "I don't think so. Accidents happen."

"I agree, but what about his mental state the following several hours?"

"To lose a wife he loved."

He interrupts, "His mental state could easily have been influenced?" Kai stares at him and nods slowly. "By someone he thought was his friend and if he gave up his authority, even for a day, the presumed friend could convince others the best for the kingdom would be for the King to take a long rest." Kai's expression tells him he knows such a person. "Who suggested the King take a rest and when?"

Kai looks at the main doors. "The guard, who came back early, reported the Queen had been attacked and maybe dead."

"Did the guard report directly to the King?"

"No, he went to the barracks first. He and Otto Jens came to the King. But that guard died in the revolt."

"And both of them are dead."

"Get to the point man," Kai snaps at him.

"If I state it, I'm just the stable boy. Someone with more prominence needs to state it. Where were you when the royal coach came into the courtyard? Better yet, when did you think there was anything wrong?"

Kai glances at the floor. "I heard a staff say the coach is early. I was coming down the stairs when I saw King Agnarr run across the entrance hall. I got to the door just as you took the Kings sword, then you gave it back to him."

"And where were the guards?"

"Other than Otto and the rider, I saw the Captain and the private. I didn't see any other guards. I would have assumed they were performing their duties."

"Is it normal for the coach to enter the courtyard the way it did? Does the King run to the coach the way he did?

"No."

"Did you hear the strings of a crossbow being drawn back or the metal tip of the arrow scrape across stone?"

"No."

He looks up at Ingrid. "I thought the arrow was meant for me, but what if it was meant for someone else?"

Kai grabs his arm and whispers, "The King?"

"Yes, to the King," replies an inebriated guest holding up his flask as he walks by. Sam stares at the guest searching for another group willing to listen to him.

"If the arrow was meant for the King, who takes over?"

"Queen Iduna," Kai answers.

"I had saved the Queen earlier. I detected no deceit from her. When you saw me take the sword from the King, what was your first thoughts?"

"Someone needs to take it from you."

"Or kill me before I strike the King?" Kai nods. "If the person had fired the crossbow and said they panicked, if the arrow struck someone else, who would have been the most likely target?

Kai leans close to him and whispers, "Are you saying someone was trying to kill Queen Iduna?"

"I believe you already know the answer. Your Queen commands the castle. Your King is the diplomat. He is not like the other rulers in the surrounding kingdoms."

"You're not implying King Agnarr is weak?"

He glances back at Kai. "Far from it, the other rulers need to be more like him. The other rulers have so-call trusted advisors that they may not trust. How many times has the advisor taken over a kingdom or have been killed in an attempt? Your King has a Queen who has proven herself many times." He looks directly into a set of brown eyes glaring intently at him. He whispers, "Were you of royalty before you met the King?" The owner of the brown eyes gives no response. "Why do I have this feeling there is more to you than you let on?"

"Why don't you ask her?"

"Have you ever heard the confession of an assassin?"

"What?" Kai leans away from him.

"Unless the assassin is paid to cover their conscience or they don't have one, they will do the minimum amount of work on their part to get the job done. What is the sense of getting paid if they don't live long enough to spend the reward?"

He observes Kai. "The few assassins I have the privilege to interrogate were sloppy. They killed more than the intended target that is why they got caught. The number one rule of an assassin or the person hiring the assassin is to eliminate all witnesses. Another assassin is hired to kill the first assassin."

"Why should I believe you?"

He scans the crowd. "Because the one who was supposed to kill the person with the wayward arrow is here."

"How do you know and who?" Kai asks as his eyes sweep the crowded room.

"Who can be narrowed down to a few individuals? I heard a bowstring being pulled tight. When I gave up the sword, I heard the metal tip of the arrow scrape across the stone. So who is, who would have access to a crossbow? Where would the person be that would appear to be a normal position for that person? Who else was with them? Who pushed the bow down to cause the arrow to scrape the stone? Who told the assassin not to fire the arrow and why would they be next to the assassin?"

"To eliminate the assassin," Kai replies with a gasp.

"You're catching on and it allows all to see the hero throws the assassin's body off the wall."

Kai continues to scan the room. "You think the second person is in here?"

"I don't know. If they died in the incident with the others than he was sloppy, but I do not believe this is the case. Who has the authority to be on the walls?"

"A member of the staff?"

"Unless it is part of their function to be there, it is too noticeable."

"A guest?"

"Again, it would be noticed almost immediately."

Kai holds his hands up, "That leaves the guards. All of them are authorized to be on the wall, so which one would it be?"

"We know the exact location of four of them. The Captain and a private were near me. You said Otto and the rider came to the King. The Captain, Otto, and the rider died. Sergeant Njord died with the Captain as did Otto and sixty five others."

"The lieutenant said it sounded like someone had unlocked the barrack doors, but they did not find anyone on the outside. Could that person have slipped among the guards to hide?" Kai asks looking towards the Queen.

With a slight hint of a smile he asks, "Do you think your beloved Queen knows who that person is?"

Kai snaps his head back to him, "You're not accusing her are you?"

He looks across the room and up at her, "Am I accusing you?" With a stone face, she shakes her fist at him and motions for him to come towards her. With a nod, he moves into the crowd.

He eases his way through the crowd towards the stairs. Queen Iduna stands in her regal pose as she watches him. Halfway across the floor, he has a change of heart and an increase level of disgust. A rude guest does not move to let him pass and he expresses himself loudly, "Make room or I will physically move you?"

A guest with his back to him replies to another guest, "See, the servants here are just as rude. He needs to be reminded who he serves."

"It's not you." He presses his thumb into the fleshy part behind the guest's ear and above the jaw bone. The guest quickly moves out of the way. He proceeds to the stairs as the other guest makes room for him to pass. Queen Iduna flashes a glimmer of a smile at him. Slowly he marches up the stairs and stops on the fourth step from the top.

With his hands to his side, he bows to her, "Majesty, you requested my presence."

Iduna moves to stand on the top step, resting her hand on the rail and asks, "Where were you the last hour?"

He stands and his eyes are level with her eyes. He steps down one step to show all who look that he knows his position in this life. He shows her respect and answers, "Officially, after feeding the horses, one horse is sick and will need to stay in his stall for the next few days. Taking this horse out of service will not diminish the guard's capacity to ride if needed."

Watching the guest below her, she asks, "Unofficially?"

"I talked to everyone and watched."

"What information did you retrieve?" He does not answer. After a moment she glances at him, "Did you hear my question?"

"You are not my Queen." Her eyes barely move with any automatic response of widening her eyes. The fleeting moment of her expression says she was not anticipating his response, but she maintains her posture. "I apologize, but the statement stands. I will walk away and you can deal with the dark forces whom still wish to remove your family from the throne."

She nods to someone in the crowd, "Are you threatening me?"

"No, Majesty, I have no desire for harm to come to you or your husband. I am not one of your subjects. I had my fill of betrayal from those in charge. This is how it usually starts. One will bid for my services and shortly they use my abilities to eliminate their enemies."

"If you knew they were using you, why did you stay?"

"Because they had what I needed at the time."

Her head slowly sweeps towards him. "And what does Arendell have that you need?"

With a deep breath, he glances at the crowd, "A way home to my family."

She taps the railing with her fingernails. The tapping draws his attention to her neutral colored nails. "I am sorry for your family. You must understand. Agnarr has to deal delicately with the other heads of states, while I deal with everything else." She momentarily glances back down the hall. "Let me rephrase the question. Did you discover any information that could be useful to you or to myself?"

His head drops for a long moment. "The pervert did get aboard the British ship. The Captain appeared nervous once the pervert came on deck, but became noticeably more nervous when a slightly young gentleman came on deck. I got the impression the gentleman may be a member of the royal family or a delegate. He commanded the pervert to go below the decks."

"That maybe, so since the British delegate has not arrived yet. Any other useful information?"

"The three men who attacked the princess's servant are Weselton men, but a merchant said he noticed a fourth man watching the exchange very intently."

"A fourth person, the leader?"

"Possibly or he may have been watching for the response to plan the next attack."

She shifts her weight taking a step to her right. He follows her gaze into the crowd. She stares at the group with the Duke from Weselton. When the Duke moves to one side or the other Iduna would also move slightly in either direction. When he walked up the stairs, he noticed at specific points on the stairs, he heard distinctive voices as though he was standing next to them. He continues to watch her movement and tries to determine where she is listening. Her focus is on the Duke. She glances at him and shifts again. The Duke moves to another group.

She slightly shakes her head and ask, "What?"

He steps up to her head level and listens. With a half-smile he answers, "When you are in the proper position, can they hear you?"

"What?"

"I thought you were nervous, but you were listening. Can they hear you?"

"You are very good at observing. Did you hear me when you were talking to Kai?" Now she observes his response.

He shakes his head, "I can recognize your voice. I did not hear it. How long have you known you can hear them?"

"Shortly, after I arrived here, his mother told me I could listen depending on where they were standing. With the staff's assistance I mapped out where I needed to be standing to hear them," she replies with a smile.

He scans the crowd. "In another time you would make a very good spy or assassin." He focuses on the Duke and asks, "Did you gather useful information about the Duke?"

"What do you hear?"

He glances at her and grins. "You're very good. It seems the Duke is impatiently waiting for the British delegate. Is the Princess not the delegate?"

"Your answer has just arrived." A commotion by the foyer draws the crowd's attention and the Duke scurries to the entrance way.

He watches the British delegate enter the lower hall. The Viscount adjusts his gold trimmed black coat. The dark blue sash draped across his left shoulder reveals the numerous decorative metals. White gloves, white pants, white stockings and black shoes distinguish him to be of the royalty class. The shorter Duke of Weselton hounds the Viscount like an excited dog waiting to be fed.

He spots the pervert and clinches his teeth together.

Iduna interrupts his thoughts for action. "Stop, please come up here and stand a meter to my right. If I move you will maintain the same distance between us."

He nods and walks past her. As he stands to her right, he clasps his hands behind his back.

After a few seconds of silence, she comments, "You stand as a soldier and not the stable boy, which are you?"

"Neither and both, I will be what I need to be to get the job done."

"You are a spy?"

He turns his head towards her with a raised left brow and replies, "As are you."

"Take one step to the right."

He shifts his weight to the right and clearly hears the British delegate and the Duke exchanging pleasantries. "You do not deny you are a spy?"

"As you said I will do what is necessary to protect my family."

"Does your King know what you do?"

"He has more than enough to worry about with them," she sweeps her hand across the crowd, "than the concerns with the castle. He is the Admiral and I am his Captain."

He glances to see a slight smile. "You are a good woman to support him. You have no desire to make different decisions?"

"And have to deal with those pompous people, I hear too much yelling coming from the council room. I would have fired all of them and no doubt they would have overthrown me. He is the diplomat. I work behind the scenes."

He grins. "Does he know you are a target?"

"A target for who?" she glances back at him, but does not turn away.

"The one who tried to kidnap you a year and a half ago. The one who bribed the guards to leave the royal coach unguarded in the bend of a road that allowed the wolves to attack."

She interrupts, "Well, it was a good thing you were there."

"The guard who came back early to announce you could be dead. They were surprised when you stepped out of the coach." He turns his head towards her. "You will have to take my word on this one. I heard a crossbow string being drawn back, then the tip of the arrow scrapes the stone and a few seconds later the same crossbow misfires. Otto suggested I join the guards for a short time. They tested to see which side I would be on and when I did not cooperate, they needed to remove the unknown variable from the scene to push their plans forward. Again, they were surprised to see their comrades tied to the table the next morning. You interrupted their plans the following morning. They were to catch me in the Captain's office and claim I killed him. They did not count on me to think ahead of them. If I had not you would not be standing there."

"And I am grateful you saved us, but."

He interrupts, "But what evidence do I have on the perpetrator?" She nods once. "You know who was on the wall when I returned the sword to the King?" She nods again. "Who?"

She scans the delegates below and replies, "It would not be proper for the Queen to accuse anyone without hard evidence, but I will say the person on the wall is in this room and you were standing next to him when you entered the room."

He searches the room and recalls, who was standing where, when he entered, then his eyes lock onto the sergeant standing near the King.

She taps the rail with her fingernails. "If you find evidence as to the person targeting me, I am sure my King will listen, but he will give you only one opportunity to present your evidence. Be careful you do not scare off the prey." A commotion by the main doors draw their attention. The rest of the British delegates arrive. "You saw Viscount Henry Thompson enter earlier. That is Baron Miles Irvin."

"Henry's Cousin," a soft German voice speaks from behind them. Princess Victoria steps between him and Queen Iduna. "Miles' brother, Baronet Jonas Irvin is the voicetrous one wearing the red coat. Ask him anything and he will tell you everything." Iduna and Victoria politely kiss the other's cheek.

The hand rail creaks as his hands tightly clench the rail. His lips parted and emits a very low growl as the pervert steps out from behind Jonas.

Iduna warns him, "Control yourself. Do nothing that could harm my King's reputation."

"That I promise," he continues to stare, "but I made a promise to him also."

"What did you promise," asks a soft voice. To his right the younger Princess Victoria stares up at him.

His anger diminishes and he kneels then bows to her. "Majesty."

"Oh, I am not the Queen. I have two uncles in line before me and if they have children they will be crowned before I will."

With a smile he comments, "Only at the present time is your statement correct. I predict you will become Queen of England. You will foster technology that allows England to be the super power of this century. You will be the country's longest reigning monarch in English history, but a distant relative, many years from now, will surpass your reign. You will create a vast empire and those will say the sun never sets on the British Empire."

"I do not know about all you are saying, but one day she will be Queen." Princess Victoria comments and stand next to her daughter.

A very warm, almost hot hand touches the back of his neck. "It is time for you to complete your task." She whispers in his ear, "Do not embarrass the King."

He bows his head once. "That I promise." He stands and faces the open room. "Princess, who is the short, fat creature clinging to Baronet Irvin?"

Princess Victoria searches the crowd then turns her back to the rail as she looks at him with the expression of eating sour fruit. "You had an encounter with him?"

His eyes focus on the pervert as he answers. "Three smaller friends of mine did. I made my presence known with a rock on his bandaged hand."

"That was you?" She snickers, then regains control. "I am sorry for your friends. He is the son of Jonas Irvin. If you will excuse me, Majesty, suddenly I am not feeling well." The Princess takes her daughters hand and departs.

"I will escort you to your room." Iduna comments and touches his hand. "You made me a promise. Do not disappoint me."

He waits until Iduna and Victoria move around the hall corner. "That I will do my Queen, but I need to impress my promise to the pervert." He descends the stairs with his eyes fixated on Jonas's son.

Halfway down the stairs the pervert sees him. He crosses his arms and lifts his chin towards him as though he was daring him to make a commotion.

At the bottom of the stairs the guest makes room for him to pass. He continues to stare at his target and slowly moves towards him.

The pervert glances around. He places his hands behind his back as he begins to rock back and forth. He takes a step towards his father.

Sam continues towards the pervert. Even the crowd changes its demeanor from the roars of laughter to murmurs and pointing at who they think Sam is targeting. The noise dies down in the hall. No matter where the pervert moves Sam continues to close the distance.

The pervert bolts towards his father, interrupting his conversation.

Sam stops a meter from him.

Jonas asks, raising his voice, "Son, what are you doing? Do you not see I am in the middle of negotiations?"

His son points behind him as he turns his face down. Jonas looks up. "Dear Sir, I take offense of you scaring my son. What do you want?"

Sam grins, "Is it a common practice that British men take boys as their wives?" The voices in the hall stop. The only noise comes from the meeting room down the short hall. Everyone stares at the confrontation.

Jonas places his hands on his waist and faces him. "Do you know who I am peasant?" The pervert laughs, but no one else does.

Sam leans towards him, "You bought your title Baronet."

Jonas takes a step closer to him and reaches for his gloves. "How dare you speak to me like that," he snaps at him as he shows his teeth. A second later Jonas's white glove slaps across his face. Sam does not move nor flinch. Jonas removes a dagger from his belt.

"What is going on here," commands Baron Miles as he grabs his brother's hand with the dagger.

"This peasant has forgotten his place and is scaring my son." Jonas snatches his arm from his brother. "I was going to teach him to get back to his stable by draining the arrogance from his belly."

Miles grabs his brother's arm and grits his teeth, "We did not come here to start a war." He glances towards Jonas's son. "I told you to stay on the ship." He glares at Jonas. "You take him back to the ship. If he gets off again, I will hold you personally responsible for his actions."

"Why don't you hold him responsible for his son's actions now?" Sam asks as he clenches his hands.

Jonas starts to comment, but Miles barely shakes his head as he mouths the word 'no'. Jonas scowls at his son. The actions of the brothers give Sam the impression they had that conversation before.

"Never mind you, the situation is under control," Miles replies. He pushes Jonas and the son towards the door hurriedly as the guest make a path for them.

"Baron, since your brother is not able to answer the question, maybe you can." The Baron continues to push his brother towards the door. "Is it a common practice of British men to take young boys as their wives?"

The three stop. The Baron reaches for a sword that is not strapped to his waist. He turns around and replies, "That is a very serious accusation to be made from such a person as you."

"What type of person do you think I am to make the accusation?" Sam asks with a hint of a grin.

The Baron stares at him for a moment. "Obviously, a fool who does not know who I am."

"And I can say the same thing to you, so we do not know who the other is, but you have not answered my first question. You appear to be smarter than your brother, so why do you allow that pervert on to your ship?"

The Baron slowly walks towards him as he pulls his gloves out from under his belt. "Out of respect for our host, I will let you off with a warning. You will show respect to a British officer."

"Slap me with those gloves and I will make you eat them." Several guests murmur their disapproval of his comments, but he doesn't care if he offends all of them. If one stands up for the innocent the cycle of hate can be broken one person at a time. They know what the son has been doing. In his mind they are just as guilty.

As the Baron gets close he whips the gloves towards his face, then groans loudly as the gloves fly to the floor behind him. The Baron's face distorts as Sam bends his wrist in an awkward position. Jonas runs to his brother with the dagger in his hand.

"STOP," commands the Viscount. Jonas hesitates, but puts away the dagger. The Viscount strolls across the floor with the King.

King Agnarr's forehead wrinkles and his brows push together as he gives Sam a disapproving expression, "Samuel, what are you doing here?"

"These two are covering for the criminal."

"What is the crime?" asks the Viscount.

"Since these two cannot answer the question maybe you can answer it. Is it a common practice of British men to use young boys as a wife?"

More guest murmur and point at him.

Without hesitation the Viscount answers, "No, it is not. If we were in England, you would have to produce witnesses of the crime."

"If I was in England only one of nobility could charge another noble of such a crime. I would be challenged to withdraw the accusation and pay retribution to the offended."

The Viscount turns to Agnarr, "Your Majesty, I did not know your educational system taught English law to the commoners. It is an intriguing idea, but you must also emphasize that all have their places in society. If they forget, society has the tendency to collapse."

For a moment the King glances between the combatants, but stares at Sam as he answers. "When those in authority treats those in their care with no respect, what reason do they have to follow or respect their master. It seems the English would know this by their actions with their colony in America. Samuel maybe just a stable boy to you, he does not make accusations without cause." He turns to Sam, "Tend to your duties." He turns to the Baronet. "You have dishonored me and my guest by showing your dagger twice. Return to your ship and do not step ashore again."

Sam bows to the King and moves towards the door. He stops next to the grinning pervert. "There is a lot of real estate between here and your ship. Careful you don't fall into a hole." The grin fades from the pervert's face as he steps away.

Sam walks out the doors and down the steps. Lieutenant Larsen meets him at the bottom of the steps. "You're not leaving are you?"

With a smile he replies, "I have overextended my welcome."

"Was the message sent?"

He keeps walking and looks over his shoulder, "What do you think?"

As he walks across the courtyard a small figure waves at him through the upper floor window. He stops for a moment and waves back. He turns to her. With his feet together and his hands pinned to his side, he bows to her. Another figure stands next to the smaller figure. His senses tell him the taller is the Queen.

"I will have completed my task by morning." He bows again to rise to an empty window.

 **End of Chapter**


	15. Chapter 14 Presenting Princess Elsa

**Title: Chapter 14 Presenting Princess Elsa**

 **Date: 24 years 6 months before Correction**

Sam completes his task of tucking the horses in for the evening and begins to wash up. Several horses turn their heads towards the side room. He scans the room and does not sense anyone, but outside of the door, he detects an energy he has not felt since arriving in this timeline. The door slowly opens and the intruder enters.

He continues to pour water into a smaller bucket. A loose floorboard creaks in the side room. He smiles to himself as all seems to step on that loose board, but this person portrays a disturbing trait. As he continues his duties, His mind watches the intruder. Purposefully turning his back to the intruder, his eyes close for a moment and opens. The bucket water reflects two emerald green orbs. He sees only the intruder. Everyone outside the stable is either at the trade gala or they are walking around in pairs as in the normal patterns of the guards.

The intruder carries several small hand blades in his clothing and a knife in each boot. The oddity about the intruder stirs his senses that he has not felt in more than a year. The last time his body tensed for an aggressive act, he found the two Sariphan bodies in their ship. The energy is too low to be a full blooded Sariphan. Could this be an offspring of one of those who escaped from the ship? His training takes over as he breathes methodically preparing for an attack.

He moves to the closest stall and picks up a brush. With each movement of his body, he brushes the horse to keeps his back to the room. The ghost stands in the doorway. It moves slightly as though to look around the corner. For several minutes the ghost does not move. He continues to brush the horse. The brush rattles on the floor. The ghost makes a sudden move back into the room. He glances at the door way and the tip of a boot peeks past the corner post. He stands and brushes the horse slower than before.

"How long are you going to hide there?"

He receives no answer.

"I know you are there. If I walk over there you will bleed. Since I'm not a doctor, it would take some time for the doctor to get here, even if he is in his home."

There is no movement.

"You must be like me. When was the last time you killed anyone?"

With the brush in his hand, he steps to the rail. "Okay, suit yourself. When I throw this nail, will you get out of the way or will you take a chance I will miss? Either way you will die. Mr. British Nanny."

The boot moves back. Princess Victoria's servant steps into the stable area. "I'm not a nanny."

Sam notes where the nanny's hands are positioned in relation to the hidden blades. "Unless you have another name, nanny you will be."

"I'm Captain Bond in his majesties secret service."

"Captain Bond, secret service, aren't you a hundred years ahead of your time?" He nods to him. He didn't think he would get the time reference. Obviously, Bond has been trained to control his expressions. Others would have missed the slight signs, but if both were trained with similar skill sets, Bond will be studying him as well. Bond's eyes do not twitch, nor does his pupils change.

W _hat are you doing here, Mister Bond? You are clearly out of your timeline._

"It's an inside joke. It would take too long to explain."

The Captain returns the nod. "When did you know I was there?"

He observes how Bond responds to the truth. "I have the ability to detect pressure waves like a door opening and closing. The moment you stepped on the loose floorboard it verified an intruder. A nice alarm wouldn't you say?"

"Indeed it is. How did you know it was me?" The Captain asks as he walks to the stall.

"Your boots are the same type a vendor is selling out there. Only the few rich people in Arendelle could afford those shoes."

Bond shrugs his shoulder, "I tried." He leans against the stall and rest his arm on the top rail.

He stares at him for a moment. "Who were you trying to contact?"

"I wasn't trying to contact anyone."

"Yet your actions say differently. If you weren't trying to contact anyone, why are you here?" He turns his back to him and continues to brush the horse. "I have been observing you. For someone who wishes to blend into the environment to make such a stupid mistake is either pretending or trying to contact someone."

"What if I was contacting someone?"

"You have made another mistake to look for them in here." He shifts the brush in his hand.

"Unless I achieved my goal. You said we were the same. What did you mean by that?"

"As a secret agent you perform a task assigned to you in the name of your King. I do what I'm told by Ingrid and Charles."

"Not your King or Queen, so you are paid to be here?"

The corners of his lips turn up slightly. "You are correct. My payment is being allowed to work with the horses."

"That's a half truth."

He stops brushing, "Really, and how would you know?"

"You were working for Queen Iduna before you started working with the horse."

He turns his head towards him. Bond stands with just his hands on the rail. "Your King has spies in Arendelle. What is so important about this hamlet that the King of England needs to send spies?"

"A representative of the King was to meet with Queen Iduna, but the kidnappers arrive several hours early. A tall stranger from the mountain intervene. Unfortunately, the representative was killed by an unknown weapon, along with three of the six kidnappers. A second representative reported a thumb size hole all the way through their bodies, but no weapons were discovered that could have done the damage."

Bond shifts his weight closer to the rail. "Six months later, a report indicated there was to be a revolt from the castle guards. Again a tall stranger from the mountain rode into the courtyard and stepped out of the royal coach after the Queen's dress had been visibly torn. The stranger did an extraordinary thing. He took the sword from the King then returned it to him. The next day the revolt began, but within thirty minutes only the stranger stood over the crushed revolt. When I read the report I thought someone had been drinking too much. Since Princess Victoria was traveling here for the trade negotiations with Viscount Thompson, my King assigned me to protect the Princess."

He grabs another brush and combs the horse's mane. "And observe the stranger to determine if the report is true."

"Yes."

"You didn't think anyone from the British delegates would recognize you?"

"Why should they? As far as they were concerned, I am the nanny," Bond shifts his weight again. "We have similar manners. What better way to observe a target than to hide in plain sight?"

"What else did you learn about the stranger?" He glances over his shoulder.

"Throwing a rock from the gates to a specific individual well past the bridge is impossible for an ordinary person. And yet you did it three times. The last one came very close to hitting me."

"I meant it to be close."

"Why?"

"You were holding back. You kept the three within your peripheral sight. You didn't waste any moves. At one point it appeared you were talking to them. The rock was to get your attention."

"Then you are the stranger and the reports are true."

"So what if I am?" His head rotates towards Bond as he searches for signs of weakness.

"The King's secret service could use a person like you. You would get paid well."

"And it starts," he continues to brush the horse.

"What starts?"

"It starts the same way. They find out I have gifts. They paid me well initially, then the tasks became higher risk. They say they will take care of my family should I get captured. Eventually they turn against me." He waves him away. "The King of Arendelle and I have a mutual agreement. He can tell me to leave at any time or I can leave at any time. No questions asked."

"So why do you stay?"

"I made a promise to a certain little girl I would watch over her." He stops and looks over his shoulder. "Do you know the son of Jonas?"

"I heard rumors about him. On the voyage most of the crew stayed away from him and spoke of vial evil against him. I caught him observing the little Princess too long. I explained the dire consequences of his actions."

"He likes children in general and not in a nice way. Does your King know what he does to little boys?" He moves around the horse and continues brushing. After a minute of silence, he comments, "I will take the silence as a yes."

"Before you ask, only certain individuals, like him, confess to injuring boys. No British gentlemen would use a boy as his wife. Politics for a monarch can be very delicate. They have to choose those allies who help to sustain their power, so if they look the other way."

"If the pervert falls overboard on the voyage home?"

"The family would be sad, but inwardly, many would be much appreciative."

"Then let me speak to him."

Bond slowly turns his head towards the side door. "I think he is on the move. He drank heavily this evening."

Sam places the brush on the corner post and rushes to the door. He opens the door and Bond grabs his arm. Another moment of familiarity strikes into Sam's mind.

"Stay focus. Your mission is here. He will be gone soon. My King will receive a report on his actions. The Viscount and the Baron will probably keep their title, but his brother and the son will not."

He grabs Bond's hand and looks past the surface of his eyes as another instance of familiarity strikes his mind like a bolt of lightning. The flash lingers for a few seconds, "You don't let a diseased animal get into your flock. You kill it. What do you know about my mission?"

Bond searches the courtyard. "Since I was young and others like me, we were taught that one day an individual would arrive to set our future onto the correct time line. I thought it was a legend. You are either the descendent of the legend or the one we have been waiting. I can feel the energy surging through you. Don't let one little human sidetrack you from your mission."

He draws his brows together and searches Bond for deceit. "You say there are others, females?" Bond nods. "Did one have the name, Krystal?"

"Not the ones I knew, but there are others scattered across the southern continent and here."

"Here?" _How many others were on the Sariphan's ship?_

Bond slaps him on the back of his head. "We have a genetic marker that identifies who we are. How many blonde hair individuals have you seen in Arendelle?"

"I have seen only one or two and they were further north of here." He searches towards the north then the east for a moment. He looks back at him. "I should be able to detect them."

"As you knew who I was?"

"You make it sound as though there were many Sariphans. I recall only eight chambers and two were occupied.

Bond starts to speak, then stops. He grabs Sam's shoulder. "You have seen it?" Bond nods with a smile. "Please tell me you have seen the ship they came in?"

He glances away. "I did find their ship."

Bonds smile widens, "Then we can go home. You could take us home." His smile starts to fade, "Can't you?"

He steps through the door observing several stars twinkle in the early twilight. "No, the ship may fly once it has been dug out of the ground. It may have enough fuel to reach Sariphan, but you will still be in this time line. The Temporal device was heavily damaged. Anything close to replacement parts will not be available for almost two hundred years."

Bond steps out and closes the door. He shakes his head. "Then we will wait, as my parents and grandparents waited."

"Are your grandparents alive?"

"These are not safe times. They tried to stay to themselves. They refused to align themselves with anyone and it cost them their lives, but you already know that." He looks towards the sea and places his hand over his face. "My father was told to run and keep searching for the one. He told me, both of my grandparents fought bravely and with honor, but there were too many of them. The Lord of the land was marching his troops to meet with the King. He could have bypassed them, but wanted to add two more soldiers." He turns back to Sam. "Father said the Lord lost more than half of his troops, killed or injured, which the King was depending. The Lord lost his title and lands."

"What was the Lord's name?"

Bond smiles, "Irvin."

With raised brows he asks, "The Irvin brothers and his pervert?" Bond nods. "Do they know who you are?"

"No, I was encouraged to change my name."

"Bond is a good name. You are setting a legacy for your descendants.

"I have no wife and I suspect for the same reason you do not."

His stare falls to the ground. "It was a long time ago, but my past took her."

"Reason enough for me not to marry. I don't—"

Sam interrupts, "No, not reason enough, one day you will not be able to do what you're doing now. You need someone with you to watch the sunsets." He observes the castle. "You need someone to tuck into bed. You need to run into her bedroom. Hold her when the lightning scares them and sleep in their bed with your feet hanging over the end with most of your body uncovered. You need to see and feel and know your presence comforts her as she sleeps against your chest."

Bonds steps past him and searches the castle. He turns back to him. "Your own words convict you." He points to the castle, "They are your mission. This is our time. We may be able to influence the humans to be more receptive to others." He walks towards the gates and speaks over his shoulder, "Who knows, the one who has captured your heart maybe the corner stone to your bridge."

Sam watches Captain Bond walk through the gates. He glances up at the castle. A tug on his heart draws his attention to the upper window. The shadow of a female holding a baby waves down at him. He waves up at them. "Are you the cornerstone to bridge our two worlds together?"

The following two days King Agnarr and Kai, with several escort guards, accompany the delegates to their ships except for the British and Weselton ships. The afternoon of the third day the people of Arendelle are allowed into the courtyard. Everyone brings a small food item and the castle sets out the leftovers of the trade dinners and a large meat item. King Agnarr has proclaimed a successful trade meeting that will be profitable to Arendelle and to introduce Princess Elsa to the kingdom.

A staffer enters the side room of the stables. "Samuel, are you in here? Queen Iduna requests your presence to walk with her. Samuel?"

From behind her a hand clamps over her mouth. She screams into his hand. She pulls away and turns around with her hand over her heart. "You scared the daylights out of me. Were you in that room?"

He replies with a big grin.

"I did not see you and there is no place to hide in that room."

"I was in the corner in plain sight, but I didn't want you to see me and you didn't."

She moves to the door and points her finger at him. "Queen Iduna wishes to see you."

"Tell her a need a few minutes to clean up."

With a wink the staffer departs.

Several minutes later, Sam exits the stables not smelling like the horses. The people eat and drink and speak of good fortunes Arendelle will have this year. He moves past the castle corner to the open courtyard. Queen Iduna stands at the top of the steps with the Princess in her arms.

She points her gloved finger at him and motions for him to come to her. As he moves across the courtyard, many wish to engage him in conversation. He stops long enough to politely decline. Each time he looks up, the Queen is watching him. He reaches the bottom of the steps and she is already halfway down the steps. He waits for her to reach the bottom and bows to her.

"Never mind that, hold her." She thrust the Princess into his arms and adjust her dress.

Princess Elsa puckers her bottom lip out and moisture swell in her blue eyes.

He cradles her in his arms, but the tear still swells into her eyes. He shifts to hand her back to her mother, but Queen Iduna moves a distance away to speak to several citizens. Tears stream down the Princess' cheeks and a low rumble builds. He cuddles her forehead against his neck and cups the back of her head.

He whispers, "I know you are afraid. Allow me to ease your fears." He slowly closes his eyes. Just before they close completely, he shifts his energy to cover her. She grabs his collar and pulls. He whispers a chant from long ago and stands motionless. The Princess takes a deep breath and exhales across his neck. Her tear touches his skin and a surge of energy leaves his body. He opens his eyes.

A grinning Queen Iduna raises her right brow. "I was beginning to wonder if you fell asleep."

He begins to shift the Princess.

"No, it is her nap time and she looks comfortable." She walks towards a group of citizens. "Walk with me Samuel."

He follows on her right side. Many look, but no one gets to within his arm length. After talking to most of the people in the courtyard, Iduna returns to her waiting husband at the steps. She takes Princess Elsa. He bows to them.

She says, "Thank you for protecting us. You may return to your duties."

He rises. As he turns a smile bubbles and a set of blue eyes blink at him.

The King and Queen sit in the two chairs at the top of the steps. The people line up with their gifts for the little Princess. He passes near the food table and overhears two of the richest men in the area, "We keep these people employed. This is our gift. There will be an Arendelle for the Princess to rule someday."

The other comments, "If her family is not overthrown before then." They laugh.

Sam stops and glares at them.

The richest member comments in disdain, "Go about your business boy. I can buy you away from them and sell you on the open Market."

He glances back to see the Queen watching him.

"Oh, she will not save you. She will be too busy with other things. She will be glad to get rid of the monster."

The partner snickers. Sam snaps his head around to them. He blinks and his vision sees a blue tint around the men. He blinks again and sees a light emerald green. Blinking a third time, he sees the men surrounded in a dark green halo. His lips separate to emit the low growl of a wolf.

The two men put their plates on the table and hurriedly departs the courtyard. Sam glances back at the Queen. Even from the distance he sees her right brow rise as she slightly nods to him. He bows his head before returning to the stables.

After a couple of hours of work in the stables, Sam steps out for a breather. Most of the people have returned to their homes. The staff carries the remnants of the food into the castle. He peeks around the corner. Several representatives from the British and Weselton ships exit the castle main doors and gather near the two empty chairs.

Kai motions for him to come over.

He replies with the motions of his hands sweeping and walks back to the stable. With a broom in one hand and a bucket in the other hand to help the staff clean the courtyard, he steps out of the stables and meets Lieutenant Larsen with two of his guards.

Larsen shakes his head with a smile. "You're not going to need those at this moment. King Agnarr has commanded your presence, right now."

He puts down the broom and bucket inside the doorway. "Why does he wish to see me?"

"I don't know. He said if we came back without you, we can look for another job." Larsen shrugs his shoulder. "I like my job and hope to make Captain someday, so let's get this over with and you can find out what he wants." He steps to the side and points towards the courtyard.

Sam steps away from Larsen. "He could have asked."

"The King asks the Queen. He commands everyone else. We are the motivation for you to comply with his command."

"If I run?"

"And no one will stop you. Just make sure that is what you wish."

With the two guards behind them, they walk around the castle corner. A couple dozen of the town people watch him. King Agnarr sits in the large chair. Queen Iduna sits next to him and holds the Princess. Princess Elsa draws his attention, not just for her blue dress with the Arendelle flower emblems around her collar and sleeves, but for a miniscule moment he sees a blue energy mist surrounding her exposed face and arms. He staggers his steps.

Captain Bond grabs his arm. "Don't fall apart now. You will embarrass your King and Queen in front of their guests. She is just a little girl who will need someone to teach her who she will become."

Sam stops as his muscles tenses. He searches the town's people, all of whom he has helped and considers them as his friends. He notes the rich snooty members are not here. Several wave to him. The current Duke of Weselton and his aid along with Princess Victoria and her daughter, stand to either side of the King and Queen of Arendelle.

"Need I remind you, you also represent us? You are the Admiral." Captain Bond moves to the bottom of the steps near his two princesses.

Larsen nudges him to move and they continue. The guards stop short of the steps. Sam slowly moves up. He nods to the Duke, who replies with a nod back to him. His eyes dart to the Weselton officer. "Did you have a nice swim the other day? I told you the wharf can become slippery at times."

The officer glares at him.

Princess Elsa giggles.

"You have to laugh at life. Even the little Princess thought it was funny." Before the officer can respond, he turns to the British delegates.

He bows his head to them and speaks in Germanic. "Princess Victoria, do not give up on your dream. Continue on course, your daughter will influence the human history. Centuries from now, they will still discuss her great accomplishments."

He kneels in front of little Princess Victoria. "Princess, there will come a time when those who advise you will doubt your decisions. Before that time comes, find a friend who you can trust and you will test many to find that one true friend. Their guidance and recommendations will be pure and close to your heart. They will help you to stand against the doubters." He bows his head then stands.

He steps to the side and stands in front of Arendelle's monarch. He bows from the waist and holds the bow.

Agnarr stands at the top of the steps. "I have been told you have a gift for our Princess?"

He slowly rises and notes Iduna's smile. "There must be some mistake."

Princess Elsa squeals and fidgets. He can't help but to stare into her blue eyes. A small part of his energy moves towards the little Princess. A strong tug on his heart reminds him of his little girl, Saracat. A longing to hold and protect burns in his heart. The Princess squeals again breaking his thoughts. Queen Iduna smiles with a raised right brow. "As I was about to say, I have no gift worthy of the Princess."

Agnarr turns to Iduna, "My dear, he has no gift. Were you mistaken?"

With raised brows, she turns her head slightly towards him as she stands next to Agnarr. "Samuel, are you calling me a liar?"

"So the reason for your smile."

"What was that?" Agnarr asks.

He bows to Agnarr, "Meaning no disrespect your Majesty, I have obviously misunderstood. I do not have a gift to hand to the Princess."

"Oh."

He rises up, "But I do have a gift that she may use at a later date." He falls to his knees and bows to Queen Iduna then he looks up.

She grins at him.

He whispers, "You cheat, but I will honor what you have asked." In a loud voice for all to hear he speaks. "I make this vow to Princess Elsa and to her mother, Queen Iduna and to her father King Agnarr. I will do all that is necessary to protect Princes Elsa even unto death. As long as I live I will protect Princess Elsa until as such time as the current rulers give back my honor and relieve me of my vow."

"Now was that so hard?" Iduna asks as she steps down to him. She kisses his forehead as she pushes Princess Elsa into his arms.

He wraps his arm around the little Princess. His energy envelops the Princess' energy as one. He looks into the Queen's eyes and sees a twinkle he last saw in a friend's eye many years ago.

She states, "May the bridge to our lands start here."

He stares at the Queen until a small giggle draws his attention. He lifts the Princess up and for a second the Princess stares at him with her blue eyes before she closes them.

He smiles as he hands the Princess to her mother.

"Why are you smiling?" Iduna takes her daughter.

"I see you have found her gift to you." He laughs.

King Agnarr stands in front of him. "I have my reservations about you." He glances over his shoulder and watches his Queen and Princess move out of hearing range. "You killed so easily. You defend four innocent boys. You even came close to starting a war with two of our trading partners. Why should I believe the words you have spoken to my daughter?"

"Why did the Queen manipulate me into making the vow to your daughter? That evening I saved your wife from sure death, I could have run you through with your own sword. I would be King instead of you. When I heard the cross bow being drawn back, my first instinct, I was the target, then I thought it was you. Later I determined your Queen was the target. I've had my fill of the back stabbing and treachery. If I can break the cycle of violence one person at a time, maybe what your wife said about a bridge will save millions from certain death." He takes a step closer. "I've made my vow to Princess Elsa. I will protect her from those who wish to exploit her for what she will become. I will protect her from all."

"Are you threatening me?" Agnarr asks as he places his hands on his waist.

"You could have stopped me from making the vow. If I am a threat to you, you have the authority to return my honor and from afar I will wait."

"Wait for what?"

"Until as such time that I'm able to return to my family."

Iduna walks up behind her King and takes his arm, "Do you see now?" she asks her King. "You said it yourself. You wished you had someone you could trust to tell you the truth. Did he not say what I told you? He has no allegiance to anyone. What better person to protect our little girl? Even Elsa gave her approval of him."

He backs down the steps and shakes his head. "This was a test for me?"

Agnarr grins and steps towards him. "I know we did not start on the proper footing, but when Iduna stands her ground on a particular issue," he shrugs, "well, I cannot think of a time in which she was wrong and she definitely stood her ground with you. Those boys in the castle cell. What should I do with them?"

He leans close to Agnarr and points to Iduna, "Does she always cheat to get her way?"

Agnarr glances back at his smiling wife. "At first it was a little unnerving. She has her way of getting me to understand her point of view and I would not have it any other way, so she is my Queen and as such, she does not have to play fair."

He closes his eyes for a moment. "Sadly to say I know exactly what you mean. Let the boys work with me in the stable until I can find a good home for them. They can stay in the stable master's small house for the time being."

"Good decision," then he chuckles. "Iduna said you would take care of them." Agnarr walks up the steps and escorts his wife into the castle.

"Well, what do you know? You discover you're not alone and found a friend who helped you to refocus on your mission. You vowed your life to an infant. You took responsibility for four boys. You threatened the King and whose wife orchestrated all of this to prove your loyalty to them." Bond slaps his back. "May I be as lucky to find friends, who care for me?"

"But I can't give up hope," he sweeps his hand across the sky, "my family is out there."

 **End of Chapter**


	16. Chapter 15 Princess Gives Focus

**Title: Chapter 15: The Princess Gives Sam Focus**

 **Date: 24 years 5 months before Correction**

Sam places the stable tools and equipment in their proper place. A sick horse has delayed his departure. He wanted to stop by the fisherman's house before dark, but tonight he will have to watch for the wolves on his way home. With everything in its place he bids the horses a good night and steps out the gate. The northern breeze stimulates his senses. He inhales the cool air. The fringes of the northern lights wave to him. With a slight grin he inhales deeply. Nature calls to him as does a wolf's howl. He moves towards the main gates. His attention drops closer to the ground and he spots Queen Iduna walking towards the gates. He slows his pace to allow her to pass in front of him. Lately she walks the courtyard at twilight but most of the time he is already past the gates. He falls in line behind her several paces back. She does not appear to have seen him, but shifts her weight awkwardly and a small head appears above her right shoulder.

Princess Elsa opens her blue eyes. Even from his distance her muffled laughter reaches his ears followed by a scream that echoes in the courtyard. She tries to push herself up, but her head falls back onto her mother's shoulder. She repeats the laughter and scream. She suddenly moves to the side. Iduna drops to one knee clutching her tight.

He darts forward to catch them.

Iduna holds her close. "Elsa, what is wrong?"

With his hands out, he stops a meter behind them. Elsa locks her eyes on him and laughs.

Iduna looks over her shoulder and back at Elsa. "Are you staring at him?" She responds with another laugh and tries to push away again.

He steps closer and assist the Queen to her feet. She whispers in Elsa's ear. "You know he is trouble." Elsa blows bubbles and spits with another laughter.

Iduna holds Elsa out and turns to him. "Quick, take her so I can get her drool off me."

Instinctually, he takes her in his arms and holds her up so she can see him. She grabs his shirt and palms his nose. She grabs his lip all the while laughing and blowing bubbles. He cannot stop the joy surging through his heart. To be needed again, to act silly, to get a laugh from his little princess, he urges for the joy to never end. The image flashes in his mind. His Princess, pushed him through the portal. He stops. She stares at him. Her blink reveals a sparkle in her eyes. "Well, Princess, what beautiful blue eyes you have."

He grins and tries to rein in his emotions from exploding over the two of them, but the Queen's expression tells him he failed.

"Why is this different from the last time you held her?"

He relents and smiles at Elsa's mother standing in her regal pose. "Did you find the drool?"

"I was mistaken." She watches him closely.

 _Did I reveal too much? She is seeing into my soul._ A cold spot grows larger on his chest. _Thank you Elsa._ He looks down, "I think I found it on my shirt."

Iduna removes the small blanket from her shoulder as she steps towards him. "Hold her out." He pulls the Princess free of his shirt ready to hand her back to her mother. She wraps Elsa in the blanket. "Hold her until I adjust the towel."

He watches her blue eyes follow him. "Why are you staring at me?"

Elsa grabs at air and replies, "Da-da."

His eyes widen for a second as a memory of his little girl saying the same thing. The memory passes. With a gentle smile he answers. "I'm not your DA-DA. He is the one with the gold pointy thing on his head."

"She is asking if you are a dad. Hold her out a little farther." Iduna slips the towel under his arm and drapes it over his shoulder.

"Oh, I was a father a long time ago." He stops as a pain tries to invade his joy.

Elsa sputters her responds with spit. "Da-da, da-da."

He shakes his head. "No sweetie, I'm not your da-da."

"You are a natural. I was wondering how you knew, Da-da. You look so cute talking to each other." She slaps his arm and walks towards the castle.

He breaks his stare from the blue eyes. "Wait, did you forget someone."

"No, you have her towel. Rest her head against your shoulder so she drools on it and not all over you." She keeps walking.

He lays Elsa against his chest and nudges her head onto his shoulder. "Wow, you have the absolute softest hair, I remember touching."

She coos and yawns at him. She grabs his shirt collar and pulls herself closer. With a deep breath, she exhales a noticeably cooler air against his neck and closes her eyes.

"Well, that is interesting."

"What is interesting?" Iduna asks still walking several paces ahead of him.

"I remember holding my little girl for the first time. I didn't want to let her go. When she turned sixteen I didn't want to let her go. It's interesting how life will give you a second chance." He places his hand on her back and holds her tight as he walks back to the castle. At the bottom of the steps he looks up. Queen Iduna is not in sight. "Majesty?" With no answer, he climbs the steps and peeks in the door. "Majesty, I need to leave before it gets too dark for me to see."

A tiny sneeze startles Elsa awake and she whimpers. He uses the end of the towel to wipe her nose. "You're ok. I've got you."

She curls up more and places her head against his neck.

Inside the door Iduna comments. "Did she sneeze? I think I heard her sneeze. Do not let my baby girl catch a cold. Bring her in here."

He steps into the foyer searching for the Queen. He moves towards the entrance hall and detects motion coming towards him.

"Why are you holding the Princess?"

From the stair Queen Iduna speaks, "Kai, do not wake her up. Samuel is bringing her to her room."

"What?"

Kai stops and points to the stairs, but King Agnarr comments as he walks around the corner. "You heard your Queen. Take Princess Elsa to her room."

He bows his head to the King. With slightly bent his knees to keep Elsa from bouncing, he walks across the entrance hall. He steadily walks up the stairs maintaining a gradual fluid motion. At the top of the stair a guard holding the hilt of his sword eyes him. He looks down at Elsa and back at the guard as he holds his finger to his lips. The guard watches him move pass. Around the corner another guard points to an open door. He steps into the royal suite.

Several new pieces of furniture with a baby bed mounted on a stand for easy rocking sits in one corner of the outer room. A large oblong porcelain bowl and two smaller bowls sit in the top of a wooden cabinet with two drawers. The wooden rocking chair compliments the other pieces of furniture.

He searches for the Queen then looks down at a wide opened set of blue eyes. "So is this where you sleep?"

She gurgles at him, then sneezes.

"You couldn't have done that looking the other way?" Elsa stares up at him and the slightest hint of a smile forms.

Behind him a damp cloth wipes the sneeze off his neck. He turns around. "I think I found your mother. You want to go to her now?" Elsa's eyes do not move. He glances at Iduna, "What is she looking at?"

Iduna moves to his side and she grins at him. "She is watching her finger pulsing on the vein in your neck."

The Queen moves into the next room. He lightly strokes Elsa's hair and blinks once as he cups her head. A blue tint illuminates the room. Elsa's blue eyes change to a deep blue.

She takes a deep breath and exhales a cold mist. A blue tint radiates from her body with tiny sparkling stars. The sparkles of light collect in her left arm and pulses. His energy in his neck pulsates at the same rate. He becomes entranced in her eyes. "Did you establish a link with me?"

"What did you say?" Iduna asks from the doorway.

His vision returns to normal and he slides his finger to her foot. Just a few seconds more, he would have determined if Elsa's heart was beating at the same rate or a harmonic as his heart. "One-tenth harmonic is near the upper range for you, sweetie. You probably should not do that until you get a little older."

"Do what?" Iduna asks, sitting in the chair next to the baby bed.

He leans down to the Queen to pass Elsa to her. "I think she was taking my pulse."

Iduna crosses her arms, "You are a very interesting creature, Samuel Ryan. You can put her in her bed."

He stares at her. _What are you up to?_

She smiles, then points to the crib.

 _Am I missing something?_

He places Elsa in her bed, but he obviously missed her signals. Her screams reveal she did not wish to lie down.

Iduna rocks in her chair. "Now you did it."

A guard appears in the doorway with his hand gripping the hilt of his sword.

"You better do something before the King comes up here and thinks you are hurting his child." Iduna chuckles.

He scoops Elsa out of her bed and rest her on his shoulder, but the crying does not stop. He motions to Iduna for help, but her smiles and arms crossed tell him, he is on his own.

 _Is this another test?_

She shrugs. "Elsa was not crying when I handed her to you. You need to get her to stop."

He shakes his head. "It's been too long since I've done anything like this."

Still with her arms crossed, she looks towards the door. "Sometimes she will go to sleep when I sing to her." She glances back at him. "Maybe you should try that."

"Why do I get this feeling the two of you are teaming up against me?" He receives a loud scream in his ear. "Ok, I'll try, but no audience."

After a few seconds the guard nods to his Queen and closes the door.

He wrinkles his forehead and whisper. "Ok, I know a chant that you may like. My adopted mother had a Sharman teach me this." He slowly shifts his weight from his left foot to his right in rhythm with the chant. He sings it the way the Sharman sang it to him except for the name.

What shall I sing to you, little Elsa,

Time to put you in the cradle board, little Elsa.  
Sleep to the sound of my lullaby.

The night is quiet, only stars are dancing in the sky.  
The moon will soon appear dancing in your eyes.  
Crickets are singing, my lullaby.

Sleep well, little Elsa,

Sleep well, little Elsa.

After the third time through the song, Elsa finally falls asleep. He starts to lay her in the crib when the Queen whispers. "That was a nice chant. I do not know what you said, but evidently she likes it. You are going to take a chance of waking her up again?"

He holds her over the bed and glances back, "What do you want me to do?"

She grins at him, "She likes you."

He glares at her, "You're just being mean." He lifts her back to his shoulder.

She shakes her head as she walks to the royal bedroom. "You have yet to see my mean-spirit. I have an idea as to what a valuable resource you are. I will be back."

He adjusts her blanket and drapes part of it over her head. A surge of emotions fight to be the first to the break through the surface, but one does break through. It commands the others to be silent. This little angel has captured his heart. He grins until his face hurts.

The chair rocks behind him. He turns and Iduna places a blanket over the chair. She sits then places another blanket over her. He moves to her. Narrowing her eyes at him she says, "Wake her up and you will see my mean-spirit."

"What?" Elsa moans but does not wake up.

"I told you she likes you and I hope I will get a good night's sleep. I know you have practiced staying up at night delivering gifts to others. Please just give me one good night."

"Ok, but you owe me." After a few minutes Iduna relaxes as she falls asleep. "Great, what am I to do now?"

He walks to the window and stares at the stars. Elsa moans and her blue eyes stare up at him.

"My apology Princess, I will calm myself." He glances over his shoulder. The Queen has not moved. "Let me see if I can sing it the way it is meant to be with a baritone.

" _Wise men say only fools rush in  
But I can't help falling in love with you  
Shall I stay  
Would it be a sin  
If I can't help falling in love with you_

 _Like a river flows surely to the sea  
Darling so it goes  
Some things are meant to be  
Take my hand, take my whole life too  
For I can't help falling in love with you"_

Elsa sighs and pulls on his shirt nuzzling against his neck. "I love you too, sweet pea."

A momentary green, then red, then green again twinkles along with the other stars. He whispers to it, "I see you. You are not a star. I know what you are. Did you think I would not sense you?"

Elsa twitches and tightens her grip on his shirt. He lightly touches her soft hair. His emotions of a family long past bring sorrow. Elsa twitches again and lets out of quiet moan. He lightly touches his cheek against her and covers her head with the blanket. He whispers, "I will protect you from the dragon. I pledge my life to keep you safe, no matter what. I love you my angel."

Behind him the Queen whispers, "I was beginning to have doubts, but now, I know I was right. You cannot leave us or her. You are a part of our family. Good night Admiral."

Whether she sees him or not, he nods his head and gives Elsa a hug. "You are correct, good night my Queen." The rocking chair squeaks and a few seconds later the door to the bedroom door closes. He closes his eyes for several seconds and opens them. Two green orbs reflect in the window.

Several hours later the tower clock begins to strike twelve. As the tower strikes number six, the latch on the hall door clicks. Sam closes his eyes and lowers Elsa where the intruder will see only the outline of his body. The tower strikes seven and the door begins to open. When the tower strike nine the hall door opens enough for a human body to pass through. At the stroke of twelve the door latch clicks close.

The popping of a human bone aligning itself sounds against the floor. Sticky tape being pulled off a hard surface sounds as a foot peels off the floor. Miniscule sounds, not heard by most sleeping people, but to an alert person trained to hear those sounds, are the sounds of hard sole boots stomping on a wooden floor.

The footsteps move very slowly towards him. Even the untrained would hear the person labor in his breathing. Two thirds of the way across the floor the distinct sound of metal sliding against metal causes Sam to open his eyes. For a half second the window reflects two dark green orbs that change.

He whispers, "You should have stretched before entering the room. Soft leather sole on a flexible shoe reduces the noise of your feet on the stone floor and muffles the sound of your bones popping. If your intent is to strike someone down from behind, have the sword out of the scabbard before entering. Unless you caught your target completely asleep, they would get the first strike at you." He faces the intruder. "Did you know I was holding Princess Elsa?"

King Agnarr slides the sword back into the scabbard. "No. I did not expect you to be here. I saw a shadow by the window and it was too tall to be my wife, so I thought I might catch you by surprise."

"Did you forget I took your sword from you in the courtyard, a year and a half ago?"

"No, I did not." Agnarr replies deflated. "I just wanted to see if you are real."

He slides Elsa back up to his shoulder. "Real, as in a ghost or monster?"

"Nothing like that, I have heard things about you. You seem to have alienated a few powerful individuals."

"Are you one of them?"

"I have to smooth things over. Currently we need them more than we need you." Agnarr pulls the blanket off Elsa's head and lightly touches her hair.

Despite the darkness in the room, he sees the King's expression. "Do you wish to hold her?"

Agnarr places the blanket back over her head and places both of his hands behind his back.

"Since you have already taken your shoes off, you could keep your wife company in the next room."

The King looks at the bedroom door. After a few seconds he sneaks into the royal bedroom.

He lifts Elsa up to place his ear against her cheek. "We need to work on your dad. He is too tense." Elsa inhales a sharp breath. A puff of cold air brushes against his neck followed by a wheeze. "Sounds like you have a little congestion building up."

A few days later, mid-morning, dark clouds build up on the eastern horizon. Sam pours a bucket of water on the horse's hind legs, removing the last evidence of mud. The horse shakes the water off.

"Sam, our Queen wishes to speak to you."

"Why, so she can burn me at the stake?"

Gerda pinches his arm. "You know why they did it. Until the politics in the area change, they have to be very careful."

"I know." With the brush and bucket in one hand, he unties the horse from the post and leads it towards the open gate. Lightning flashes in the distance. He stops and wrinkles his face as he closes his eyes.

"What's wrong?"

"That storm on the horizon is moving too slow. It's creating pressure waves in my head that are quite painful." He continues into the stable.

Gerda follows him. "I have heard rumblings from several people who say you have been stirring up the rich nobles."

"There is nothing noble about them. They buy too low and sell too high." He leads the horse into its stall.

"Is it not the way to get rich?" She stops at the stall gate.

"Not at the expense of the people. Economically, when the people begin to hunger because they are not getting a fair wage for their goods and services, those who have some funds will be able to leave before it's too late. The rest are stuck here and at some point they will fight. Ask the French how well that worked for them. The rich will point to the King. Only after they overthrow him will the rich make concessions."

He steps out of the stall and closes the gate. "I have seen it happen too many times. The question is which side the military will be on. It never has to be this way. Greed, because you can, is a hunger that will never be filled." He walks outside of the stables and stares at the approaching storm. A bolt of lightning flashes from the bottom of a cloud. His left eye flutters partially closed.

Gerda touches his arm. "The Princess's eyes did the same thing your eye just did."

He snaps his head around to her, "when?"

"Several minutes before our Queen told me to get you."

He slaps his own forehead. "I'm a fool for not thinking it could not happen to her."

He runs to the castle and through the kitchen. Sidestepping a guard in the hall, he runs up the stairs two steps at a time. The royal door opens and Kai waves him in as he comments, "We heard you stomping up the stairs."

He glances at the empty crib and run towards the royal bedroom.

"Don't go in there," Kai commands. The door opens. Iduna frantically carries a crying Elsa and Agnarr follows them.

A light flashes in the room. The pain stabs in his head. Elsa draws her legs up with her hand in her mouth. Both her eyes flicker for a second. She screams loudly. Tears seep out from her closed eyes.

Several moist trails run down Iduna's face and she pleads, "What is happening to her?"

Agnarr grips his arm. "Can you help her?"

He lightly rubs the back of Elsa's neck. "Oh, you poor girl, you're burning with a fever." He places the palm of his cold hand on her back and stands motionless for several seconds. He studies the King and Queen. "What will you do for her?"

"Anything," Iduna hugs her little girl tighter. Her moist eyes squeezes out several tears.

A moment of fear and anger. Why has she not called for a healer? This is the moments she will lose everything.

Agnarr places his hands on Iduna's shoulder, "Yes, we will do anything for her."

Sam steps back to Kai and whispers instructions. Kai steps into the hallway and instructs a guard and staffer. They both disappear down the hall. He glances at the wood in the fireplace. "Kai, how long on the water?"

"Two buckets in five minutes."

Another light flashes into the room, followed by thunder nearby. Elsa's little body shakes and she screams louder than before.

Iduna moves close to him. Her puffy red eyes plead for his help. More tears race down her cheeks. "Please help her. Use your magic."

"You understand my magic may have caused this." Does she know he is speaking the truth? The magic used to save the Queen's life may have cursed the Princess with the same pain he has learned to ignore. He was older when his pain started, but she is a baby. She is starting in life and each passing storm will take away part of her sanity. It's not fair for her. He has to decide.

"I do not care. She is suffering. Please help her." Iduna pleads. Agnarr holds her shoulders and nods to him.

It is decided. "Kai, put the water in their tub when it gets here."

A strong surge of energy builds. He glances at the window. Electrical spikes reach for the clouds. He wraps his arms around Agnarr and Iduna and presses into Elsa hugging them tightly. "Hold on."

He touches the back of Elsa's head as his hand glows. His eyes close and lightning flashes in the room. His blue eyes open and Elsa radiates a blue glow. She whimpers but closes her eyes and breathes through her mouth. He steps back, but maintains his hand on her back.

Iduna looks at him, then to Elsa then back at him. "Are you making her glow?"

From over Iduna's shoulder Agnarr asks, "Blue?"

"You asked me to use my magic to help her." He eyes Agnarr who does not appear surprised by his actions like he has seen similar actions from another. "Is your afternoon clear?"

"I have to meet with –"

He interrupts, "Kai, clear the King's schedule." He stares at the King. Push until they tell him to stop. Maybe he needs to re-evaluate his opinion of them. There may be hope for them and the Princess. Ingrid responds with emotions, but you do not, why?

Ingrid glances up at him slightly shaking her head.

"Charles, your family needs you."

The first of two buckets of water arrive and Kai directs them to pour it in the Royal tub. He follows the buckets out of the room.

Gerda enters. "Ooh, such a pretty shade of blue."

Agnarr glances at him with raised brows.

"I'll explain it later. Gerda, when the gardener shows up, tell her we need a cup of her cold-weather tea and her special to help Elsa to breathe. We need another cup with chamomile, lavender, or thyme or the equivalent replacement and an onion. Also need an old pair of dad's socks."

Agnarr and Iduna both raise their brows at him.

"Again, I'll explain later." Two more buckets of water are poured into the tub. As the guard exits with the buckets he sweeps his hand towards the door and a cold fog pushes the door close.

"Again, explain later." He kneels in front of the fire place as he rubs his hands together quickly and places his left hand between the logs. Smoke rises from the logs before they burst into flames. He moves towards the royal washroom and places a finger across his own lips as Agnarr starts to speak. He kneels beside the tub and rubs his hands together. As his left hand touches the water, steam billows up. He repeats the process several times filling the small room with steam.

"What is that for?"Agnarr asks. Sam closes the door.

"The tub is for the three of you. You're first. Take off your clothes and get in. Ingrid will lean back against you and Elsa will feed resting on her."

"I don't –"

He interrupts, "Every second you delay you are delaying treatment for Elsa." Agnarr begins removing his clothes. Sam moves back into the bedroom, closing the washroom door.

A knock comes from the bedroom door. He sweeps his hand to open it. The herbalist enters and begins her preparations by the fireplace. They hear from the washroom, "Oww, this is hot."

Iduna shakes her head with a grin.

"You're next. Go in there and remove your clothes. You will sit in front of your husband with your back against his chest. Make sure you have a towel or something to cover up top. When you say you're ready I will enter the room with Elsa."

She lays Elsa against his chest. He holds her close. Her body radiates heat through his clothes. He feels her chest wheeze with each breath. Iduna slowly moves to the washroom door. Her hands shake close to her heart. Her puffy red eyes glance back at him.

"Your husband was slow to respond and I chastised him for delaying treatment. As soon as you are in the tub I will bring her in and you will feed her."

Iduna enters the washroom and closes the door.

The herbalist brings her special tea and comments, "Are you ready if she throws it up?"

"Don't worry about me. We need to help our Princess to breathe a little easier." He kneels and secures Elsa from moving. Gerda stands to his left with a small bucket. The herbalist stands in front of him holding a spoon and cup.

"OK, a spoon full in my mouth." He tilts his head back as she pours a spoonful of the tea. He swishes it around and swallows. "Oh that's good and the right temperature. Are we ready?"

The herbalist and Gerda both nod.

"For our Princess, both nostrils please." He blows in Elsa's face then tilts her back. The herbalist pours the tea into both nostrils. Elsa fights. He places his mouth over her nose and sucks the tea and other stuff out. He spits the tea into the bucket.

"One more time," he commands. They repeat the process and this time air passes through her nose. He positions her in a sitting position. Her lower lip extends past her upper lip as the color in her face changes to red and tears build in her eyes.

They comment the same sympathy, "Awwa."

"Ok, let's be quick, remove her clothes and put the onion socks on her legs." Between the three of them her clothes fall to the floor. They apply the herbal water to her legs, back and body. They cover her legs with the socks. Gerda places a towel over Elsa. Sam steps back, pressing her closer to him and pressing her head against his neck. A blue mist surrounds the two of them. He closes his eyes as a lightning bolt generates a loud crack echoes across the fjord. He feels Elsa tense up and whimpers.

He whispers, "I've got you. Let go of the pain."

Elsa belches. Gerda laughs, "You said to let go and she did." She points to his shirt, "Both ends."

"That's ok. If it relieves the pain, go ahead and pee on me, sweetie."

"Yeah, it's not like a horse hasn't peed on you before now," the herbalist comments.

"Let's give her a taste of the tea. It sounds like she is able to breathe through her nose." He shifts Elsa with her back to his chest. Gerda positions the towel under Elsa's chin. The herbalist spoons a small amount of the tea into her mouth. Most of it runs down her chin, but the second and third spoon full she sips.

The two ladies smile at her. Gerda says, "I think she is feeling better with that smile."

He notes her heart beat is twice his heart rate. He whispers into her ear, "You ready to see mama and da-da?"

She responds, "Da-da."

He moves to the door and knocks, "I hope you are covered, because I'm coming in." He opens the door and looks at the ceiling then steps into the room. "Is mom ready to feed the baby?"

"Mama," Elsa replies moving her arms.

"She said mama. Did you hear that Charles? She said mama." Iduna reaches up for her baby girl.

He continues to look up as he lowers Elsa down until he feels Iduna grabs hold of her. "Do you have her?"

"Yes."

"I'm letting her go. You've got her." Little feet splash in the water. "Ok, mom, she is still vulnerable to getting sick again. You need to feed her. Dad keep both of them covered, but allow space so she can watch the both of you or at least mom."

He moves to the end of the tub and places his hand in the water. "This is a little bit cool. I'll warm it up a touch." His left hand glows then he sticks it into the water. Steam rises up as he sweeps the warm water towards the royal family. After several minutes he reaches into the water and grabs both of their ankles and commands, "Push Elsa away before she bites and hold on." His eyes flash to the ocean blue a fraction of a second before a lightning bolt hits the castle.

Elsa giggles. Iduna and Agnarr glance between him and Elsa.

"What?"

Iduna turns her child towards him. Elsa's eyes glow the same ocean blue as his eyes.

He jerks his hands out of the water and her eyes return to the light blue. "Uh-oh, you're not supposed to do that little girl." She responds by blowing bubbles at him. "You think that's funny, wait until your mother and father finds out."

Elsa giggles with her hand in her mouth. Agnarr comments, "Uh-um?"

He replies with a grin, "Too late sweet pea they know your secret. Your mom should feed you while you're in a good mood." He stands and looks towards the window. "The leading edge of the storm front has passed overhead. There should not be any more lightning strikes nearby. When the water gets too cold, it's time to get out." He bows to them. "Gerda is outside the door, so if you need help, please call her."

Agnarr comments, "This is not over."

He stops by the door and peeks over his shoulder. "It's funny that you use those words. As far as I'm concern this scene is over." He walks out the door and closes it.

 **End of Chapter**


	17. Chapter 16 The Letters

**Title: Chapter 16: The Letters**

 **24 years and 3 month until correction**

The tip of the highest mountain glows of yellow and white. A beacon telling everyone the sun will be here soon. The dark yields to the approaching light and reveals the blanket of snow reaching low into the valleys. One by one the stars surrender the sky to prepare for the next evening's battle.

Sam slips into the stable's side room. He hangs his cloak on the peg next to the small fireplace. An aroma of warmth fills his nose. Gerda steps into the room from the stable area. His eyes close for a few seconds.

She holds a cup of liquid out to him. "I'm the only one here. Did you find what you were looking for?"

The beverage warms his hands as he studies the contents floating on top of the liquid. "I know where the rats hide at night. The heads of the six families were meeting on the upper floor of the large building near the square."

His finger swirls the beverage and he tastes it. "But the most interesting fact I found is when I saw the nice Bishop arrive. Their meeting lasted a couple of hours. At one point it got very heated. In the end they kissed the Bishop's ring and departed."

The sip of the beverage warms his insides. "Were you here all night?" He gulps the drink. A flood of vegetable flavors and spices overwhelm his taste buds.

She chuckles again, "No, after Kai and I made beds for the children in the cell, I stayed with them for several hours. We had a very nice conversation.

He looks over the rim of the cup, then pushes the few remaining particles of food into his mouth with his finger. He hands the cup back.

She eyes the empty cup. "I'm sure the cook could spare another cup. It's leftovers from the evening meal." She shifts her weight as sincerity takes hold of her.

"Their father works for you."

"Whose father?"

She huffs, "The father of the two children in the cell."

"Why did he not look for them?"

"Those bullies attacked him even when you were nearby. What would have happened if they caught him in Arendelle at night? Both of those children have old scars. I think Johan's arm is broken."

He looks up towards the castle as though an opening appeared in the roof, so he could see the cell the children were located. "You are correct about his arm. I'll heal it, shortly. I did detect the scars."

His eyes dart to her. "You look like you didn't get much sleep."

She shrugs and fights to hold back a yawn. "I got a few hours after midnight. I asked the guard to wake me up when they changed shift. You had a conversation with their older brother after you ruffled the Bishop's feathers in the chapel."

"Andor?"

"They didn't say his name outright, but that he is a guard. They very seldom see him."

"No doubt the other guards would make Andor's life more miserable if they knew his father worked here." He shakes his head as he stares at the floor. "Their family is being torn apart and no one's helping."

"You are."

He moves to the door and opens it enough to catch a glimmer of the few lights in the castle. "I am the stable boy. I have no authority or command to make anyone help them." He nods towards the castle, "But they do." With sternness he continues, "Why don't they do anything to stop this? They must know it's going on."

She grabs his arm. "Please do not get angry at our King and Queen. They are limited as to what they can do."

"As in nothing," he snaps at her, "have they arrested anyone for the attempted murder of the Queen. The people of Arendelle are afraid. Of whom, I have seen members of six families terrorize the merchants and the outcast. The sad fact is if that wolf had been where it usually meets me every morning, you would be referring about a different King and Queen or you would be dead with her."

He thumps his chest. "I don't believe in coincidences. I haven't figured out how or why, but I was supposed to be where I was when the royal coach stopped at the bend of the road that day."

He shakes his head and closes the door. "I am one person in a foreign land. I don't know if I will ever find my family again, so unless you give me a reason to stay, I will select a day and wait for the new government to take over."

With a short breath, she asks, "What about Elsa?"

He glances at the floor. "I will take her with me. I will teach her who she is."

She steps back holding her hand to her neck. "You can't take her away from her parents."

"Elsa is more like me than she is of them. You prefer she dies with them?"

Gerda moves to the horse area and looks back at him. "If I can get evidence to convince you differently, will you stay here for a couple of hours before making your decision?"

He hesitates before answering. "I will tend to the horses. At noon time, I will consider my decision."

"Fair enough," she says as she rushes past him.

Before the tower clock strikes twelve, the side room door opens and closes. A tray rattles as it is placed on the small table. He stops his chores and washes his hands. Gerda pours water into a cup next to a sandwich as he enters the side room.

She motions him to the chair. "Have a seat and you can eat."

He sits and bows his head as he says a short prayer. He picks up his sandwich and looks up at her. "I don't have to read your mind to know you are very tense. Will the evidence get you into trouble?"

"We shall see." She removes several pages of folded paper out of her pocket and hands it to him.

He opens the papers and his attention is drawn to the symbol at the bottom of the page. He glances up as his brows push together.

"You recognize it?"

"That symbol was on the knife carried by one of those who tried to kidnap our Queen."

"And you have seen it recently."

He studies the symbol and searches his mind. "This is on the Weselton flag."

For several minutes he reads the document. He looks into her eyes. She does not turn away. He sees no deceit in her. He scans the document again. Looking left and right he drops the papers on the table and he rest his head in his hands.

"No, no, NO." The frustration sounds in his voice as he leans towards her. "If this is your evidence to keep me here," he leans back and looks up. "What have I gotten myself into? You have given me more than enough evidence to leave."

He bumps the table as he moves to the door. A breath of fresh air causes him to glance at the castle. "Why would I help them in this hornet's nest? Jens tried to have them killed and he had a backup plan. Jens should be hanging from a lamp pole on the bridge for all ships to see."

Silence echoes in the room and stable area. Only his own heartbeat rings in his ears. Past memories flash in his mind of the other times a secret revealed the hornet nest he had been a willing participant. He turns his head back to her. Her head hangs down. A single dark spot blossoms on her dress. He kneels next to her. A few minutes ago, he felt nothing from her but now she radiates her raw emotions. Her defenses have fallen. "You didn't get the response you expected from me. Did she send you here?"

She wipes a tear from the corner of her eyes. "I was trying to help my mistress. I seem to have made the situation worse. If you leave she will know I took these letters." She folds the paper and slips them back into her pocket.

"Can you get them back where they belong without getting caught?"

"If you leave it doesn't matter," her voice wavers.

He stares at the door for several minutes. "Alright, I will promise you this. I will not leave for thirty days. I will evaluate my circumstances here. I hear the kingdom of Christiana is several times larger than Arendelle. I'm sure I can get passage to the Americas and wait." His hand touches her arm. "For now, I'll create a distraction so you can get into the castle. Is this acceptable?"

She cups his face. "You are a good man. She really does like you."

"We shall see for how long." He moves to the door and peeks out. "Go to the first stall gate. When I make the distraction, run to the castle."

Gerda stands, "What will be the distraction?"

"I'm sure I will think of something." He leans a little further out the door and spots the King. "Okay, I got it. Go stand by the door. I guarantee you will know."

He glances back and grins at her. Bells ring and the chapel doors open. The Bishop greets his parishioners. Three of the six families stand to the side of the greeting line. They will wait to go in last to show the other their self-imposed nobility. He looks to the sky. "Thank you Lord. I can't do it without you."

"What did you say," Gerda asks, standing by the horse gate.

With a nod, he replies, "Let the distraction commence." He marches towards the King. Movement in the upper floor window draws his attention to a shadow. "For you my Queen, let the show begin."

He yells loud enough for the chapel guest to hear. "Your Majesty the King, I have a bone to pick with you."

The two guards standing by the castle's main door, rush to either side and slightly in front of the King.

He shakes his fist. "Don't hide behind them. Come out here and face me like a man."

All three grip the hilts of their swords, but the King's eyes dart across the courtyard like he was expecting something or someone else.

"Go ahead. I took your sword once. I'll do it again."

The two guards move half way down the steps. Their demeanor indicates they have practiced the maneuver before now.

"I hope you two are ready to fly. Both of you are going over the wall."

King Agnarr yells back at him, "What is wrong with you?"

He stops at the bottom of the steps. "Me?" He points an accusatory fist at him and yells, "You are the problem. The citizens of Arendelle are being terrorized by those pompous thugs." He points towards the chapel. "And their pious leader the Bishop. You are the one doing nothing to help your people." Several boots run towards him from behind. "You are no King for not protecting your people."

The two guards draw their swords and quickly move down the steps. The tips of the swords point at his chest.

He gives ground to them and whispers, "Let's make this look good." He yells, "You're next after I dispose of these two."

The guards charge as they swing their swords. He leans back as a sword misses his chest. He catches the wrist holding the second sword and drives his elbow into the owners face causing him to fall back. He turns the sword and the flat side of the blade slaps the face of the second guard causing him to stumble. The extra sets of boots close on him. Lieutenant Larsen lunges at him, followed by three other guards.

The four tackle him to the ground. The King's guards reach into the pile and chain one of his arms. Between a pair of boots he looks towards the chapel. They nod and point at him. He stops his struggling and the guards place chains around his hands and ankles.

They drag him to his feet and move him towards the castle side door. Queen Iduna approaches them before they go around the corner and asks. "Samuel, what is wrong with you?"

With a smile he replies, "Just stirring the pot, be careful it doesn't splash on you." To the Lieutenant, he says, "Let's continue, there is a broken arm that needs mending."

As the guards drag him into the side door, the Bishop approaches the King and says, "Majesty, are you hurt? I have told you many times he is a troubled soul and would cause problems for you. Now, maybe you will take my advice and ship him out."

After the door closes behind them, Lieutenant Larson turns to Sam and motions for the guard to remove the ankle chains. "Did you hear the Bishop? What an arrogant arse, he is."

"I appreciate you doing this for me, but your two guards with the King almost shave the hairs off my chest."

"Um, about that, I didn't get a chance to swap them out. They were not pretending and I appreciate you for not killing them."

"And I thought they were just good actors. Well, no harm today. If you don't mind, please take me to the other two in the cell."

Larsen leads them to the prison area. When they reached the other two guests, Larsen removes the chains from his wrist then opens the door.

Sam steps into the cell and the door closes behind him. Several minutes pass. A blue light shines under the door.

The light from the window dims as the sun moves behind the mountains. A long beam of light shines through the cell's open door. "Well, isn't this a nice scene other than being in a cell." Gerda comments holding a tray with food.

He yawns. Brigit and Johan continue to use his legs for pillows.

"How is his arm?"

"Children heal faster than adults, so his arm was healed in less than an hour," He answers with another yawn.

Gerda sets the tray on the stone bench and sits across from them. With a half-smile she comments, "When you said to wait for a distraction, I thought you were talking about distracting the guards. I didn't know you meant to distract everyone in the courtyard and the castle."

"I'm an opportunist. Did anyone see you?"

"I walked past Kai and he said he didn't see me."

"Then I did my job well."

She pours a warm beverage into a cup and hands it to him. "You may have done it too well. Both our King and Queen are greatly disturbed by your actions."

"Good, it means they will have to make a decision."

"It may not be good for you." She pours a second beverage for herself.

He sips from his cup. "Hmm, more soup, tell the chef excellent soup." He drinks the whole cup and digs the vegetable from the bottom. He glances up and sees her staring at him. "Don't worry about me. Whatever happens is meant to be."

"And what about them?"

Johan stirs and he places his hand on the side of his face. Johan sighs and continues to sleep.

"If you had not come along to save them, maybe they would have buried him this morning."

He slowly shakes his head as he brushes Brigit's hair from her face. "When a society sees little value in their children or have determined it is okay to throw some of them away, that society will not survive long. History has proven that, time and again."

She sips her cup. "It's rather interesting how you act like it's nothing. Though I know it is not important to you, before they cut off your head, you will run away. You will wait them out or go wherever you wish."

The corners of her lips droop. She leans towards him. "The people of Arendelle do not have your options. We struggle to survive day after day. Only the rich have the finances to leave if they wish. For the rest of us, we have to stay and endure whatever happens. The people are afraid." She points at him. "They need a leader to help them to stand on their own."

Motioning with his head upwards, he replies, "They have a leader who sits upstairs on the throne. They should be leading the people."

She leans back against the wall and shakes her head, "You may not understand or appreciate the politics they have to work with, but they have very few Allies in the area, let alone here." She looks at him from the corner of her eyes, "You could help them."

"Why should I? They had more than a year to make changes. Do you know what changes they made?" He tilts his head staring at her.

She slides to the edge of the seat and leans towards him, "For a year I have watched you. You talk of not caring, but then you have compassion for these two children to get involved with their lives. No one would be sitting here with them. You radiate comfort and safety to them. The moment before you entered the royal coach Iduna had accepted the fact that she would die. You gave her more than her life back. You gave her the will to fight on, to live. You can call it faith or coincidence, but when you're around, you give people hope."

He rolls the back of his head against the wall, "I'm not superman or a mythical god."

"I never said you were nor has Iduna, but we do not see you doing anything haphazardly. Your actions are calculated. You are not afraid of the decisions you make." She laughs with a chuckle, "I heard you frustrated the Bishop so much, he cut his sermon short because of his anger at you. I wish I could have been there to see it. Word got around Arendelle quickly. You frustrated the Bishop to yell at you, and then you walked away from him. You obviously have leadership skills. They throw an obstacle in front of you and you go around it. Personally, I have seen faces light up when you just say hello to them. Despite what you think about yourself, they also see you as a leader."

She shakes her head with a smile. "I'm not asking you to take over the kingdom. You do have a way of getting people to do what you want. Maybe you could advise the King and Queen, maybe you could work your magic behind the scenes."

"And that is how it began in the past. They wanted me to do the little things, then the little things turn into big things."

She hands him her cup. "Have you talked to Queen Iduna about this? Tell her you can make recommendations and see what she says."

He takes the cup and stares at his reflection in the liquid. "So you think adding the title Advisor to my name will help their kingdom?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "At least you will still be near Elsa."

He lightly touches the children's face and feels their peace radiating from them. He gulps down the second cup of soup and hands it back to her. "Maybe you're right, so what happens now?"

"You spoke some harsh words against the King. The judge will speak with everyone who saw and heard what happened. If he decides you threatened the King, you will be charged with treason. The judge will listen to anyone who has a complaint against you. The judge is a fair judge. You know the rich will testify against you."

His head nods. "Will any testify for me?"

Gerda shrugs her shoulders. "Give our Queen a list of names and she will have them brought in."

"Give her the names," he shakes his head. "And the Bishop strongly suggests the rich do no business with them or Smor's son visits them. I will not endanger them for my behalf. As you said they have to live here. I do not."

Johan stirs with a big yawn as he sits up. Gerda hands him a plate of food and sets the cup of water next to him. Brigit opens her eyes for a moment, then curls closer to him.

Gerda tickles Brigit's side until she sits up. She hands her a plate of food and a cup of water. Gerda sits on her bench and smiles at Sam. "For a monster these two seem to like you."

Brigit stares intently at him. "You're not a monster, are you?"

Trying to reassure her he answers, "I have been in my past and could be in the future if needed."

"What type of monster are you," Johan asks.

Sam glances at them. "What type do you want me to be?"

"One that scares those two who hit us," Brigit replies.

"One that will make those people leave us alone. We did nothing to them." Johan sets his plate down. He stares at the floor and rubs his arm where it had been broken.

Brigit chirps, "Samuel will make a very scary monster and chase them all away." She peeks up at him, "Will you?"

With a forced smile he brushes her hair behind her ear. He touches Johan's arm. "In this world, there are no safe places to hide. All you can do is minimize their effects on you. Build up your weaknesses to become your strengths. Appear strong and most will leave you alone, but there are those who wish to be the one on top and for all to fear them. Give them their respects and they will leave you alone."

"What if they do not?" Johan asks as he munches on a piece of bread.

"Then you find a monster like me who will explain it to them that you are a good person and that working together will make both of your lives better."

"But what if they don't and I can't find a monster," Johan asks again.

"Yes, Samuel, now what?" Gerda chides him.

"You have to choose. You stand and fight with other preferably or alone if need be, or you learn to live with their oppression."

"It's always the same," she stomps her foot as she stands and picks up their plates. She looks directly at Sam. "Kill or be killed, is that your answer?"

"If the King will do nothing, he is not our King and needs to step down." He barks back at her.

"Hold your tongue. You will not speak of them in such a manner." Gerda glares at him.

"Would you prefer I speak about them while their bodies hang from the gates."

A loud smack of flesh on flesh echoes in the cell. Gerda pulls Johan and Brigit away from him as she yells, "Guard." Two guards rush into the cell with their swords pointing at him. "Get him out of here before I testify against him with his own words."

Sam snaps his head towards the guards. They both stand their ground, but neither approaches. He stands and looks down at Johan. "With great power comes great responsibility. If I was anyone else, I have no doubts their swords would be against my neck. They have seen what I can do. They are brave for being here knowing that if I wanted to walk out, they could not stop me. We have a mutual respect for each other. I do not wish to kill anyone nor do they wish to die tonight. I will follow their instructions if they are respectful, unlike this woman who acts foolishly and endangers the two of you."

He turns to the guards. "Let's go gentlemen before the woman says something to change my mind." The guards back out of the cell. He follows them to the next cell. They chain his hands and feet to the ring in the center of the floor. He sits with his back towards the door. His eyes close for a second and open to see everything covered in a light green tint. With his legs cross in front, his hands rest on his knees. His eyes close and he scans the castle.

For two days Sam sits motionless on the floor and hands resting on his knees. During the first night the temperature in the cell drops to a comfortable range, which allows him to hide his energy as he sees beyond the cell walls. During the day the sun hides behind the clouds. Late in the evening of the first day a light blanket of snow covers Arendelle and dances against the cell window.

The second day a guard comments about the bluish-gray color of his skin and asked if he was hungry. He politely declines. Many people visit the King and Queen. The people continue their routines, just not as fast. He does note, no one has visited the children in the next cell outside of the castle staff.

Each day Kai brings his one meal, but it is never eaten. On the third day he hears the clock strike one. The lock to his cell clicks. The door squeaks its protest of movement. He opens his eyes and for a second a light green color reflects against the window then it is gone. Sunlight breaks through the snow on the window and a small shaft of light enters the cell.

"I see you still have not eaten. Do you mind if I eat?"

"Be my guest, Lieutenant," he replies. "What do I owe that brings you here this afternoon?"

"The court took a break for lunch." The Lieutenant removes several pieces of paper from his pocket. "It seems you have interrupted the lives of many citizens."

"That is not new, everyone knows."

"Yes, but a few brought charges against you." He rolls a potato onto the spoon and eats.

Sam whispers, "Do you know how many different ways there are to kill someone with a spoon?"

"Should I be concerned?"

The chains rattle as Sam stretches his legs. "Not from me, but it could be useful information in the future." He turns his head and peeks over his shoulder. "So what is on the paper?"

Lieutenant Larsen eats another potato and sips water from the cup. He wipes his mouth with the cloth and holds up the papers.

"Let me see. You are charged with giving food to the families outside of the wall."

"How is that a crime?"

"The charges say you did not pay for the food, so that makes you a thief." Larsen stabs another carrot and eats.

"And what did the merchants say?"

"None remember getting you the food, so you must have stolen it."

"Are those the words they spoke?"

"This is what the guard recorded." He tears off a piece of bread and soaks it in the sauce.

Sam snaps the chains which create a loud ringing in the cell. The door burst open and the three guards, with swords in hand, rush into the cell. Larsen does not move but stares at them. Sam snickers. "To think they would have run you through before realizing it was you." He stretches and turns his body to see Larsen. "You're welcome to be eating my meal."

Sam slides around the chain loop in the floor to watch them. "I would hate for one of them to trip and stab me in the back. At least this way, I can deflect the stumbling fool out the window." He wrinkles his face at Larsen. "I will repeat the question. Who else was with the guard when he took the notes?"

The Captain waves the guards out the cell. The door closes behind them. He turns the paper to shed more light on it. "There was the baker, two fishermen, the tailor—"

"What? He interviewed them all at the same time. How did they keep their stories straight?"

Larsen points to the paper. "It says the Bishop reminded them."

Sam rolls his head against the wall. "Do you think maybe the Bishop fed them the story? I bet he will either thank them or ask for prayers to redeem the men and their families."

Larsen bites a carrot. "That is usually how he does it. In exchange, he will use his influence to squeeze more donations from them."

Sam looks out the window. "Do they really know?"

"Who?"

"The King and Queen," he answers as his eyes close. "Please continue."

Larsen wipes the last of the sauce from the plate. His finger slides down the paper. "Okay, right here. You are accused of stirring up the merchants to lie in order to give away left over food. You lied to the baker so he would give you bread for the Guard horses, but you did not deliver the bread to the horses. You are accused of intimidating the baker to sell bread, which had already been purchased by Audun Smor. Shortly after the bread incident, Mr. Svale Smor accuses you of attacking his son in an alley."

With a smile Larsen glances at him. "You accused Miss Claris of wearing her husband's pants and using his authority to make proclamations to the merchants. Did you really say that?"

"I may have said something along that line, but I'm sure Mr. Rømer's family jewels were also mentioned in the same sentence."

"No wonder they don't like you." He reads more of the letter. "Well they can't say you were singling them out. The Captain of the Guards says you refused to clarify what happened between you and the Smors. I'm sure that made the Captain like you more."

"What else do the liars say," Sam snips.

"Audun Smor charges, you attacked him and his friends at the outer gate. His friends said you threw magical, green dust on him that caused him to act crazy. That is what his friends say. Mr. Otte Rømer and his wife Claris charge you with attacking two of their friends over two children stealing bread from them."

Larsen stares at the wall behind him. "Are the two in the cell these two children?"

Sam snorts, "Yes. Did they also say the man stabbed me with a knife or that they were beating the boy and girl with a walking stick?"

Larsen looks on the back of the paper. "No, I don't see anything about them beating the children."

"Then I guess it doesn't say the gentleman tried to encourage several of the bystanders to attack me."

"No, I don't see that either. It does say you knocked out the Captain, but you did help the Private get him back to the castle."

Sam stares out the window and watches a large bird float on the thermal waves.

"Uh-oh, it seems we are getting to the best parts.

A guard say you signed a document authorizing the arrest of a thief if he returns to Arendelle. You verbally attacked the Queen to the point she was crying as she ran into the castle. You intimidated the Bishop by embarrassing him in front of his parishioners and the boys.

"I wish I could have been there to see it. Evidently, you disrupted his services so much he had to cut their worship short. You challenged the Bishop's authority to minister to Arendelle.

Larsen glances over to him. "Did you really accused the parishioners of not being children of God?"

Sam turns his head towards Larsen. "I asked, who told them they were children of God. Do you know what they said?"

"The Bishop?"

"They rely on the Bishop to tell them, so I laughed."

Larsen folds the papers and stuffs them in his pocket. "It sure sounds like you have been busy stirring up the citizens. No wonder they are angry at you."

A knock sounds on the cell door.

 **End of Chapter**


	18. Chapter 17 Treason

**Title: Chapter 17: Treason**

 **Date: 24 years 1 months before Correction**

A knock sounds on the cell door.

Lieutenant Larsen glances at Sam. "The court is ready to read the charges against you and hear your testimony."

"Why did they wait until now to start the trial?"

"The snow has slowed the proceedings, but they started two days ago. It took them this long to hear those who have complaints against you." He dips another piece of bread in the sauce and continues, "It does not look good for you. Gerda said you gave her no list of your witnesses, not that I think any of them would have testified on your behalf. There are several of the Bishop's parishioners watching all who enter the gates."

"Parishioners! Is that what you call Audun and his gang of thugs standing on the bridge? Since you know they are there, why do you allow them to stay?"

"Currently, there is no law saying they can't be there." Larsen replies taking another bite.

"Maybe there should be a law against those who intentionally intimidate potential witnesses." He rattles the chains. "That is why I did not give Gerda a list. They have to live here. I can leave anytime I wish."

Larsen picks up the few crumbs in the plate with the tip of his finger. "If that is true, why are you still here?"

"Why indeed?"

As if to remind him, an innocent young child whimpers. A soft voice speaks in the next cell, "It will be ok. I will take care of you, brother. He will get us out of this."

In the nursery upstairs, he hears a baby giggle. He turns his head in the direction of the door.

"I'm here because the adults are afraid. Even their children know right from wrong. If the adults are not willing to stand and protect their own children, then who will?"

At the appropriate time the tower clock strikes a quarter after the hour. Larsen stands and brushes bread crumbs off his uniform. "Get up, it's time to go."

The chains rattle as he stands. Four guards with their swords drawn enter the cell.

"I have no desire to hurt any of you, but the first one who pokes me with their sword, will sit on it."

Larsen motions for the guards to back up. "You know we have to do it this way since you will be meeting your accusers. They would get upset if you charged at one of them." Larsen releases his chains from the floor and points to the door. With each step Sam makes sure the chains rattle.

He stops by the window to the next cell and calls to them, "Brigit, Johan?"

They run to the door. "Samuel, we thought something happened to you. Did they hurt you?"

"The innocence of a child concerned with an adult. It is too bad all adults are not concerned with an innocent child. This promise I make to you. I will fight for your freedom. The people who caused the circumstance that put you in here, will be no more. I will come back to set you free, but you must stay here a little longer." He rattles the chains. "Chains can be broken."

Brigit says, "Please, don't kill anyone."

He turns his head to the guards. "If they do not attack me, I will honor your request." He nods to the children. With each step he rattles the chains. Down the hall the chains rattle. Through the lower room the chains echo and draw the staff out of their rooms to watch him. Down the second hall towards the throne room the chains rattle. Each step becomes louder. He wants to make sure they know he was getting close to them, then the rattling stops.

Lieutenant Larsen stands by the door to the throne room with his hand on the door handle. He looks at Sam. "Are you going to behave and not charge at anyone?"

"Contraire, I will charge all of them."

Larsen stares at him for a few seconds, "No violence."

"I will be ten times more violent then they."

Larsen takes his hand off the handle and turns to him. "Do I need to put more chains on you?"

With a smile he replies, "Put on as many chains as you think will make the accusers feel comfortable."

"The King is also an accuser."

"He is under duress. He is excused."

Larsen places his hands on his waist and the hilt of his sword. "Who is placing the King under duress?"

"Other than Kai, open the door and you will see."

The door opens quickly and Kai steps into the hall. "Lieutenant, why don't you bring him in so the rest of us can hear your conversation with him?"

Sam snorts. "I think that is his way of saying, 'stop socializing with the prisoner and do your job'."

"Yes, I got it." Larsen leads him into the room. Each step Sam stutters his steps to rattle the chains more.

He follows Larsen down the length of the great hall. As they get close to the two thrones on the dais, Sam searches the face of each person occupying the chairs on the right side of the room. Maltz Jens, Hans Kruckow, Otte Rømer, Svale Smør and his brother, Jonson Smør, and the Bishop. They point fingers and snicker at him. He waves at them as much as the chains will let him then stumbles falling at the feet of the Bishop.

They laugh at him. He grabs the Bishop's hand as he tries to stand. The Bishop jerks his hand free and presses his palm against Sam's forehead. Sam closes his eyes. At the moment he sees the truth in the Bishop.

He falls back to the floor. The guards help him to his feet. He staggers as he stands. "My apologies Bishop for getting your hands dirty." The Bishop does not reply, but wipes his hand on his robe as though the touch burned his hand. He glances at the empty chairs to his left.

"Aww, no one came to speak for him." The others laugh, but Sam recognizes Svale Smor's voice.

He stops near the dais and bows first to King Agnarr then to Queen Iduna. As he stands, he catches the Queen momentarily raise her right brow and cast a smile in his direction. He nods to her as he taps his forehead. He turns to his accusers. "I count five heads of families and the Bishop. Where is the sixth one?"

Jonson Smor motions with his hand, "How much more do we have to endure with his stupidity?" He glares at Sam, "You can't count? There are six of us here." The others laugh including the Bishop.

Larsen pulls on the chains to move him towards the prisoners stand directly in front of the throne.

Sam rattles the chains up to the three sided stand barely big enough for him to stand in. His hand slides along the rail leaving a clean trail where the dust had settled. "This hasn't been used for some time."

"The judge normally tends to these matters, but since he is away doing business in an outline hamlet, the seriousness of the charges need to be addressed immediately," replies the clerk.

Sam stares at the clerk and asks, "I don't recall seeing you around here. What is your part in all of this?"

"I am one of the judge's clerks. I will record the proceedings for the judge's review and history."

"One of, how many clerks does the judge have?"

"Three."

"Where are the others?"

"They are with the judge."

"Drew the short straw, did you?" Sam tests to determine if they know of the concept of drawing straws to see who gets the unpleasant task.

"I'm not familiar with drawing a straw," the clerk replies.

With a hint of a grin, "That's okay, I'm sure one of the six will gladly explain it to you." He rattles the chains as he looks around and turns back to the clerk. "So who is my lawyer?"

The clerk shakes his head. "What is a lawyer?"

"What is a lawyer?" the chains rattle. "What back wooded country did I fall into? Who speaks for me here?"

"All of your friends, sitting to your left," Jonson comments followed by the others laughing.

Sam rattles the chains as he turns to the six. "Who said that?" No one moves, but they stare back at him. "Don't be ashamed. You were brave enough to say it. Be brave enough to claim it."

Jonson stands as his friends clap for him.

"That's it. Stand up that I may see the brave fool."

The clapping stops.

He points a finger at the group. "I know you, Mister Smor. That looks like your brother next to you. I see the both of you. Whose criminal son and his gang are standing by the gate questioning all who come? Which of you claim the criminal as your son?"

Svale Smor stands gritting his teeth, "You will not talk about him like that. My son is honorable."

Sam chides, "An honorable criminal, what an oxymoron, he is."

Svale tries to push past his brother, but Jonson restrains him. "Stop, don't ruin it. He wants you to strike out at him." He points to the empty chairs across from him. "See, no one would dare speak on his behalf. We have to go through the proceedings to make it legal for the judge." They sit.

The King steps down to the prisoners stand. "Samuel Ryan of Arendelle . . ."

He interrupts, "For the record, I am not a citizen of Arendelle."

"You are deftly not a citizen of Arendelle," the Bishop comments.

The left side of his lips curl up as Sam looks to the clerk. "Both sides agree to my status of citizenship here." The clerk scribbles on the parchment and nods to him. He glances up to the throne. The Queen continues to stare at him with a slight grin. He addresses the King, "my apologies, you may proceed."

With his hands on his waist the King glares at him. "Samuel Ryan, you are charged with treason against your King. These fine gentlemen have given testimony against you. You have disturbed their peace in Arendelle. They have testified your presence here has endangered this monarch. Three days ago, they witnessed your rantings against the King. Samuel Ryan, how do you plead?"

Sam rattles the chains as he turns to the back door. A glance strikes back at the fine gentlemen's glare. He turns back to the King and asked, "What about the guards and staffs who were there? Why are they not here to give testimony?"

The King replies, "They are not qualified to give testimony."

"What disqualifies the guards and staff?"

"Only landowners and those with a known reputation of the noble class can give testimony," answers the Bishop with a huff.

Sam turns his head towards the Bishop. "How do you classify yourself as a noble?"

The Bishop stands. "My nobility comes from those who follow me to our lord and savior. It is a logical conclusion since I guide the lost to the heavenly father."

"A guide, interesting," he pauses for a long second, "do you have a family with children?"

"Sam, what are you doing," the King asks.

"If someone with a known reputation of the noble class can give testimony, I need to understand how this would be applied to the Bishop. My desire is not to tarnish the person who truly is deserving of the title noble. His responses will determine my questions." Sam gives the King a quick grin.

King Agnarr returns to his throne. "You may proceed." The Queen holds the Kings hand.

Sam rattles the chains as he turns to the Bishop. "Do I need to repeat the question?"

The Bishop narrows his eyes at him. "No, unlike you, my memory is great and I remember my station in life." His cohorts snicker. "The church law prevents me from entering into marriage, so no children."

"Jesus is the head of the church as a father is head of a family. Do you agree with the statement?"

The Bishop hesitates before answering. "Yes, I do."

"Since we cannot be the biological sons and daughters of Jesus, we can be adopted into his family. Do you agree with the statement?"

"Yes, I do."

"Could you also say that as a guide for your church members and an agent of God, by determining who is allowed into your church, you are adopting them into your family, in which case you are the father of your church and the members are your children?" Silence falls in the hall except for the clerk's scribbling. The Bishop glares at him. "If the statement is not correct, tell those beside you they are not a part of your family."

"As church members they are my family." The Bishop replies with a smile and enthusiasm.

Sam looks at the clerk and waits for him to finish writing. "Are you ready for the next part?"

The clerk nods.

"The next step, Bishop how much of your collected gold do you give to the heavenly father?"

The Bishop replies, "Our father in heaven gets his fair share of what the people donate."

"Exactly how much is a fair share?"

"A tenth is all he asks."

"What happens to the other ninety percent?"

"It stays with the church and is distributed to those who were in need." The Bishop scowls at him. "If you know God's words as you claim, why ask questions you should already know, unless you really do not know?"

Sam tilts his head down and nods to himself. He looks at the King. "If he does what he says with the gold and leads the people to Christ, I can understand how he might think he is noble. Majesty, did Arendelle not sign the regional document from several years ago, removing the title of Noble as a class of people?"

Agnarr brows rise as he replies, "We signed it. There is no such class as Nobles in Arendelle."

"Since God is the only one who can determine if the Bishop has truly led the people to his Son and judge him accordingly, the only thing left is to prove if the Bishop is a liar or not?"

The Bishop steps to the side and points his finger at him. "How dare you call me a liar?" He takes several steps towards him. "Turn around and call me a liar to my face." Agnarr raises his hand stopping the Bishop.

The chains make an ungodly noise as he faces the Bishop. "I do dare to call you a liar and an agent of the devil. If you are holy as you claim, give me the names of the 10 people your gold has helped to bring them to God."

The Bishop's face blossoms to a deep red as he yells, "I will do no such thing." He returns to his seat.

Sam rattles the chains not as loudly as he turns to the clerk. "If no one will testify for me, do I have the right to speak for myself?"

"According to Arendelle laws, yes."

He rattles the chains and turns back to the Bishop. "Since I speak for myself, if 10 names are too many for you, give me five names. What was the conditions of those five deserving the help? What help did you give them. Finally, how has your help improved their conditions?"

The Bishop jumps to his feet and starts to speak, but the King holds up his hand and says, "Samuel why are you asking these questions?"

Sam rattles the chain as he turns to face the King. "If the Bishop claims his nobility is the result of being a leader of a church, let him show us his nobility by his works."

The Bishop starts to protest again, but the King holds up his hand. The Queen interrupts, "being a loyal servant to God, you should be honored to show us how God has blessed you in helping others."

"I will do no such thing. It is between myself and God," the Bishop replies, crossing his arms and looks away from them. The others verbally support him.

Sam's lips slowly form a smile. "Bishop, what translation of the Holy Bible do you live by?"

The Bishop's face flares into a deep red as he glares at him, "any rightful minded person will live by the King James translation."

"Yes, that is a good book. Are there parts in the bible that should not be in there?"

"The Holy Bible is the inspired word of God. Nothing needs to be added or removed."

"Good, then you understand 1st Peter chapter two and verse thirteen."

The Bishop's lips draw tight.

Iduna asks, "I am not familiar with that verse. Bishop, tell me what does the verse say." The Bishop remains silent and scowls at him. After several seconds Iduna asks, "Samuel, what does the verse say?"

Without blinking Sam stares back at the Bishop, "I quote, ' Submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord's sake: whether it be to the King, as supreme; Or unto governors, as unto them that are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of them that do well. For so is the will of God, that with well doing you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men: As free, and not using your liberty for a cloak of maliciousness, but as the servants of God. Honor all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the King.' That is the King's authority to punish the evildoers and not for the Bishop to use his authority as a cloak for malicious. Majesty, ask him about 1st Peter 3:13 where it talks about giving an account for the hope in him?"

Iduna slides to the edge of her seat as she asks, "Yes Bishop, what is 1st Peter 3:13?"

The Bishop's face burns as red as fire. With his hands trembling, he stands knocking over his chair. He spews his words with a trembling finger pointed at the Queen, "No man let alone a woman will talk to me about God's words and not show reverence. You will not attack me with the holy words."

Lieutenant Larsen moves next to the Bishop. "Are you defying the King?"

The Bishop snaps his head around to the Lieutenant and the two guards.

"We can arrest you and hold you in the cell next to the one occupied by Samuel. Until at such time, the King passes sentence against you. I ask you again, are you defying the King?"

After several seconds of glaring at the Lieutenant, he answers with a calmer voice, "No, I am not."

"Then please sit down."

The others reposition the chair and he sits. Larsen and the guards move back to the perimeter of the group. For a moment the only sound comes from the clerk writing on his parchment. Sam glances at the other five. One faces the floor, one faces the wall, and one studies the back of their hand. With his eyes partially closed, the Bishop holds his hands together as though he is praying. No-one utters a word. Only one stares back at him. With a wide smile he mouths the words to him, 'you . . . are . . . next'. Jens slowly shakes his head. "Well now, this is interesting."

A tapping on the throne draws his attention. Agnarr asks, "Since you brought up the bible verse and the Bishop appears not willing to answer my Queen's question, will you state what it says?"

"Starting with 1st Peter 3:13," he looks back at the Bishop, "I quote: 'And who is he that will harm you, if you be followers of that which is good? But and if you suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are you: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled; But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asks you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear: Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ' close quote."

Sam sends a smile to Queen Iduna and peeks over his shoulder. "If you are the good Bishop you think you are, tell us the good works you have done with the gold collected in the name of Jesus Christ.

The Bishop stares with squinting eyes at Sam then he stands. He holds onto the inside edges of his robe, for the next ten minutes he reveals how the gold has made the five men behind him better citizens of Arendelle and examples of the community of the church.

Sam asks, "Are there no others?"

The Bishop spews at him as he adjusts his robe. "You asked for five. I gave you five. That's all you will get."

"Clearly, these five have benefited from your benevolence. Was there not enough gold to help the poor and starving?"

The Bishop shifts his weight. "No one in Arendelle starves or I would have heard about it."

"If you did hear of someone or a family starving, what is the responsibility of your church?"

He shifts his weight again and puffs out his chest with his nose raised high. "As I have said no one in Arendelle starves or I would have heard about it."

"Do you declare the families on the outside of the wall to have plenty to eat?"

"I do not make them live where they are. You have already stated 1st Peter 2:13 is as good as any of the other verses. The law allows them to be there. They should have been banished from this kingdom." The five behind him cheer and applaud. The Bishop smirks and nods to his friends.

Sam glances back at the Queen and rattle the chains as he turns to the clerk. "Is there a law against perjury?"

With a blank expression the clerk asks, "Perjury?"

"Lying, giving false statements to the court?"

"Yes, lying to the court."

He leans towards him, "What is the penalty for lying to the court?"

"Depends on the severity?"

"I will be executed if convicted based upon false testimony. Is that serious enough?"

"If you are executed and it is found that testimony given in the court contributed to your conviction, the family of the convicted can recommend to the court the punishment of the liar."

With a grin on his lips, "let it be known that I do not have family here."

"Who would want you in their family? Even God has cursed you to be alone," Svale comments.

"Their side acknowledges I do not have a family. Based upon what you have heard from previous proceedings, what would a family member advise the court, if I am executed under false statements?"

The clerk rolls the quill between his fingers. "The forfeit of some property, a payment of material goods or money."

"What is the severest you have heard?"

"Banishment, death."

"I request all of those you have spoken to be applied to this case."

"NO," along with other colorful vulgar words carol from the other side as they leap to their feet. The three guards in the back of the room move forward as two more guards to either side of the throne, move between the monarch and the six men.

The Bishop calms the men. "Don't let this heathen disturb your hearts. We honorable men have God on our side and will prevail."

Sam glances towards the Queen and she grins with a nod of her head.

"With no family to speak on my behalf after I'm dead, I request that if evidence is brought before the court and is found to be valid, these six men should have all of their possessions taken from them including all money. Their families are to be banished from Arendelle and these six are to be hanged under the clock tower until dead." The roar of the six causes the guards to draw their swords.

King Agnarr stands and yells, "Quiet or all will be removed."

The Bishop calms the men. "Gentlemen, the King is not our enemy. Please, calm yourselves." After several minutes the six sit down.

Agnarr approaches the clerk. "Is what Samuel has said within the concerns of the court? Is his request binding by the law?"

"What he has said falls under the court and yes, the law will honor his request," answers the clerk.

"Then record it as it was spoken." The clerk writes quickly. Agnarr walks over to the six and asks, "If any of you fine gentleman wish to amend your earlier statements, now would be a good time."

"We stand by our statements," the Bishop declares as he sits.

"Do all of you agree?" All five of the Bishop's cohorts vocalize and nod in agreement.

Agnarr returns to his throne, "Let the records show the six maintain their testimonies. Samuel Ryan how do you plead?"

"I don't plead because all of the charges are not valid."

"Not valid, we six validate the charges against you," Hans Kruckow comments.

"The testimony provided does not fall under the guise of a reputable testimony. You are not gentlemen or fine as the King presumptuously states. Your own words will convict you, starting with the Bishop."

The Bishop narrows his eyes at him and whispers, "I dare you?"

"Gladly," Sam replies with a smile. "Bishop, who assigned you here to Arendelle?"

"I volunteered to come here."

"Did you renounce your previous employer or church where you worked?"

"What? I have had no reason to denounce anyone."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you have no reason to denounce anyone? Are we all guilty of something?"

The Bishop slightly tilts his head towards him. "Not everyone is guilty. There are –"

Sam interrupts, "Is lying a sin?"

"What?" the Bishop asks as he clenches his fists.

Sam pushes, "Answer the question Bishop. Is lying a sin?"

"Yes, lying is a sin along with several other vices are sins."

"I will cover the other vices soon enough. Let's stick with lying for the moment. Will you denounce a liar for all lying or just the major lies?"

"Lying is lying and lying is a sin."

"You would denounce a liar?"

"Yes, I would denounce a liar," the Bishop answer as his voice rises.

He moves with minimal chain noise and bows to the King then to the Queen, "Your Majesty, from the Bishop's own lips lying is a sin and he would denounce a liar." He rattles the chains as he rotates his body to face the Bishop. "Bishop, before coming here were you a member of the Roman Catholic Church?"

"What? A Catholic priest would be executed if they practice in this area. I would have to be absolutely mad to be a Catholic here."

"But if no one knew who you were, you could claim to be a priest for any of the approved religions and no one would know. Is that correct?"

The Bishop does not answer, but stares at him with hatred.

"Maybe the question is too hard for you to understand. Were you a papal nuncio of Brussels and traveled as an ambassador for the Roman Church?"

The Bishop remains silent along with the other five.

Sam turns his head, "King Agnarr, is it within your duties to enquire the good reputation of the Bishop from his former location?"

Agnarr looks at the Bishop and replies to him, "Yes, I can send an official letter. Who is the recipient?"

"The governor of the city should know the current papal nuncio of Brussels. Request that the Bishop be sent there for his safety from the locals. Of course, until you receive a response from them, the question to the honorability of the Bishop is still in question and his comment should be suspended until the determination has been resolved."

The Bishop screams as he takes a step towards the King. "This is outrageous. You allow him to disrupt these proceedings."

The clerk stands, "Your Majesty, a conviction will lead to a sentence of death. Whether he is convicted now or later the sentence is the same. There is precedent with this judge to put one's testimony on hold until certain other evidence can be clarified. In this case you could put the Bishop's testimony on hold until you receive a response to your letter."

Iduna asks, "Bishop, do you have any objections to holding your testimony until my King receives a reply to his letter from the nuncio of Brussels?"

With his red face and brows pushed together, the Bishop stares at Sam as he calmly replies. "Of course I have an objection, but the law does not prevent me from preaching. God's word says I will abide by the laws set by the King whether I like them or not."

Lieutenant Larsen walks past the group to the hallway doors.

Iduna suggests, "My King, I recommend you suspend the Bishop's testimony until you receive the letter from Brussels. I know the Bishop had to take time from his duties with the church, which we appreciate. There is no need to take any more of his time and he should be released. I'm sure the other five will give him a full report of these proceedings."

Agnarr clasps his hands behind his back. "Excellent suggestion my dear. Bishop, you are dismissed."

The Bishop slowly turns his head to the King then to the Queen. The red complexion in the defiant Bishop's face slowly drains to a pale white. The guard next to the Queen steps forward, but the Bishop does not move. Sam shifts his weight rattling the chains. The Bishop covers his mouth with his hand as though he may be sick and drops his head.

Maltz Jens touches his arm, "Bishop, leave. We will take care of this."

The Bishop slowly rises and walks to the back doors. Lieutenant Larsen holds the door open. Next to the Lieutenant stands the Shepard, Sam met on the street.

Larsen escorts the Shepard to the seat on the left side of the proceedings. The five grumble among themselves. Agnarr approaches the Shepard, "Who are you and state why you are here?"

The Shepard bows to the King. "I am the minister of the Church of the Living Christ. When I heard Samuel had no one to give testimony for him, I came as quick as I could."

"What happened to your head and lip?"

"It seems Mister Svale Smor's son did not wish for me to come here and made the point with his fist. When I fell, I scraped my head on the bridge."

"You liar," screams Svale.

His brother tries to restrain him, "Svale stop."

Private Andor steps towards the King and bows, "Majesty, I will testify to the accurate statement of the Shepard. Three other guards and I had to draw swords to get the boys to move away from him."

"Where are those boys now?" Larsen asks.

He points to Smor, "His son and two of the boys are in a cell."

Smor shouts obscenities as he tries to get past his brother, "I will get you for this preacher and your followers." Andor, Larsen, and two guards point their sword at Svale.

Jonson struggles to stop his brother. "You idiot. I told you to make sure your son stayed home." Svale stops struggling.

"Take him away," says Agnarr. Three guards from the back of the room escort Svale out of the room.

Jonson bows to the King, "Majesty, I withdraw my testimony and will locate the other two boys who hit the preacher. I will bring them here. With your permission I shall leave."

"Yes, you may go."

Jonson leaves the room.

Larsen whispers to the King.

He nods, "Yes, allow them in."

Larsen motions to the guard to open the door. Thirty citizens of Arendelle move to the few chairs on the left side of the proceedings and others sit on the floor.

After an hour of testimony the citizens depart the room. Agnarr points to Waltz Jens, "Where are your friends?"

He does not answer.

"Waltz, the testimony is more damaging to your wife than to you. I should bring charges against you and your cohorts."

The chains rattle, "Majesty, if I may. I have a solution that would bring the tension to a close. Charge the six for conspiracy against the crown. Let it be known that a reprieve to the six is offered. They will restore the three families inside of the wall and all will do business with them. Svale with his anger issues is given seven days to depart Arendelle. At the start of day eight, an arrest warrant will be issued for his arrest. He will be found guilty of conspiracy against the crown and will be hanged. His brother will be encouraged to leave as well, but if he chooses to stay he will be watched closely. Thirty days later, another will be given seven days to leave or be arrested. Each month afterwards pick another of the remaining six and give them the option to leave with the same conditions. Jonson could stay, but I'm willing to bet he will leave with his brother. Since Jen's wife has more to lose. Give him one year to explain it to his wife, she can't be rude to everyone. If she has improved her attitude after the year, he can stay."

"I will pass it along." Waltz replies as he stares at Sam. He bows to King Agnarr and walks out of the room.

When the door closes Iduna asks, "You are being mighty generous for what they tried to do to you. Why?"

"They were of no threat to me. I showed you how to cut off the snake's head and soon the body will die."

"Why were they no threat to you?"

He stands tall and strains the chains. Ice rapidly encases the chains. Cold whips rise from the chains. They strain to hold together, but one by one with a crack and a snap, they fall to the ground. He steps out of the chains piled on the floor and approaches the King. His flesh glistens with ice crystals.

"There is one who has not renounced their comments and must, before these proceedings are over."

Agnarr places his hand on his waist, "And who would that be?"

"You."

"What did I say?"

"You said the fine gentleman had brought testimony against me. I challenge your statement that they were not fine nor gentlemen. Do you withdraw your statement?"

Agnarr glares at him for a moment. "For the record, I, King Agnarr of Arendelle withdraw my comments describing the six as fine gentlemen."

Sam glances over his shoulder and the clerk comments. "The King's statement has been recorded."

"What did I plead to the charges?" The clerk searches his notes. "You did not plead on the charges."

"Neither confirm nor deny," Iduna shakes her head.

"I will have the final say on this,"Agnarr moves towards the throne. "I appreciate what you have done for my family. The only thing you have done here is to push the time table ahead of schedule. I had my eye on them. I am sorry you do not understand political change is slow."

"That's a lie."

Agnarr faces him quickly, "What did you say?" His face slowly changes to a dark pink then red. He points to the clerk, "You, get out." The clerk gathers his ink and quills and paper and hurriedly exits the room. Agnarr reaches behind his throne and draws out a sword.

Iduna stands but does not stop him, "Charles NO."

"Lieutenant, you and your men, out into the hall. Do not come back until I open the door. If he opens the door, run him through."

"Charles," Iduna pleads.

"Ingrid, either I represent you or I don't." He glances back at her, "Or maybe he should be at your side." He steps down to the floor and raises his sword to shoulder height with it pointed directly at him.

"No Charles, you are my husband. This is exactly why I did not want to be Queen." With her head down Ingrid sits on the edge of her throne.

"What are you going to do? Run me through and what will that accomplish? No wonder you give in too easily. It does not change the fact that this monarchy is a lie."

"You are a dangerous person to be running around the country. I could send you away. You could be the head of an army column to take over Arendelle. If I let you stay, the people could easily push us aside and make you their King. We cannot afford to do either. Whatever respect, no matter how little it was, the people do not respect me." He shakes his head, "If you just stayed the stable boy and not interfered."

"You're right. Two years ago your wife would have been kidnapped or dead. Is that your politics waiting? A year and half ago your wife would be dead if I had not been nearby when the wolves attacked the coach. Was that your politics? Had I not taken the sword away from you, one of you would be dead now. Was that the intent or a consequence? The assassin hesitated. My erratic response to give your sword back caused them to hesitate again. If their cohort had not overrode the plan to kill one or both of you, Princess Elsa would not be part of the equation."

Sam lowers his head. "You're right. I have interfered in your political affairs." He stands, "Whatever you say I will agree, except my death." He takes several steps and stop with the King's sword pressed against his throat and stares into his eyes. Is it anger he sees or fear. Or is his delay his struggle to overcome the humiliation. As was done to him those many years ago when they placed him in a no win scenario. He felt sorry for them. This young couple trying to hold a kingdom together. They have been woefully unprepared for their task.

As he steps back his left hand grabs the end of the sword and twist. The hilt of the sword flies from the King's hand and into his right hand. In the blink of an eye the end of the sword points to the King's throat. Iduna must have expected the move. She reaches behind her throne and lunges at him with her sword. He moves forward, pushing the King back as he drops the tip of the sword striking metal against the metal of her sword. Her momentum carries her past him. She swings her sword towards his head. He steps into her sword and the flat part of his blade strikes the back of her sword hand. Her sword clangs across the floor.

She grabs the back of her hand. Traces of blood trickle down her fingers. He feels a stinging in his side where her sword made contact. "Is this what you want? You want me to sit back and watch the two of you lose your kingdom. A message has been sent to them."

He points his sword towards the door. "Well, you now have to decide. Do you rule or do they?" He picks up Iduna's sword. "You're right, I don't understand your politics." Lifting the swords over his shoulders he flicks his wrist. The door cracks with a loud twin snap as the two swords penetrate the door. He marches past them, "I await your decision. Please do not make this any bloodier than it is." A few seconds later the side door slams shut behind him.

 **End of Chapter**


	19. Chapter 18 Remember Life

**Title: Chapter 18: Remember Life**

 **Date: 24 years 1 months before Correction**

Clenching his fist as tight as possible. He prays no one steps out the door. At the moment his rage could kill and the decision will have been made for him. The raw power of death and destruction claws its way to escape his mind that holds it checked in this fleshly container of his body.

An angelic sweet voice pierces through the dark clouds of the distaste. _You hurt momma._

His heart drenches the fire of his anger. He reaches out to her. _I made a mistake. You should not feel what I feel. I must control the venting. Go back to sleep my angel._

His anger sparks again. Motion at the end of the hall causes him to shake the ice off his hands. Sam marches down the short hallway to the lower entrance room. If only he can get out of the castle before anyone can stop him. It would give him time to calm down, but it was not meant to be.

"Sam, Sam wait."

Several pairs of boots run up behind him. He performs a military about face. Lieutenant Larsen and two guards stop three meters from him. He holds up his hands to show them he is hiding nothing. "The King and Queen are alive and well. I am returning to the stables to tend to the horses. I will wait there for further instructions from the monarchy."

He starts to turn, but Larsen grabs his arm. He glares at the Lieutenant's hand, "What?"

"The two swords?"

"I'm pretty sure they belong to the King and Queen. Why don't you ask them."

"But they are sticking through the door."

Sam glances towards the throne room doors. "Tell the guest they can hang their coats on the new coat rack."

"That's not funny."

"It wasn't meant to be." He steps to within an arm reach of the Lieutenant. "Unless your orders are to detain me, I'm going to the barn."

Larsen steps to the side and motions the other guards to let him walk past. The staff gets out of his way. Even Kai does not speak to him, but watches him exit the castle.

In the courtyard as he walks towards the stable, he observes the clouds above the western mountains. He let his anger get away from him too quickly. A very uncharacteristic action on his part. He stops, then walks in a circle as he reviews where he failed. He glances at the castle, at the mountains, and guards on the wall watching him.

 _Are they truly that stupid?_

The cloud obscuring the sun moves. The sun warms the back of his neck. For a moment the sunlight reminds him of Krystal. He holds his arms out and faces the sun. His eyes close.

 _You did everything to protect me. Why did I not listen to you? I do not sense your presence. I guess I went beyond your time line. Krystal, here I am again, alienating the local government. I wish you were here. You would be able to persuade them. I think you would get along with the Queen. She is honorable for sticking with her King. At least, I do not have to worry about not hearing the shot that would strike me, even the crossbow arrows make so much noise in flight. I need to rest. I am so tired._

Laughter in the distance brings his senses to the now. He does not feel the warmth of the sun. Slits in his eyes open. The western mountains partially hide the Sun.

 _Damn, I lost time again._

Another giggle draws his attention to the blonde hair Princess staring up at him with her finger in her mouth. She lets out a squeal and smiles at him. Gerda peeks past Princess Elsa.

"Where's momma bear?"

"If you mean Queen Iduna, she said things got out of hand too quickly. She tried to distract the two of you. She can calm the King, but she hopes you will not run away from Elsa."

His arms gradually close around Elsa. She grabs his shirt collar and pulls to place her head onto his shoulder. He snuggles her close. His fingers slip through the silky softness of her hair. His eye close.

He shifts his energy to sync with her energy. The two energies flow as one. The first time his little girl reached for him, she also searched him out. He felt her fears and joys and happiness. He became afraid of what she might change into. His Saracat gave him another opportunity.

Elsa places her hand on the blood vessel in his neck just as Saracat did. He reaches out to her. _Will you give me the opportunity to save my family? Will you save me when the time comes?_

He feels a warm hand on his arm. "Why didn't you tell me Ingrid is Queen?"

"Everyone knows she is Queen."

"There is a difference between a King who marries and she becomes a Queen, as compared to a Queen who marries and he becomes a King. Why didn't you tell me Ingrid was the Queen, who married and Charles became the King?"?

"Does it make a difference?"

"Yes, I would have conducted myself differently around her." He glances to Gerda.

"You mean you would not have been as vocal if you knew she was the ruler and not Agnarr?"

"Probably not, I thought she was collecting information for her husband, not for herself."

Those beautiful blue eyes stare up at him. He lightly brushes her silky hair off her cheek. "What are you thinking sweet pea."

Her smile radiates an energy that calms his heart and mind.

"Unless she is not allowed in the stables, the sun will set soon." He walks to the stable with Gerda close behind him. He enters the side room and notices a difference. "Someone has been doing my job while I was away."

He moves down the center aisle. All horses have fresh hay and a clean stall. As he walks back to the side room, he comments, "They did an outstanding job. Have I been replaced?"

Not hearing Gerda's shoes behind him, he starts to turn around when he glimpses motion in the side room.

Ingrid answers him, "No, but if you choose to leave, we will have to hire someone to replace you."

"I guess you have come to collect the Princess." He lifts Elsa to hand her over to the Queen, but Elsa whines and clenches tightly to his shirt and collar.

Ingrid does not move her hands. Her one hand covers the bandage on her sword hand, but she maintains her regal pose. "I will take her from you if you wish to no longer hold her."

He studies her mannerisms.

 _A good tactic, press your advantage when the target is weak. Does the King really know how blessed he is to have someone like you at his side?_ His head gradually moves from side to side. _I have totally underestimated you._

After a few seconds he answers, "An ultimatum?" He snuggles Elsa against his chest as she lays her head against his shoulder.

"That is up to you," Ingrid replies holding her pose.

 _Use the Princess to take advantage of me. Would you use her child against another or just me? Is Elsa the key to holding the monster at bay? For now I relinquish the advantage to you for Elsa's sake._

"You play a very dangerous game. Too many people will get hurt. This is a no-win situation for either of us."

"I agree with your assessment." She shifts her weight breaking her pose. "What should we do?"

He strokes Elsa's hair and moves to the door. "I don't know. What do you want to do?"

"In your life before here, you must have been in a similar situation, what did you do then?"

He hugs Elsa and presses his cheek against her forehead as he faces her mother. "If I had time I would call a staff meeting with my senior officers."

"If you did not have time."

"I would choose an action that had the maximum effect, but with minimum consequences."

"You have practiced that answer before. Did it always work?"

With a raised left brow and a slight grin, he answers, "Ninety percent of the time it achieved the desired effect, minimal consequences, until I received additional information."

She places her hands behind her back and walks into the staging area between the stalls and the room. "What happened to the ten percent?"

"Usually the consequences outweighed the desired results. A temporary redeployment of forces was necessary until the level on the battlefield shifted into my favor."

"You think you are the first to speak as though I do not understand. Your metaphors are a distraction, but to whom. Has the consequences outweighed your decision now?" She turns her head to him.

"You are correct and the answer is No."

She faces him, "What additional information do you need?"

After a few seconds of searching the floor, he answers, "The truth."

"I will give you the truth as I know it. Ask your question."

"Under one condition."

She stares at him. The corner of her lips move ever so slightly in an upward direction. "Depends on the condition."

"Agree, we set aside protocol. Neither dominates as neither takes offense of the words spoken. I'm not here to make you my enemy."

"I agree with an exception, at any time I choose to drop the condition, you show me respect of my position as Queen of Arendelle."

He tilts his head down. "I agree, starting now."

She walks into the room and sits at the table. She points to the other chair. "Ask your questions?"

He takes a deep breath and sits in the chair. Elsa moves and shifts as she clenches to his collar. "Before I ask, please place your hand on the table then place your injured hand on top."

Hesitating, she places her hands on the table with her wrapped hand on top.

"Remove the wrapping."

She pulls and the wrap pulls off several spots of dry blood and droplets of blood begin to run down her hand. The back of her right hand has an outline where the flat of his sword struck.

He holds his right hand over her hands. "Will you defend me should your husband come into the room and see us like this?"

"Like what?"

"He sees me holding your hand and he will not see me healing you. The last time he spoke to me, his sword was at my throat. I may not be able to respond fast enough to defend myself."

She hesitates and he starts to withdraw his hand. She comments, "I promise to clarify to him that you are not doing anything inappropriate." She somewhat smiles. "You did call him a liar.

He places his hand over her wounds. "This will sting for a second or two. No, I called the monarch a lie."

"And he defended me."

"And he asked if he should be by your side. It sounded like he is unsure of his role, not to mention he said I was a dangerous person to be running around the country."

"Well, is what he said the truth? Would you be dangerous?"

He narrows his eyes and flexes his hand. "That is not the point."

A layer of frost forms on the back of his hand. He touches her hand and she flinches, but she does not move her hand. A hint of a blue glow peaks out from between their hands.

"This will take a minute or two. Ready for the questions?" She nods. "Do you think I am trying to get between you and the King?"

"I would be lying if I said the thought did not occur to me. If I had seen you treat another Queen with the kindness you have shown me, I would have a suspicion something may be going on between the two of you. I also understand my King's behavior may also lead others to believe incorrect thoughts of you and the Queen."

He leans back in his chair. "I see. My intentions were never to interfere, but I must ask you, where would you be if I had not interfered on the night the guards revolted?"

"I concede that point to you. Charles and I had a strong suspicion something was about to occur, but we did not have enough information. That is why the military general came so quickly. He was waiting for a signal to arrest those involved." She places her good hand on his arm. "We had no ideal Otto had converted so many guards to his side."

She glances down with a slight shaking of her head. "To answer your question we would be dead by now.

They sit in silence for several minutes. Elsa inhales a sharp breath and sighs.

He kisses her cheek. "Why would you allow me to hold your child, especially after what happened earlier?"

Ingrid's expression finally relaxes with the calming of the pain in her hand. She points to her child. "Look at her. She is content to be with you. The past two nights she was fidgety and cranky. Maybe she is tired and now she sleeps, but I don't think so. She needs you and now I see you need her. The moment she was ready to be born, I could sense her attitude would change when you were around us."

She leans over the table. "Despite what you may think of yourself, you are the best sitter I have ever seen. It is not just Elsa. Johan and Brigit speak good things about you. Why do you think that is?"

He glances at his hand and the frost is almost melted. He sees the wonder in her eyes. Instead of thinking it, he speaks it, "Will you truly understand what I'm about to tell you?"

"You will not know for sure until you do," she replies with a hint of a smile.

"I am who I am because when I needed help, the one adult who tried to help me, they killed her."

She blinks several times and leans back in her chair. She says what he expected. "I am sorry."

He shakes his head. "To save money they tried to create a team of highly specialized soldiers to take out the command structure of a designated enemy. We kill the heads of states. We were children."

"That is horrible. What state would do such a thing?" She glances down and whispers, "To use one's own children, the state would not live long."

He moves his right hand and lightly strokes Elsa's hair. "Your hand is healed."

She flexes and rubs the back of her right hand. "It is like it was never injured."

"That is the one part of the human history, they have not learned. It makes no difference the year. Every generation walks down that path. They believe they can achieve the result and be merciful to the children at the same time. They justify their selfishness."

He cuddles Elsa to draw her closer. Her breath sweeps cool air across his neck.

Ingrid grips her hands together and rest them on the table. She watches him.

He continues, "As part of the experiment we were altered. I only know of two who had the capacity to heal others. All could heal ourselves quickly. It takes a lot of energy to heal. We were limited to, healing two before it became too much and we had to rest. The injuries we healed would have been the death of the patient if we did not help them."

"Like when you healed me in the royal coach." He nods. "But then you met Elsa, you healed her."

He gazes down at the baby girl. "Maybe she is content. I feel her heart beat. I . . . I almost." He closes his eyes and swallows hard. Drawing her closer his hand covers her head. His arms and chest create a warm cocoon around her. He will protect her with his mind and body.

A rush of memories of that day sweeps in like a bird of prey diving for its dinner caught in the open. If the wolf had met him on the path, he would have heard the tragedy from the locals. But he was there and he fought against the red wolf with the red eyes. Two human females were the innocent victims of a wolf attack to draw him into the open.

He would heal them so they would live long enough to fall to another tragedy, but perhaps they would provide valuable information. They would live and with their gratitude they would drop him off in the village.

Then, he detected her presence. Another innocent victim who would not know the world. Children died at birth all the time. No one would know, not even the mother. She reached and touched him. His energy left him. No, she took it from him. She reached into his soul and took his heart. After that day, he did not belong to himself. He belonged to her.

A warm hand sweeps the moisture from his cheeks and reminds him he is not alone.

Her hand cups his face as she asks, "What is it?"

He opens his eyes with blurred vision and stares down at her. He whispers, "I am so sorry. I almost ended your life before it began." Another tear rolls down his cheek and drops onto her hand. She opens her eyes and stares into his eyes. "One day I will ask for your forgiveness. You will become a beautiful Queen of Arendelle."

He smiles to hold back his emotions. "No, I'm happy I failed. Yes, you were dreaming." His finger lightly traces her face.

"You are correct. I'll be alright." He lifts Elsa up and hands her across the table. "Here you go mom. Your little girl is hungry."

Ingrid doesn't move, but glances back and forth between him and Elsa. "You want me to believe you two were talking?" She takes Elsa in her arms.

"She is a baby." With a smirk he wipes the tears. "Did you hear her talking, of course not? I heard her thoughts." He picks up his chair and faces away to give Elsa privacy with her meal.

He waits until he hears the sound that Elsa has latched on and is feeding well. A horse neighs. He glances over his shoulder towards the stable area. He replies with a loud voice. "I know you have been fed. Don't think because your Queen is here you can beg for more food." Several horses whinny and stomp the ground.

A belch and a small giggle sounds behind him.

"I know you are not full," Ingrid comments. A few more smacking sounds follow, "There you go Princess."

"Since I am late in understanding that you are the Queen and Agnarr married into the monarchy, why are you not out front?" After several seconds He considers she may not have heard his question.

She answers. "I think I understand what you are asking. Why do the delegates not address me? Why do the six and the people not bring their squabbles to me? Agnarr and I made an agreement. He rules out front as you say and I rule everything else. Neither of us wanted to be the rulers, but despite what you think about our leadership skills, the alternative would have been far worse. Arendelle has struggled for many years. The past two years we had hoped the trade negotiations would give us an economic boost, but as you saw, they ate our food. They enjoyed our hospitality and for what? Our two biggest trading partners did not show up, which moves Weselton up to the number two position. We never get a good deal from them."

"So it's economics that keeps the six here. If you do nothing, how long will it be before they insist you step down?"

Her monotone voice breaks as she answers, "I believe . . . if next year's trade negotiations . . . go as bad as they did this year," she takes a deep breath and sighs, "they may insist we leave."

"That is why it's imperative you get rid of them before the first snow." He turns his head in her direction. "What happens to me?"

"You disrespected the King in public. You will have to amend for that in public. We will keep you here as the stable boy, but you have to stay out of the politics unless we ask for your help."

"Don't go to you, you will come to me. I hear you loud and clear." He looks at the door. "Don't wait too long before asking for my help. I am limited in the knowledge of your culture. I would be more in line with the wolf. Give me a target with instructions and I will get the job done."

"I will keep that in mind. Let me ask you a question? I believe we have a common goal. Instead of this conflict between us, become an advisor to the King and myself."

He rotates his body and studies her eyes. There is no deceit. "Advisor in what way? Does King Agnarr know you are asking this?"

"I believe I did mention it to him. With the correct logic, he will be persuaded it is best for my Queendom."

He turns away from her. "As Queen or his wife?"

"Does it matter?"

"As long as he understands, I'm there to help."

She responds as though the decision has already been made. "You will have no authority. You will go with him on a diplomatic mission to bolster our position with our trading partners."

"You want me to read whoever he designates. I am to gather information as you gathered information from the first landing on the stairs."

"There may not be stairs."

He shakes his head. "I don't need them. I just have to shake their hand or touch them, but it is a good tactic. Will he listen?"

"Okay, Princess, change sides." She repositions Elsa to the other side to continue feeding. "I do not think he will need much persuading. He has seen you with the horses and children. We both know what you are capable."

He chuckles, "You saw me respond to a frontal assault which Otto mismanaged. I can advise that is not the problem. I have no issues of you giving me commands. In most situations I would prefer a diplomatic solution. I will provide the King the information but." He stares at the floor.

After a short minute, Iduna asks, "But what?" After a few more seconds she commands, "Just say it."

He adjusts his body in the chair as he breathes deeply. "Should the diplomatic solution fail, you must be prepared to let this dog run. Give me a target or let me run freely."

"With the military?"

"Before the first battle I can persuade others to change their minds."

"As an assassin?"

"That will be the last resort. If I cannot change their minds, I will do what I can to prevent their attack. If war comes, a few chosen warriors and I can wreak havoc behind the enemy lines to give the military a distinct advantage."

"The General will not see your actions as honorable."

"He does not have to know. The war in this century is barbaric. Men line up in close formations and march towards each other. A war of attrition is the so call gentlemen's war. Arendelle cannot fight a war of attrition. If the General does not use every tool to win as quickly as possible, he needs to be removed. If I have to go behind the lines by myself I will. You think the guard incident was bad. Stand on a battlefield where you see the dead or dying bodies go on as far as your eye can see in any direction. With the proper tools I can do far worse."

With a glance over his shoulder, he continues. "I pray you never have to release this dog in that capacity, so I'm all for assisting the King."

"Then you do understand. I take it as a good sign."

"One other thing, if you continue to do stupid stuff, your actions make you unworthy to wear the crown. Ignoring the obvious could destroy your family. I do not believe in coincidences. I was put on your land at this time for a reason. It would be unfortunate if the circumstances of your makings overcome the reason I'm here. I believe you and Agnarr are good at heart. It seems you have received bad advice or you were not properly trained for your position." He turns his head slightly towards her without looking. "I think Elsa may need burping."

"How do you know?"

"I can feel her belly pain." He looks at the door then glances back again. "This is my opinion, if I were giving a report to a superior officer. If you have been receiving advice from the council and some of the six are on the council, get rid of them. Bring people from Arendelle to be on your council."

"Why, they are not trained in the matter of the Queendom." With her hand under Elsa's arms she holds her in a sitting position on her leg and lightly rubs her back. Elsa giggles and belches.

He claps, "sweetie that was outstanding. I felt that over here."

"You still hungry. Hold on let me get you into position. There you go." Silence fills the room except for Elsa's feeding. She asks, "Who would be better than those trained to guide the Queendom?"

He answers, "Those who live it, daily. They are on the front line. Life for them changes at a moment's notice. How many events occurred that you or Charles do not hear about? How many times have you asked yourself, if I had only known sooner? I'm not saying you have to micro-manage, but give them the opportunity to tell you how they feel. You may be surprised when a comment from one is shared by others, but the council does not deem it important enough for their attention."

"Do you have an example?"

"The families outside of the wall, what do you know about them?"

"Their businesses failed. They could not pay their rent. Things like this happen all the time."

"Yes, except in their cases, they had help from the six wealthiest men in Arendelle, several of whom happen to be on the council. The six families intimidate the other businesses not to sell to the families they deemed unworthy.

"Maybe your decisions are based on the information provided. I had a staff, experts in their fields of knowledge, who gave their input, but in the end, I made the final decision. They didn't always like my decision, but I had their respect and they knew I would fight for them. I know commanding a warship is a lot different than commanding a Queendom, yet there are many similarities. On a warship, I issued orders. If someone hesitates, I can have them removed from their post. With my staff, even those who disagreed did as I commanded. Later, I would explain my decision for their better understanding. I used keywords that told them I could not reveal all of my reasoning. They accepted it."

He turns to her. "Do you know why?"

She shakes her head.

"Because I talked to each and every member of my crew, I cared about their health, their feelings, and what they thought. They have seen me fight for them. I'm not talking about physical violence. I stood by their side when they should have been sent to prison, but I also allowed them the final choice as to whether they stayed with my crew or not. If they wanted to leave I did not try to argue them out of it. I asked why. Most gave a reason, few did not. I did not take it personally, and yes a few left because of me."

He turns from her and continues, "On a warship the commander has the final authority. Any hesitation by a crewmember could be the death of the ship. I had to rely on a core of officers and senior enlisted to keep an eye on the crew. Several times I had to remove a crewmember. They were acting like a piece of yeast in leaven bread. They created trouble. They were removed. Unlike here, you have to gain the cooperation from everyone, which works only in a fantasy world. You still have those who despise you. Just like the yeast in the leaven bread, the whole Queendom will be lost if you do not remove it. The six are the yeast in your leaven bread."

"Did you ever make mistakes?"

"I made plenty of mistakes. I had the loyalty of my crew to watch my back when I did make a mistake. You could say we were a family. It was the crew who saw the dangers before I did, but in the end, I made the final decisions and I was responsible for the good or the bad of the decision. I know it's not the same with what you have to do here. I probably would not be a very good King. Best I could do is hope someone like you is there to advise me." He stands and stretches before walking to the door.

"We looked after each other. You don't have that here. Arendelle may never grow a larger population than it is now, but Arendelle has a core of people who everyone can depend. They are the ones you need on your council. You need to know them. Their expertise will tell you what's going on in your Queendom. They can tell you when problems are about to happen. They can feel the pulse and health of Arendelle. The six are here for themselves."

He turns his head towards her. "I will do as you ask. I will amend to your King in public, every chance I get, but the moment he is unworthy, I will stop." He pushes the door open and a breeze flows in. The shadow of the castle walls has faded. Just above the horizon the moon reveals the glory of the Sun's reflection.

"Are you leaving before hearing the sentence? What if the circumstances change?"

"You already know the sentence. You could tell me now or wait until I come back. If you do not want me here, tell the guards not to let me in, then I'll disappear."

"What about Elsa?"

"If she is the only card you have to keep me here, you are about to lose everything. I will say this. If anything happens to her as a result of your poor decision, you will never see her again. Currently, I'm your best bet to keep your Queendom under your control. I have no desire to take her from you. Treat me fairly. Allow me to do what I'm trained to do. You do not have to know."

"When will you be back?"

He points out the door. "The moon will be full in a couple of days." Elsa groans. His head snaps around to her. "I know sweetie, but I need time to think. I'll be back in several days." Elsa groans and tries to push away.

"Elsa, what is wrong with you."

Iduna covers up and he walks over with his eyes down and kneels.

His fingers brush Elsa's hair. She stares up at him. "Sweet girl, you will be alright. I promise I will be back. I need a little time away." He closes his eyes as he kisses Elsa's forehead. "It's time for you to sleep." She groans as he opens his eyes. He smiles. Elsa smiles back at him. With a big yawn, she closes her eyes.

"How did you do that?"

He does not answer as he walks to the door. "If my services are no longer needed, I will know if the guards do not let me back in. If they do, I will be confined to the stables." He walks out closing the door.

Half way across the courtyard Lieutenant Larsen walks beside him. "Where are you going?"

"Your Queen is in the stables with the Princess. Please make sure they get back to the castle safely."

"It will be done, so where are you going?"

"The moon will be full soon. I'll be away for several days in case your Queen inquiries about me."

"Why don't you tell her yourself?" Larsen glances back at the stables

"I did, but I'm not sure she was listening." He looks at the Lieutenant as they reach the gates. "Do whatever she says, even if you do not understand. Ask for a reason after the event." He continues walking as Lieutenant Larsen stops at the gates.

A green twinkle in the sky catches his attention as he reaches the crest of the bridge.

He stops and whispers to it. "I see you. I can't reach you as you can't reach me." The green twinkle changes to red for several seconds. "Showing me your fire will not bring me to you. I know you will make me suffer for not obeying you. I have a fighting chance. I have a reason to stay." He continues across the bridge and disappears into the hills.

 **End of Chapter**


	20. Chapter 19 Save Her

Title: Chapter 19: Save Her

Date: 22 years 2 months before Correction

Two years have passed since Samuel's trial of treason against the King. He stayed in close contact with those who came to his defense on the day of his trial, especially the Shepard. He taught him to forgive those who had done him wrong. He was not alone, but had a rock and a Savior who forgave him even when Sam felt he was not deserving. The thoughts of his former profession faded and gave way to healing others.

Since the guards allowed him back into the courtyard, he never received an official pardon from the trial. He was sure the sentencing phase of the trial was on hold. Despite his persistence no one ever stated if the King sent a letter to the Bishop in Brussels, but that became a moot point when the Bishop departed shortly after the trial. Of the five other men who testified against him at the trial, the King allowed Waltz Jens to stay. One by one the others departed with their families. Even the last two trade negotiations showed signs of improvements for Arendelle, but Weselton had become the dominant partner with the best profits for Arendelle. Notwithstanding the loss of four families, twenty-four new families moved into the kingdom. The last two years he never entered the castle. He stayed in the stables tending the horses. Very few members of the castle visited him, but soon that would change.

A crisp breeze from the north greets Sam as he arrives early Sunday Morning to check on two of the Guard horses that refused to eat the night before. The guard at the gate makes his usual comments to Sam about his cleaning of the horse waste.

Sam shoots back his usual comment, "Fail at your duties on the gate and you can help me clean the horse stalls."

He continues his walk across the courtyard, but slows his pace to allow a group of soldiers to pass. He shakes his head as they head towards their weekly 'Get their anger issues resolved' meeting near the stables. Occasionally, Sam would watch to see who would be the toughest guy for the week. Until, they call for a match with their Captain. Today, Sam had no time to watch them. Overnight he had formulated a plan to help his two patients. It would get noisy in the stables, so he waits by the stable's gates until the matches begin. The guards would make too much noise to notice any noise coming from the stable. Sam did not have to wait long before the guards began their chanting of cheer's and boo's.

He enters the stables by the service room entrance. The royal decree he nailed to the wall above the table greets him every day. The decree states he was not allowed in the castle unless he is invited by the King or Queen of Arendelle, which actually worked in his favor. It allowed him to work with the people. He was sure the Queen's spies reported his conduct. Since she never expressed her desire for him to stop, most people of Arendelle greeted him. The past two years, he arrived early and left late so as not to compromise the Queen's authority. He watched Elsa grow. Many times he felt the urge to look at the second floor window, but he never gave into the temptation. He knew who stood in the window watching him. The past few months he felt another energy force growing. The time is fast approaching when Elsa will begin to show her powers.

With the task at hand, he heads to the two horses isolated from the other horses. These two refused to eat the previous evening. As he approaches, one horse acts very skittish and moves around in the stall. The second horse leans against the side of the stall. He reaches over the rail and touch its forehead. The horse does not move. It does not even swish its tail. His hand slightly glows to detect if the horse is dead, but he feels an intense abdomen pain.

The other horse paces back and forth. It would stop and raise its tail for a few seconds, then it would continue to pace. Sam searches the stall for anything that would help him to determine what is causing the horses to act strangely. He spots, semi-dried mucus near a post. With a straw he breaks up the mucus and finds a disk shaped object. He digs it out and dunks it in a small bucket of water. The disk looks like a plant, grayish brown with white bumps and the other side is mostly white ribs.

A rumble comes from the horse's open mouth. He steps back in time as the horse expels its stomach contents. The area fills with a putrid smell. He runs and opens the stable gate. Outside of the stable, he takes several deep breaths and runs through as he opens the upper louvers and every other head gate. Luckily for the guards, a breeze from the fjord flows across their fight pit before it reaches the stables. For a second he hopes the breeze changes directions from the stables to the guards to give them a taste of their lack of respect for the horses.

Already the putrid fragrant subsided as he walks back to search the horses contents. With a straw of hay, he searches for anything that does not belong. Several times he had to step out into the breeze to breathe. On the fourth search, he spots a partially digested sponge disk. He walks to the small bucket of water by the gate and rinses off the disk. The disk appears grayish brown with white bumps just like the other disk.

Suddenly, a low rumble comes from the other horse. It raises its tail in the air. The sound of a thunderous expulsion of gas reverberates inside the stables. Silence follows for a few seconds. Several horses closest to the gas release, neigh and as the gas expands one by one the other horses begin neighing. The smell assaults Sam's nose. He stops breathing, mid inhale. He quickly opens the vents around the stables. Several times he sticks his nose out a vent to take a breath. He gets all of the vents open and steps out of the stables.

A cook standing outside of the castle's kitchen door walks over to him. He waves his hand in front of his face and covers his nose. "What is that smell?" He covers his mouth with his sleeve. "Did a horse die? What do you have in your hand?"

"One of the horses got sick." He holds up the brown disk. "Have you seen anything like it?"

The cook holds it with his fingers and examines both sides. He sniffs it, "Other than the bile I'm detecting an odor of a raw potato. I hope you are not feeding this to the horses?"

"Absolutely not," he protests, "These horses get grains, oats, and fruit. I don't know where they would have gotten this, so what is it?"

"It's a poisonous mushroom." He hands the disk back to him. "I heard the chef call it Panther Capp. Depending on the amount consumed, if you're lucky you will get an upset stomach or worse confusion, dizziness, or you see things that are not there."

"That would explain the other horse acting very skittish when I entered the stables. So what is the cure?" he yells above the cheer coming from the guard pit.

"If you can get them to drink lots of water, it might help to flush it out of their system." The cook points to the mushroom, "that looks almost complete. The horse would have eaten it fairly recently, if it had consumed other stuff with it. I saw a man eat one of those and he ran across the bridge naked. It was funny to see the guards trying to catch him, until he tried to breathe underwater." He shrugs his shoulders, "but I'm just a cook. The chef said he saw a large guy eat several of them and survive. I guess if a horse ate a proportionally large quantity, maybe they would have the same reactions. Sorry I can't help more. I have to get back to the kitchen." The cook dips his hand in the bucket of water then returns to the castle.

Sam takes a deep breath and runs back into the stables. Three horses sniff the air as he runs past them. He almost steps into a new deposit near the two sick horses. With a straw he moves the stuff around in the second pile, until he sees several pieces of a mostly whole mushroom. He collects the pieces in a small cloth bag and moves to the first pile looking for more evidence. When he has collected all of the mushrooms, he ties the cloth bag close.

A slight breeze aerates the stable. One of the sick horses whimpers near the water trough. He moves to the trough and catches a glimpse of two castle staffers walk quickly past the stables as they hold a cloth over their noses.

"Ok guy, I'll get you some water." He holds his right hand out and ice forms at the bottom of the trough. After a few seconds, still looking towards the doorway just in case someone walks in, he places his left hand close to the ice and melts it. He repeats the process several times until the trough fills with water. The horse sticks its nose in the water and drinks. The other sick horse staggers over to him and head butts him in his back. He moves to the side and the horse steps to the trough and drinks.

He walks back to the door and sees the small bag of mushrooms sitting next to the water bucket. A loud cheer sounds from the guard pit. He closes his eyes and scans for the two guards who belong to the sick horses. They are in the center of the pit as they fight each other. His eyes open and narrow as a grin forms on his face. He dunks the bag of mushrooms in the water, giving it a good soaking. Outside of the gate, he picks up a small round rock and walks several meters in front of the stable. The backs of the cheering guards make a tempting target, but only two need his attention. The rock flicks up in the air and lands in his hand.

He waits for another cheer, but does not have to wait long. A distinctive cheer signifies a winner has knocked their opponent off their feet. He leans back and measures the throw. The rock sails in a high arc against the clear blue sky. The sun illuminates the polished surfaces on the rock.

The winning guard holds his hands up and looks directly at him. The rock strikes the top center of the guard's forehead. He grabs his head as he staggers back and falls to the ground.

The second guard knocked down by the first, runs over to his friend. A whistle echoes against the walls. The second guard looks back towards the stable. The wet bag breaks apart against the guard's face as the momentum throws him to the ground. Few cheers as they look around for the source of the projectiles. Most begin to gag at the stench of the mushrooms.

Whispers murmur among each other. They look towards the stable. "Who is that? No way, he threw it from that distance."

The Captain of the Guards steps into the pit and points to the two down guards. "Who did this?" Most everyone points in Sam's direction. "You, stable boy, did you do this?"

Sam walks towards the pit. The guards separate, allowing him to pass. He replies to the Captain, "If you mean did I hit the two who allowed their horses to eat poisonous mushroom, yes, I did it."

"You're pretty good with a rock, how good are you with your fist?" the Captain glares at him.

"My quarrel is not with you, but with them." Suddenly, a large fist smashes into the side of his head knocking him to the ground.

"My troops work for me. I will discipline them, not you." The Captain grabs the back of Sam's collar pulling him to his feet. Just as suddenly, Sam swings his fist to impact squarely into the Captain's forehead knocking him to the ground.

Two guards jump him from behind. He sidesteps one giving gravity a little assistance by pushing one guard to the ground. The second guard swings wildly, and he jabs at the guard's neck, causing him to fall to the ground. Four more guards try to jump in, but their results are the same as the first two guards. All of them run at him.

The Captain staggers as he gets back on his feet. He swings into the middle of the crowd. They separate with Sam lying face down on the ground.

The Captain stands over him. "Take the boy back to the stables."

Four guards lift Sam by his limbs and carry him back to the stable. They toss him onto the floor and laugh as they walk away.

Sam lies on the floor holding his cold hand against his aching face. In the distance he listens to the Captain admonishing the two young guards for allowing their horses to eat the mushrooms. They are assigned additional duties as punishment. Even with an achy face, he felt the point was made until he hears the two say they needed to teach the stable boy a lesson. He decides stronger measures will be needed to motivate the guards to take better care of their horses.

He rolls to his feet and checks on the two sick horses. The one that passed the gas seems to be doing better. He moves the horse to another stall and cleans the mess it left behind. After a short time the stall is clean and has fresh hay on the floor.

He reaches over the rail to the other horse. "Hang in there, buddy. It may take a day for it to clear out of your system if it doesn't kill you."

He checks the next horse. Another guard failed to thoroughly inspect this horse with burs in its mane. He grumbles as he grabs a brush and moves into the stall. His helper fed and watered the horses, but nothing more. His grumbling distracts him from the normal sounds in the stable. The horse he is brushing neighs as it bumps into him.

"I'm sorry. The guards are taking you and your two friends off the path." He pulls a bur from the mane. "What if you were on an important mission for the Queen when your friends got sick? The idiots would have left your friends for dead or killed them if they could not move."

The horse shakes its head and lets out a long neigh.

"And you would be correct, but they would have killed you for attacking the guards." He pulls another bur from its mane. "These new recruits lack discipline. Maybe they need more practice." He snickers and brushes the horse's back. "What if the guards are forced to eat the mushroom? Let them see how it feels."

The horse nods its head and snorts.

A different sound enters the stable. To give the appearance of not noticing, he brushes the horse's side before looking under its belly. Someone stands just inside of the gate. He recognizes the shoes and the bottom of the Queen's dress.

She clears her throat.

He stands and sees the smile of Queen Iduna, but he will always know her as Ingrid.

She stands in her regal pose wearing an overcoat. "Am I interrupting your conversation?"

He places the brush on a stall post and trots over to her. He bows, "Please forgive me Majesty. I did not hear you come in."

She places her hand under his shoulder, "Please stand. I have come in here many times and you knew I was here."

"Yes, the last time you were here, I gave my report of the trade delegates last spring. The trade negotiations must have gone well since I have seen more than twice as many cargo ships dock here as compare to last year."

She nods and maintains her pose. "Your perspective is correct. We had several new families arrive here, but it is uncharacteristic, you did not hear me enter your stables, so what had your attention?"

He glances over his shoulder. "The situation has been resolved. I will not let anything distract me again."

She places her hand on the side of his chin and turns his head. She studies the side of his face. "When I came in here, it sounded like the situation is still ongoing. Are the bruises the resolution?"

"Ma'am, it was a misunderstanding. It will be corrected soon." He watches her eyes to gauge her response.

"Who did this to you?" she asks still holding his chin.

"Ma'am, please do not say anything. I will take care of it at the appropriate time."

She pulls his chin down as she leans close to his face, forcing Sam to look into her eyes, "Who?"

When she brought him the trial decree, he promised not to look into her mind, even if she initiated the contact, which clearly put him at a disadvantage and uncertain of the possible results. He answers, "The Captain of the Guards."

"Twice?"

He dips his head.

She lets go of his chin and looks around, "I will take your request into consideration if." She opens the stable door to glance around then closes it. "If you will do something for me."

Sam closes his eyes half way for a few second before replying, "There is no one within hearing for the moment. If I'm able I will do as you ask."

She leans close to him and whispers, "Do you remember when you told me I was pregnant with Elsa?"

"Yes," he whispers back.

"A couple of weeks prior, I was having strange dreams; desiring different foods; eating at different times; not hungry at other times, acting hostile and then not able to stop crying."

He raises his brows as she speaks, but does not interrupt.

"Well, lately I have been having the same type of cravings. This morning I blew up at my husband and a short while ago I could not stop crying."

Sam slowly nods.

"I was hoping, since you discovered Elsa." She quickly glances around, "Well . . . if you can determine if I'm pregnant, now."

"Would the doctor be more appropriate in determining this?"

"Not for several more weeks, and by then I would be able to tell him before he would tell me, so will you?" Her eyes plead.

He steps over to a bucket of water and wash his hands. "I can, but I have to physically touch you."

She steps next to him and holds out her hand.

He glances at her hand and back to her smile. "I will try it this way, but if the child is only a few weeks old," he glances down to her belly and back up to her face.

"Oh, I thought you might." She opens her coat and starts to unbutton her blouse.

He quickly grabs her hand. "Let's try this first." He holds her hand between both of his hands and closes his eyes. After a minute he opens them. "I'm sorry. I have to be closer to your child."

"Ok," she opens her overcoat and unbuttons the first two buttons over her stomach.

"You understand if someone sees me, the King will have me executed assuming I survive the beating."

"Were you just as afraid three years ago when you saved my life after the wolf attack?" She squints slightly with her hand on her hip and points a finger at him.

He raises his brows and rebuffs, "Your life was at state back then. Today it's my life that's at stake."

"Under normal circumstances, you should be correctly concerned. But . . . after seeing you do the things the King and I have seen you do, you are not an ordinary man."

She waves her hand towards the horses, "We have never seen these horses in any better shape." She points towards the gate. "The other day I saw you leading six horses in a single file across the courtyard. The lead horse appeared to be resting its chin on your shoulder. Why?"

He starts to answer, but she continues, "I will tell you why, because they like you. After that day, I tried to recall all the other times you walked each horse around the courtyard. The more I thought about it, I cannot count how many times the horses rested their chin on your shoulder. It is almost like you are able to communicate with them. I know I saw you talking to the lead horse which seemed to respond."

A slight smile forms as she continues, "But when Elsa came along and she gets in one of her moods, she seems to perk up when I hold her up so she can see you out the window. The King commented the last time he rode through the streets how a bunch of children were following you. When the child at the end of the line saw him, she yelled, 'All welcome the King'."

"Her name was Brigit," he interrupts.

"What? Who is Brigit?"

"The little girl who called out 'All welcome the King'. Her name was Brigit."

"Oh," she continues, "the King said all the children stopped and turned to him. The boys put their hands to their sides and bows. The girls curtsied. It seems whether with animals or children you bring out the best in them."

He stares at the Queen with his mouth partially open. She points her finger at his face, "Close your mouth. I dare you to deny it?"

His mouth closes as he looks around. _Have I been that careless?_ He always tried to make it look natural, but she was right. He talks to the lead horse. In that case, the horse said the new rider needed to be more specific in his directions. The rider gives too many conflicting signals for him to be effective with the other horses.

He looks directly into her eyes with a slight smile. "You are sneaky. I'm guilty as charged."

With his statement she takes his hand, "Please!"

He does not pull his hand away from her.

She guides his hand through the opening in her blouse and places it on her stomach over her navel.

Sam kneels before her and rotates his hand. He slides it down several centimeters. She tenses. "I'm sorry. I'll try to be quick." He inserts his other hand inside of the coat and places it in the small of her back. "This will feel a little cold, but I must be exact."

She takes a quick breath as she closes her eyes. He generates a small amount of heat in her back and a small amount of cold on her stomach. She tenses up more. "There, right there. I can hear a heartbeat. It's beating fast and sounds strong. If you take care of yourself, she will be a healthy baby."

"She? You said she?" Queen Ingrid's pearly whites beam with joy.

Sam removes his hands and buttons her blouse. He stands as he buttons her overcoat, "Congratulations, SHE . . . will be a girl. I would guess you are about 5-6 months along, maybe longer."

She wraps her arms around his chest, "Thank you, thank you, you have made my day so wonderful." She hurries to the stable door and stops long enough to compose herself. As she opens the door, she turns back still beaming and mouths the words, 'Thank You' and exits.

He walks to the door and starts to close it when he notices the Queen walking slower and proper for her position in society.

Sam closes the gate and walks back to finish brushing the horse. A cold chill runs down his back. He looks around expecting to find someone, but does not. He listens for anything out of the ordinary. The guards cheer in the pit as they continue to punch each other silly. Another chill runs down his back again but this time the chill last longer than before, even the hair on the back of his body stands up. His hands automatically close. The muscles in his legs and back tense as they prepare to attack the attacker.

Still nothing. He closes his eyes for several seconds and opens them in his blue vision. All his senses move to the hypersensitivity. His ears filter each sound and noise. He focuses on specific events. Shoes make crunching sound on the courtyard, move away from him. A horse's belly rumbles three stalls from him. Another swishes its tail. Another pair of shoes crunch dirt and sand on the courtyard stones. This pair of shoes runs in short steps. The weight of the wearer sounds lighter than the first pair he hears.

At a further distance, the sound of four distinct horses strain and stomp their hooves, but he also hears a high pitch sound of something very hard sliding against something not as hard. Whatever the source of the sound, it grows silent. Men yell and a whip snaps in the air. The squeal of the horses outside of the stables brings Sam's vision back to normal. The horses roar in distress by the main gate. He runs. As he opens the gate, a loud crash of lumber and stones fall off the wagon at the main gate and the sound of a man yelling, "LOOK OUT!"

Sam scans the commotion at the gate. Soldiers yell to calm the horses, but a surge on the wagon throws the driver off and more lumber falls off the wagon. The four horses break the wagon free from the gates.

The saliva glands in his mouth begin to over produce. An intense pain churns in his belly. He hears Ingrid yell as she starts to run towards the horses, "Elsa!"

The pain in his chest intensified as his vision zeros onto the target. Fear grips Princess Elsa. She runs towards her mother. A surge of energy explodes into his limbs. He sprints pass the Queen and yells, "I've got her."

The horse team breaks free from the wagon. It turns into a race of who will reach Elsa first. He grabs Elsa as he drops to his knees. His left arm shoots up above his head and generates a barrier that clips the first horse causing it to sidestep into the horse next to it. He turns his body to place himself between the horses and Elsa. The first horse pulls the following horses around them. With no control of the wagon, its inertia pulls the wagon towards them. He turns his shoulder and back into the wagon. Elsa screams as he clutches her tight to his body and generates an energy barrier around them. The front of the wagon pushes them along the courtyard. The front of the wagon jumps up and over them. The spine of the wagon breaks. A flash of blue light shines as timber and stones from the wagon covers them. The cloud of dust spreads across the courtyard. Men wrestle with the horses to calm them.

King Agnarr runs out the castle doors. He sweeps the dust from his face and spots his Queen collapsed on the steps. Running down the steps, he kneels next to her. "Ingrid are you hurt?"

She whimpers and barely move, but points to the debris. "Elsa."

The air explodes out of his lung as though a great weight sits on his chest. No one can survive that. He leans his head over her arm. Tears boil out of his eyes. "My little girl."

Ingrid pats his head. She grabs a fist full of his hair and pulls. "No, I can feel them. They are alive"

The debris moves. Through his watered eyes it looks like debris rises a meter near the wagon. It takes several seconds, but he sees it move again. He wipes the tears from his face. A small blue light shines between the lumber. He removes his jacket and places it under Ingrid's head. Gerda runs down the steps and kneels next to her mistress.

He grabs Gerda's arm. "Please take care of her. I will get my little girl out."

The King steps past two guards. "Get the others over here. Set up a relay to get the large stones out." He points to the guards approaching. "You five, put the larger lumber over there. Do not worry about stacking it. Sergeant, get your men to right the wagon."

The lump in the debris moves and he steps in to remove the stones. After several minutes the bulge drops a half meter. A ridge of debris rises from the bulge to directly in front of him. It creates a tunnel large enough for him to crawl into.

He kneels and starts to crawl into the tunnel when the Captain of the Guards grabs his arm, "Sir it is too dangerous. I will go in there."

He jerks his arm free, "No Captain, I have to save my child."

He crawls several meters into the tunnel. A solid round blue sphere holds up the debris. He touches it. The blue changes to clear. Elsa clings to Samuel with his arms wrapped around her.

Sam turns his head to reveal his emerald eyes. Agnarr has never seem a creature with such eyes. Elsa with her crystal blue eyes stare at him. Her blue hair floats around her head as if she was floating in water. Sam's lower jaw and lips move. Agnarr hears only his heart racing. He pushes his hand into the sphere. The pressure in his ears pops and he hears Elsa crying.

"Charles take her. I can't hold this much longer. Take her." Elsa screams and clinches tighter to Sam.

"Call her." The debris above him shifts down.

"Elsa, Elsa come to Papa, Elsa."

She buries her face into Sam's shirt.

From behind him Ingrid kneels in front of the tunnel. "Elsa, it is time for you to go. Please come to Momma. Elsa come to Momma"

Elsa does not budge.

Sam motions for the King to get his daughter.

He pushes into the sphere and grabs her arm as she cries louder. The area in the sphere shrinks.

Sam runs his fingers through Elsa's hair and she looks up at him. "Elsa, please go with your father. He will keep you safe."

"No Admal, I stay with you."

"Elsa, listen to me. I will help them to clean up this mess. I don't want you to get hurt. Please go with your father. I will see you soon." She loosens her grip on his shirt.

Agnarr slides his arm around her waist and pulls her away. His body tingles with the surge of energy. She screams all the way out of the tunnel. "Admal, Admal, Admal."

Two guards help him to his feet. He passes Elsa to her mother and wraps his arms around the both of them. A small blast of air strikes his lower legs as the tunnel collapses.

She fidget and tries peek past her father. "Momma, Papa help Admal. He needs me."

A whoosh of air expels dust from the debris as the bulge caves in.

Elsa body tenses as she screams, "Admal." Her body falls limp. "Momma?" Her deep blue eyes fade to the light blue and her eyes gradually close.

Agnarr places his face close to her nose and detects her breathing. "She will be ok. Please go inside. I will help to clean up here."

Dust clings to the moist traits on Ingrid's face. She holds Elsa tight. Gerda assists her into the castle.

Dust rises high above the castle. The tops of the surrounding tree sway towards the castle. A cloud forms and thickens to block out the sun.

End of Chapter


	21. Chapter 20 Rescued

Title: Chapter 23: Rescued

Date: 22 years 2 months before Correction

The Captain commands the guards, "Continue digging. We have to get the area cleared by sunset." He glances to his King. "Sir, we will finish here and we will take care of the body."

King Agnarr loosens his shirt, "And I will do my part as promised. You are in command. Put me to work."

With a moment of hesitation, he bows his head to his King, "Larsen."

Lieutenant Larsen runs over to him and salutes the Captain. "Sir."

The Captain returns his salute. "You will work with our King. You will stick with him until our King decides he has had his fill of manual labor work or we have to carry him off the field. Keep him busy"

"Yes, sir."

The Captain lowers his head next to Larsen. "He wishes to serve. Let him serve, but you will be held responsible if anything happens to him. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir, I do."

The Captain moves away as he watches Larsen.

Lieutenant Larsen comments, "Sir, do not take offense of the Captain's words. That is the same statement he uses for every new recruit."

"None taken. Did he say you would be held responsible if something happens to me?" Agnarr eyes the Lieutenant.

"He did. At this point I usually yell at the new recruit and give him a motivational speech that if he wishes to stay in this man's army, he will conform or we will send him to prison or he will run away to his mommy." He spots their local Doctor and his assistant passing through the gates. "The Doctor is here."

Agnarr pats the Lieutenant's arm and walks over to the Doctor. After a few seconds he escorts him to the castle doors.

Larsen looks at the sky. Clouds hide the sun and move in a circular pattern around Arendelle. The hairs on his arm stand up. He rubs his arms and returns to help remove the debris.

After a few minutes of work one of the guards cries out in pain as he pulls his partially frozen hand out from between the rocks. The guard stumbles off the debris. The Doctor checks the guards frozen hand and calls for a bucket of water. Another guard runs over to them with a bucket.

The Doctor assists the injured guard. "Keep your hand in the water and sit on the steps. It should thaw and when it does, do not move your fingers until I look at them."

Agnarr asks, "What is it?"

The Doctor rubs the back of his neck as he shakes his head. "If I had not seen it for myself, I would not have believed it. He said he saw a whitish-gray hand under several rocks. When he touched it, his hand froze."

The King yells at the work detail, "Everyone stop and listen to me."

The digging stops and all turn to the King.

"Do not touch Samuel's body just get the debris off of him. Do you understand? Do not touch his body. We already have had a guard injured for touching him."

They dig more cautiously. After a half hour, they remove the last stone. Guards murmur about seeing people frozen solid in the mountains. They say Sam's flesh looks just like those people.

A guard points at Sam, "Look, his finger moved."

The Doctor moves next to the guard. Sam moves his little finger.

The guard points, "See, he moved it again."

"We need to move him without touching him."

Agnarr speaks with Kai then Kai runs into the castle. Lieutenant Larsen issues commands. A few minutes later, several guards create a makeshift stretcher with a thick blanket and long poles. Two guards wrap their hands and arms in a blanket and roll Sam onto his side, then roll him back onto the stretcher. Four guards lift him.

Kai stands at the service entrance and motions to the King.

Agnarr commands, "Take him to Kai and do as he says."

The guards carry Sam into the castle.

After the guards enter the castle, Queen Iduna holding Elsa, walks out the front doors and marches across the courtyard to the garden. Elsa asks, "Is Admal sick? Can I see Admal?" The Queen keeps walking as she tries to wipe away a tear.

The guards place Sam's body in an empty servant's room near the kitchen. The Doctor follows them into the room and opens his medical bag. He takes out a long wooden hollow dowel. The Doctor places one end of the dowel to his ear and places the other end against Sam's back.

He speaks to no one, "Not possible." He looks at the hollow dowel. He leans over Sam and places one end of it against Sam's chest and the other end to his ear for several minutes. He turns to the King. "His heart is beating very slowly but he is alive."

Agnarr points to Sam, "He looks frozen. How is he alive?"

"I don't know. All my medical science tells me he should be dead. But whatever is going on in his body is still happening." He points to the fog developing below the cot, "It appears his body is generating the cold, which is cooling the air under his cot." The Doctor shakes his head as he continues, "His left lower leg is broken in three places. His left arm has a break above the elbow and both bones in the lower arm is broken in two places. The flesh on the front of both legs has been shredded. Without touching him, the bruising on his left side may indicate a couple of broken ribs. If he survives, he will be crippled for the rest of his life."

"Is there nothing more you can do for him?"

The Doctor puts his medical dowel back into his bag. "Not in the state he is in right now. I suspect we will know by sunset or by tomorrow morning if he lives or not."

He walks out of the room, followed by Agnarr as he closes the door. They walk towards the servant's exit, when the Doctor stops and taps his forehead. "A little over five years ago when I was at the medical school in Paris, a doctor talked about a child fallen through the ice on a pond. By the time they retrieve the boy's body, they thought he was dead. They laid his body on the shore and were digging a grave, but because the ground was frozen, several people went back to get pickaxes to break through the frozen part of the ground. The others still there built a fire to keep warm. A short time later one of the people notices the boy's hand was not frozen and he was breathing. They carried him closer to the fire. After several minutes he opened his eyes." The Doctor glances back at the open door to Sam's room. "I wonder if a similar effect is happening to him."

The Doctor glances at him, "Majesty." He points. "Did you close the door?"

He looks over his shoulder, then turns towards the door. "I did close it."

Iduna runs down the hallway as she gasps for air.

"Did Elsa come by here? I set her down to get some water for the vase. I turned around and she was gone. She said she had to talk to Admal."

He moves to the door, followed by the Doctor and Iduna. He slams the door open.

Elsa lies next to Sam with her face on his arm as she taps the ice with her hand, "Admal, wake up, wake up. We have to play horsy."

He lifts her up. "Elsa, what are you doing? He needs to sleep. Do not waken him."

She points to him, "He not sleep, He wake. Eyes open."

The Doctor kneels beside the cot. Sam's eyes are partially open. He places his ear close to the ice, then sits up with his brows pushed together and his lips parted. "Straighten your leg?"

"Yeesss," Sam replies.

"The cold will burn my hands."

"Nooo."

The ice around his left leg melts quickly. The Doctor moves to the end of the cot and takes a few minutes to set the leg straight. He set Sam's leg down and a thick layer of ice forms around it. The ice around his arm quickly melts. The Doctor moves to the side of the cot and sets his arm as straight as he can. Just as quickly a thick layer of ice forms around his arm.

Sam closes his eyes and a blue mist engulfs his body. The temperature in the room drops noticeably. A thick layer of ice forms around Sam's body. After several minutes he is encased in blue tinted ice.

Elsa yawns, "Good night, Admal sleeps, I sleep." She lays her head on her father's shoulder and closes her eyes. He turns to the soft touch on his hand and returns a smile to his Queen Iduna.

"Is there anything that needs to be done more here," he asks the Doctor.

The Doctor shakes his head, "No, I guess he knows what he is doing. When I get back to my clinic I'm going to write down everything I saw. If he lives I plan to talk to him about what just happened."

He stops by the King and examines Elsa's face and hands. He shakes his head again. "Not even a red mark from the ice." He continues out of the room with his medical bag under his arm.

Iduna asks, "How long will he sleep?"

"I do not know. Let us see if he survives the night. I will check on him later this evening." He passes Elsa to her mother and escorts them out of the room. He meets Kai down the hall, "None of the staff are to enter his room."

"Yes, Majesty." Kai encounters the two staff members and passes the Kings instruction.

Agnarr follows his Queen carrying Elsa up the stairs. Elsa lifts her head and asks, "Are you mad at me?"

"No, I am not mad at you. You gave me such a fright when I could not find you. This is twice you ran away today. You cannot continue to be doing this." She stops half way up the stairs and tilts her head towards her daughter. "Why did you run outside earlier this afternoon, after I laid you down for your nap?"

Elsa turns her head away, "Momma, I did not mean to frighten you. Admal said I was going to have a baby sister." She lays her head on her mother's shoulder. "I wanted to see my baby sister, so I got up and ran down the stairs. I thought you went out the door. I wanted to be with you. I'm sorry Momma."

Iduna continues up the stairs holding her little girl tight.

Elsa whispers, "Momma, will Admal be ok?"

Iduna does not answer immediately. She carries Elsa into the royal suite and swings the door close, but it does not close all the way. She sits on the bed and turns Elsa to face her, "Can you hear him right now?"

"No Momma, He is asleep."

She searches Elsa's face for any sign that she is making it up. "When you say he is asleep, is he asleep like when you and I lie down to close our eyes?"

Elsa places her hands on her mother's face. "His mind is asleep. That is how his body is healed. He will wake up soon."

Her lips part like she is about to speak, but nothing comes out. A moment later she asks, "How do you know that is how he heals his body and will be awake soon?"

"Do not worry. He told me while the Doctor was fixing his leg and arm that I should take care of you and be a good girl for you and Papa. He told me not to worry and he would call for me when he wakes up." Elsa smiles and kisses her mother's cheeks. She crawls out of her mother's lap and onto the bed. She lays her head onto the pillow and closes her eyes.

Agnarr standing in the doorway walks over and sits next to Ingrid, "What was that all about?"

Iduna hesitates before turning towards Charles, "I think she can really hear Sam before he was covered completely by the ice. He told her he would call her when he wakes up."

She turns away, holding her hand to her lips, "I saw the blue glow under the pile when you went after Elsa and I saw she did not want to let go of him."

She turns back to her husband and places her hand on his chest. "Is it possible that the blue glow did something to the both of them that allows them to communicate to each other, just by thinking it?"

"That is what I said Momma." Elsa answered as she watches both of her parents.

Iduna crawls over the bed and lies down, pulling Elsa close to her.

Agnarr kneels at the head of the bed and leans in close to his two beautiful girls. He brushes Elsa's hair out of her face. "Elsa, when you were holding onto Sam."

Elsa narrows her eyes and her brows push together.

He corrects himself, "My mistake, Admal, when you were holding onto Admal, did you feel anything different? Were you scared?"

Elsa reaches up and places her hand on his face. "When I saw the horses coming at me, I was afraid. When Admal grabbed me I was not afraid. I saw the blue light coming from him. He told me the blue light will protect us and it did."

"How did it feel being in the blue light?"

"It made me tingle all over then I was safe. That is when he told me he would never leave me."

Iduna glances at him. "Is that when you could hear his thoughts?"

"Yes."

He kisses the foreheads of his Princess and his Queen.

Several minutes later he walks through the castle's main doors. Most of the debris has been removed and the guards are sweeping up the remaining sand and rocks. A young guard struggles to carry a large bucket of water and does not see the King approach.

"Let me help you with that." He grabs one side of the bucket's handle and they carry the water bucket to the first group of guards.

The first guard to see him quickstep towards them. "Majesty, I will help him to carry it."

"Nonsense, I am quite capable of carrying my share of the work."

"My apology Majesty, I did not mean –"

He hands the ladle full of water to the guard. "I did not take offense. Please drink."

Lieutenant Larsen approaches. "Do we have a problem, gentlemen?"

"No problems with us." The King turns to the Lieutenant. Larsen bows to him. "I was about to explain to these fine gentlemen. I am capable of performing hard work. I appreciate the hard work the Royal Guards perform around the castle to protect my family and Arendelle."

A quarter hour later, the Captain of the Guards marches across the courtyard towards the gathering of guards. "I still see a lot of work that needs to be done with guards standing around."

The guards make a path for the Captain to the water bucket.

"Captain, good timing, you can have the last cup of water." Agnarr holds up the ladle.

The Captain bows, "Majesty, it is just they need to get the yard cleaned up before the sun sets."

"Ouch, usually, it is my Queen, who tells me to get out of the way."

The Captain's eyes widen as he slowly shakes his head. "Uh, no sir, that is not what I meant." He stands at attention. A couple of guards snicker behind him.

"Relax, Captain, I am here to do my part."

Larsen motions with his head. "Okay gentlemen, break is over. We still have an hour's worth of work to finish." He bows to the King and the other guards bow as well.

They return to removing the debris. Agnarr lifts the ladle. The Captain takes it and drinks. "I hear the stable boy saved Princess Elsa's life. How is he doing?"

The King stares at his Captain for a second before replying, "The Doctor does not know for sure. If he lives to see another sunrise, it will be a miracle."

"I hope he makes it. He is a strong worker, especially with the horses. Since arriving here he has influenced many people, including most of the guards to perform better."

"Influenced people. He has unquestionably had an influence on the Princess. Well, thank you for allowing me to interrupt your guards. Maybe we have a better understanding." He nods to the Captain and returns to the castle.

At the bottom of the stairs, he glances at the hallway leading to the kitchen. For the moment, silence is his companion. He hears the crunching under his boots as they turn. He glances up the stairs. The crunch sounds again. He moves down the hall and stops in front of the servant's room. Someone moves in his direction from the kitchen. He ducks into the room and closes the door. The person walks past the door. He recalls a table on one side of the door, but does not remember, which side. His boot bumps into the table and his hand searches for the candle and matches.

An explosion blossoms on the head of the match. The candle flickers shadows around the room. From the corner of his eyes, he sees a shadow the shape of a human move across the room. He snaps his head around. The shadow falls behind the cot. He stares at the body frozen in the ice exactly where it was when he left the room. Even with the yellow light of the candle, the ice has a bluish tint about it.

He moves the candle to the chair next to the cot. His hand reaches for the ice, but a burning pain stabs his fingers before they touch the ice and he jerks his hand back. The tips of his fingers are a whitish-pink. He passes them over the candle, but does not feel the flame.

 _Rub them together._

He spins around expecting someone to be standing at the door. "Who said that?"

He is alone. The feelings returns to his fingertips as he rubs them together. He kneels next to the cot and moves his face close to the ice. Sam's eyes are closed.

"Can you hear me? You should be dead along with my little girl. Did you touch my wife again to determine if she is pregnant? You seem to be having a greater influence on Iduna's Queendom than I do. I have heard a few claim you are a demon. Are you?"

Someone's shoes slide pass the door, which causes him to look back. He expects the door to open, but the person continues down the hall. "Be extremely careful of who is around you when you talk. If my family is threatened, I will do everything I can to protect them, including," he looks over his shoulder again for a moment, "including removing you."

He starts to rock back onto his feet and stops. "Thank you for saving Elsa." He pushes on the chair and rocks to his feet. He moves the candle to the table by the door and listens. No sound comes from the other side. Blowing the candle out the King slips out and closes the door.

Every morning the Doctor checks on Sam's condition, but he is not able to determine any changes. Every evening King Agnarr sits in Sam's room for a short period. He does not know if Sam can hear him, but he talks about anything that comes to mind, mostly running the Queendom and settling squabbles. Just before he leaves, he updates him about Elsa and her moods, but this night will be different.

He sits in the chair as he had the previous evenings, but hesitates to speak. The door lock rattles, but the door stays close. He searches the room. May be it was a mistake to be there. He rests his head in his hands and hopes for a distraction that would give him an excuse to leave. With a deep breath, he slides his chair closer to the cot. He leans close to Sam, but not too close, remembering the cold pain when his fingertips were too close.

In a low whisper he speaks. "Samuel, if you can hear me, I do not know how to express myself for your act of courage and risk to save my precious Elsa. When I found out you had to touch my wife in order to save her life, I had mixed emotions. She showed me the scar. The Doctor explained if you had not intervened I would have been burying her. My heart hurts just thinking about how I almost missed out on Elsa's love and affection. I thank you for saving both of their lives. Iduna told me she came to you in the stables when you were hurt. I wish she had waited for me, then you could have told us together. I know you protested that if I found out, I would execute you." He shrugs his shoulders, "maybe beat but not execute."

He pauses for a few seconds, "I am kidding. When she told me you said she was going to have a little girl, I hugged her, I wanted to run down here and thank you, but instead I went back into another meeting." He hesitates to continue, but after what he saw with Elsa, he needs to protect her. "Since you arrived here, there have been some strange reports of lights in the forest and up on the mountain. Initially I dismissed the reports, but what I saw surrounding you and Elsa, I have to re-evaluate those reports. I know you live up on the mountain someplace we have yet to find. I just need to know if you are the cause of the lights or not."

He looks for movement in Sam's eyes, but the ice makes it hard for him to determine. "Samuel, you are a very peculiar individual. You seem to have something the horses like about you. I recall one of the reports stating a hunter saw a man frolicking with fifteen to twenty wolves on the mountains. Was that you they saw? And it seems the children here in Arendelle like you as well. I liked the way the children responded to me when I ride by. What magical power do you have over animals and children? Which brings me to what I have been trying to say tonight. Your influence reaches to my little girl. Every day, she asks me if she can come down here to talk to you. Please understand, I saw what happen to the guard who touched your hand. Luckily the Doctor was there to treat the guard. When I saw Elsa's face and hands on your arm, she did not receive any frost burns. I wonder if you were protecting her from the ice. I still have some reservations about her wanting to be near you, at least until I can get more information from you."

He leans back in the chair, "You know, it is nice to be able to talk about my frustrations. I do get tired of everyone telling me what I should think or do just because I am the King. Thank you for listening. I will not visit tomorrow. I have to prepare a speech for my trip to the Southern Isles. I will visit before I leave. I hope you get well soon."

He stands for a moment before walking to the door. As he reaches for the handle, the door is not closed. He is sure he closed it when he came into the room, but maybe he did not. The noise he heard earlier, was it the sound of the door opening to where it is now? He passes through the door and makes sure it is closed this time.

Agnarr reaches the top of the stairs and hears a commotion in the royal suite. As the door opens, a frantic Iduna meets him.

"Did you see Elsa? Did she run past you? She is not in her bed. Wake the staff we have to find her"

He grabs her arms. "Hold on. She is not getting out of the castle. Where was she the last time you saw her?"

"She was standing by the door trying to open it. She kept saying she needed to tell Admal about your trip to the Southern Isles. I picked her up and put her in her bed. When I came back from the other room the door was open."

He remembers the open door to Samuel's room. "I think I know where she is. Get your coat?"

Iduna grabs her coat off the back of the chair and follows him down the stairs. "Do you think she went into his room?"

"I think so. About ten minutes ago, I thought I heard the door open. It looked close and I did not see anyone in the room, so I did not think any more about it until I went to leave. The door was open a few centimeters. Again, I did not see anyone in the room. Maybe she sneaked in and found a place to hide."

"All afternoon she kept saying she was talking to Admal. I thought she was just playing." She grabs his arm. "Do you think she really was talking to him?"

They stop outside of Samuel's door and listen for sounds inside the room. They barely hear a child's voice and giggling. Agnarr slowly opens the door. Elsa wearing her night clothes lies on Sam's arm and side as she swings her feet in the air. She rests her chin on her hands on his shoulder. She speaks to him as though she is having a conversation, even though there are no signs that Sam replies to her.

She pats the side of his frozen head. "You can teach me to ride a horse. I can help you to brush them and get them to talk to me the way they talk to you." For a moment she stares at Sam. She closes her eyes and extends her bottom lip out. "Mommy says he works too long. I wish he could play with me."

She turns her head towards the door and smiles, "I love them."

They stop midway across the room. Iduna asks, "Elsa, why did you say those words, 'I love you'?"

Her smile gets bigger, "Because I do."

He stands next to the cot, "How long have you been talking to him?"

"When you finished eating."

Iduna places her hand on his shoulder. "That was almost two hours ago." She turns to Elsa, "You were talking to him the whole time."

Elsa shakes her head no, "When Papa came in here he did not talk to me."

"Is that when you came down here, when Papa was in here?"

"Yes," she answers shyly.

Her father lightly chastises her, "Elsa, you scared your mother when she could not find you. If I did not think you would be here, you would have scared me. I would have thought something had happened to you."

"But it is ok, I here with Admal. He keeps me safe."

Her mother picks her up. "I know you are safe. Please promise me you will let me know you want to visit him so I can be with you."

Elsa hesitates as she looks at Sam. She gives her mother a big hug as she says, "I promise to tell you." Her mother gives her a tight hug.

She leans back and cups her mother's face. "Admal says brush fell under the bed on Papa's side." She leans towards her father and grabs the shoulder boards on his uniform, "Papa, Admal said you can beat him for finding Momma's baby.

Iduna looks at her husband quizzically, "Beat him?"

Agnarr's eyes widen as he holds his hands up in a surrender motion, "I was joking." He quickly turns his head to Sam then back to Iduna. "Unless she was under the cot, there is no way she could have heard me. I whispered to him. Do you think he is communicating with her, right now?"

Elsa glances at Sam before grabbing her father's mustache to pull him close to her. She kisses his cheek. "I love you Papa."

He takes Elsa in his arms and whispers in her ear, "I love you too. Did he tell you to say that to me?"

"No, he said to pull your hair lip. I say I love you." Elsa replies as she nuzzles into his neck.

"Let us give him time to sleep. I will put you in your bed." He moves across the room and opens the door. His Queen is not by his side. "Are you coming?"

"I will be right behind you." She continues to observe Sam.

The King carries his little Princess down the hall.

Ingrid waits. "If I could kiss you I would. I have not seen him love on Elsa in a long time. Once you are up and around, maybe you could talk to my husband to make time for his little girl. He works too long and barely sees her in the evening. If you can influence him to spend more time, I would be in your debt." She kisses her finger and starts to touch his face, but the intense cold stops her. She blows him a kiss and departs the room.

Minutes later, Iduna passes Elsa's room. She hears the King reading a story to her. Outside of the door, she listens and hears the distinctive sound of a Goodnight kiss. She hurries to their room. She places her coat over the back of the chair and rolls the blanket back to get in the bed, but remembers what Elsa said about her brush. She looks under the bed on the King's side and finds her brush. Sitting on the edge of the bed, she considers if Elsa has developed similar abilities that she did after Sam saved her from the wolves.

A few minutes later her husband enters the room smiling. He sits next to her. "What are you thinking?"

She holds up the brush. "Elsa said Sam told her where my brush had fallen. It was under your side of the bed. Elsa was not in the room when it fell. Is he really talking to her?"

He places his arm around her, "What other logical reason could it be? I have seen some strange things, why not this?"

End of Chapter


	22. Chapter 21 Reborn

Title: Chapter 24: Reborn

Date: 22 years 2 months before Correction

The following morning, the three begin their day together with breakfast. Agnarr finishes first as he usually does. He kisses his wife and kneels beside Elsa's chair. In her night clothes, she wraps her arms around his neck. It does not ease his pain, knowing his little girl is growing up without him, but he must try to make a better future when she becomes Queen.

He kisses her forehead, "I will be getting back after your bedtime so I'll give you your bedtime kiss now." With another kiss on her forehead he leaves the room. Elsa watches her Papa leave and begins to pick at her food. Ingrid empathizes with Elsa, but she knows a treaty with the Southern Isles will be a good trading partner for the kingdom.

Elsa plays in her room all day and talks to Sam at least that is what Ingrid believes. At the evening meal Elsa picks at her food but eventually she eats most of it. At bed time she crawls into her mother's lap and falls asleep. Ingrid allows Elsa to sleep hoping her father would return soon so he could put her to bed. After nodding off for the third time the clock strikes eleven. She does not wish to fall asleep in the chair despite her failing efforts. The Queen carries Elsa to her room and tucks her in her bed, then she stumbles back to her room. The King sits on the edge of the bed, taking his boots off. Ingrid kisses his cheek and pats his head as she crawls past him to her side of the bed. She pulls the covers over her and falls asleep in no time.

The next morning the King eats quickly, kisses Ingrid, and kisses the turn up cheek of a sleeping Elsa at the table. Before he steps out the room he looks back at his girls, both sleeping at the table. This is supposed to be a short day to clarify final details. The council said they were ready to accept the trade agreement. At least that is the plan.

His father told him there would be days when he would see little of his family if at all. He is sorrowful that there have been so many of those consecutive long days recently. His sleeping girls at the table tells him they tried to stay up the previous night waiting for him, but he agrees with the council. A good trade agreement would be beneficial for both kingdoms. A few more days and then he can spend time with his family again.

The staff begins to remove the breakfast plates when Elsa wakes up. She yawns and stretches and with a shrill she yells, "HE IS AWAKE." She jumps out of her chair and runs to her mother.

The Queen pops her head up from the shrill as she sits back in the chair.

Elsa shakes her mother's arm and tugs, "HE IS AWAKE. HE IS AWAKE. Come on Momma."

Ingrid is awake enough to get to her feet before Elsa pulls her out of the chair. Elsa pulls her mother to the door.

Ingrid stops. "Elsa, we are not in appropriate clothing to be meeting with him. Let's change into our day clothes, then we can check on him." She opens the door.

Elsa stands in the middle of the hall focused towards the stairs. After a few seconds, she grabs her mother's hand and pulls her towards her room.

"Elsa, were you talking to Samuel?"

"Yes, I told him we need to change clothes and will be there soon."

"What did he say?"

"Go slow, so he can get ice gone." Pulling on her mother's arm, "Come on Momma. I have to get food. He is hungry."

They enter Elsa's room first. Her mother helps her to pick out a blue dress, short pants and a pair of shoes, she likes to play in. By the time Ingrid turns around with the clothes, Elsa has her night clothes off. She struggles with the dress, but her mother helps her into the dress and pants. Elsa grabs her socks and jumps onto her bed. Her mother slips the shoes onto her feet. Elsa jumps down from the bed and grabs the brush off her table with several hair clips. She holds still for her mother to brush her hair. Ingrid takes her time and braids Elsa's hair into one braid. Elsa patiently, hands her mother the hair clips.

Her mother hands the brush to her, "Ok, we are done."

Elsa tosses the brush onto her bed and pulls her mother to her feet. She drags her mother out the room and down the hall. She does not stop at the royal suite's door, but pushes it open and runs to her mother's wardrobe closet. Ingrid stands behind her as she pulls on a similar blue dress.

She smiles and reaches for a purple dress, "I think this will do."

Elsa interrupts, "No momma, he likes blue. It is his favorite color, please."

Even Ingrid has a hard time saying no to those blue eyes. "Ok, blue it is. Sit on our bed. I can get dressed by myself."

Elsa runs past her and jumps on the bed. Several minutes later, Ingrid walks into the room to see Elsa patiently sitting on the edge of the bed. Elsa jumps down and pulls her mother's hand towards the door.

Ingrid pulls Elsa to a stop, "Now hold on. We are the ladies of the royal family, so we need to walk with respect. Hold your head up slightly. We walk with purpose not in a hurry." Elsa nods and holds her mother's hand. They pass through the door and walk down the stairs like royal women.

Slowly they walk down the hall. As they move past the last corner Elsa tries to race to the door, but her mother holds onto her hand. "Hold up, we do not wish to catch him unprepared. We will knock first, then when he answers we will enter."

"Okay," Elsa replies.

They stand in front of the door. Her mother inspects Elsa and then herself. Convinced they were ready, she knocks on the door twice.

"Come in," a hoarse voice answers.

Ingrid opens the door part way when Elsa bolts through the opening. She does not have time to call her when Elsa launches herself at him. She lands with her feet first and wraps her arms around his neck as he groans from the impact. Elsa's momentum pushes him off the cot landing flat on his back for a second groan. His feet rest on the cot. Ingrid rushes over to see Elsa straddling his body. Her little arms wrapped around his head with her face against his cheek. His arms wrap around her little body. With his eyes closed, a tear runs down the side of his face.

She stares at a stranger that is a younger version of the stable boy. This was not the person who told her she was pregnant. Fear builds in her heart. If she is wrong, a stranger is holding her little girl. She blurts out before she can think any further, "Sam is that you?"

He opens his emerald green eyes and smiles up at her. "Yes Majesty, I am Samuel Ryan the stable boy who told you seven days ago you were pregnant with a healthy baby girl."

He moves his feet off the cot and rolls to stand, but Elsa digs her heels into his sides, creating an imbalance that causes him to stumble against the wall. With his feet under him, he stands as the Queen moves around the bed and pries Elsa off of him.

Elsa giggles as she holds onto her mother. Ingrid takes a whiff of the wet odor wafting from Elsa's damp clothes. She wrinkles her nose, "What did you get on your clothes young lady?" Elsa giggles more in response.

Sam sniffs his shirt. Wrinkling his nose, he knows exactly what the odor is. "My apologies Majesty, a good washing will get the smell out of the clothes and off her. Normally, when I change as you obviously have seen, I'm not attacked by such a beautiful young lady before I get a chance to clean up." He taps Elsa's arm which causes her to giggle, but a bright light flashes in his mind.

Ingrid responds to his changed expression, "Are you ok?"

As he steps back against the wall to hold himself up, he answers, "I think. No, I'm sure I am weak from lack of food. Since I was unprepared due to the event, I'll have to go back to my cave in the hill to get a change of clothing."

"You live in a cave?"

"Yes, I have lived in the cave the entire time I've been here."

"Not any more you will. Unless this room does not meet your needs, you can stay here. We can find you some more suitable clothes for you to wear until you can get your clothes."

He gives her a forced grin.

"You do have other clothing, do you?"

He continues to grin, but Elsa chimes in, "You are funny Admal." She turns her mother's face towards her face, "He has bear clothes and birf'day clothes."

Ingrid smiles at Elsa, "Do you mean birthday suit?"

She lays her head on her mother's shoulder, "Yes."

Ingrid glares at him. "Bear clothes and birthday suit?"

A slight pink blushes in his face. "I see, I will have to control my thoughts if I'm to stay around here."

She shakes her head. "We will need to discuss this form of communications you have with Elsa." She walks towards the door as she tickles Elsa. "And for you young lady," Elsa responds with a giggle, "We need to get you cleaned up. Papa said he might see us for lunch so we need to get ready to meet him."

She opens the door as Gerda steps in front of them. "Good, your timing is excellent. Unless you or Kai have any objections, Samuel will be staying in this room. Please find him a set of suitable clothes and get what he is wearing washed as soon as possible."

She leans close to Gerda and whispers. "You may wish to burn the cot." She stands straight. "See if the kitchen staff can get him a sandwich for right now. He will be having his evening meal with the King and me. Please see that he is on time."

She wrinkles her nose as the odor from Elsa's dress wafts up at her. "Short of burning down the room, can you do something about the smell?"

Elsa giggles as her mother makes a funny face.

Gerda pinches Elsa's nose. "Kai will find his clothes." She points to Sam, "You stinky, go outside this door," pointing to the side door in the hall. "Go down to the fjord and try to rinse the smell off. Someone will bring you soap and a brush. When you are clean I'll personally make you a sandwich."

"See you later, stinky Admal," Elsa says as her mother hurries down the hall.

Sam turns his head slightly and glares at Gerda with a smile, "If stinky sticks in her vocabulary."

"You will do what?" Gerda says with her hands on her waist.

He calmly walks over to her, "I'll go to the fjord and wash up."

She steps aside and watches to make sure he goes out the side door.

Kai walks up and gets a big whiff. "What is that smell?" He holds his nose and waves his hand in front of his face trying to get the smell to go away.

"That is the fragrance of a stable boy frozen in ice for seven days."

"They should have thrown him into the fjord before letting him out of the ice," Kai grumbles.

"Now behave yourself. Queen Iduna said he can stay in this room once it is cleaned and she invited him to have dinner with the royal family this evening. She did say we can burn the cot. See if you can find some clothes for him while I get the staff to clean his room."

"I'll find him clothes to wear. Where is he going?" He grumbles.

"He went down to the fjord, hopefully through the garden gate. Now, don't embarrass the Queen. She is repaying him for saving Elsa. After a few days he may leave."

"I don't like it, but I will not embarrass our Queen." Kai grumbles again as he walks up the hall.

Sam's pungent odor clears a path of all humans through the garden. As he approaches the gate, he points to himself and then points to the gate mimicking he is washing. The second the guard's nose is assaulted, he quickly opens the gate to let him pass. Sam follows the short path down to the fjord and places his shoes on a boulder. He ducks under the ice cold water, then stands with the water to his waist. He removes his shirt and rinses it in the water, squeezes the water out, and does the rinse and squeeze for several minutes. He holds up the shirt and smells it. While most of the odor has been removed, he can still smell his recent stay in the ice. He tosses his shirt on to a large boulder on the shore.

Although he is in a secluded spot, there are a couple of distant houses where someone could see him. He is not too concerned about those houses as he is concerned about the windows in the castle, but decides to take a chance if he does not move too close to the shore. His foot slips in the sediment at the bottom of the fjord and he takes the opportunity to remove his trousers. His foot moves across the bottom until it finds firmer ground to stand. He dunks and squeezes the trousers until no more flakes wash out of it. He moves towards the shore.

Kai sits on a small boulder. He has already expressed a dislike for him. He hopes Kai will not take this opportunity to put him in an awkward position. He starts to wade ashore, but Kai tosses him a bar of soap that lands in front of him with a splash in his face.

"Toss me your pants so I can get them washed. Don't come out until you are squeaky clean. Your new clothes are by the gate. Don't take too long. The family is expecting you for the evening meal, don't be late."

Kai walks back through the gate carrying Sam's old clothes. A staff member holds open a cloth bag. He stuffs the clothes in the bag, "Take this to the fire pit and burn it. I have some unfinished business here."

He waits for the staffer to move a distance away. Next to the gate, he grabs the hilt and removes the wrapping.

Sam retrieves the soap and a fragrance of a bouquet of flowers arise from it. As he washes his hair and notices the ends touch his shoulders. It is longer than he normally likes it to be, but being short on time he will have to get it cut later. His wash and rinse takes a little time to scrub every nook and cranny on his body. He repeats the process as not to embarrass anyone, let alone himself. He has not heard any whistles or comments. A quick glance at the castle window reveals no one watching him. He splashes ashore and runs to the gate. Clothes rest on a boulder, but the shoes are not in sight. He suspects Kai is up to something.

At an arm's length from the castle wall, he looks around. Confident no one can see him, he closes his eyes and a slight sheen of frost forms over his body freezing the water droplets. He flexes his muscle and his body, causing the frost and ice to fall to the ground. For several minutes he enjoys the heat radiating from the wall. A drop of cold water from his wet hair drips down his back. The warm and cold sensation on his back, as enjoyable as it is, brings him back to reality. He runs his left hand radiating with heat through his hair. After a few minutes with dry hair and adjusting the slightly loosed clothes, he places the palm of his hand on the gate. He does not detect the guard, but recognizes a confrontation is about to happen. He knocks on the gate.

The gate swings open. Kai blocks his entrance with a slender rapier pointing at his face. He stares at Kai more than the sword and steps closer so the point of the rapier touches his throat.

"If your plan is to run me through, this will be your only chance."

Kai does not speak, but glares at him.

After a few seconds Sam rocks back just enough to get the blade tip off his throat. Just as quickly, he pins the rapier against the gate's frame with his left hand. He steps forward and with his right hand, he squeezes Kai's wrist taking away the strength in his hand. Sam does not move his eyes from him. He removes the rapier from Kai's hand.

Sam steps inside of the gate and inspects the rapier. "This is a nice sword, but your tactic is flawed as you can see. What you did only works if your intent was to kill me"

Kai continues to face the gate, not saying a word. Sam steps to the side of him and hands the hilt of the rapier to him, "I'm not your enemy."

Kai takes the rapier, "I don't like you. Whatever magic you are using over the Queen and Princess will fail. When they see the truth about you, they may not give you a chance to run."

He leans close to him. "What about me that frightens you so much?"

Kai steps back as his brows draw together, "You have the foresight to see the Queen's pregnancy twice. I saw you frozen in ice for seven days and now you come out of it looking several years younger. You talk to horses and they follow you around. When that wagon fell on you and Elsa, both of you should be dead. Now she goes around claiming to talk to you when you are not in the area."

"Are you saying you are afraid because I'm different?"

Kai raises his voice, "Everything about you is different. No man around here can do the things I have seen you do. And . . . And they know nothing about you. Whatever your pretense, I will hunt you down if you do anything to harm the royal family."

He interrupts, "Is that what you truly think? Believe me when I tell you this. If I could get my ship operational, I would already be gone, but the fact stands, I crashed here. I will not leave my ship for any scavenger to find." He pauses for a couple of seconds. "I find you an honorable man wanting to protect your family. I have no desire to harm the family or anyone in Arendelle. As for this communication with Elsa, I don't understand it myself, but it is real. I have been talking to her the entire time I was healing in the ice."

Gerda walks up to them and points to the rapier. She immediately confronts Kai, "What is wrong with you? You do not go around threatening people you don't like." She turns to Sam, "Please forgive him for his foolish actions."

Sam places his hand on Gerda's shoulder and puts a finger to his lips, "Shhhh . . . I would have done the same thing, not quite the way he did it, but something similar. He's just trying to do right with the family. I do not blame him. He has not had the time to get to know me. But that is ok. If I get out of line, he has my permission to inform me of my errors."

She calmly replies, "Ok, as long as you don't take offense." She glances down at Sam's bare feet and turns to Kai, "Where are the shoes you found for him?"

"Inside, I'll get them," Kai replies as he walks back to the servant's area.

"He can be a little over protective."

"That's ok. He has a good heart and appears to have good intentions. Please understand when a stranger comes along, the last thing you don't want to do is become complacent and have something happen because you were."

"Here is your sandwich. Hope it will be enough to tide you over for a couple of hours."

"If you made it, I'm sure it will be more than plenty for me." He removes a corner of the cloth from the sandwich and begins to eat.

"Now I see why Kai is leery of you. You seem to know just what to say for the moment," Gerda smiles.

"My job is not to antagonize anyone, so if I try to soften someone's defenses, hopefully better communications and less misunderstanding." He takes another bite of the sandwich.

As they reach the edge of the garden, Gerda stops him, "No, no, you wait here. I'll get your shoes." She looks up at him. "Your hair is longer than I remember. I can get a staff to come out here to trim it up."

He runs his hand through his hair that reaches the bottom of his collar. "Tomorrow will be soon enough. I'll sit by the tree and wait for my shoes."

Gerda walks into the servant's door as Sam sits on the bench. He finishes his sandwich and lays the cloth in his lap. With the warm sun on his face, he closes his eyes and listens to the waves brushing up against the shore. He hears someone laughing by the stables, but he also notices the quietness and peacefulness in the garden. For a moment he wishes his two girls could be here as their memory stabs an emotional pain into his heart. His mind fights a losing battle against his heart. The emotion claws its way into his throat.

"Elsa, don't jump."

His eyes open to a grinning blond little girl landing on him with her feet first and her arms latch around his neck. Since the bench did not give, he had to force his stomach to keep his lunch down. Still, he was able to wrap his arms around Elsa before she fell back.

He focuses on her icy blue eyes. "Did you miss me?" He tickles her side and she responds with a burst of laughter. He enjoys Elsa's laughter and does not notice Queen Ingrid seated next to him.

"Can you guess she likes you?"

Instinctually, he wraps his arms around Elsa holding her tight and turns his body to place his shoulder between Elsa and the adversary. For a moment he stares at the Queen with the intent to defend Elsa. At the end of the moment he relaxes against the bench, then nods to the Queen. Out of the corner of his eye, he sees movement in an upper window behind them. "Who has access to that window up there?"

She looks around at the second level window, "I think that is the end of a hallway."

"What rooms are on that floor?" He continues to stare at the window searching for the movement he saw earlier.

"The council chamber, dining room, and the ballroom. Why?" She asks, placing her hand on his arm.

"And the negotiations are in the council room?"

"Yes."

"So anyone in the negotiations could have been standing at the window and could have seen you sitting here."

"I guess so." She pats his arm. "It's not like we are doing anything wrong."

"You know that and I know that, but if someone wanted to apply pressure to your husband for a more favorable agreement. This could be the leverage they need. He works very hard for you and Elsa, and the kingdom. I do not wish to be a pawn to anyone." He slides off the bench and onto his knees facing Ingrid with his head down. Elsa giggles and buries her face into his shirt.

She sits back against the bench, "You may be right. I know you had a run in with Kai earlier. I saw it from the window. What did he say to you?"

He does not look at her. She leans forward, grabbing the longer hair on the back of his head and twists. "Is this the way a good Queen should treat the stable boy?"

He does not respond.

She twists his hair more and pulls it to the side, causing his head to twist. It allows him to see a face in the shadows behind the window.

"I . . . see . . . you . . . hiding," he whispers.

She releases his hair and quickly turns towards the window. "Who did you see?" She turns back to him.

"I do not recognize the uniform, but I did notice a jagged scar on his forehead. How many other members from the Southern Isles came with their King and Queen?"

"Three members of the royal family and seven of their staff. A noticeable scar on the forehead should be easy to spot. When I go back in, I will inquire as to who that may be. Will that satisfy you?"

"Your Majesty, I would prefer you not ask until the negotiations are over. Whoever they are could influence their King and yours."

"Would you feel better if I kick you in the face and stomped on your throat?" She asks with no emotions.

With wide eyes he slowly moves his head from side to side "No ma'am that will not be necessary."

A smile reveals her jesting. "Samuel, you are more a brother to me than my real brother ever was. I have talked to Charles about you. I have never hidden anything from him and he has never expressed any concern about you and me. The little blond angel you are holding is the reason I have been spending more time with you when he is negotiating. Whether you believe it or not, the past week, Elsa has talked more in a week than she had in the past several months. If anything I have used you to get her to pick up her stuff. She picks it up, she gets to visit you."

His mouth slightly open as he listens to her. "That's good. That is very good indeed. I have misjudged you and my apologies for doing so."

"You think I am weak?" Her right brow rises. "My first impression, you were innocent of the world or did not care to get involved. Does the King know about this side of you?"

"Why do you think he married me? In case you were wondering, I asked him first," she states as she winks at him.

"You are very good. I'm the one who usually confesses my trickery to my victims. Since it does take one to know one and I missed it, I hesitate to ask why you reveal it now."

"As I said I see you as my brother who has brought my Elsa out of her shell. I would like for you to continue to work with her the way you are doing. Do not worry about what others think. You take care of the horses, Elsa, and the town's children. They will see you mean us and them no harm." She grabs his arm and shakes it. "Ok?" He nods to her. "Now what did Kai say to you at the gate with a sword at your throat?"

"Let's just say he vocalized what many were probably thinking. When enough of the staff were expressing the same thing, he chose that moment to act. He thought he had the upper hand, to confront me." Sam noticed Ingrid was staring at him without blinking. A trick he used many times to intimidate others was being used on him. Yes indeed she is very good, a worthy adversary. He hopes to never have to meet her in a battle for life. Instead, he answers her question, "It seems he and others are afraid of me and if I did anything to harm you or your family, he would hunt me down and kill me."

She blinks, "Interesting, Shortly after I arrive here, he gave me a similar speech, but he did not threaten. Kai is a good man. But I wish he had not threatened you with a sword." She leans back. "Thank you for not taking away his sword and killing him. You obviously have experience with swords?"

"For hand to hand combat, a short sword can do an amazing amount of damage to an enemy quickly, but one on one the long sword is just as deadly."

"Were you taking a chance that he would run the sword through you."

He glances at the upper floor window. "A true swordsman would have handed me a sword. An assassin on the other hand would have run the sword through before I had a chance to defend myself. Kai did neither. He gambled and I called his bluff."

He glances at the window again and the shadow moves back from the window. "He has to be very careful. Someone here will take offense of his actions. If there has to be blood, I will do it. Tell him I'm not the enemy. The one up there searches for an advantage."

She peeks back at the window. "Will the one find an advantage?"

"Blackmail is a serious temptation many cannot avoid. I have read and heard too many accounts of it being used. No sense in taking chances." He states as he nods to the Queen and tickles Elsa. Another burst of laughter from Elsa as she tries to get away.

"That is too bad the world has to see everything with such pessimistic attitudes." She stands. "Come on Elsa. We need to get back inside and leave Sam with his peace.

He takes her hand. "Please don't go. The three years I have been here, other than the animals, you are the only one who has not threatened me for being here."

"I called you a monster."

"Under the circumstances, it was expected. You are not the first and I sure you will not be the last. You can stay. We just can't be seen too close and I like the way Elsa laughs." Elsa giggles, then laughs and escapes from his tickles to hide behind a bush. He watches for Ingrid's response.

She sits down. With a smile and a nod in Elsa's direction she says, "I am not going after her. You started it. You can get her and please do not let the Princess get dirty. We will be eating soon."

End of Chapter


	23. Chapter 22 Future Rival

Title: Chapter 25: A Future Rival

Date: 22 years 2 months before Correction

With a big grin, Sam stands and bows to Queen Ingrid, "Yes ma'am, no dirt."

He runs after Elsa. From the corner of his eye, he sees one of the council members watching him from the upper floor window. He speaks loud enough for the Queen, "I see you too, councilman."

Elsa calls out to him, "Admal, come find me."

"Priorities councilman, you will have to wait for now." He walks over to where he saw Elsa past through the bushes and sticks his hand through the bush waiting for a squeal.

Queen Ingrid peeks over her shoulder at the upper floor window.

He slides down to the next bush and reaches behind it, but no squeal. A giggle comes from two bushes further down. Skipping the next bush, he reaches through, a high pitch squeal emits from behind the bush and then the sound of running feet. He tracks her half way back to where Queen Ingrid sits when he hears a thump of a fall and the gasping for air behind the bush. He pushes through the bushes quickly. Elsa lies face down. He picks her up and spots an abrasion across her finger where her hand slid across a root. Tears build up in front of her blue eyes and her lower lip protrudes. He covers her injured hand with his hand and generates a slight coldness. A pale blue energy leaks out between their hands.

With his other hand he wipes the dirt off her dress and shoes. "Uh-oh, the dirt is not coming off. Let me show you a little trick."

Elsa watches his hand intensely. He glances towards the Queen. She is paying them no attention. He freezes the dirt spots and flicks them off. Generating heat from his left hand, the wet spots dry in seconds.

With a gleeful smile she asks, "Can I do it?"

He whispers to her as he opens his hand to show the scratches on her hand are healed. "Generate the ice to remove the dirt?"

She cups her hand next to his ear and whispers. "Yes."

He replies with a smile and whispers, "I can't show you how I do it, but I will show you soon?"

"Ok." She runs through the bushes to her mother.

He steps through brushing the leaves and dirt off his clothes. An elegant lady sitting next to Ingrid and a young boy wearing a uniform similar to the visiting King stands next to the lady. Queen Ingrid waves for him to come over.

Elsa shows her mother, her dress and explains. "He put ice here and here. He pulls ice and dirt gone."

Behind the slight grin Ingrid beams an accusatory expression at him. He returns a smile and stops two meters from her. He bows from the waist.

"Queen Sofia, this is Samuel, the royal horse's stable boy and currently the Princess's entertainer. Samuel, this is Queen Sofia's son, Prince Georg from the kingdom of the Southern Isles."

"Oh my, he is big," Sofia comments. "He cleans up well. I do not detect the odors associated with the stables. Does he do other things like escort you around your kingdom and stuff?"

"Escort yes, other stuff not so much."

"That is too bad. I bet the rest of him is just as big."

He looks up to a leering smiles. "Majesty, it is a pleasure to meet you. I hope your stay here in Arendelle is a relaxing one for you and your family." He stands.

Queen Sofia looks him down, then back up and winks. "This has been a wonderful trip. Far better than some of King Frederick's other trade negotiations. You have a nice quiet spot hidden away from others."

A small hand slaps across his knee as Elsa runs past him. He bows to Queen Ingrid. "Majesty." He then bows to Queen Sofia, "Majesty. Please pardon my departure, but someone wishes to find a bug." He starts to give chase to Elsa, but turns back to Prince Georg, "Sir, if it is your pleasure, we could use an extra pair of hands to find bugs, with your mother's permission, of course."

"We will be eating soon, I do not want him to get dirty," Queen Sofia replies.

"Understandable ma'am, could he watch and point them out to us?"

"Maybe some other time."

"Please momma, I promise I will not get dirty, please," Prince Georg interrupts and begs his mother.

Sam looks at Queen Sofia then back to Prince Georg, "Sir, do you know what a promise is?"

He looks to Sam, "It means I will do what I promise."

Sam studies Queen Sofia and he adds, "Little Prince, based on your mother's expression, she might be indicating that at some past event, she was unconvinced of your sincerity. If you could demonstrate to her that you have learned, let say, you remove your gloves and tuck them under your belt. It would be a shame if your saber got dirty. You could let her hold it and not give it back until you verify that you are clean to her satisfaction."

Prince Georg replies to his mother by taking his white gloves off and tucking them in his pants, and unclipping his saber from his belt and offering it to his mother, "What he said."

Queen Sofia smiles and slightly nods to Sam, "When it is time to go inside, no fuss." She takes his saber.

Georg bows, "Yes, mother." He runs to where Elsa is studying a bug.

Sam nods to Sofia and walks over to see what bug Georg and Elsa have found. They chase after the bugs with an occasional squeal followed by laughter.

Sofia watches Georg and asks, "How long have you had Sam as a nanny?"

Ingrid chuckles, "He is not the nanny. He is the stable boy along with many other things."

"Really, Like what?"

"Elsa likes him a lot. Many children in the kingdom like him. I know, by the way they follow him all around."

"He is magical?"

Ingrid hopes Sofia had not picked up on any of Sam's tricks, "There is nothing magical about him. He has a personality, even the horses in the stable will obey him."

"Does he have a brother?"

Ingrid smiles, "I wish there was another person like him. Even the staff will comment when he is not in for the day. As far as I know he is the only one."

"That is too bad. Georg is very withdrawn from strangers and yet in just a few minutes he has taken to him and Princess Elsa." Sofia glances at Ingrid, "Can I borrow him for a couple of months. I promise I will send him back."

Ingrid watches Sam as he shakes his head and mouths the words, 'I will not go'. She replies to Sofia, "Maybe after Elsa has grown older to understand that it would be temporary, but not right now." Sam mouths the words, 'Thank you' and returns to the bug hunters.

Sofia comments, "I had to try."

A short time later King Charles and King Frederick walk into the garden. They both give their Queens a peck on the cheek.

Prince Georg squats next to Elsa and the bug moves. They both jump back laughing. Sam covers the bug with his hand and focuses his hearing to the two royal couples.

King Frederick asks, "Why is Georg over there?"

Sofia replies, "He is having fun searching for bugs."

"Bugs? Hum, I did not know Georg liked bugs." Frederick asks, "When did he become so trusting of strangers?"

"I do not know. I am just as surprised as you are. I did ask to borrow him, but Ingrid said maybe after Elsa grew a few years."

"Bugs, I can remember when my father showed me a bug in our garden," Fredrick comments.

From the corner of his eyes, Sam sees Ingrid lean her head back to look up at Charles. She bumps her head into him to get his attention. When Charles looks down, Ingrid motions for him to go over to them. Charles glances over to them and moves next to Frederick as he pulls off his gloves, "Well, what do you say we go over there to see what type of bugs can cause our little ones to laugh." He walks towards Elsa.

King Frederick observes Charles and with a little nudge from Sofia, he pulls his gloves off as he follows after Charles.

Sam whispers to their children. "Ok, let me dig for this one. We have to be extremely careful. This bug can be sneaky. They like to crawl under the ground and pop out to scare anyone trying to capture them."

Elsa and Georg step back watching his hands intently. He detects the two Kings standing behind their respective child. His hand moves towards the children. They step back and Sam moves his hands quickly towards them.

"Look out, they are behind you."

Both children scream as they step back and their fathers grab them. All four burst out laughing at the excitement.

Sam glimpses past the commotion. Ingrid with a smile nods to him. He nods back.

Sofia slightly turns her head to Ingrid. "I have never seen Frederick smile or play with Georg like that. Are you sure you cannot do without Sam for a month?"

With a broader smile she shakes her head no.

Gerda approaches Ingrid and curtsies, "Ma'am, Dinner will be ready in ten minutes." She looks towards the laughter and giggling. She walks quickly and stands in front of Sam with her hands on her waist. "I should have known you would be out here creating trouble. Get cleaned up quickly if you wish to eat tonight." She winks and hurries back to the kitchen.

Sam grins as he trots past the two kings and runs inside the service entrance. By the time he exits the door carrying two pails of water, the two royal couples and their children pass. He sets the pails down and moves in front of King Fredrick. He bows, "Majesty, I am to remind Prince Georg of the promise he made to his mother, if she would allow him to assist Princess Elsa and myself to find bugs."

Frederick stops and looks down at his son, "What did you promise?"

Sheepishly, he replies, "I promised I would wash my hands before going in to eat."

Frederick releases his hand. Georg moves to the pail Sam is pointing and dips his hands in the water.

"Little Prince, hold your hands over the pail." Sam thoroughly washes his hands with soap and rinses them off. He takes one of the hand towels off his shoulder and hands it to Georg.

Elsa squirms in her papa's arms, "I need to wash my hands."

He sets her down.

She runs to Sam and holds her hands over the pail. He kneels and pours water over her hands. With the soap he washes her hands and pours more water to rinse her hands. He takes another hand towel and dries her hands.

Prince Georg showing his clean hands to his mother. She hands his saber back to him.

Observing Georg, Elsa runs over to Ingrid and shows off her clean hands.

Sam stands as he places his hands on his waist. The two kings hold their hands over the pails of water, "Gentleman, do either of you need assistance washing your hands."

They look at each other with a grin and together say, "Yes."

Sam tilts his head as his left brow rises, "Really?"

The two continue their grins.

Sam looks past them. "Princess Elsa, Prince Georg, would you two be willing to assist me, please?"

Princess Elsa and Prince Georg, run to stand beside him.

He kneels. "You see these two fine gentlemen?" Elsa and Georg look up at their fathers. "These two have a temporary lapse of memory and need to get their hands washed before they can eat. Would you show your father how to wash his hands?"

Sofia walks up behind them and comments to Ingrid, "Temporary lapse of memory, he is good."

Ingrid grins.

Georg takes the ladle full of water and holds it over the pail, "Majesty, may I wash your hands?"

King Frederick smiling with pride nods to his son and places his hands under the ladle. Georg slowly pours the water over his father's hands. He pours the soap into his hand to create a lather solution. He takes his father's hands and washes them. Elsa watches Georg then asks, "Papa, can I wash your hands?"

King Charles smiles as big a smile as he could create and nods his head to his little girl. Sam could not help, but to notice Charles forcing a swallow as moisture builds in the corner of his eyes.

Elsa struggles to lift the ladle. Sam helps her lift it out of the pail. He whispers to her, but just loud enough for Ingrid to hear, "Princess Elsa, I need to step back for a moment. I think your mother would be willing to assist you if you ask her."

Elsa wrinkles her nose at her mother, "Please help." Sam makes room for the Queen.

Ingrid beams, "It would be my honor to help such a pretty little lady." Elsa giggles as her mother helps to wash her father's hands.

Sofia slides her hands under Frederick's arms to pull his coat sleeves out of the way. Georg rinses his father's hands and searches for a hand towel. Sam hands Georg the hand towel. Georg starts to dry his father's hands when Sofia takes over drying King Frederick's hands. Sofia and Frederick momentarily stare into each other's eyes and then pass a quick peck on the lips.

Sam steps back further to watch the family scene. As Elsa and her mother finish rinsing King Charles' hands, he lays a hand towel on Elsa's shoulder. She helps to dry her father's hands.

Gerda walks out the servant's door, "Sam, do you have my silk towels." She stands next to him observing the royal families drying hands. "I would not have believed it if I had not seen it for myself."

Sam bumps her with his elbow. "Do you want the towels back?"

"When they finish you can put them in the pile with the other dirty laundry. Please do not pour the water in the courtyard." Gerda states as she walks back into the castle.

King Charles comments, "Sounds like you are in trouble again with Gerda. Did you ask to borrow these towels?"

Sam looks up to the left making a face like he is trying to remember. He looks to the right. "There is a possibility. I did not ask, since there was no one available to ask at the moment I borrowed them. But then again," Sam looks directly into the King's eyes. "The end results did justified the means," he states as his left brow rises.

King Charles nods his head slightly to Sam. He offers his arm to his Queen and holds his hand out to Elsa. Sam quickly dries Elsa's hands and she grabs her father's hand.

King Frederick holds his hand for his son and an arm for Queen Sofia. Together, the two royal couples walk through the castle's main entrance.

As Sam places the hand towels, and soap on the edge of the bench Kai walks up behind him. "Gerda is right. If I had not seen it, I would not have believed it. Go pour the water out in the garden. Dinner will be served in ten minutes. Get yourself cleaned up if you wish to eat." Kai picks up the towels and soap and walks back to the kitchen. Sam takes the two pails of water and pours them around several plants looking like they needed a drink of water.

He returns the two pails to the storage room. As he walks into the kitchen Gerda hurriedly walks pass and tosses a towel into his face, "You need to hurry up. They are waiting for you."

He takes the towel off his face not understanding the rush. "Who is waiting for me?"

Kai yells from across the room, "The royal couple and Elsa. She specifically asked for you."

Gerda hurries by again, "Don't make the little Princess wait for you. She has a stubborn streak about her and will not eat until you are there."

"The stubborn streak I knew about. I didn't know she would create a fuss if I'm not there." He washes his hands.

Kai stops next to him, "Why do you think the Queen and Elsa has been around you so much lately?"

He ponders the question. He thought it was just timing.

Kai sniffs Sam shirt, "Don't strain your brain. Everyone here has seen Elsa's infatuation for you. I hope you are not going to eat with them in this shirt?"

Sam glances at his shirt then to Kai. "I thought I might."

Kai comments as he reaches under the table, pulling out a clean shirt. "I want it back right after you wash it at the end of the day?"

He starts to take his shirt off. Gerda hands him a wet towel and a dry towel, "Not in here, go into the next room and you have two minutes to get upstairs"

He hurries into the next room as he takes his shirt off. He wipes down his arms and body and dries them quickly.

Gerda walks up behind him, "Arms up." Just as he turns he feels a mist of spray on his back, under his arms, and on his chest. Gerda smile, "We do not want you to offend anyone at the table."

"Thank you," he says as he puts on his shirt.

"Thank me later. The food is already on its way. You better hurry. It is impolite to show up when the meal is served." Gerda tucks his shirt into his pants.

A minute later, the food cart passes around the corner and he trots after it. At the service room outside of the main dining room, the staff member hands him a large pitcher of wine and a small pitcher of water. He does not move until the staff instructs him to pour the wine in the adult's glass and water into the children's cups. He follows them into the dining room and sets the water pitcher on the side table. As the other two serve the meal Sam steps in front and reaches for Ingrid's glass and pours the wine. He leads the servers around the table filling each adult's glass with wine. When he sets Sofia's glass in front of her, Georg holds up his cup. Sam looks at the wine and then his cup, "Are you old enough to drink wine, sir?"

Sofia leans over to whisper to him as she grabs the inside of his knee, "He is old enough if you only give him half a cup and could you get him a cup of water also?"

"It would be my pleasure," he replies, as he steps back to get his knee out of her hand. He walks around to the other side of the table to get another cup and pours water into it. Instead of getting near Sofia he reaches across the table to set the cup of water in front of Prince Georg.

Elsa holds up her cup, "I want what momma has in her glass."

Sam glances to Ingrid and her smile says no. He tries not to look, but gives in to her smiling face. He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly, "Who can say no to this angelic face."

Ingrid's eyes widen as she starts to intervene, but waits when he grins at her and squints to Elsa.

He kneels next to her. "The problem with wine is it makes the adults act funny and silly and sick, sometimes. When you become of age, you will be given the choice to act funny, silly, and sick. I would hate to see you get sick because of the wine."

He can see her thinking about it just as she replies, "What about him?" She points to Georg, "Will he get sick?"

"Prince Georg is a few years older than you. He is only getting a half a cup." He hopes she will give up on the wine.

Elsa puts her hand on his arm. "Will you drink wine?"

He knows where she was heading with the question. While a taste of wine would be good for a change from the water, he answers the way he thinks the Queen would wish for him to answer, "No sweetie, wine is an acquired taste. I will not drink the wine."

Elsa places both of her hands on his face and leans in close to him, "If you do not drink it, I will not drink it." She sits back in her chair.

As he stands he glances to King Charles, who nods as he raises his glass to him. He also notices Elsa is sitting with her arms crossed, staring straight ahead. Sam looks around at the floor, then the food tray. He remembers seeing red fruit, honey, and cream in the kitchen. He bends down between Elsa and Ingrid to whisper, "I think I saw something special in the kitchen. If I can change it slightly before Gerda chases me out, I'll bring you a sweet tasting drink that no one will have except for you, Princess, but when I get back, I would like for you to have eaten some of your meal, ok."

Elsa giggles and nods her head.

He walks through the service door and runs past the stairs to the kitchen. Gerda and Kai are sitting at the table when Sam enters the kitchen, Kai asks, "What are you doing here. You are supposed to be eating with the royal couples."

While Sam grabs two red fruit and honey, he replies, "One, there was a place setting for only six people, two, I thought I saw cream the last time I was here. Where is it?"

"What do you want with the cream?" Gerda asks.

"Since Princess Elsa cannot have wine, I'm going to fix what I call a shake for her."

"We have just enough cream to make the sherbet for tonight's ball and no extra." Kai states with a huff.

Sam stops and stares at Kai. "You would prefer to disappoint Princess Elsa?"

Gerda walks over to the ice box and takes out a small jar of cream, "This is fresh from this morning. It probably will not separate enough to be used in the sherbet. How much do you need?"

"All of it. If it works the first time, I'll give half of it back." He takes the jar.

Gerda sits back at the table to finish her meal. As she looks at Kai, "Give him a break. He is trying."

Sam quickly peels and chops up the red fruit into tiny pieces with a sharp knife, then divides them into two cups. He pours the equivalent of two tablespoons of honey into each cup. He pours the cream into a larger cup and places a small plate over the top. Carefully, he shakes the cup at the same time he induces a slight freeze to the cup. In less than three minutes he pours a thick cream into the two cups and stirs the cream, fruit and honey together. He tastes a small amount out of each cup with a spoon and smiles to himself, "If they do not drink this, I'll need better ingredients."

Sam places a clean cloth over both cups and quickly walks back to the dining room. Several seconds later he stands outside the door.

A staff steps out of the dining room. "Good you're here. Elsa is about to have a melt down because you are not there to eat with them." She takes the two cups from him, setting them on the table and pushes him towards the dining room.

"These are for the children. Bring them in when Elsa calms down." Sam states as he walks into the dining room.

A piercing scream rings throughout the room as Elsa spots Sam, "Admal, I told them to wait for you." She breaks free of her mother's grasp and runs to him. "Now we can eat." She takes his hand and leads him to her seat.

Once he helps Elsa into her seat, he kneels beside her and asks, "Sweetie, I told you I would be back. Did you not believe me?"

Elsa frowns, "I did not want them to eat all of the food and not have any for you."

He wants to give her a great big hug, but rewarding bad behavior definitely would not be appropriate at the moment. He turns his head to Ingrid and mouths the word 'HELP'. She grins back at him not saying a word. Sam glances to Charles, who continues to eat and smiles back at him. He turns back to Elsa, "Sweetie, you go ahead and eat. I'll get my meal in the kitchen." He starts to stand.

She grabs his arm, "No, no, no, you have to stay with me," and she slides to one side of the chair and taps the seat next to her. "You sit here."

He searches her blue eyes, "Elsa, when did you take my heart?"

 _When you saved me_.

Her response is not what he expected. He leans back and stands still looking down at her, "Say that again."

 _When you saved me._ She pulls on his arm.

He glances at everyone. "Did anyone hear that?"

Ingrid replies, "The part you asked her 'when did she take your heart' or when you asked her to 'say that again'?"

"Yes."

Ingrid touches his arm, "The last words she spoke were telling you to sit next to her."

Charles speaks up, "Samuel, you were invited. Please sit down and eat with us."

He sits in the chair next to Elsa as she watches him go around her chair. "I'm going to keep my eyes on you, little girl. I know what I heard." She wrinkles her nose at him.

A staff member sets a plate in front of him, which contains bread, the equivalent of beans, a few potatoes and a small cup of gravy. The second staffer sets two cups in front of him that contain the special drinks he made earlier. Sam clasps his hands as he bows his head.

Elsa scrambles to stand on her chair and leans onto his arm to whisper, "Wait, me too." She crawls under his arm and sits in his lap. She puts her hands together as he does.

"Are we ready?" he asks. She nods and bows her head. "Our Father in Heaven, please bless this family that they will follow Your Will. I'm not sure why you sent me to them, but use me as You see the need. Lord, I ask a special blessing for Princess Elsa. For some reason that I do not know You allowed her to take my heart. Please guide my actions and the words I speak, that Your Will, will be done, In Jesus name, amen.

"Amen," Elsa replies.

"Ok, let's eat." He picks up a fork and stabs a potato when he notices Charles leans towards his Queen. Ingrid rests her head on Charles' shoulder as she holds her hand over her mouth. He picks up Elsa and starts to slide his chair out when Charles motions for him to stop.

"Is anything wrong?" he asks.

Sofia answers him, "Your words are right, there is nothing wrong."

"My apologies, I usually say my meal prayers in silence, but when Elsa caught me praying. She asked me why I did it, afterwards, she wanted me to pray for her family." He shakes his head as he continues, "I just did not think about it and spoke loud enough for her to hear, again my apologies to you."

Charles waves his hand for him to stop, "There is no need to apologize. You have done a lot for this family since you arrived here."

He nods to the King and whispers to Elsa. She walks across the chair with his help and leans on her mother's back. Sam applies a slight pressure to Elsa's back to keep her from slipping. He also takes the opportunity to scan Ingrid through Elsa's contact with her mother. Elsa places her hand on her mother's shoulder and whisper, "Momma, Poppa, Admal said Jesus loves us no matter what we do, if we will go to him."

While Elsa pats her mother's hair, Ingrid gives Elsa a kiss as she hugs her. He lets go of Elsa and starts to slide back into his chair, but Ingrid grabs his hand and pulls him to her. She kisses his cheek. With a smile, "If you try to leave and break my little girl's heart. We will not rest until we find you. If we have to, we will lock you up here in the castle and let you out under a constant guard."

He looks to the King, but Charles says, "What she said."

"Well, now, I guess I'm not going to be riding the horses into the mountains anytime soon."

Sofia comments to Frederick, "Ok, when it is time to leave, I will distract them and you drag Sam onto our ship."

Frederick replies, "I do not think an army is going to be able to get him to leave this fine family," he bows his head to Charles and Ingrid.

Ingrid hugs Elsa again, "I see you have not eaten anything off your plate. Sit with Samuel while mommy gets her face cleaned up?" Elsa gives her a kiss and walks back to sit in his lap. Ingrid point's to Elsa's plate and nods to Sam to get her to eat. Sam understanding her gesture responds as he bows his head, "Yes my lady."

Sam distracts Elsa so Ingrid can leave, "Ok, what will you eat first?"

Elsa points to the potato. Sam uses a fork to cut it in half. He offers the potato to Elsa. She takes it off the fork and pops it into her mouth. He takes the other half of the potato and dips it in the gravy and eats it. Elsa watches his every move. He stabs another potato, cutting it in half, and offers it to her. She points to the gravy cup. "Sweetie, I can read signs, but what are you pointing to."

 _Put it in the cup like you did._

"Ok," he dips it in the gravy and she pulls it off the fork and into her mouth before he can stop her. "Have you tried the yummy beans?"

She looks up at him. _What are beans?_

He picks a couple up with his fork, "These are beans. Have you tried one?"

She stares at the bean for a moment, _No, are they good for me?_

"Of course they are good for you. You eat one and I will eat two of the long ones."

She eats the bean and appears to like them.

He takes the opportunity to assist Elsa with holding a spoon.

She stands in his lap and feed herself the rest of the beans with the spoon. She holds on to his shoulder and grabs his hair to steady herself. He eats the potatoes dipped in the gravy. Between the two of them, they finish her plate and his plate except the bread.

He looks at her and then the bread, "Do you eat bread?"

 _I don't like bread._

"Really, what's wrong with it?" he holds up a piece of bread inspecting it.

 _It tastes funny._ She makes a face at it.

He sniffs it and notices a sour smell. "I bet this is one of those acquired taste breads."

 _You taste it._ She giggles.

He glances at her as his left brow rises. "Ok, I will."

He takes a bite of it. It was definitely an acquired taste, but the more he ate of it the more he wanted to acquire it. Elsa reaches to take a small piece of bread, but tears off a large piece and starts to put it back. Sam spots the condensation on the outside of the partially frozen drink. "Let's do this."

He separates the soft inside of the bread from the crust and piles it in the middle of the plate. With a spoon he scoops part of the drink onto the soft bread. For a second he mixes the bread and liquid. He scoops the bread in the spoon and feeds it to Elsa.

 _This is good._ She takes the spoon out of his hand and devours the rest of the creamy bread.

"I thought you might like it."

Across the table Georg watches them. "Do you wish to try?"

Georg slowly nods his head. Sam holds Elsa around her waist and reaches across the table to hand Georg the second cup of partially frozen drink. "Just stir it up and eat it with a spoon."

Georg stirs the drink and tastes it with the spoon. His grin is enough for Sam as Georg scoops out the cream as fast as he could.

 _See, he likes it_. Elsa waves her spoon in the air.

"I think you are right. He does like it."

At that moment two soft hands cup his ears and a tranquil voice whispers, "Are you talking to yourself again."

End of Chapter


	24. Chapter 23 Truth

Title: Chapter 23: The Truth

Date: 22 years 2 months before Correction

Sam's eyes widens as he glances across the table. "Was I talking to myself?"

Sofia smiles. "It was like you were having a conversation with Elsa but she did not say anything."

Ingrid fluffs his hair. "When did your hair start to change colors? It looks like little hand prints with white paint touched your hair."

He frowns. "I do not recall doing anything to change my hair color."

Ingrid glances over his shoulder. "It looks like some food tried to escape before either of you could eat it." She taps his shoulder. "Take Elsa to the kitchen and you can clean up the both of you."

He stands and nods to Ingrid. "Yes, my lady." He holds out his hand and Elsa jumps latching onto his arm. He rolls her up to sit on his shoulder. As he walks to the door, he teases her, "I do recall the last time you ate in my lap, you spilt stuff on my shirt and got me in trouble with your mother."

"No, I did not, you did," she defends.

"Yes, you did," he counters.

"No, you did it all by yourself."

Ingrid sits in her chair. "The way those two talk to each other you would think they were siblings." She rubs her abdomen. "I hope this one and Elsa do not do that."

Sofia comments behind her smile, "Is that your second child?"

Ingrid nods as she watches her hand caress her soon to be born little girl.

"Hopefully, you will have better luck with girls. The boys are constantly arguing or fighting from sun up to sundown."

A few minutes later, a noise sounds from the hall.

"Yes, you did it last time and the time before."

A sweet little voice replies, "You did it"'

Kai lets out a long sigh, "They are at it again. I wonder what triggered this argument."

Gerda meets him and Elsa at the door. She shakes her head at them. "All right, you two have to knock the noise off. Set Elsa on the chair over there. Maybe I can get some of the stains out before it sets in." She walks to the sink to get water and a small brush.

He sets Elsa in a chair. Kai walks behind him and stops. For a moment he stares at the back of Sam's hair. "Did Elsa get something on her hands and stick it in your hair?"

"That will be my next task after I clean up."

Kai walks out of the room.

Gerda searches. "Who moved the brush I placed on the counter?"

Sam takes a knife off the counter and cuts several strands of his hair. Elsa giggles watching him. "Open your hands like this." He forms a cup with both of his hands and Elsa does the same.

His brown hair falls into her hands. "Now close your hands." After a few seconds, "open them." The hair is still brown.

"Ok, rub your hands together," which Elsa does. He opens her hands and the hair is still brown. For a moment he recalls what she could have done, then remembers she picked up the small cup that was partially frozen. He places his hand around her hands and generates a slight cooling effect. She does not appear to notice the cold as she watches his hands. He opens her hands and this time the hair has turned white. Gerda lifts a pail of water. He brushes the white hair in his hands and bends down to pick up the few strands that fell to the floor. Elsa giggles loudly as she grabs his hair and pulls. He stands.

With his hands on his waist, Kai comments, "So she is making your hair change colors."

"He is funny," Elsa laughs.

Kai raises his brows. "Does the King and Queen know your hair does that?"

"Actually, Queen Ingrid pointed it out to me about ten minutes ago." He lets out a sigh. "I should have predicted this could happen."

Gerda places a pail of water on the counter and begins to wash the food particles off of Elsa's shirt. "Predict what?"

Kai looks at Sam. "Show her."

He kneels in front of Elsa. "Sweetie, I need you to do something for me, ok?"

Elsa smiles and nods her head vigorously.

He holds her hands and generates a cooling effect. "Elsa, when I let go of your hands, I want you to run your hands through my hair especially where my hair is brown. Understand?"

She giggles as she nods.

He takes a deep breath. Despite the harshness of Kai and the problems he could bring against himself, revealing a secret may calm the anxieties against him. The air seeps out between his lips and he lets go of her hands. "Ok, go for it"

Elsa giggles and laughs as she runs her hands through his hair. Just as he suspected, everywhere his brown hair is touched by Elsa's cold hands, his hair turns white in a matter of seconds.

"Oh my goodness," Gerda exclaims. "Does the King and Queen know?"

"He says the Queen pointed it out to him. Presumably while they were still eating." Kai grumbles.

"Did you get it all, Sweetie?" Sam asks Elsa.

She nods. "Now your hair looks like mine."

He slowly stands as Kai snips a comment, "So the stable boy has a hidden past. What do you think the Queen will have to say about that?"

Gerda pinches Kai's arm. "Now you stop that. When the King and Queen of the Southern Isle leave tomorrow, we will discuss it with Ingrid and Charles." She looks at Sam. "Can you change it back?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "I didn't know my hair would change that quickly. It does get lighter for winter and darker in the summer when it is long, but nothing like this. I guess I can get it all cut off. If you two don't say anything until it grows back in several months, no one has to know right now."

Elsa touches his arm. "Are you sad?"

Sam looks down at Elsa. "No, I'm not sad. It will take a little while for me to explain my hair changing colors to your mother and father. Your father may have some trouble understanding the circumstances."

"Yes, especially after he saw you getting out of the coach after the wolf attack," Kai jabs.

Gerda chides Kai, "If you are not going to help, you need to be about your other duties, and you better not tell them until he is ready."

"Tell who is ready?"

Kai sends a snicker towards Sam, "And it gets better. Thank you Lord."

Elsa leans close to Sam and points towards to the door with a slight giggle. "Mommy is behind you."

Sam whispers to Elsa. "Yes, I know. If I don't turn around do you think she will leave?"

"No, she will not leave," Ingrid replies behind him.

He stands and slowly faces her. She tilts her head one way, then the other as she observes his white hair. "Who did this to you?"

He stares at the floor for a moment and then looks directly into her eyes. "It is my fault that I was not better prepared."

Ingrid interrupts sternly, "Of course it's your fault, now answer my question."

Sam rolls his shoulders back. "I refuse to say." Just then a small hand takes his hand as she stands on the chair.

The Queen leans to the side to see Elsa trying to hide behind Sam. "Honey, do you know how Samuel's hair changed?"

Sam speaks up, "Ma'am, please don't blame her."

Ingrid holds up her hand to quiet him, then she holds out her hand to Elsa. "Come on, Princess."

Elsa hesitates.

Sam closes his eyes and holds Elsa's hand. She slowly moves out from behind him and takes hold of her mother's hand. He leans down to Ingrid. With his eye's barely opens he whispers, "She is afraid."

Ingrid looks to Sam. "Afraid of who, me?"

"No. . . Not at you, for me."

"Why you?" Ingrid asks, slightly confused.

He leans closer to Ingrid. "Because of this." He opens his eyes just enough for her to see a blue line sweep across his eyes.

She picks up Elsa and turns away. "Oh, I see." Ingrid walks to the door and stops. She speaks over her shoulder, "Go to your room and do not come out. The King and I need to discuss it. We will be there shortly." She takes a step and stops. "Do not try to color your hair. I need Charles to see it."

Sam grits his teeth as he bows. "Yes, my Lady."

When he was sure the Queen cannot hear them, Kai whispers to Sam, "Looks like you may be sleeping in the stables for now on." Gerda's hand makes a popping sound off the back of Kai's neck.

"I knew this day would come. I just hoped it would have been later." Sam slowly walks towards the door.

Gerda tries to cheer him up, "It's not that bad. If the Queen was really upset at you, several guards would be in here to drag you off to a cell."

"Now that's a good idea with the guards," Kai comments just before Sam's shirt hits him in the face.

As he starts down the hall, he encounters King Charles and King Frederick. He steps to one side and bows waiting for the two to pass him.

Frederick glances quizzically at Charles as they pass by, "Did he have brown hair earlier?"

Sam stays in the bowing position until they went around the corner. He proceeds to his room and closes the door. In the center of the room, he shakes his fists above his head, once for not being better prepared for all possibilities. On the floor with his back straight he crosses his legs. He runs his cold fingers through his hair to make sure there are no brown strands and all of his hair is white. He repositions himself to face the door and rests his hands on his knees. His eyes close as he waits for the command ordering him to leave. An hour passes and neither Charles nor Ingrid visits him. He keeps a vigilance scanning the hallway and adjacent rooms. Charles and Frederick walk pass his room as they talk, but he does not listen to their conversation. He continues to scan further out searching all of the castle rooms and out into the courtyard. He peeks into the royal bedroom.

Elsa lies next to her sleeping mother. She sits up and calls out, "Admal."

Ingrid rolls over and hugs Elsa, "Who are you talking to?"

"Admal . . . Admal."

Ingrid sits up searching the room. "Where is he, dear?"

Elsa points to the wall across from the bed.

Sam uses his time to visit the town's people observing their interactions. Several hours pass with no one visiting his room. He watches the sunset from the top of the castle. One by one the stars come out for the night, even a small sliver of the moon shines above the horizon. A knock on the door brings him back into the dark room. His eyes open as the door slowly opens.

A female's voice calls out to him. "Samuel! Are you in here?"

"Yes, my Lady, I am in here. Your husband will be here in less than a minute."

"Why are you in the dark?" She stands in the doorway as her shadow covers him still sitting on the floor.

The candle on the table next to the bed flickers to life. Sam watches Ingrid's reaction as she sees the candle and then sees him sitting in the middle of the floor well out of the reach of the candle.

She points to the candle and shakes her head. "Were you here in this room the whole time since I saw you in the kitchen?"

He nods slightly. "Yes, my Lady."

She asks hesitantly, "Do you know why Elsa claims to have seen you in our room?"

Again he bows his head. "Yes, my Queen."

She places her hands on her waist, "And . . ."

"Your husband is just rounding the corner. Shall we wait for him and I can explain it to the both of you?"

"Yes, I'll wait," She steps back towards the door.

A few seconds later King Charles walks into the room and Ingrid slips her arm around his arm. He smiles to his wife and then the smiles disappears when he glances at him.

He does not move. "Majesty, my apologies for not standing, but what I have to say will have a better effect with me sitting here. I just ask one thing before I start."

Charles hesitates, "What is it?"

"Please close the door." He sees the hesitation from the King. "Your Majesty, I have been here three and a half years. I have never had any malice towards your family or your kingdom. Unfortunately, I have rubbed a couple of guards the wrong way, but never intended any harm. Please sir, close the door."

Still the King hesitates.

Sam asks again, "Sir, if it will make you comfortable, bring in the four guards standing to the left of the door in the hall."

Charles looks to Ingrid and back to Sam. "How did you know?"

"And that, I will explain if you close the door."

Charles closes the door with a weary expression. Sam motions for the King and Ingrid to sit in the chairs well away from the door. When they both sit, He stands and takes the candle from the table and places it on the floor near the door. The flickering light will obscure anyone who attempts to look under the door.

He sits back on the floor and faces them. Seeing a slight fear from Ingrid, he comments. "Sir, you might wish to hold your lovely wife's hand."

Ingrid slides her chair closer to Charles and tightly holds on to his arm.

Sam smiles and runs his hand through his hair. "Sir, if you have not noticed my hair was brown when I sat down to eat the meal several hours ago. As you can see it is completely white. No thanks to a precious little Princess who is currently asleep on your bed."

He stares directly into Ingrid's eyes. "Yes, earlier this evening Princess Elsa detected my presence in your room." He holds up his hands. "Before you panic this evening is the first time my mind ventured outside of this room. I don't know how she detected me, but she did. I find it more than a coincident that shortly after I saved her life that she now displays some very unique abilities."

Charles turns his head slightly and narrows his eyes. "Like what?"

Ingrid interjects, "Like when you asked if we heard Elsa's reply to your question, 'when did she take your heart' and 'say that again'"

"Precisely."

She leans towards him. "What did you hear?"

"She said, 'When you saved me.'" He taps his head.

Charles asks, "Prior to the accident has she been able to read your mind?"

"That I'm not one hundred percent sure. There have been indications that, for a lack of better words, a connection between us, meaning she was not able to express it until now. I have detected something. Kind of like when you get a feeling someone is watching you and you turn around and see that person staring at you. In a couple of cases when I have tried to locate the source, you," pointing to Ingrid, "and Elsa were physically close together. Every time I tried to get closer, the feeling went away. And then that elusive feeling stopped coming around."

Ingrid asks, "How long ago did it stop?"

"About a year ago, maybe a little less."

Ingrid bows her head as though she is searching then she looks at him. "About a year ago I started walking around the courtyard to get Elsa to walk. I do recall when we walked by the stables she would try to go in. That's when we would listen to you talk to the horses and she would giggle."

"Now, that would explain why I thought I heard giggling, but did not see anyone."

"Why did you not use your powers to scan the area?" Charles asks.

"Because it takes effort and energy to scan, so I do not, unless I have to. Since I was confined to my room this evening, I took the opportunity to see how far I could reach."

Charles leans his head towards him and raises his brows. "And how far did you reach?"

Sam stares at the floor a few seconds, then replies, "I stood on the highest peak of the castle to watch the sun go behind the mountains. I saw the baker drop a bowl of flour on the floor. I saw one of the sailors on the ship that came in this morning, having a good time with a lady friend."

Ingrid rests her elbows on her knees and her head in her hands sounding a groan. Both Sam and Charles focus on her.

Charles leans over to her. "Are you ok?" She waves for him to continue.

He spots her cheeks blush. "My Lady, I must assure you, this evening is the first time my mind has ever ventured past the corner of the hall."

Ingrid covers her face as she shakes her head and muffles a sound, "That's not what worries me."

Both Charles and Sam wait for Ingrid to continue. "It is what you said to me those many years ago in the carriage after the wolf attack." She sits up and wipes away a tear.

Charles takes Ingrid's hand and speaks with a concern voice, "What did he say to you?"

She places her hand on his cheek. "Maybe I should have said something back then. He warned me of the possibility that Elsa might exhibit things that are not characteristics of a young child. I was going to say something, but then I saw how happy you were that I was pregnant. I was going to tell you before she was born. Well, time passed and she appeared to be a normal little girl, so I let it go. When she was a year old I walked to the gate. We met Sam along the way back to the castle. Elsa woke up from her sleep, fidgeting. At one point she almost leaped from my arms. It was a good thing he was there to help me. When he touched her, she calmed down. When I walked past him she cried loudly."

Sam shakes his head. "That's when I touched her cheek asking what was wrong."

"Elsa stopped crying and fixed her eyes on him. I asked him to hold her for a second. He held her clumsily but he did. I took the blanket off my shoulder and placed it under his arm and over his shoulder"

"I told her I didn't have much practice with babies." He says as he stares into Ingrid's eyes.

"I told him he knew enough and suggested he laid her on his shoulder, which he did and I walked back to the castle." She returns his stare.

"I walked behind her. I thought she would stop and take Elsa, but she kept going into the castle. I asked if she forgot someone."

"I said no. She was quiet until she saw you. Now that you have her quiet again, you can put her in her bed." Ingrid looks away smiling.

"Um, would you two like to be alone?" Charles asks with an unsmiling expression.

"Uh, no sir, it is not the way it sounds. The only thing between Queen Ingrid and me, is Elsa." He closes his eyes as he covers his mouth with his hand. He can see the King is moving away from friend to execution. He opens his eyes and Ingrid has placed her head in her hands again.

"Sir, I know it sounds bad, but it is not what you think. I ask that you hold on just a little longer before calling the guards. When I put Elsa in her bed, she started crying again. She reached for me."

Ingrid chuckles, "That's when I told him I wasn't going to stay up all night with her crying." She looks directly into his eyes behind her tears. "I said you better get her to sleep if you intended on leaving for the evening." She chuckles again, "It must have been an hour and a half before she finally fell asleep in his arms."

"And that is when I noticed something very peculiar about her. I asked Ingrid to lightly place her finger on the side of Elsa's neck to check her heartbeat, which she did. I asked her to use her other hand to lightly place her finger on my neck to check my heartbeat."

"What did you feel?"

Ingrid turns her head to Charles. "Their hearts were beating the same. I could not distinguish any differences."

With a confused expression Charles looks to Ingrid. "How is that possible?"

"The possibility is significantly small to a point. A judge could say with scientific certainty that it is not possible. You could feel your heartbeat and your wife's heartbeat, it would be different. But I have an opinion that might explain it. If an object is oscillating and a similar object is placed next to it, the second object will begin to oscillate until they both are oscillating the same. A similar phenomenon in nature is when you get around certain people and they make you feel happy despite your mood. Of course, there are those people who can create the negative moods as well. I believe when I am near, Elsa feels my presence and becomes very agitated that she has to get up and do something –"

Ingrid points to Sam and interrupts, "When she sees you, she jumps on you or grabs at you. I can see her active body just start to slow down. She takes your hand or gets in your lap and is calm. If she is awake and if I try to take her away, she, as you have said, becomes agitated."

"You still have not answered why," Charles states.

Sam tightens his lips and runs his hand across his mouth. "Ok," nodding his head, "Ok, it will be easier to show you than give a detailed explanation."

He searches the room. From the table, he picks up the bowl, a match, and the candle holder with the lit candle. He hands the King the match and candle. "Sir, if you will hold these, and Ma'am, if you will please hold this bowl with both hands."

He searches for a sharp object, then asks, "Do either of you have a sharp pointy thing to cut flesh?"

They both look at each other and shake their heads.

"Neither do I. I guess I have to do it the painful way." He turns his back to them and after a few seconds he faces them cupping his right hand. He looks at Ingrid, "I hope you are not squeamish about blood."

With wide eyes, she slowly shakes her head no.

"Good, don't move the bowl." He holds his hands over the bowl and pours enough of his blood to cover the bottom. He opens his hands to show the blood did come from his hand. Ingrid stares at the blood. "Don't move. You may feel a slight tingle. It will not harm you."

She barely moves her head to glance at him, then back to the blood.

"What I will show you is the essence of my life." His left hand moves to closer to the bottom of the bowl. His right hand hovers above the rim of the bowl. He moves his hands in a circular motion. After a few seconds, the blood begins to slowly rotate like an invisible spoon was stirring it. Several seconds later the blood collects into the shape of a cylinder. He moves his hands as though he is pulling a string between his fingers.

Charles and Ingrid continue to watch the blood. After a minute the blood separates. The red cells collect at the bottom of the cylinder shape and white particles like fine sand collect at the top of the cylinder. He moves his top hand up. The red cells fall into the bottom of the bowl. The white sand floats above the bowl.

He observes Charles and Ingrid as they continue to stare at the white sand. "This has the scientific name of 'Tytrianium'. While this is scattered through the universe, it is rare to collect this much in one location and yet, you just saw me separate it from my blood. The most abundant source of this particle is in a star. The sun you see in the sky has massive amounts of it."

He does not know if they comprehended the information, but he continues, "Now watch, these particles are moving at a slow oscillation, but if I induce the particles to move faster."

He points to the particles. "Sir, if you will blow the candle out."

The candle flickers out. Darkness consumes the room except for the slit of light coming from under the door. A small spark jumps from Sam's finger to the particles. The room darkens again. The particles began to glow and slowly grow bright enough to cast shadows on the wall. The particles continue to brighten forcing Charles and Ingrid to look away.

"Now watch," He places his hand on the top and bottom of the bowl. The room goes dark. In a matter of a second his right hand begins to glow in spots that move to encompass his whole hand. He holds his hand up. The glow expands down his arm, into his shoulder, up his neck and head, across to his other shoulder, down to his hand and to his feet. He takes his shirt off. Every exposed flesh on his body glows a light sea blue and his eyes glint an emerald green.

The room glows the same sea blue color. His glowing eyes focus on the King. "Sir, if you will please light the candle."

Charles lights the candle and the blue glow disappears as his eyes return to normal. Ingrid glances in the cup asks, "What happened to the blood?"

"When the white sand returned to my hand so did my blood." He replies as he turns his back to them and slips on his shirt.

Charles sets the candle on the table and stands quickly. He places his hands on his waist and commands, "Nice trick, no more games; answer my question why."

Ingrid covers her mouth and looks down. She whispers, "Tell him exactly what happened to Elsa."

Charles steps back to his wife and grabs her arm. He grabs the Kings arm. Charles looks at Sam's hand and then up to him.

"Majesty, please do not vent your anger on her Majesty. I made the choice for her."

Charles looks down at the hand still on his arm. "Why?"

Sam knew exactly what the King was asking. He had asked a similar question many years prior.

He steps back. "Ok, down and dirty. I crashed here almost four years ago. I did not want to be here, and if I could have repaired my ship, I would not be here now. On that faithful day when I was attacked by a pack of wolves, the guards, escorting the Queen from where ever she was returning from, stopped to see what was causing the noise. They found and helped me to fend off the wolves. Unfortunately, a second, smaller pack of wolves also heard the horses. The remaining guards chased them away except for one. That one almost got into the carriage window. A guard and I were able to pull the wolf out of the carriage, but not before it had injured your Queen. Since the sun still had a couple of hours to set, they did not see this."

He makes both of his hands glow the sea blue color. "I asked how long to get Ingrid to a doctor. They said another hour. Your Queen only had a few minutes. I told the lead guard to get the carriage back as fast as possible. I and a guard kneeled on the carriage floor while Gerda held onto your Queen lying on the seat. Her wound was extensive."

Sam brings his hands close, but not together and a ball of white energy undulates between them. "I applied this energy ball to her wound. I had to insert my hand into her wound to make sure the energy touched all of the damaged area. It was then that I felt the presence of another human being." Sam changes his eyes to the crystal emerald green. "I detected a baby."

Ingrid tries to muffle her weeping but the tears begin to flow.

"I saw the baby which had also been injured." He looks to Ingrid then cast his eyes to the floor. "I could have said nothing and no one would have known, but I made a choice and asked her if she knew she was pregnant with a little girl. I tried to explain to her if I allowed the baby to die; she would have a better chance to live."

"I said no. Please do whatever you can to save my baby." Ingrid leans her head into her husband's arm.

Sam observes the King's reaction. "I did what I did to save both of their lives. I cut my finger and gave the baby a transfusion of my blood. Just as I moved my finger, I don't know why or how at that early stage in life, but the baby reached and grabbed my finger. I purposely showed you the white sand that when absorbed back into my hand in an energized state would cause the surrounding white sand to become energized as well. I believe the baby reaching for my finger was mainly a reflex."

"You do not believe that, do you?" Ingrid asked, still with tears swelling up in her eyes.

Sam hesitates as he shakes his head, "No, I do not believe it."

Charles faces him and clenches his fist, "Then, why did you say it."

"Because if someone was to say to me what I'm about to say to you, I would think they had lost their mind, but I cannot deny what happened. When I gave my blood, I also gave your baby a part of me."

Charles draws his brows together.

"Please do not be confused. Elsa is your child born out of the combination of both of your genetic material. My blood is no different from your blood except for the Tytrianian particles."

He sweeps his hand through the air in an arc. "This land of yours is nothing like anything I have ever encountered. There are way too many mythical things going on that myths and legends are made."

He spreads his finger and thumb apart and a white arc grows between them. "I have used my energy to heal others with the transference of blood, but nothing has ever happened like this. By the time the carriage got back to the castle your wife was mostly healed. I have long thought of the consequences of my actions on that day. Only now is the fruition of that decision is starting to manifest itself significantly."

He looks away and considers whether the King understands. "Meeting the Queen and her baby at the gate was my first clue, but I chose to ignore it. I was hoping I was mistaken. When I walked past Elsa, she becomes agitated. When she gets within the influence of my energy, her energy oscillates at the same frequency as mine. It appears our hearts beat as one and she is calm. It was the encounter at the gate that told me something else was going on. After the incident with the wagon, did I know for sure what was going on?"

He faces the door and rubs his head behind his eyes.

Charles comments. "Do not stop now. I suspect you have more to tell. It cannot get any worse."

He turns back to them with a forced smile. "Actually, it can from your perspective. So I'll say this quickly, I know for a fact it takes three significant incidents to create a mental connection between myself and another person. Each event builds on the previous event until finally we are able to communicate through our minds and we feel each other's pains, sadness, joy, happiness and everything in between.

He holds up his hand as the tension builds in Charle's face. "Unless the third event is completed, the connection may be intermittent. Now here comes the scary part. When I infused Elsa with my blood prior to her birth, it was definitely an emotional first event. The incident with the wagon dumping the stones and lumber was quite emotional for me and Elsa. Not to mention, I had to expend a lot of energy that coursed through Elsa's body. Just like the small particles that causes my body to glow."

He looks directly into the Kings eyes. "In case you did not see it, she was definitely glowing under the pile. How do I know she has been changed? You saw it at the last meal when you thought I was talking to myself. She talked to me, but her little mouth was closed. When I was in the ice and she was in here talking, well . . . we were having a conversation. She heard what I was thinking."

Charles shakes his head, "I do not believe it."

He picks up a match from the table and hands it to Charles. "Don't light it just yet."

He sits on the floor facing the door and partially turns his head to Ingrid. "What was Elsa doing the last time you saw her?"

She waits a few seconds. "She is asleep in her bed."

He blinks his eyes and locates his target. "She's not. She is in your room looking for you." He pauses for a few seconds, "Do you have a favorite brush?"

"Yes, a blue one I keep in a drawer."

"Is the drawer low enough for Elsa to get the brush?" He focuses his eyes in the direction of the royal room.

"Yes!"

"Is it in the table across from your bed?"

"Yes!"

"Elsa, Sweetie, Will you get the blue brush out of the drawer and bring it down to your mother. She is in my room by the kitchen." He pauses for several seconds and smiles, "That's a good girl."

Charles starts to speak, "Are you implying you are . . ."

He holds up his left palm towards the King. They sit in silence for a couple of minutes. He moves his head following Elsa to the door. A soft knock sounds on the door. He snaps his hand towards the candle blowing the flame out. His body illuminates the room with a soft blue glow. The door opens and a short person with pure white hair moving with the rise of thermal waves walks in. Her face and hands glow in the same blue tint as his skin, her eyes sparkle with ice blue crystals.

Ingrid inhales quickly and Charles starts to speak, but stops, "What the—"

Sam holds out his hand towards Elsa. "Come here Sweetie."

Elsa runs as fast as she can and jumps at him with a giggle, bringing both of her feet and hand to impact his chest at the same time pushing him onto his back. She hugs his neck as he sits up to face the royal couple.

He waits for Ingrid and Charles to absorb what they are seeing. "This is the result of my decision to save the life of a baby who had less than a minute of life, and you would have never known her." He looks at the King. "Your Majesty, would you be so kind to light the candle."

The candle flickers to life. The glow in their bodies disappears. Elsa sits on Sam's lap, holding onto his arms. Ingrid points to them. "Is that my favorite brush?"

He lifts Elsa to her feet and she carries the brush to her mother. Ingrid responds, "why did you get this brush?'

Elsa leans against her mother smiling, "Admal asked me to bring it to you?"

Charles and Ingrid stare at their little girl then both look at him.

"Are you mad at Admal?" Elsa asks.

Her mother answers, "No, baby girl, we are concerned that maybe you should be playing with other children."

Her father brushes her hair with his hand, "That's right Elsa. We, or I, am concerned with the way you like to spend a lot of time with Sam. I think your mother is correct. Don't you want to play with other children your age?"

Elsa reaches around and grabs her father's neck. "Will Admal play with us?"

Ingrid answers, "He has to take care of the horses and then he has to clean up. By then it will be dark and he has to get home to sleep."

"He can sleep in my room. I will share my blanket with him."

Charles states, "Sweetie that is nice you wish to share, but it would be inappropriate for Sam to sleep in your room."

Elsa asks, "Why?"

Ingrid answers, "Well, you see he is a man and you are a little girl."

He interrupts, "Oh, will you two stop. Let me take that shovel out of your hands before you dig that hole so deep that you can't get out of it."

He kneels next to Elsa and rest on his heels. "What your parents are trying to say, but are failing miserably, is that you need lots of sleep so you will grow up to be a big girl. I don't need a lot of sleep. At night I get a lot of stuff done, but I will promise you, if you get your sleep and not give your mother grief, then I will watch over you from the hallway or the courtyard with your father's permission?"

"Ok," She steps on his thighs and gives him a hug. She whispers, "Sing to me, Awéé' Yázhi

Sam gazes at her with intent, "you remember that song?"

She nods and rests her head on his shoulder. He smiles, holding back his emotions. "Your wish is my command, Princess."

He chants:

Little One – Awéé' Yázhi

What shall I sing for you, little baby?  
Time to put you in the cradle board.  
Sleep to the sound of my lullaby.

The night is quiet, only stars are dancing in the sky.  
The moon will soon appear dancing in your eyes.  
Crickets are singing,  
My lullaby, my lullaby.

Sleep well, sleep well, my child.

Elsa falls asleep by the end of the chorus.

Ingrid carefully lifts her from his shoulder and with a grin, "Just like last time." She carries her little girl out of the room. Charles follows Ingrid but Sam touches his arm. "Your Majesty, a moment before you leave."

Charles closes the door and stands straight with is hands to his side. "What is it?"

"Your Majesty, I have the greatest respect for you and your lovely Queen. I am no threat to you or your kingdom. My desire is to serve you. I have chosen to reveal my powers because prior to crashing here I worked for the governments that were not kind nor understanding of its people. Many of their people died of torture in prisons. How do I know? One of my skills is to enter the person's mind and extract the truth from them. Because I was not focused, it took three years and a friend who believed in me to open my eyes. I reviewed those cases where the truth was used against the individual to execute them. When I reported the person did not have the knowledge the government was seeking, the government told me they were released. My own investigation revealed they were sent to a hard labor camp. Of the eighteen people who were sent to the camps, seventeen died within six months of arriving at the camp." Sam shakes his head. "I can't bring them back, but I did discover there was an informant who provide false information to have them arrested."

Charles takes a deep breath and almost rolls his eyes. "Ok, you had a hard life before coming here. Get to the point."

"The point is, I don't have to have a connection with an individual to hear what they are thinking. All I have to do is be near them. Humans have a very noisy mind. Get them a little intoxicated, to me it is as though they are yelling. I can't help but hear what they are thinking."

Charles shifts his weight to one leg and sighs.

"Sir, I have heard several individuals, thinking, life would be easier if you were not the King."

Charles flinches.

He continues, "What would you do if you received word, there is a credible threat against your family?"

Charles looks away and takes several steps passed him, then faces him. "If I believed someone was trying to harm my family, I would hunt them down. If evidence proves the conspiracy, they would be executed immediately."

"And if you found out the evidence was a setup and you executed an innocent person, now what?"

Charles turns away. "I don't know what I would do?"

"Yes, you do." He stands next to the King. "I have seen how you treat the people of Arendelle and your family. That day you saw your wife's blood, you were within your right to kill me on the spot. No one would have even questioned your actions. You are a very kind and wise King, but . . . instead of spilling blood on your hands, someone else needs to take the necessary actions that you would not be able to do because you are the King." Sam touches the King's arm, "With your permission allow me to use my powers and skills to find who is actually saying these things about your wife and Elsa."

"Elsa," He grabs Sam's arms tightly, "is someone threatening Elsa?"

"Earlier this afternoon, when the Queen sat in the garden. I detected someone standing by the second floor window. They had to have seen your Queen talking to me. By the time I turned around they were not in the window, but I did hear them," he taps his head, "make an inappropriate comment about the Queen and the stable boy must have made Elsa."

He pauses for a few seconds to determine the King's response. "Sir, you are not in a position to legally take any actions for the honor of your family against the person, but I can. I can be discreet to separate yourself from any actions that I may perform. I promise I will not kill, but I will not promise they will not turn into a blubbering fool."

Charles turns towards the door as he sweeps his finger and thumb across his mustache and down his face.

"Your Majesty, I honor you as my King. I honor your Queen as my sister. I love Elsa as I had loved my little girl of long ago. You do not have to say anything. Just give me the permission to do what is necessary to protect your family for however long you may reign."

"You promise no one will get hurt?"

He shakes his head. "I cannot promise they will not get hurt. I can only promise I will not kill them. Majesty, there are two things I do extremely well; one, seek and destroy the enemy; two, read people and persuade them in the errors of their thought processes. This is why I was allowed to live so many years ago. I had to prove my worthiness to another King. I ask for the same opportunity from you."

"They will know you are working for me. Why will they talk to you?"

He smiles at himself. He has chosen the right words to persuade the King. It has been a long time since he had to persuade anyone other than putting the thoughts in their mind. By the Kings' interest, it also tells him, Charles has known or had a concern something may be up, but in his position he can't allege anything without proof. He knew he could get the proof.

"Sir, I'm counting on them knowing that I work for you. Sometimes the greatest hiding spot is in plain sight. Tomorrow when you escort the King and Queen of the Southern Isle to their ship, allow me to follow several steps behind you and I will see who takes the bait."

After several seconds Charles glances over his shoulder at him and replies, "Very well, do not take any action unless there is an immediate threat." He walks through the door closing it behind him.

Sam blinks his eyes once and follows the King to his room where Ingrid is waiting. He quickly scans everyone in the castle to determine the normal routine of every person associated with the royal family. He needs to know what a normal routine is and who or what is new.

A few seconds later he hears a sweet voice, _Admal, are you mad?_

"No, I'm not mad, why do you ask?"

 _You sound different._

"I am different. Sometimes I just need to stretch my mind and heart to get my blood flowing."

 _Are mommy and papa mad at me?_

"No sweetie, they are not mad at you. They love you so much, when an unknown factor enters their lives, they are concerned how they will deal with it."

 _You mean you, since you got out of the ice._ Confusion swirls in Elsa's thoughts.

"Yes, since I got out of the ice." He detects an emotion of fear. "Elsa, are you afraid?"

 _I am a little scared._ She barely whispers in her thoughts.

Sam struggles to hold back his emotions. His urge is to run to her room and hug her just as he did when his little girl was afraid. He does not wish to frighten her more than she is, so he asks, "Do you want me to tell you a story?"

 _Yes, please._

"What do you want to hear?"

 _Tell me the story of Princess SaraCat._

He takes a deep breath and does not bother wiping away his tears running down his face. "Ok, SaraCat it is. A long time ago, there was a beautiful little girl named SaraCat. She ran into the room where her father was counting the arrival of new equipment he needed to run his kingdom."

 _SaraCat is a Princess like me._ Elsa giggles.

"That's right, SaraCat is a Princess. She is carrying a book that has paintings in it and she is holding a page open of this beautiful Queen who has such pretty blond hair. SaraCat stands next to her father and lightly bumps into him. Her father stops counting and says, "Sweetie, you wish to say something . . .

The following morning, King Charles and King Frederick walk side by side leading the procession from the castle to the Southern Isle's royal ship. Following the Kings, Queen Sofia and Queen Ingrid talk about a visit to the Southern Isles and following behind them are Prince Georg and Princess Elsa. He follows the procession four paces behind them. His head faces the two royal families, but his mind scans everyone within a hundred meter circle centered on Elsa. The usual grumbles of wishing for the better echo in his ears. He pays them little attention since they were easily distracted with their daily lives. As the procession steps onto the pier, he detects more than grumbling. This person's thoughts were impure, more like an animal lusting for what it could not have. He takes longer steps to move directly behind Elsa and Georg. His head slowly swivels back and forth searching everyone. He angles his body enough to stare into the eyes of the staff with the jagged scar on his forehead. The individual glares directly at him. Sam whispers the words, "I . . . see . . . you again."

The scar face staff must have read his lips by the expression of surprise on his face. Scarface quickly walks to the other side of the ship.

King Frederick gently bumps into him. "Well, Sam, if you ever decide on a change of venue, consider the Southern Isles. Sofia and I would love to have you as our guest."

Sam takes his hand and bows almost touching his face to the King's hand to hide his lips from the scar face as he speaks, "Your Majesty, I am honored you would consider me, but please listen to my words. You have a staff member on the ship with a jagged scar on his forehead. Please be careful of him. He is the one I saw looking out the second floor window just before your Queen came to the garden. It may be nothing but don't take any chances." Then he stands.

Frederick speaks only one word, "Interesting." He shakes Sam's hand and walks with his Queen and Georg on to their ship.

Charles and Ingrid watch as the Southern Isle ship pulls away from the pier. They begin their walk back to the castle, then Charles stops behind him. What did you say to Frederick?"

"I told him to keep an eye on the scar faced staff member."

"Which one was he?"

Sam searches the pier, then runs to the end and picks up a small rock about the size of a grape. He tosses it up and catches it in his hand so Charles and Ingrid can see it. Sam measures the throw and leans back. "He will be the one the rock finds."

He launches the rock into the air with a steep arch. Several seconds pass, then a loud crack echoes across the fjord followed by a loud scream of someone obviously in pain on the Southern Isle ship. He snickers and says, "That's him."

Ingrid covers her mouth, but she fails to suppress her laughter.

Sam does not hold back and they both roar in laughter as Charles looks on.

The little thump, thump, thump sound of small feet running towards him. "Admal?" Elsa launches herself. She impacts him with her feet and arm on his upper legs, knocking him to the ground. She straddles his chest, staring down at him.

Charles steps over him. "Bring her back to the castle and don't throw the princess at the ship."

Ingrid snickers. Laughter explodes from his lips. Ingrid holds onto Charles arm as she continues laughing.

Elsa watches him and asks, "Why was it funny to hurt someone."

It takes him a few seconds to stop laughing. He hugs her. "You are right. It is not funny to hurt anyone. My apologies, Princess." He rolls up to his feet and swings Elsa onto is shoulder. She holds onto his long hair as he walks back to the castle.

End of Chapter


	25. Chapter 24 Banished

Title: Chapter 24: Banished

Date: 21 years 8 months before Correction

Several months have passed and the royal family and staff have become more accepting of his abilities. A lingering cold breeze flows down from the mountains, creating a crispness in the air. To Samuel Ryan the warm sun and the cool breeze make for perfect weather. In the distant, he hears the howls of his friends and looks towards the bluff. They are no doubt frolicking. He nods to himself. He should have been up there to meet the morning sun cresting the mountains. Lookout Plateau has become his favorite spot to watch Arendelle wake up and the clouds drift past.

A horse's nose sniffs his face. "Ok, I had a moment. Get in line with the others."

King Agnarr Charles of Arendelle in his business uniform, as Samuel would say, the King's go-to-meeting clothing, stands at the top of the steps sipping his tea as he watches him.

Sam lines up the last horse in the team of four horses. They have an important mission to pull the royal coach. He checks the harnesses to the horses and straps to the coach. All appears ready. As he did in the past, he does again. He walks around the team and touches the forehead of each horse for several seconds. They reply with a nicker. Standing in front of the team, he holds up his arms. With stiff ears and their tails held high, each horse turns its head towards him.

"Are we going to behave and take the King to his destination and bring him back here, safely?"

The team neighs and nods their heads as they stomp the ground. One by one they shake and make their own adjustments

Charles walks towards him. "It still amazes me how the horses respond to you as if you are talking to them."

Sam bows. This morning he does not wear his normal, stable clothing, but wears the pressed white shirt and black trousers with black boots. He never did understand why the Queen wanted him to wear more appropriate clothing as she says, when associating with the King in public, but he agreed not to argue with her on this one issue.

"Please stand. You have been with us long enough. Bowing your head will be sufficient."

He leans towards him and whispers, "Unless she orders it to be so, I will continue as I'm doing. There are eyes watching us. I made this promise to stay out of the prison."

"It is your choice." Charles holds out a folded piece of parchment sealed with the King's stamp. "Go ahead and take it. It is your freedom should something happen."

Sam stares at the parchment, before glances at the King. He takes the brown parchment. "Are you expecting something to happen? I thought this was to be a safe trip."

"It is. I will be back by the middle of next week." Charles grabs his arm and glances towards the castle. "I have one request."

Sam looks over his shoulder expecting to see the Queen, but only the coach leans to one side as the staff loads a trunk and several smaller chests. "Anything you want Majesty."

"Please keep my two ladies safe and try not to argue with the Queen. She really does not bite."

"Yes sir, I will remember that, the next time she chews on my arse for pointing out her illogical actions."

"Well, that is an unfortunate under her current condition," Agnarr states as he glances back at the castle.

"You are not the first husband who needs to hide for a short time to regain his sanity. You just happen to have a valid excuse. What do you think she feels? She can't hide from it. For nine months she is constantly reminded of her condition." He jabs. "Of course, you were not thinking about her actions under her current condition several months ago or she wouldn't be in her current condition."

With a grin Charles glances back at him. "You did say you had a wife and child?"

"Aye," he replies. "And this too will pass and become a faded memory when you're on the floor playing games with your two little girls."

He waves to his two ladies approaching. "This next season will keep me busy. Their mother will have to entertain them."

Kai approaches and bows his head. "Everything has been prepared. You can depart at any time."

"Thank you Kai." The King grabs Sam's arm. "Please do me a favor. Please do not argue with the Queen, unless it is a safety issue."

Sam bows his head. "On my honor, it will be done." He escorts Charles to the royal coach where his Queen and Princess waits for him.

Charles takes Elsa from Ingrid and gives her a long hug and kisses her forehead. He passes her to Sam and gives his wife a longer hug and a longer kiss.

Elsa lays her head on his shoulder. She scratches the back of his neck as she pulls on his shirt. Her body tenses. Lightly stroking her long blond hair, his fingers stop at four specific points on the side of her face and neck. An energy charge builds in her body. He whispers to her, "Hold on sweetie, I can feel it too. Close your eyes."

She pulls him closer as her body tenses more. His cheek presses against her forehead as he closes his eyes. His foot hooks his shoe onto the horse's hoof and slips out of it. Skillfully, he steps on the end of his sock and pulls his foot out of it. His foot slides on the ground until it finds a layer of dirt connected to the ground under the courtyard stones. He holds Elsa tight and covers her head. A miniscule discharge of energy travels through his bare foot and into the ground.

The horse team moves in unison to step away from him.

"Whoa, whoa," calls the horse driver.

His eyes open.

Charles and Ingrid stare at him.

"What?"

As they glance down at his bare foot, he points to the clouds in the south. "There is a storm coming. You may wish to leave before it reaches your destination ahead of you. Elsa and I detected the storm, thus the bare foot."

Elsa giggles and she tightens her grip on his hair as he bends down to retrieve his sock and shoe.

Charles gives his Queen a quick peck on her cheek and enters the royal coach. With six horse guards in the front and six horse guards to the rear, the royal coach departs through the gates.

A shadow slides across the ground and partially merges with his shadow. Sam asks, "How long will he be gone this time?"

"A week," Ingrid replies. "What instructions did the King leave you?"

He glances down to a smiling Queen. "He said no arguing with you except in safety related issues or when you make stupid decisions."

She snaps her head up at him. "That is not what the King said."

"How do you know?"

"I know him well enough. He would not say that."

"Because you told him what to say."

She narrows her eyes at him.

His grin exposes his teeth as he walks towards the stables. He throws a comment over his shoulder. "Don't make stupid decisions and we will not argue."

"Keep it up and I will force you to sleep on the floor." Ingrid says as she walks up the steps.

He lifts Elsa onto his shoulder. "Your mother doesn't know forcing me to sleep on the floor is an improvement to sleeping on the ground."

"I heard that." Ingrid calls to him.

"I bet her tender bottom hasn't ever slept on the floor, let alone the ground."

"I heard that and yes I have."

"To which one, the floor or THE GROUND?" He yells.

"BOTH," she yells back.

He turns around and does not see the Queen. "Elsa did you hear your mother or am I hearing her in my head?"

"It is in your mind," Ingrid yells from inside the doorway.

He taps Elsa's shoe. "Your mother is funny." He continues to the stables.

Elsa taps his head. "I think you are funny, Admal. We ride horses now?"

"Ok sweetie, I'll let you ride the horse, while they walk around." Elsa holds onto his hair as he ducks down to pass through the service door. He lifts her up. "Ready to flip?" Elsa places her shoes on his shoulder and stands. He slides his hands under her arms. "Ready?"

"Jump, jump," she fidgets her feet against his neck.

"Okay, jump."

She jumps up and out over his head. He holds on to her as she flips and lands on her feet. She holds up her arms and says, "ta-da."

He claps for her, "And what magical ability will the humble and great Princess Elsa do for her next trick?"

She turns around grinning. "I will ride a horse."

He cannot help, but to smile back at her. She is a ball of energy when she is awake. He considers if her energy is the results of too much exposure to his energy, while proving to her father what a special little girl she is and will be. He does note a slight drop in her body temperature this time. He recalls the military doctors saying his temperature dropped several degrees over a month's time when his body began to accept the stardust in his blood.

Elsa places her hands behind her back and rocks back and forth on her heals.

When he gets impatient and has to wait, he rocks on his heels. Obviously she has been watching him.

 _One day you will understand my hesitation because you will see what I feel in my mind._

"Okay, do you want to pick out six horses or shall I pick them?" He asks.

"Me, me," she responds with giggles.

"Lead the way Princess." Elsa stops in front of each stall and holds out her hand to let the horse sniff. She walks to the end of the stables and turns around. As she passes a horse she says, "Good horse."

He opens the stall gate and each horse falls in line behind the last horse. He opens the stable's gates and Elsa leads the horses out into the courtyard. He lifts her onto the back of the first horse. She slides forward and holds onto the horse's mane. Elsa's horse leads the parade around the courtyard. The guards and castle staff wave and greet her. At first Elsa concentrates to hold on to the horse.

He stops the procession. "Ok Princess, I will teach you how to be polite to everyone, especially to those you will have authority over. When they walk past you, look them in the eye and nod to them. Like this."

He faces forward and demonstrate the head nod. "When there is more than one person you can nod to the group as you sweep your free hand from inside to outside like this."

He faces her and raises his right hand to shoulder height. His hand sweeps out as his palm turns up. "You can use either hand." He demonstrates with his left hand. "But do not use both hands unless you are bowing and especially, if you are on a horse. Use one hand only. Now you try."

After a few attempts, Elsa gets her hand and head moving together.

"Good, have you been shown the royal wave?"

She smiles as she stares at him.

"Okay, I take that as a no. When people are further away, you show them the royal wave. Do as I do." He holds his hand up close to his face, but to the side and slightly in front. With his palm towards him and slightly curved he rotates his hand slowly back and forth.

Elsa mimics his hand motion on her first try.

"Did your mother show you this wave?"

She giggles her answer, "No, you did."

He pats her back, "Good job, let's continue our parade and you can practice your wave and nodding."

As they parade around the courtyard, Elsa performs her royal wave and nods to everyone. The guards and staff respond in kind to the Princess.

They arrived back at the stable. He helps Elsa to stand on the horses back then she steps onto his shoulders. The horse walks to the end of the line as the next horse moves forward and stops long enough for Elsa to step onto its back. She sits as she grabs its mane. The cycle repeats until she has ridden all of the horses. The last time around, she leads the horse into the stables and each horse goes into its stall. He closes all the stall gates, then slides Elsa off her horse.

He sets her onto the floor and wrinkles his nose. "I think your mother will be upset if she gets a whiff of your clothes."

She holds onto his arm and sniffs at him, "She will say you stink."

He makes a face at her, "I stink? What do you think she will say to you smelling like a horse?"

She poses and fluffs her hair. "She will say I smell good," she giggles.

He lifts her onto his shoulder and walks into the service room. He picks up the supply request, then hears a rumble outside of the stable. "Okay, Princess smells like a horse, let's get you inside before it starts to rain." He opens the service door to a clap of thunder and a spray of rain.

Elsa comments, "Too late, it rain." He tickles behind her legs and she laughs.

"Hold on. I'm going to run. " She grabs his hair and he holds onto her legs. "If I'm good enough, I should be able to run between the rain drops and we will not get wet."

"You can do it Admal," Elsa encourages.

He runs out flicking the door closed. As he runs towards the service entrance door Elsa giggles bouncing on his shoulders. They get inside the door. She flips over his head and lands with her shoes making a loud clatter. The Kitchen staff smiles and murmurs about the sudden arrival of the Princess.

Gerda walks over to them. "How is it she has very little water on her and you look like a drowned rat?"

Elsa poses and says, "Because I'm good and he is not?"

"Elsa," comes a stern voice from across the room. "Do not say things like that about the stable boy."

Sam bows as she approaches. "Princess Elsa stated a fact. Before I ran through the rain I told the Princess if I'm good enough, I would be able to run in between the rain drops." Pointing to Elsa, "As you can see I am wet and she is mostly dry thus her comment is correct."

Queen Ingrid's right brow moves up. "I see." She holds her hand out. "Come on, Princess, let us get you cleaned up before we eat."

Elsa takes her mother's hand. They walk past the counter. Elsa grabs her head and scream a fraction of a second before a loud clap of thunder. Ingrid kneels and wraps her arms around her crying Elsa.

He kneels beside them and touches Elsa's cheek as Ingrid looks up at him. His eyes close for a long second, then opens them. "That should take the pain away." He steps back.

Ingrid picks up her little girl.

She rests her head on her mother's shoulder. "Momma, why did my head hurt?"

"Well, I am not sure. Wait a couple of years and I am sure Samuel will be able to explain it." She sniffs her clothes. "What have you been doing? Your clothes smell like horses."

His left eye narrows just as another clap of thunder echoes as Elsa replies, "Admal, let me ride the horses around the yard."

"Well you smell like you did." Ingrid stares at him with her right brow raised.

He moves to the door and opens it, but closes it quickly. His left eye flutters with another clap of thunder. Peeking out the door, he starts pass through when a warm hand grabs his arm. He looks back.

Ingrid holds his arm.

His eye flutters again at the thunder claps. He glances at Elsa. "Are you doing better, sweetie?"

She nods.

Ingrid hugs a smiling Elsa and whispers to him, "Thank you."

With a winks he says, "I need to check on the horses. With all of the lightning and thundering I will spend the night to keep them calm." His eye flickers as another thunder echoes. He runs out the door towards the stables.

Halfway across the courtyard static builds in his body. He changes directions away from the stable and slides into the castle's wall. His hand finds a seam between two stones at the base of the wall and touches the dirt that has collected there. The statics charge dissipates in time as a lightning bolt strikes the top of the wall. Dashing to the stable's service door and stepping inside, he leans against the door frame. His soaked clothes drip water on to the floor.

"She is right. I do look like a soaked rat."

He starts a fire in the very small fireplace and removes his clothes. They are soaking even after wringing the water out of them. Hopefully they will dry by morning. Not wanting to surprise anyone, he ties the leather apron used to manicure the horse's hooves around himself. He sits on one of the two chairs next to the tables and leans back against the wall. Comfortable will not be possible, but he closes his eyes and focuses on Elsa.

After a short time, the chair and wall have rubbed and pulled against his naked body, forcing him to attend to his wet clothes. If he does not increase his energy expenditure too high he may be able to dry his clothes without attracting a lightning bolt to the stable. He squeezes more water out of his shirt and passes it through his hand several times. Each pass freezes more water until the shirt appears as a long thin pole. With a snap, crackle, and crunch, he twists the shirt and ice sparkles rain onto the floor. With a snap and a blast of air through the shirt, the water droplets splash against the door.

He replaces the apron with the shirt and sniffs the sleeve. "Mountain fresh." Movement flashes from the bottom of the shirt. "This will be extremely embarrassing if someone opens the door."

A horse nickers a reply.

"I know. I didn't think it through before taking action." Several horses whinny as though they were laughing. It would be difficult to explain why he has his shirt on, but not his trousers. He remedied the situation in short order by freezing the water out of his trousers and slipping them on.

He sits and leans back against the wall. The leading edge of the storm passes and a steady rain echoes off the roof. The rhythmic beat lulls his mind. His body tenses twice and his energy holds to protect Elsa from the lightning harmonics.

Several hours later a light rain blows against the door, but it does not prevent him from hearing the service door creak. An intermittent presence enters the room. Not waiting for an attack, he bolts from the chair and sweeps their feet out from under them. With his arm on the back of their neck, forcing their face into the floor, he roughly searches their body for weapons.

A faint voice calls, "Sam."

He moves to the side and rolls her over. His hand touches her pregnant abdomen. The fear in her eyes tells him she did not expect his actions. He cradles her and brushes the dirt from her face. Tears fill her eyes. "My God, are you ok?"

She stares up at him as she holds her abdomen.

He moves his hand. "Your little girl is ok. There is no damage to her." He sweeps away a tear running down her neck. "I am so sorry. I did not recognize you until it was too late. Are you hurting anywhere?"

She whispers, "My neck."

He slides his fingers behind her neck and brushes across a warm bump. "You have a vertebrae out of alignment. This will be cold, but I need to stabilize your neck and get you in a better position to put it back into alignment."

He does not wait for a reply and generates an ice collar that prevents her neck and head from moving. He moves her into a sitting position and kneels beside her. His arms slide behind her knees. She starts to move her arms. "Don't move. Let me do all the work. You enjoy the ride the best you can."

He places her hands in her lap and his other arm across her back. "I'll make this quick." He rolls to his feet scooping her up into his arms and sits her in the chair. Her face flinches in pain. He positions himself in front of her and kneels. "You need to sit where you are comfortable while I work on your neck. You will lean your head against my shoulder. It will take several minutes to complete."

She slides her hands along the edge of the chair's seat. Finding the front of the seat she slides forward to the edge and part her legs to make room for her pregnancy.

He asks, "Other than your neck, are you hurting anywhere else?"

She stares at him not able to speak because of the ice collar. She smiles and grabs his nose between her fingers as she turns his head side to side.

With a plugged nasally sound, "No other pain except neck?"

She moves his head up, then down, then releases his nose.

"Well, I deserved that." He moves closer and encourages her to place her head against his shoulder. "Put your forehead here and place your hands where ever is comfortable."

She leans her head against his shoulder and grabs the sides of his shirt.

"You may hear a snap, crackle, or pop. If I do anything that causes you pain please let me know." The ice melts off the back of her neck and leaves enough in front to support her head. He touches the misaligned vertebrae and applies a small amount of pressure. "Does this hurt?"

"A little," she replies. "It feels hot."

"Okay, just relax." His finger slide along her spine as he rubs and pushes with each movement. Her tension releases bit by bit. Her pain level appears to lower. He searches the back of her neck for evidence of bruising. His nose gets a little too close to her neck and inhales a fragrant. A hint of sweetness with a citrus flavor fills his sinus cavities. He takes another deep breath. The sweetness of the fragrant evokes pleasurable memories of a time long past. For a moment he stops. He does not know how long the moment lasted, but it was long enough for Ingrid to notice.

"Did you find something? What is wrong?"

He lightly slides his fingers along her spine. "I apologize. Are you wearing a fruit flavor, perfume?"

"Fruit, it is called tropical paradise," she replies.

"A good name, I detect the fragrant of oranges, pineapples, different flowers, and a hint of coconut."

"You can smell all that?"

"Your perfume reminds me of those things. It smells nice on you." He continues the massage. "So what are you going to name your little one?"

"I like Anna. My grandmother's name was Anna. My mother told me her grandfather married her for her bright red hair."

"Favor, grace and peace, It's a beautiful name."

"I will tell Charles you approve of his selection," she responds with a slight laughter.

After several minutes her hands release his shirt. She takes a deep breath. The vertebrae slips back into place.

He continues to massage her shoulders and removes the remaining ice.

She moves her arms around his waist and turns her head resting on his shoulder.

"I see why Elsa likes to rest on your shoulders. They are comfortable." She yawns and takes a deep breath. "I could fall asleep."

He touches the side of her face and lightly taps a small arc into her temple. Her body relaxes in his arms. "Okay, my dear, let me get you back to the castle before they send the cavalry in here."

Sliding his arm under her arm and across her back, he scoops her up as he stands. A horse snorts at him. "Careful, she is your Queen and the King would not like to hear you say that about her, but I will be cautious that no one sees us."

He flicks his finger and the flame in the lantern winks out. The door opens slightly. In the distant hills lightning illuminates a cloud, but it is not enough to illuminate the courtyard. He slips out the door and scans for the guards on the wall and waits. An opportunity appears and he swiftly carries his Queen to the castle's service door. Inside, Gerda blocks his path out of the kitchen.

"What did you do?"

He stares at her for a moment. "Long story short, I didn't know it was her until she squeaked when her neck was pinned to the floor with my arm."

Gerda draws her brows together and down. "You expect me to believe that?"

"Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction. I could have said I rescued her from a goblin."

She points to the hall. As he passes her, she says, "A goblin name Admiral Ryan."

He carries the Queen up the stairs with a few staffers watching him. Into the royal suite he sits her in the outer room, lounge chair and places a small pillow behind her neck. She rolls onto her side and adjusts the pillow as she draws her legs up. He retrieves a blanket from the other chair to cover her and tucks it around her.

She opens her eyes looking past him, then looks up at him with a smile. She whispers, "Thank you, my neck feels better. Since you are here, you can keep Elsa comfy until the morning."

He stares at her. "This wasn't your plan all along, was it?"

Ingrid grins enough to show her teeth and sighs.

His body slowly turns as he keeps an eye on the Queen. His head snaps around when he bumps into a wide awake Elsa holding her arms up to him. He picks her up. "What are you doing awake this late at night?"

"The flash of light keeps me awake. Momma said she would bring you back to protect me."

Sam rolls his head towards the Queen. "She did, did she?"

Ingrid still has her eyes close, but she timed it perfectly. For a second he is sure she stuck her tongue out at him.

Elsa flinches a fraction of a second before a flash of light illuminates through the window. Several seconds later a distant thunder rumbles.

He searches the room and asks, "Do you have a favorite blanket?" She nods. "Is it in your room?" She nods again. "Okay, let's go get it."

He opens the door and a guard stands in the door frame. The guard turns with his hand on the hilt of his sword and continues to stand in the doorway. Neither of them moves and both stare at each other.

After a few seconds, Sam comment, "Unless you plan to get her blanket, step asides so I can get it."

The guard hesitates.

He winks at Elsa and tickles her side. With her giggle he says, "Maybe this guard is waiting for momma bear to come over here and explain it to him."

She giggles again. The guard steps to the side.

Sam carries her to her room and walks to her bed. "I see three, which one is your favorite."

She points to the blue blanket.

"Ah, yes, blue with snowflakes. A very good choice. Is there anything else you wish to take with you for the night?"

She points to the cloth doll with golden hair.

He hands it to her. "Another great choice, anything else?"

She holds her doll close and lays her head on his shoulder.

He pinches the tip of her nose. "I take it we are done here and are ready to return to your mother's room."

The same guard standing in front of the royal couple's room. This time the guard steps aside. Inside the room, Sam turns to the guard. "You are doing an excellent job standing here. Keep up the good work." The door closes.

Carring Elsa to the second lounge chair and he sits. After a few adjustments to find a comfortable position, he places a small pillow on his shoulder. With her blanket tucked around her, Elsa curls up with her doll and stares up at him. He stares into her beautiful blue eyes and lightly strokes her cheeks. With a yawn followed by a second yawn her eyes partially close. A minute later the third yawn closes her eyes. His hand sweeps over her and a slight blue tint fills the room. She takes a deep breath. A sigh relaxes her little body. He lays his head back against the chair.

"You would make a great father for your own little girl." Ingrid whispers from the other chair.

He glances over and with a smile Ingrid closes her eyes.

He replies, "I was to my little SaraCat." His eyes close.

Several hours later his mind alerts to the door opening. A pair of boots step into the room. The boots carry its owner to the royal bedroom. The door opens and the boots scuff against the door frame. The door closes. He listens closely. Two guards talk at the end of the hall. A bed creeks in the other room. A few seconds later the royal bedroom door opens. An illuminating shaft of light falls onto the floor. As the lantern moves into the outer room, the light creates gray shadows in the room.

The King's voice speaks, "How long did you hold out before giving in to be here?"

"Approximately forty minutes," he answers in a whisper. "It would have been less if I had not swept her feet out from under her in the stables."

Charles moves next to his chair. "You did what?"

"I was concentrating on Princess Elsa while the storm passed overhead. Evidently, Queen Ingrid has the same ability to sneak up on me as Gerda does. My first response of detecting an intruder is to disarm them. I kicked the feet out from under the intruder and planted their face into the floor, then frisked them before I realized they were pregnant. I rolled her over and scanned her baby. There was no damage until she said her neck hurt. Unfortunately, I dislocated a vertebrae where I was holding her down. I assisted her to a chair and massaged her neck until she relax. The vertebrae popped back into place. I helped her to sleep and carried her to the other chair."

The lantern rises up to barely illuminate Ingrid in the other chair.

"I started to leave. The Princess wanted me to stay. Here I am with Princess' drool on my shirt. So you didn't make it to your destination."

"No, the road was washed out."

"So are you ready to take over, Dad?" Receiving no response, he comments, "You are either confused or trying to interpret my question."

"I am trying to determine if I should ride on horseback to keep my meeting in the morning or reschedule for a later date. This will give me some time to catch up on my duties around here."

"Do those duties include your wife and little girl?"

"I have a lot of work that has been delayed. I can use the time to complete them."

"If you had reached your destination, what would have happened with the work?"

Charles looks over at Ingrid. "It would have been here when I got back."

He glances at Ingrid then back at the King. "You could use the next three days to spend time with your family. When was the last time you got to know your wife?"

Even in the dim light, he see Charles contemplating his question. "It is none of your business."

"You are correct. Now answer the question."

"You said her neck was injured."

"It was. It will be a little sore for a while. Besides, when she complains about it in the morning, she can blame it on you."

Agnarr stares down at him, "I am not doing anything with the two of you in here."

"Good, I don't want to be here to hear the noise." He lifts up Elsa. "Give your little girl a kiss. I will tuck her into her own bed and you can tuck her mommy into your bed."

Elsa raises her head with her eyes partially opened. "Is papa here?" Charles sets the lamp on the floor and picks up his little girl. She grabs her father's shirt collar and buries her face into his shoulder as she laughs. She lays her head on his shoulder and whispers, "I love you papa."

The King hugs her tight as he kisses her cheek. "And I love Elsa."

Sam sits up and folds Elsa's blanket over his arm.

A soft voice speaks from the other chair, "What is going on?"

He stands and grabs Elsa's doll. "That's our cue Princess. You and I will go to your room and play while the King and Queen play."

Elsa looks back at him and raises her head. "I want to play with momma and papa."

For several seconds they stare at each other. He breaks the silence, "Sweetie, it is late and Princesses need their sleep not to mention I need my sleep as well. Since papa has already set aside three days from the Kingdom for his delayed meetings. Maybe the King could spend a day or two with his little girl and her mommy. Will that be ok?"

Elsa reaches for him as he takes her in his arms. She answers, "Okay, but you wake me up as soon as momma and papa get up."

"It's a deal." She wraps her arm around his neck and nuzzles. "You carry your doll and I'll carry you to your room and tuck you into your bed. The King will tuck his Queen into his bed." As he reaches for the door, he glances back and reads Ingrid's lips, 'thank you'. He nods to her and opens the door.

The guard standing in front of the door turns and stares at him.

"You know if this was an emergency, you would be pulling your face out of that," pointing to the wall across from the door, "while we run out. The safest post for you is to either side of the door." The guard continues to stare at him then he steps back. Sam walks out and closes the door.

Less than a minute later they enters Elsa's room. "Wow, you have lots of room to play in here." Kneeling by her bed, he pulls the covers back and tries to lay her on the bed but she does not let go of him. "What's wrong sweetie?"

"You lay down and I sleep on you like in the chair." She replies with a big grin.

He studies the bed for a moment. "I do not believe your bed will hold the two of us."

"Momma sleeps in bed with me," she pleads with her blue eyes staring at him.

He puckers his lips at her and replies, "I weigh a lot more than your mother, even in the state she is in. I'm pretty sure the bed will not hold the both of us."

He sets her onto the edge of the bed and tickles her until she lets go of him. She falls back laughing. "Get under the covers and I'll lay on the floor until you are asleep."

Elsa giggles as she crawls to the other side of the bed. He grabs her feet and pulls. She screams with laughter as she holds on to the bed covers. He sits her up. She reaches for his neck and their heads bump together. She falls back on the bed, holding her head. He touches the point of impact on his head and a slight charge of energy dissipates through his finger.

Elsa holds her head as tears swell in her eyes.

He sits her up and lays her back in his arm. He moves her hand and the impact spot glows white. "Oh sweet Princess."

His hand covers the spot and it begins to glow white. "Go ahead and cry. It's ok. I'll take the pain away."

Two slightly blue orbs reflect in her eyes. She places her hands to either side of his face. He stares into her eyes and wonders what she is thinking. She replies with a smile. The glow in his hand changes from white to blue.

He brushes away her tears. Her eyes follow his eyes. When he blinks she blinks. He asks in a thought, _do you hear me._

She slightly nods her head.

 _Do you want me to show you a trick?_

She nods her head and he hears her thought, _yes_.

Scooping her up in his arms he carries her down the stairs past two guards. The third guard holds up his hand. Sam says to the guard, "We are hungry. We'll get a snack then back to bed for the Princess."

The guard lets them pass and he walks to the kitchen. A few minutes later holding a cup of soft frozen milk he stands in the open room and scans for the guards as an opportunity presents itself. He dashes for the great hall and listens.

 _Do you hear anything?_

Elsa shakes her head, and replies in her thoughts, _no._

He runs and slides, leaving a trail of ice in the center of the floor. With a wave of his hand, a small ice table and chair rises out of the floor. Sitting on the floor he sits her in the chair. As she eats the soft frozen milk he brushes her hair out of her face and observes her facial features. "You are a beautiful little girl. You remind me of my SaraCat. One day you will grow up to become a beautiful Queen. I wonder how strong your ice powers will be."

She looks up at him with a milk mustache. "I will be like you." She holds up her cup and presses it against his lips. She pours in what little remained of her milk into his mouth. She looks in the cup, "All gone."

"Yes, it is. What do you want to do now?"

She points at the ice trail leading away from the table and chair. "Make ice."

"As you command Princess." Rolling to his knees, he rolls his hands over each other. "Watch this."

A small snowball begins to float between his hands. It sparkles with blue and white colors and becomes brighter as it grows larger. The sweet smile on her face with her blue eyes fixates on the growing snowball. "Ready?"

"Uh-huh," she replies. Her eyes grow as big as her smile. Both hands turn up and the snowball shoots up exploding high above them to create a mini star field. Her eyes reflect the sparkles. "Wow, this is amazing." Tiny snowflakes land on her and she giggles.

"You will like this." He removes his shoes and stomps on the floor. From his foot the ice spreads outward. She falls to her hands and knees as the ice carries her away from him. On his bare feet, he skates over and scoops her up.

"Okay, feet down." She puts her feet down as he holds on to her. "It takes a little practice, but this is skating." After several attempts with a few falls, she holds onto his finger for stability, but afar as he was concerned, she is skating. He flicks his finger and a short snow hill forms.

She skates to the edge of the snow hill, "Wow," and falls face first into the snow. She pushes herself up with a snow covered face and snow freezing her hair back. She gets to her feet and pulls on her shirt.

He sits next to her and swirls his hand around her face. The snow falls off into tiny pieces. The snow in her shirt floats out and collects into a small snowball. She slaps her hands against the snowball sending tiny flakes around the room. For the next few hours she giggles and laughs and runs and plays in the snow, but even her body signals it is time to sleep.

He picks her up and she lays her head on his shoulder. "I need to remove the snow before anyone sees it."

With a wave of his hand over his head, all of the snow collects near the ceiling. "This gift I give to you."

The snow forms into a large, intricate snowflake. It slowly drifts down and gets smaller. "Hold out your hand."

She opens her hand and the snowflake lands on her palm. "My mother gave me this snowflake and now I give it to you. If your powers grow this snowflake will remind you of who gave it to you." The snowflake disappears into her hand. She yawns and grabs his collar.

The door opens and a cloud of cold air rushes out. He walks up the stair to the residential wing. As he passes an open door, he sees a plush chair in the unoccupied room. An ice trail from his feet moves into the room and lifts the chair sliding it out of the room. The chair follows him into Elsa's room. He leans over her bed, but she hangs onto his shirt and moans.

"Okay, you can sleep in my lap."

The chair slides close to her bed. He places his legs on her bed and positions her on his chest. With a puff of air her blanket and her doll floats onto them. She holds her doll close. After tucking the blanket around her, he generates a blue mist covering both of them. She closes her eyes and with a deep breath, a foggy sigh passes between her lips. Her hand and leg twitch for a moment, before her body relaxes. He kisses the top of her head as his eyes feel heavy. Pressing his fingers on four specific points along her neck and face, he whispers, "We can continue our fun. Let me show you my snow covered mountain."

The following day King Agnarr does not comment to him as he gets onto his horse. The King rides with an escort to his meeting.

Queen Iduna watches her King depart. She glances at Sam, but quickly turns away as he nods to her. She does not speak to him.

The last hour of the following days Elsa waits for him on the steps by the castle's main doors. He brings out a different horse and allows her to ride. Most of the time he walks alongside of the horse moving around the courtyard. Lately he rides the horse with Elsa standing in front of him holding the reins. She becomes very stable standing on the horse despite its movements. This evening she lets go of the reins and leans back against him. He feels her pain and holds her close to him. A buildup of energy radiates from the south. The anvil top of a storm moves towards Arendelle.

A faint blue energy surrounds the two of them. He whispers, "We have to cut today's ride short. There is a storm coming and we better get you inside before it passes overhead."

She looks to the south. "A big storm, will papa get home before it rains?"

"I don't know sweetie, but you will be dry when he gets here."

After placing the horse in its stall, he lifts her onto his shoulders and walks the length of the stables making sure each horse gate is locked. As he walks across the courtyard Elsa holds out her hand and a large drop of rain splashes on her hand. "Hurry Admal before we get wet."

Quickening his steps they get into the castle a second before the downpour of rain hits. Ingrid meets them in the foyer. He kneels.

Ingrid pulls a giggling Elsa off his shoulders. "Princess, it's time for your bath and to bed after a snack."

Elsa asks, "Did you bring a snack for Admal?"

Ingrid stares at her for a moment. She looks in his direction, but not at him.

He notes her smile is missing and rubs his abdomen. "I'm not that hungry. A little water will do me fine."

Elsa rubs her abdomen. "I am not hungry. I will drink water like Admal."

"Little miss, let's get your bath and we will see if Admal is still here afterwards." Ingrid carries Elsa up the stairs.

"Admal, do not go until I get back. You stay there, okay." Elsa calls from over her mother's shoulder.

He bows and says, "I promise to be here when you get back." He stands and watches them walk to the residential floor.

"What are you going to do when you're not here?"

He looks back at Kai. "Whether I'm here in the castle or up in the hills I will be around as long as she needs me."

"She needs you," Kai snickers. "Are you sure it's not you who needs her?"

"It doesn't matter. I am the only one like her on this planet. Soon she will explore her abilities and I will be there for her."

Kai walks past him. "I hope you are correct."

Several days later, Sam washes the rake and shovel. Gravel crunches against the courtyard stones behind him. A moment's hesitation allows him to scan the approaching individual. He dips his hands in a bucket of water and washes the morning's stable grime from his arms and face. The gravel crunching stops. Continuing to wash, he comments, "It's still early for the noon meal. Why are you here?"

"The King summons you," answers Kai in a quiet voice. "I recommend, you do not be late."

A warning goes off in his head as he wipes the towel across his face. "What's going on that he would send you out here and not a staffer?"

Kai does not look at him. "There has been an incident involving you. The King will make a decision." He walks towards the castle.

He hurriedly hangs up the shovel and rake, then empties the water buckets. He follows Kai into the castle's main doors. Three guards meet him in the foyer. "What's going on?"

The sergeant replies, "We need to verify you have no weapons on you. Please hold your hands up."

Holding his arms out from his side and a guard frisks him. "If I was going to kill anyone, I don't need a weapon."

"That's what I told him, but he said to do it anyway."

"Who said that?"

"No weapons," the guard steps back.

The sergeant nods to the guard. "Our King," he answers and turns. "Follow me."

Sam follows the sergeant down the short hall. Guards stand to either side of the door. The sergeant knocks on the door three times rapidly.

From behind the door the King's voice answer, "Enter."

The sergeant grabs the door handle, then turns his head towards him and whispers. "Please do not do anything that will cause the King to call us in. We will have our swords in hand."

Sam's mind shifts into a defensive mode. "I understand."

The sergeant opens the door.

Queen Iduna stands behind the King's desk. Her eyes are red and puffy as she uses a tissue to dab the corners of her eyes. King Agnarr wears his official uniform he uses to meet delegates from other Kingdoms and to conduct business in the Kingdom. No delegates are in the room.

Sam lowers his arms to his side and curls his fingers under to make a fist with his thumbs forward. He marches several paces into the room. The door closes behind him. Staring directly at the King, Sam stands at attention. Agnarr stares back, but he hesitates, a sign of weakness or indecision. Sam takes the first move and bows at the waist. "You requested my presence Majesty."

"Are you mocking me?" Agnarr growls more than asking.

He looks up and slowly stands tall. "No Sir, I am not mocking you."

Agnarr places his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Am I your King?"

Sam turns his body to face squarely at the King. "Let me make myself perfectly clear. I am not a citizen of this monarchy. I am my own person." He glances directly at his sword. "Move that sword from its scabbard and I will defend myself. How many citizens and guards will have to die before you realize your mistake?"

Agnarr moves his hand from the hilt and places it on his waist. "Did you agree to follow my orders as part of your employment to Arendelle?"

"Yes."

Agnarr takes a step towards him. "Then why have you disobeyed me?"

"I do not understand. Specifically, what do you think I have done?"

"This," Agnarr reaches behind him and holds up a cup. "Do you know what this is?"

"A cup?"

"Yes, it is a cup," Agnarr growls with agitation as his facial muscles tense. He thrust the cup near his face. "Do you know where I found it?"

"No Sir, I do not."

"Let me give you a clue." Agnarr turns the cup down and an ice ball falls out into his hand. He throws the ice hitting Sam's chest. The King grits his teeth as he spews, "Now do you know where I found it?"

"Probably where I left it and forgot to go back to retrieve it."

The volume of his voice increases, "And where did you forget it?"

"In the great hall near the dais."

"What is ice doing in this cup? Since it has not melted, I know it is your ice. I have a witness who will testify they saw you and Elsa in the hall. What do you have to say for yourself?"

"They are correct. Elsa and I were in the great hall and that does look like the cup I used to hold the snow, so some of it has melted."

"You admit to teaching Elsa ice tricks?" Agnarr glares at him.

"So this is what's making you upset. You think I was teaching Elsa to use her ice powers."

With raised brows Iduna steps around the desk and asks, "She has ice powers?"

"As far as I know, no. I believe she is too young. If she develops ice powers it should be several years from now. Since neither of you have any experience with an exceptional child like her, I am the most qualified to teach her to control the ice."

Agnarr clinches his fists and takes a step towards him. "You will not teach her. You will not show her. I forbid it."

"Are you even listening to your own words or do you not care and let them spew out? Why don't you also declare she is forbidden to be a female? At least she will truly understand that."

"You will not take that tone with me." Agnarr grips the hilt of his sword.

"Someone better, obviously the Queen has decided to look the other way."

"Samuel, why are you attacking me," Iduna asks as she steps next to the King.

"What are you two going to do when she comes running to you and says, 'hey mom, dad look what I can do' and she makes an ice ball? Will you take her to her room and give her forty lashes and continue to beat her until she never does it again? Will you chain her to her room or lock her up in the attic and prepare her sister to become Queen?"

Sam waits for an answer, but the King's red face and pulsing vein in his neck gives him his answer. He shakes his head as his tensed muscles relax. He drops his respectful demeanor. His eyes look directly into Ingrid's eyes.

"Did you use your power to scan our minds?" Agnarr holds up his fist at him.

"I don't have to scan your minds. You are screaming so loud I can't help but to hear your thoughts. You don't have a plan. What happened that made you suspect she has ice powers?" He stares at the King waiting, and then Ingrid slinks behind her husband.

"Oh my God she did." He turns and searches past the door. "And she hid it from me." With a smile he continues, "My little sweet pea. I wasn't sure if you had the power."

He glances back at them. "Now you can't afford to make me leave. I'm the only one who can teach her to control those powers."

For a moment silence fills the room. He shakes his head and clasp his hands together as he turns back to them. "I'm not getting good vibes from either of you. I'm not concerned about her. My concern is how you will react to her."

Leaning to one side he stares at the Queen. "You have been given a gift. If you go into the dark forest to find the so call powerful wizard, you will make things worse."

He stands straight. "If it wasn't for Elsa, you would be dead and I would be negotiating with whoever took over. Here is a scenario for you. Elsa is happy and wants to show you her new trick. The King walks away without saying anything. The Queen tells her not to do it again. After a few times of scolding her, she chooses not to approach you for anything. As she gets older you find evidence that she has been practicing her ice powers. One day she realizes she can freeze anything or anyone. You threaten discipline and she says no. You push and she pushes back."

His finger points at Agnarr. "Soon an ice sculpture appears that resembles a member of your staff. Your wife, fearing for her life pays a guard or assassin to stop her. Not understanding why you have turned against her, she becomes afraid and that is when you truly find out if her powers have a limit, but it will not matter, because Arendelle freezes into a block of ice."

He steps to the door and places his hand on the latch. "That is a hypothetical scenario." Turning the latch and pulling the door open a few centimeters. He asks, "Can you afford to take the chance the prediction may come true?"

The door closes behind him and he stops at the end of the hall. Leaning against the wall he covers his eyes to listen to them through the Queen's ears.

Iduna says, "What Sam said is the truth. When you walked away from Elsa after she showed you she could freeze water, you did not see the hurt in her face. I picked her up and she cried. I did not know what to say to her. I lied to her by saying you were deeply concerned about the Kingdom and did not understand what she did. She calmed down, but we have to be extremely careful with her."

Agnarr states, "Until one of us makes a mistake. I do not care what Sam says. I sent a message to an individual who lives in the dark forest. I have already received his response."

Iduna asks, "What did he say?"

Agnarr answers, "The wizard cannot take her powers away, but he can delay them until she is older and has a better understanding of life. We can send payment any time."

Iduna asks, "What do you think Sam will do?"

"I do not care," Agnarr barks, "As long as he does not interfere. We are Elsa's parents."

Iduna lowers her voice. "And Sam is an honorable man. When he commits to doing something he does it. I now regret maneuvering him into his vow to protect Elsa. He will not break that."

Agnarr expresses his thoughts, "I have been thinking about it and I agree with you. We can use his honor against him and keep Elsa safe from her powers."

Barely audible Iduna asks, "How?"

"Samuel, what are you doing?" asks the sergeant interrupting his thoughts.

"I was listening. I guess they have made a decision. I will be in the stables performing my duties." He walks across the open room and out the main doors.

On the top steps with his fist on his waist and his feet shoulder width apart, Sam surveys the courtyard and notes the guards' locations. A gust of wind dives over the wall from the north picking up dust and leaves. The leaves twist around a micro tornado. It moves across the yard like a finger tracing lines on a map then finding its target. The leafy tornado stops at the bottom of the steps for a moment. It charges at him. The leaves explode upon contacting him and fall onto the steps. He looks up at the clouds moving from the north and pulls leaves and twigs from his hair. "Really, is this your sign?" He walks towards the stables and notes the temperature dropping.

"Admal," sounds a sweet voice behind him. He turns around and kneels as patters of steps run towards him. She jumps into his arms.

He holds her tight and kisses her cheek. He gazes into her blue eyes. "You remind me of the joy my SaraCat gave me. She was a lot like you. She was full of energy and interested in most things I did. She grew up to become a beautiful young woman which I know you will too. I am honored and proud to be your friend." He picks her up and carries her to the stables. "I have one more thing to show you and I'll let you control the horse."

As he reaches for the service door, Elsa touches a moist trail rolling down his face and she asks, "Are you crying?"

With a forced smile he replies, "I am crying with happiness because I love you so much, Princess. I am not alone."

Several minutes later, the horse gate opens and Sam leads a horse out with Elsa sitting on its back. "Hold on and don't fall off." Grabbing the horse' mane, he swings his leg up and over the horses back. He adjusts himself slightly back on the horse and hands Elsa the reins. "Are you ready?"

"Uh huh."

"Hold on." He pulls off her shoes and socks and stands her on the horse's back. "Lean against me and I will keep you safe." She leans back against him and he wraps his arm around her waist. "Let's walk around the courtyard."

"Ok," she replies with a giggle. "Come on horse." The horse begins walking. With the reins Elsa nudges the horse around the yard.

The second pass by the steps Kai calls out to him, "Sam, the King is requesting your presence in his study room."

"I don't have time right now." He tosses Else's shoes and socks at him. "Please hold these for the Princess. Tell the King, when Princess Elsa is tired of playing, I will meet with him." They continue riding.

Each time they passed the open gates, he considers taking the reins and racing the horse through them. They would never find him, but he sees Elsa's thoughts. She is happy thinking about her mother and father. She wants to please them. He knows he could not take her away. After passing the castle steps, he hears the doors open and a few seconds later the castle gates close.

He glances at the four guards standing by the gate staring at him. Each holds a lancer across their body. Two more guards step out from the gatehouse and draw their swords. He turns the horse to walk towards the center of the courtyard. On the top step Iduna and Gerda stand. Both dab the corner of their eyes.

Kai stands behind Agnarr on the bottom steps. He motions them to approach the King.

"Do you think this is the best solution for the circumstance?" He pulls on the reins stopping the horse. Agnarr points at him. Motion to the right draws his attention. The four guards with lancers march towards him. He pulls Elsa tight to him and turns the horse so she cannot see him shoot four spikes of ice at the guards. The spikes split in half striking in front of the guard's feet. The ice expands around the boots anchoring them to the ground.

His foot taps the horse to walk. Near the wall he pulls on the reins. He whispers to Elsa, "Okay, I will show you a very special magical trick." His big hands cover her small. "Pretend you are holding a ball and you are rolling it between your hands." Rubbing his fingers together, a small spark appears and he positions her hands around it. His hands begin to glow as his energy through her hnads. "Do you feel the energy in your hands?"

She nods. "Uh-huh."

The spark grows in size. "Watch this." He rotates her hands up and out as the spark shoots up into the sky. She stares up at it. At its peak it burst, showering the area with snowflakes. "Did you like that?"

She nods her head, watching the snow fall. As he touches four specific points on the side of her face and neck, he whispers in her ear, "Do not forget me. You will always remember you are not alone. You can and will control your power of ice." He kisses her ear and nudges the horse towards the steps. The horse stops several meters from the King. He does not have to hear their thoughts, their faces reveal the truth. The time has come.

Agnarr steps towards them. Sam nudges the horse to back up. They both stop. Elsa giggles and laughs as she reaches for the snowflakes.

"See Majesty, see how happy your little Princess is." He snaps his head down glaring at the King. "Tell her how proud you are of her."

Agnarr clinches his teeth and does not speak.

Sam looks up at the clouds. "Your little Princess created the snow. If that arrow comes my way, I will protect her. If I am injured, no doubt you will prevent me from healing. I may not be able to stop the snow. Do you have the heart to kill your little girl, but even then, the snow may not stop." He glares at Iduna. "What is a Queen to do?"

"What do you want?" Agnarr barks between his teeth.

"A deal?"

"I am listening."

"I will leave. Do not try to find me. Anyone who comes after me will never be seen again. You have seen her powers grow. There is no stopping. You try to prevent her from being herself and she may make the snow permanent. You, both of you, show her your love. Don't just speak the words. When she shows more of her powers let me know by raising Arendelle's flag on the highest peak of the castle. I will come back and teach her to control her powers." He looks to Ingrid, "I have never had nor will I have a desire to rule your Queendom. Don't force her to suppress her powers. Agree?"

"Agree with a condition," Agnarr states.

He stares at the King, "Do you think I have not considered all options? I agree with your condition."

The corners of Agnarr's lips curl up. "I agree with your conditions. I know you can influence others with a mere suggestion. You give her the suggestion that until she has come of age, she will forget you."

"Agnarr no," Iduna yells as she runs down the steps. Her husband puts his arm out stopping her.

Sam grins at them. "Agreed."

Placing his fingertips on four specific points on Elsa's face and neck, he whispers and Elsa nods in agreement. "Princess, in due time you will remember me. You will not forget all that I have shown you. For three days you will sleep, if you do not hear my name, I will be the voice in your head. Listen to that voice. When the time is right, you will see me and you will know me. You will remember I love you and you are a part of my heart. I will never forget you."

Elsa turns to him and places her arms around his neck. She nuzzles into his neck and whispers, "I love you, Admal. I will never forget you."

He hugs her tight but does not prevent the tears. Giving her a kiss on her cheek, a small spark leaps from his finger to the side of her head and her body relaxes. He eases her down to her father and the King passes the Princess to her mother.

Agnarr asks, "What did you do to her?"

"She will sleep for three days. If anyone speaks my name to her, she will remember. I will watch for the flag. I am not your enemy."

The King spews, "We will take care of her. She does not need you."

Sam slides off the horse. Agnarr pulls his sword out. Sam slaps it out of his hand and a layer of ice forms around the sword falling to the ground. By the King's collar he lifts him off the ground.

"Now you listen to me, both of you. If you choose to make stupid decisions, fine. The moment that stupid decision endangers Elsa and her sister, I will remove them from you. There is no place on this planet that you can hide Elsa. I will find her. If I take them I guarantee you will never find them." Sam yells, "I AM NOT YOUR ENEMY."

He sets Agnarr gently down on his feet and walks towards the gates. His hand sweeps towards the four guards and the ice melts from their feet. Stopping next to one of the young guards, he removes his shirt. "This is a little big. If you know how to sew, you can trim it down or use it in trade."

He leans against the wall and removes his boots and socks. "Take these as well." His glance at the castle grips at his heart as Iduna carries Elsa through the door.

King Agnarr glares at him.

Sam points at Agnarr. "Tell the King I will return the trouser as soon as I find other britches to wear. Unless I am under arrest, please open the gates."

The gates creak open and he passes through. At the apex of the bridge, he stops long enough to shoot a burst of blue energy into the sky. The snowflakes stop falling. He runs. The air clears a path around him. Snowflakes swirl above him until the sheer weight of the snow cloud descends obscuring him from sight. The cloud moves through Arendelle and soon dissipates into the mountains.

Each day for a year, Sam places The Arendelle flag on the hill for all to see. On the three hundred and sixty-sixth day of his banishment, he sits on a rock high above Arendelle. Behind him a heavy boulder crushes the gravel against the rocks then it transforms.

"Hello Pabbie. Did you come here to gloat at my failure?"

"Gloating is a human emotion that I find very distasteful. Will you continue this ritual with the flag?"

"It has already started for her." His voice waves as his emotions grip his heart. Tears race down his cheeks. "She is confused. I don't know if it is their pride, but they will cause her harm in the long run of life."

An eagle's shadow passes over him. He looks up and watches the bird ride the thermals. "You know they will come to you."

"Yes, I know. I will be ready when they do," Pabbie replies. "You could go back."

"I've considered it. Most people would still remember me. I'm sure my presence would be reported to the monarch and their paranoia may cause them to do something stupid."

"Why do you not use your ice to change your appearance?"

He replies, "The ice is a defensive mechanism. I cannot evoke it to heal me in the way that is needed to change my appearance."

Pabbie taps his leg. "I can help to make that happen."

"I appreciate the offer, but I will travel down the coast and try to make my way over to the Southwest region of the North America. I need to establish contact with friends who will help me in the future. While I'm there I will have a little chat with several key people in their history." He glances at Pabbie. "Not to change it, but to help prepare my future. I will be back. I will always be in contact with Elsa."

"What are you going to do when your dragon comes back?"

"I pray I'm not locked up anywhere, but out in the open." He looks down at Pabbie. "If forty-eight full moons pass without the dragon, the problem may have been solved."

"Good luck to you." Pabbie transforms into a grass covered boulder and rolls away. Sam lays back on the ground and watches the eagle soar.

End of Chapter


	26. Chapter 25 End Part-1

Title: Chapter 25: End of Part-1

DATE: 20 Years, 8 Months until Correction

Each day for a year, Sam places The Arendelle flag on the hill for all to see. On the three hundred and sixty-sixth day of his banishment, he sits on a rock high above Arendelle. Behind him a heavy boulder crushes the gravel against the rocks then it transforms.

"Hello Pabbie. Did you come here to gloat at my failure?"

"Gloating is a human emotion that I find very distasteful. Will you continue this ritual with the flag?"

"It has already started for her." His voice wavers as his emotions grip his heart. Tears race down his cheeks. "She is confused. I don't know if it is their pride, but they will cause her harm in the long run of life."

An eagle's shadow passes over him. He looks up and watches the bird ride the thermals. "You know they will come to you."

"Yes, I know. I will be ready when they do," Pabbie replies. "You could go back."

"I've considered it. Most people would still remember me. I'm sure my presence would be reported to the monarch and their paranoia may cause them to do something stupid."

"Why do you not use your ice to change your appearance?"

"The ice is a defensive mechanism. I cannot evoke it to heal me in the way that is needed to change my appearance."

Pabbie taps his leg. "I can help to make that happen."

"I appreciate the offer, but I will travel down the coast and try to make my way over to the Southwest region of the North America. I need to establish contact with friends who will help me in the future. While I'm there I will have a little chat with several key people in their history." He glances at Pabbie. "Not to change it, but to help prepare my future. I will be back. I will always be in contact with Elsa."

"What are you going to do when your dragon comes back?"

"I pray I'm not locked up anywhere, but out in the open." He looks down at Pabbie. "If forty-eight full moons pass without the dragon, the problem may have been solved."

"Good luck to you." Pabbie transforms into a grass covered boulder and rolls away. Sam lays back on the ground and watches the eagle soar.

Date: 17 Years, 9 Months until Correction

An early spring creeps into the valley. Snow still covers the surrounding mountains as a clean and refreshing breeze flows down from the mountains. The eastern horizon draws an orange line preparing to release the sun on its journey across the sky. Arendelle prepares for the upcoming trade negotiations. Small fishing boats depart in both directions in the fjord. Two schooners set their sails. The breeze will take them to the deeper water where larger fish hide.

Sam spots a tall ship sailing towards Arendelle. The British Union Jack displays its colors for a few seconds, before falling behind the mask. The British ship will take him to England than onto Canada. He has enough gold to pay his way, but is prepared to work for his travel expenses, or accept the generosity of anyone who will pay his way to America.

Pabbie hands Sam a small pouch of his herb blend. "This will get you through to the next winter."

Sam stuffs the pouch into his leather backpack. "You sure I can't bring you a gift from the Americas?"

"Are you sure you will not miss them?"

"Of course I will miss them. Elsa is testing her powers. A couple of nights ago, she was showing snow to her sister." The thought draws a smile on his face. "Maybe I was wrong and the King and Queen can help her. In a few years, it will get harder, unless they try to suppress her powers."

He shakes his head with a chuckle.

"What is so funny?" Pabbie asks.

He looks in the direction of the castle. "They are in the great room. Elsa froze the floor. They are making a snowman." He slings the pack over his shoulder. "See. They are having fun. I just hope she removes the ice and snow before the others find it. Well, I better get a move on if I'm to reach America and be back in time before the winter makes travel too difficult."

Pabbie walks him to the edge of the troll valley. They do not speak. Pabbie stops and Sam continues walking. He walks a short distance down the path and stops. A cold sensation strikes the right side of his head as though being struck by a very cold snowball. He searches for the prankster, but no laughter sounds. His hand sweeps his face and hair and finds no snow or ice. The pack slides from his shoulder. His hands tremble. His heart races. Fear covers him like a blanket forcing him to his knees. Rolling onto his side, his world fades. He calls out to her, "Elsa."

A stone hand pushes on his face. "If you continue to lie here, you will miss the ship. What were your last thoughts?"

He sits up and leans against a cold boulder. "I thought someone . . ." His eyes dart back and forth as though searching. His eyes narrow and focuses on Pabbie. "She is afraid."

"Who is afraid?" Pabbie grabs his wrist.

He turns his head towards the castle. "She is not there?"

"Who?"

He stands and faces the south. "Elsa, her fear has blocked me. I have to find her." He runs to the top of the hill and scans the area at great distances. She is not in the castle. His head sweeps back and forth.

Pabbie rolls up beside him.

"Two riders approach." He focuses on them. "Elsa and her sister are with them. The King and Queen are coming here." He starts down the hill.

"Wait." Pabbie taps Sam's leg. "I will talk to them. They may not come here, if they see you."

Pabbie rolls down the hill and into the troll community. Sam follows a distance back and hides behind a boulder. Pabbie speaks to the King and Queen, but it is Elsa's mind that screams in fear. Anna has been hurt. Pabbie generates a static field above them. The static displays the fun Elsa and Anna had in the great room. Pabbie removes the castle in the background and replaces it with a scene on a hill. The scene in the static displays a young female revealing her powers in the shape of Sam's snowflake. It changes to red as the anger of people consumes the female.

Sam's eyes read the Kings lips. "No . . . no, you are doing what I said not to do."

He starts to move and several stone hands pull him away from the meeting. Breaking free he runs towards the path, but another troll trips him. Several trolls hold him down as two horses ride past. He stops struggling as the pain rips into his heart. His face rest in the grass. Pabbie rolls next to him and pushes him onto his back.

Pabbie leans over him. "Elsa –"

Sam interrupts, "I know what happened. Elsa stretched her powers and Anna got hurt." An explosion of pain and hurt shreds his memories. His eyes flood to wash away the pain. "Pabbie, she looked right at me. She does not know me." The painful memories race down the sides of his face as his emerald eyes stare up at the stars.

Pabbie touches the side of his head and a small spark leaps from his finger. Sam closes his eyes. "I am sorry, but I have to block this event. Your time with her has not yet arrived." He brushes a leaf from Sam's hair. "SaraCat was right about you. Hang on old friend." 

7 Years, 6 Months until Correction

The rain slows as the ship docks. This trip was almost not worth going until near the end when Sam meets his friend in the British secret service. His tan complexion and short light-brown hair makes him stand out from the other passengers debarking from the English ship. He slings his old and weathered leather pack over his shoulder and waits at the rails. A family of ten to make their way down the gangplank ahead of him. A small Arendelle flag flaps in the breeze on the smaller ship at the next dock. The name on the bow appears familiar, Jens-Atten, but his travels have revealed many ships with strange names. Dock workers roll trunks marked with the royal crest to the loading ramp.

"Welcome to Arendelle," announces the Dock Master as he stares intently at him.

Sam steps onto the dock and points to the ship at the other dock. "What is the destination of that ship?"

The Dock Master slowly turns his head, but his eyes continue to stare at him until the last second.

"The first stop is in Germany then it will follow the coastline east."

"Germany, maybe I should get passage."

"You will have to talk to the ship's Captain, but you have to hurry. He is to sail within the hour." The Dock Master moves to welcome the next load of passengers.

Sam marches over to the Jens-Atten.

A crewman rotates the ships wheel and two wet workers on the pier nod as the ship's rudder swings from one side to the other. The Captain, standing on the dock, marks papers as cargo is loaded on his ship. He issues commands to his crew and the dock workers.

"Excuse me, Captain."

The Captain stops with a contempt expression. "Yes?"

"The name of the ship, Jens-18, is this Malt Jens' ship and why eighteen?"

"Yes, it is. That crazy old man likes to put his name and the next number. Atten is the number of ships he purchased or had built." He returns to marking his paper. "I'm not taking any more passengers. Is there anything else you need? I have to get the ship loaded if I wish to sail with the tide." The Captain walks past him and yells at a dockworker.

"Captain, you will sail within the hour?"

"Yes," The Captain replies gruffly.

"There is a storm south of here coming this way."

"I know. Reason enough for us to depart within the hour." He scans the horizon. "I don't see signs of the storm being close. Even if it was, I will sail along the shoreline, then before morning I will dash across the water to Germany." He inspects another load of cargo.

Sam follows him. "If the storm turns you will get caught in the middle of it."

"Then I will anchor in a harbor or cove until it passes." The Captain points his quill at him. "Son, I have been sailing all my life. I would not be the Captain if I did not know a thing or two about these waters. If you don't stop bothering me, I will miss the tide, the royal couple will be upset at me, not you. Now get out of the way."

The Captain is not concerned. For a moment Sam stares at the ship's name Jens-Atten. If the Captain is determined to sail into danger at least he can talk to the King and Queen.

Several minutes later, the guards at the gate refuse to let him pass. They wave a boy through with an empty luggage wagon.

"Then let me send a message to Kai with him." He points to the boy.

"All right, but make it quick."

They walk towards the boy. "You there, boy."

The boy pulls on the wagon to stop its movement. "Yes, sir."

Sam asks, "Do you know Kai the castle's man servant?"

The boy looks towards the castle and points. "That's him standing by the doors."

"Ok, I need you to send a message to him." He reaches into his pouch and pulls out two silver coins. He hands one to him. "Tell Kai there is a storm at sea and the King and Queen should delay their trip one day. Can you remember that?"

"That's easy, 'Storm at sea, delay trip one day'. I've got it."

"You get the second coin after passing the message, ok?"

"Sure, I understand." The boy pushes the wagon to the castle steps and speaks to Kai.

Kai looks in his direction and Sam waves to him. Kai nods and walks into the castle.

"Hey kid."

The boy turns towards him. He throws the second coin. It bounces on the stone and lands on the top step. The boy picks it up and waves it at him.

Sam departs as the castle gates close behind him. At the crest of the bridge, he scans the castle. Closing his eyes, his mind calls to her. Ambient noise answers his call, but she does not. Fear has created a near impenetrable wall around her. He looks to the south. A thin veil of clouds rises from the horizon. With a shake of his head, he continues across the bridge and stops at the local watering hole near the wharf.

Most everyone stops to see who walks into the establishment. A few seconds later the noise of celebration and chatter fills his ears. In the corner an empty chair waits for him.

A middle age lady approaches and asks, "You're not from around here."

He responds in his language. "Actually, I am from here, just several centuries before I'm supposed to be born."

A half-drunk sailor at the next table stares at him. "What crazy speak is that?"

"I don't know what you said," comments the lady.

He speaks their word. "Water."

"You want water?" He nods. "You don't want anything stronger?" He shakes his head. "Okay, I will get you water." She walks back to the bar and along the way she is greeted with a few extra hand prints on her bottom.

Eventually the water arrives, but it smells like it was pulled out of the fjord. He holds the cup behind his back and pours it onto the floor. His finger swirls inside of the cup which fills with pure water and sets it on the table. Removing a small vial of liquid from his pocket, he pours a green substance into the water. It is the last and he will have to contact Pabbie to get more.

He listens to the sailors tell their stories of the large fish that got away. Further away sailors from the ship he arrived on tell their tales of the sea. Several had stories that seemed plausible, but most did not. He continues to listen.

The stories remind him of the crews of his ship when they landed on a planet after a long mission. The locations and the people changed, but his crew had the same stories as these sailors. He continues to listen to them.

The Dock Master enters the watering hole. Sam stares at him. The Master does not leave the wharf until all scheduled ships have arrived or departed. He leaps from his chair and pushes people out of his way to get to the Master. "Is the Jens-Atten still in harbor?"

"They departed on time, two hours ago." The Master orders a drink from the bar.

"Two hours." The door opens as a patron departs. Darkness shrouds the wharf. "I thought it was going to leave tomorrow."

"As soon as the King and Queen boarded the ship, they sailed."

Sam runs to the door.

The Dock Master yells at him. "If you run up the cliff, you might see the top of their mask above the horizon."

Sam runs along the wharf, but does not see the ship. He runs across the bridge and pounds on the castle gates.

"What is all that noise out there? Go away," commands a guard inside of the gates.

"Get Kai?"

"The gates are closed. He is not going to talk to you. Come back in the morning."

"You tell Kai if he does not come out here and talk to Admiral Ryan, he will be frozen to his bed in the morning."

A grumble sounds from the other side of the gate. A half hour later the gates open.

Kai steps through. "What are you doing here?"

"Did the boy give you my message?"

"Yes he did. King Agnarr said you have no influence here. They will barely get to Germany in time."

"There is a storm out there and if their ship sails through it, what do you think will happen?"

"If you were so concerned why didn't you do something about it?"

He searches the sea. "I said if they conducted themselves in a stupid manner, I would take the girls from them, but it looks like they took themselves from the girls."

"Maybe you are wrong."

"Then I pray I am, but if I'm not, you will know with a snowball in the courtyard." He walks back across the bridge.

Sam stands on the large outcrop of stones above Lookout Plateau. Only the brightest stars pierce through the thin veil of clouds. A warm breeze blows from the south. His lips part to draw in the breeze. The saltiness tantalizes his tongue. His mind follows the breeze back to the ocean. The storm has crossed the path. Did the Captain change course? He searches the ocean. He reaches for Ingrid. Fear calls out to him. The ship is in the middle of the storm. Ingrid and Charles hold each other. Their minds focus on their children.

The stupid Captain caused this.

 _The Wave. Turn into it, turn into it. Why does he not turn into it? The ship's wheel spins freely._

The Wave crashes over the front. Their hearts race.

 _Inhale, Inhale._ Sam says to them.

He hears two words, 'protect them', then Ingrid's mind is silent.

For several minutes, he listens to the storm. No screams, no cries for help, he hears only the wind and claps of thunder. His heart races as though it was trying to escape his body. His mind withdraws from the storm. His heart pleads, wait a little longer. His mind waits for his old friend.

The gray clouds boil to hide the crime committed. Flashes of lightning strike the water to cover up any evidence that a ship passed through it. The trailing edge of the storm speeds through the area as it sweeps away the few remaining waves. The storm has done its job well. No evidence of the victims consumed. It continues east to find another ship to feed its hunger. This night it will be well fed when it strikes at the land. If it is lucky, it will find a harbor or village for one last meal. The storms death will bring life to the land in the form of rain. The people feeling safe will challenge the next storm in the open water. Their sacrifice will close the circle of life.

His heart slows. There is no hope. As he predicted, their stupidity will have a lasting effect on their children. His mind comforts his heart. Sam slides off the outcrop. The ground freezes under his boots. Each step freezes more of the ground. The sheet of ice spreads out and covers the low line vegetation. His whole body glows and radiates energy into the air. He swirls his arms above his head. A cloud of snow forms into a ball and sails through the air. It increases in size as it travels towards Arendelle.

A guard points. "What the—." The guard ducks as the snowball passes over the wall.

A pounding on his door wakes him from his slumber sleep. In his night clothes Kai opens the door and answers with a yawn, "What is it?"

A winded guard opens his gloved hand filled with snow. "You are not going to believe this, but a snowball as tall as a man landed in the courtyard a few minutes ago."

Kai crumbles the snow between his fingers. "Did anyone get hurt?"

"No, sir."

"Go back to your duties. Keep everyone away from it. I will take care of it in the morning." From his open window the clock tower strikes its bell three times.

Kai sits on the edge of his bed as he holds his head in his hands. "Why did you have to be right?" Sobs escape from under his door.

Ice covers the Plateau. Sam sits on a frozen boulder as he stares at the castle. Behind him the ice cracks and crunches under a heavy weight. The sound of stone, knocking against stone draws his attention.

Pabbie's gruff voice asks. "How did you know?"

Sam's head gradually moves to look down at him. "I know a lot of things. When someone leaves pieces of bread for you to follow and you pick up the pieces, soon, you will have enough. If you fit the pieces together in the spots where they were torn, you will have a whole loaf of bread."

A salty drop of water drips from his chin. It freezes on the boulder, creating an intricate design of a frozen splash.

Pabbie looks towards the castle. "They are alone. What will you do?"

He lifts the corner of his shirt to remove the salty moisture from his face. "Until such time as the new monarchy of Arendelle has the authority to release me, I will fulfill my promise to King Charles and," his voice catches in his throat and wavers as he whispers, "Queen Ingrid."

His head lowers. Three new intricate sculptures of ice rise on the frozen boulder to stand guard and protect their master. His mind shuts down the pain receptors. His skin tone transforms to a grayish-blue. He sweeps his snow white hair over his shoulder.

In a monotone voice he speaks with authority, "I will go to the north mountain. At the edge of the snow, stack three rocks, one on top of the other, if you need me. They just need time to adjust to their new circumstances. Elsa has been trained well. She does not need me."

A rough hand taps his knee. "She still needs you and you need her to complete your mission."

"I will be back next spring. When she is twenty-one, ready or not she will be their Queen." His breath catches in his throat. With blurred vision he looks down at Pabbie. "Do you know what their last thoughts were? They were thinking of their girls. Do you know what she said to me?" More ice sculptures sprout up on the boulder. "Protect them."

Sometime later, he returns to a field in the valley. At a distance, hiding in the forest, Sam watches. Princess Anna and the Arendelle leaders give tribute to the Grave stones for the former King and Queen. He notes Princess Anna stands alone. Covering his eyes he searches and finds Elsa in the castle.

He waits until all have departed the site before he makes his way to the stones. Falling to his knees, he bows face down onto the ground. "I will continue as I have promised."

END OF PART 1


	27. Chapter 26 Part-2 Coronation Day

**PART 2**

 **Title: Chapter 26: Coronation**

 **4 Years, 5 Months until Correction**

Three years later, the people of Arendelle prepare for a special event. The time has arrived.

Pabbie taps his forehead and receives no response. He steps on his hand.

"Ouch," Sam grumbles and pulls his hand out from under Pabbie's foot. He sits up and rubs the back of his hand. "You didn't have to step on me."

Pabbie holds out a cup to him. "Drink this. It will clear your mind for a day or two. Afterwards you can get into your ice to heal."

Sam gulps down the healing potion. His face distorts from the bitter taste. He hands the cup back. "Why don't you add a few berries or honey to sweeten the taste?"

Pabbie sips the few drops in the cup. "When I feel down I think of your face after you drank this potion and my day seems brighter."

"Glad I can help someone," Sam mumbles as he stretches his back.

"Quit your whining. If you had hid from Kristoff like I told you, we would not have had to push you off the cliff when he rode by. After today, that will change."

He glares at Pabbie. "Do you know how far I fell?" He falls back onto his grass mat and closes his eyes.

"It wasn't that far or you wouldn't be here." Pabbie kick Sam's leg. "Get up. You have work to do."

Sam grumbles and rolls onto his side.

"If you do not get up, I will let the children roll in here and they will get you up."

Sam peeks over his shoulder. "I had planned to sleep in today. What is so important I have to get up?"

"This is the day you were waiting for. You need to complete your mission."

He sits up and reaches for his forest clothes.

Pabbie throws a rolled up bundle at him. "Put these on. You need to blend in with the villagers."

Sam pulls the cord and peals back the leaves. Cleaned and folded are the clothes he last wore on the day the King and Queen were lost at sea. "Why am I going to Arendelle?"

Pabbie waddles toward the cave entrance. "To meet the one you gave your heart, if she remembers you."

A warm breeze pushes the ship closer the Arendelle. On a level above the pier, Sam notes the delegates and guest arriving at the harbor. There must be one. The one for the right price who will do just about anything, so he will test the theory with these guests arriving for the coronation of the new Queen. With a pound of gold in his pockets, he watches a gentleman with the reputation of doing things that many might consider illegal. Others claim to have heard this gentleman say it is not illegal if he could get away with it.

The last person off the ship had to be the gentleman. He barks at every crew member he passes. Sam had dealt with this type of person before. They were the 'know it all', claiming to be your friend as long as they benefited. In this time period, he was nothing more than a petty criminal. Dressed for a part, no doubt to make a deal or steal something, Sam observes for an opportunity to strike. The gentleman walks past him, but stops long enough to yell at the crew offloading a large crate.

"You imbeciles, drop that crate and I'll have you in prison for the rest of your miserable lives. The contents in that crate are more valuable than that worthless ship and all of you combined."

"Yes, Sir Kelsey, we will not drop it," replies a crewman. Kelsey moves up the pier and calls out, "Duke, I'm glad you're here on schedule."

His many years of travel have presented Sam with opportunities to learn other human languages. He reads the markings on the crate, but one symbol he does not recognize. Obviously Sir Kelsey knew what it was the moment the dock workers turn the crate around for him to see the symbol. The ropes and pulley easily lift the crate off the ship with no strain. Other than the bulk size of the crate, the weight did not appear very heavy. He takes this opportunity to introduce himself into Sir Kelsey's affairs. As the workers lower the crate onto the dock, he touches it. The daylight hides the slight blue glow under his hand. The crates holds ten well insulated bottles containing a fine powder. The workers continue to lower the crate.

When the bottom of the crate's height is slightly below his shoulder, he places his shoulder under the crate and lifts to loosen the ropes. "Disconnect the ropes and I will take it from here. Unless you wish to take the chance of breaking the contents inside the crate, you can face Sir Kelsey's wrath."

One worker nods to his partner and they remove the ropes.

Sam grips the chains around the crate and shifts the weight, slightly heavier than a grown man, to sit it squarely on his shoulder. He carries it to Sir Kelsey talking to the short, skinny gray hair Duke wearing a Weselton uniform. The two bodyguards standing behind the Duke send him a stone cold glare. With a smile he greets them in his language. "Killed anybody recently. It is a good day to die. Do either of you buffoons understand what I'm saying?" They glance at each other. "If you were my target your glance would have been the death of both of you." He nods and grins at them.

The Duke motions towards him. "How much did you pay for him?"

Kelsey turns around quickly and reaches for something in the waist of his trouser. He sizes Sam up and replies, "I didn't."

"Maybe you should call the guards and have him arrested for stealing your property."

Sam watches Kelsey. "I don't care what is in the ten bottles. I can drop it right here and everyone will see or you could tell me where to deliver this crate."

The Duke studies him with suspicion. "The next pier over, set it down by the gangplank. My crew will take it from there."

Sam walks over to the other ship and sets it down as directed. Two bodies stand behind him. He slowly turns so as not to appear aggressive, but is prepared to attack. Kelsey and the Duke block his path.

Kelsey demands, "What do you want? I'm not paying since I did not ask for your services."

Sam reaches into his pocket and tosses a gold nugget to Kelsey. He and the Duke examine the nugget. Kelsey speaks in a low voice, "Where did you get this?"

"Where is not important, that I have a lot more, is."

Kelsey examines the gold then eyes him. "What do you want?"

"Get me into the castle. Use whatever excuses you want, just get me in. When the event is about to close, I will sneak away. Before your ship sails you will receive a hundred pounds of gold just like that one."

Kelsey glances at the Duke, the gold, and back to him. "Ok, you can be my servant. You do as I say and I'll get you in, but if you double cross me, you will spend the rest of your life in prison for breaking into the castle."

"Deal, when?"

"Be here at the ship at dusk. My servants dress better than what you're wearing. Don't be late or the deal is off."

He walks past them and waves over his shoulder.

The Duke asks, "You are going to get him into the castle?"

"Sure I will. Once he disappears I'll claim he stole something and have the castle guards lock him up. We make our way out to sea and no one is the wiser."

"Unless, I strike first. We will see who goes to jail." Sam smiles to himself as he walks up the pier to the upper level.

A short distant away, he hears the Dock Master greet another guest with a French accent. Near the Square's Pavilion, a bull reindeer snorts and stares him. Sam motion his finger a cross his lips and hopes the deer will not create a disturbance. As the deer starts to snort again, the young blond hair, strapping of a young man offers a carrot to the reindeer. With the distraction of the reindeer, Sam walks with the crowd towards the bridge. He steps to one side before crossing and watches all those who will participate in the new Queen's coronation.

As the castle gates open a young woman moves against the flow of people. She hops and skips and dances around the people as though she has no care in the world. Many nod to her as they get out of her way. She twirls. Sam spots several strands of white hair highlighted in her strawberry blond hair. He remembers the toddler girl carried by Queen Ingrid had several strands of white hair, when they raced to the troll valley. Elsa's fear had become exceedingly strong. He thought his mental connection to her had been broken, but over time he saw glimpses into her life.

Could it be, this young woman is the same toddler? He watches her skip past him and run down to the wharf. Is this the Princess Anna and little sister of Princess Elsa?

He glances towards the castle. Her fear has raised its head and is ready to strike anyone who gets too close. This is what he tried to tell Charles and Ingrid. They did exactly what he told them not to do. He warned them this could happen. They paid for their pride with their deaths. Will Arendelle accept her when they see her powers? If he could talk to her, maybe it would calm her enough to get through the coronation formalities. If she remembers, he could teach her what her parents refused to do. But if he cannot get into the castle this evening, those sworn to protect her may not let him in at all. They could turn her against him.

Princess Anna runs back to the castle. A splash in the water draws his attention and he peeks over the rail. A horse pulls a young man out of the water. The gentleman's clothes remind him of a young prince from the Southern Isles. The gentleman walks past and nods to him. Despite the water dripping from his clothes, he looks like a nice guy, but something seems to be off about him. With all of the strangers here, Princess Elsa will be at her most vulnerable. He will protect her at all cost. He will add the stranger from the Southern Isles to his watch list with Sir Kelsey and The Duke from Weselton.

Several hours later, as sir Kelsey had promised, he introduced Sam as his servant. With simple gray trousers and the long sleeve blue shirt, none of the guards or staff questioned his presents. Sam speaks to the castle staff in his language, but no-one understands him. He lightly touches the hand of an older woman who was giving instructions to the staff. The momentary contact allows him to scan her mind. Her thought patterns echo a familiarity, but he does not have time to determine who she is. With the castle floor plan and schedule of events, he points to himself then to Kelsey.

She smiles up at him and pats the back of his hand. "I was wondering if you were going to show up." She walks after the other staffers.

With the coronation ball well under way, he casually walks among the guest and observes them. Mostly diplomats from other kingdoms and wealthy people, take their turns strutting their importance and contributions to society. Even Kelsey struts differently than he did on the docks. The schedule provided by the female staffer states the Queen will soon be making her entrance. He waits until Sir Kelsey is distracted with the telling of another flamboyant story of his great wealth and importance.

Sam slips out of the ballroom. A set of boots marches towards him from around the corner. He picks up a serving tray sitting on the corner of a hall table and moves with purpose past the guards. Slowing his pace, memories of the floor plans move to the front of his mind. The Queen should enter the ballroom near the dais. A familiar voice from his past sounds as he rounds a corner. The gentleman speaks to the two guards in front of a door. His shoes squeak against the polished floor as they performs a military about-face to move his body back around the corner.

Kai calls to him, "You there with the tray, come back here." A pair of shoes and boots move in his direction.

A female staffer caring two mugs moves towards him from the other direction. He holds the tray out. "Here you go, my dear. I was coming to get the mugs, but since you already have them, you can have the tray as well. I need to get back to the guest."

He places the mugs on the tray and pushes the tray into her hands. He moves quickly around the next corner and steps into the first unlocked door. His shoe wedges against the door.

Kai comments from the hall, "You did not know him. Never mind, pass the word to be on the lookout for any person acting suspiciously."

A guard's voice comments. "With all of these guest here, what do you determine as suspicious?"

The conversation moves down the hall. Sam presses his palm against the door frame and detects no one. He slips into the empty hall. At the second corner, he peeks into the next hall. A single guard stands in front of the door. If he walks with purpose he may be able to walk past the guard. He adjusts his shirt and shifts his weight. A commotion at the other end of the hall draws the guard away. Taking the opportunity he moves down the hall.

Kai's voice sounds in the direction of the commotion. He ducks through the unlocked door and listens. A pair of boots stops in front of the door. His opportunity to meet the Queen is closing fast. He will be hard pressed to explain why he is in this room. Other than a mirror on the wall and a curtains for a door to the next room, the small room does not have any significant purpose. He does not recall this room from the time of the previous King and Queen.

Several voices mumble from behind the curtains. Taking a chance and closing his eyes for a second, he scans the next room. Two human bodies stand on either side of the partially opened door in the second outer room. Behind the curtains is another plain room with a chair and mirror on the wall. The room temperature is several degrees cooler than the room he is in. He silently moves to the curtains and gradually pushes it open. To the left, the door opens and shadows move under the curtains. As he pushes the curtains open laughter draws his attention to the second doorway. He focuses on the second curtains and moves into the room.

A guard moves in front of the doorway. "You cannot go through this door. The exit is at that end of the room." After a few seconds the guard moves back to his post next to the door.

His breath eases past his lips as he moves closer to the doorway. Ever so slightly, he pushes the curtains back enough to see into the great hall. Halfway across the dais a single throne waits for her to sit and reign over her Queendom. He pushes the curtains further. On the main floor several pompous guest cackle in laughter. By the expressions of their female friends, they said something clever or what they thought was funny. Directly across the dais, Sir Kelsey and the short Duke point to someone on the floor. No doubt, they are planning to relieve the unsuspecting soul of his money or planning to steal it from them outright. The Duke and Kelsey's movement cause a curtains to reveal another door. He remembers going through that door after disposing of the guards who threatened the King and Queen on the day the guards rebelled.

He has been in the room too long. If he gets caught, he may never see his little snow angel. In a moment of weakness, he speaks his mind. "I hope to see her before I have to leave."

A soft voice speaks behind him, "Who?"

His mind instinctually shifts into attack mode and targets the intruder behind him, but he does not sense anyone. The temperature in the room drops. _How did you sneak up on me?_

His eyes shift towards the blue hue on the wall next to him. It was not there previously. He sees the shape of two orbs. _Oh crap . . . it is her. Will she remember me?_

Time for a change of plans.

His weight shifts to give him a little more maneuvering room should he have to fight. He steps to the side and slowly turns. A beautiful petite young woman with her French braid blond hair stands in the same regal pose of her mother. The form fitting green dress with Arendelle symbols, a black bodice, and teal green gloves she holds, compliments the young woman he knew she would grow into. Her gloves bring back memories of almost the identical color gloves he use to wear for ceremonies. He faces her. His breath moves through his parted lips.

Her hand moves with hesitation. She can easily call for the guards and the door of opportunity would close. He looks up. She gives him a slight smile and repeats her question, "Who?"

His mouth closes as he swallows. It is time to pull out a tactic used to deceive many in a previous life. He answers, "The Queen, of course."

Her right brow rises, "You have not seen the Queen?"

"No, I have not. Have you seen her?" he asks still staring at her ice blue eyes.

"I have seen her once or twice," She replies with a big smile.

"Is she as beautiful as they say?"

"I would say she is quite beautiful, but that is my opinion," She replies with a slight chuckle.

"Well, since you gave your opinion, I'll give you mine. Please don't think I am being inappropriate to you, but I find it extremely hard to believe the Queen is more beautiful than you, but if she is, God must have sent her. Once I see her, God can take me home for there would be nothing more beautiful in this world." His eyes glance down. "I like your dress. It looks form fitted. Do you have a hard time breathing in it?"

"No, I can breathe fine in this." She turns her head slightly, "Have I seen you around here?"

A voice from the other side of the curtains causes him to place his finger to his lips. The voice moves away. He barely pushes the curtains open. The guard next to the door moves across the dais to calm several guests. He whispers, "I started working on the docks offloading ships." As he glances back, she starts to speak, but he continues, "How is it, I'm here in the castle?"

She nods.

He peeks through the curtains. "Please come here, I want to show you someone."

He steps back as she steps to the curtains. He points to the crowd on the ballroom floor. Where she is standing, she cannot see who he is pointing. Grabbing her hand, he pulls her in front of him.

Her eyes widen as she pulls her hand away and holds the clasp on her cape.

"I am sorry, I did not mean to hurt you." He steps away from her.

She holds her hands together and asks with a slight waver in her voice, "You did not hurt me. Did I hurt you with my cold hand?"

He senses the fear beginning to grow behind her eyes. "No, you did not hurt me, so you have cold hands. I assume the gloves are to keep them warm."

Her facial tension relaxes a little. He holds out his right hand. "You say you have cold hands, the funny thing is my right hand is the cold hand and my left hand is the warm hand." Still holding out his hand, "I should have offered you my right hand. Please take it. I'll keep my hot hand behind my back so there is no indication that I'm accosting you."

A glimmer of a smile forms as she places her hand in his hand. She watches him for a moment, before allowing him to guide her to where he was standing.

"Wait, I didn't mean I would accost you." Vigorously, he shakes his head. "I would never accost any female."

She emits a muffled giggle as she peeks through the opening in the curtains.

Sensing her fear again, he struggles not to hug her. His heart wants to reach out to her, but his mind says to wait. He lets go of her hand and points to the crowd. "See the short, skinny stick with the gray greased back hair standing next the short chubby man. They both look like they could be brothers wearing similar uniforms. Earlier today I carried a crate from Sir Kelsey's ship to the skinny fellow's ship."

He does not like to lie, but he needs to continue the charade until he knows for sure. "Once I returned for payment, Sir Kelsey said he did not have the money right away, but he could get me into the castle to see the Queen. I already knew he would not pay so I accepted his offer of getting me into the castle. That other guy, the stick, I have heard he is trouble and would stab you in the back if it would get him a larger payment."

"Interesting." She steps back and stumbles on her cape.

He grabs her with both hands to steady her. With her surprised expression, he quickly lets go of her hands. "My apologies, I didn't want you to fall."

With a smile she adjusts her cape, "Thank you."

"I could not help but to notice the fragrant you are wearing. It smells nice, almost like after a rain shower. Everything smells clean and fresh, but I am detecting another fragrant." He partially closes his eyes and takes a deep breath. "Well, whatever it is, splash a little my way and I will follow you anywhere." He takes another deep breath to clear his head and peeks out the curtains, "Look over there across the way, the redhead, is she the Queen?"

She looks through the curtains, "No, that is not the Queen."

"Do you have family out there?" he asks still looking out the curtains.

"Just my sister."

"What about your parents are they in the crowd?"

"No, they are not here."

He glances back. With the sorrow in her voice, did he go too far? "I'm sorry. I do not mean to ask personal questions. I'll stop now."

"That is ok. It was a long time ago. Do you have a family?" She asks, touching his arm with her bare hand.

He answers while peeking through the curtains. "No, not really, if you want to call my uncle family. I don't know where he is. I never met my parents. Wait, I think I see her . . . wait . . . no that can't be the Queen. She is not acting like a Queen."

She shifts into her regal pose. "How do you think a Queen should act?"

"Well, I don't think I really know, since I have never met one. But if I did I think she would be a lady of elegance and smart. Not like those phonies out there. At least I would hope the Queen of Arendelle would not be like them." He smiles and starts to turn back when he focuses on the cape's clasp. "The broach you're wearing. Did that come from your mother?"

She touches the broach. "Yes, it did. How do you know?"

He looks down as though searching for something, afterwards he stares into her eyes. "It is very similar to the broach the former Queen wore in a painting. A pretty broach for a beautiful woman. Did you know your eyes are an icy blue? They draw one's attention." He looks away. "I apologize for my rudeness of staring. You are very beautiful. Maybe you should be the Queen and be out there instead of being back here."

The curtains push back from the presence of a large gentleman. He asks, "My Lady are you ready?"

She replies as she slips her hands into her gloves, "Yes, I'm ready."

The gentleman moves away, causing the curtains to sway outwards.

She steps in front of the curtains and turns her head towards him. "What is your name?"

"Samuel Ryan, my friends call me Sam."

For a noticeable moment her eyes flinch, but they clear to the determination they were before. "Ok Samuel, maybe I'll see you out there." She smiles and turns back to the curtains.

"Probably not, but thank you for talking to me and not calling the guards. I usually get my tongue tied talking to a beautiful woman, but you seem different. I did not tense up as I usually do. If you wish, you can call me Sam."

"I will, Sam, but it's time for me to go." She starts to step through the curtains, but Sam reaches around her and bow as he holds the curtains open.

When she steps through he whispers to her, "Excuse me, I didn't get your name."

She slows her steps and turns her head slightly, "My name is Elsa."

He closes the curtains, but speaks louder than intended, "God is my oath. Please take me away Lord. I have found your lost Angel, Elsa."

The outer door opens. The curtains between the rooms move. The first guard into the room comments. "I thought I heard somebody back here"

The door leading to the ballroom closes. A second guard demands, "What are you doing in here?"

He holds up his hands to show they are empty. "I just wanted to see the Queen."

The two guard's roughly drag him out of the room. The ballroom door opens with a small gap. In the background Kai announces, "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, Princess Anna of Arendelle."

Sam places his hands on the door frame, preventing the guards from pushing him out of the room. "Did you hear that? Did he say Queen of Arendelle? Who is the Queen? Please let me see who she is. This may be my only chance to see her."

A third guard in the hall slams the toe of his boot into his gut. Clutching his abdomen, Sam falls to his knees. The three guards drag him down the hallway. Sir Kelsey meets them at the end of the hall.

Sam begs, "Please Sir Kelsey, please take me into the room. They announced the Queen. I just want to see her before we leave."

Kelsey speaks to the guards. "He is under my watch." Kelsey taps his head. "The boy is touched in the head. He meant no harm. I will make sure he leaves."

The guard replies, "Make sure he stays with you at all times or we will arrest him." The three walk down the hall.

Kelsey waits until the guards move around the corner. He spins around and slaps Sam's face causing a cut below his right eye. "You mess this up for me and I will charge you with stealing. They will lock you up for the rest of your life. Do you hear me?"

Sam wipes the blood from the cut with the back of his hand and replies, "Yes, I hear you."

"Now get the blood off your face and change into these clothes." Kelsey slams a wrapped package into his chest. "See me when you get back. No fooling around or I will beat you senseless, you stupid goof."

Sam watches Sir Kelsey walk back into the ballroom. He whispers, "In due time my friend, you will get yours." He glances at both ends of the hall before touching the cut. A blue glow surrounds the tips of his fingers as ice crystals form between his fingertips and his face. After a couple of minutes, he walks towards the ballroom and wipes the water from his face.

 **End of chapter**


	28. Chapter 27 Snow Angel

**Title: Chapter 27: Snow Angel**

 **4 Years, 5 Months until Correction**

With a change of clothing to the gray trousers, blue shirt and the dark blue jacket buttoned to the collar, Sam pulls on the snug fitting collar. He will endure the discomfort for the moment. His cheek still aches from Sir Kelsey's specially designed ring to cut. A noticeable swelling will subside in a day, but that is Kelsey's intent. No doubt Kelsey brags to his guest of his importance and shows everyone how to handle servants who forget their place in society. He will abide his time before setting Kelsey straight.

He follows Kelsey around the ballroom. If he gets too close, Kelsey makes a rude comment or waves him back. Sam patiently endures the insults. Despite the distance he listens to Kelsey's conversations. As discretely as possible he glimpses the Queen. His heart aches to talk to her, but the noise of her life prevents her from hearing him. Those few minutes together, he saw a glimmer of hope, but was it recognition.

After an hour Kelsey grabs Sam's jacket. "Your presence is making my guest uncomfortable. Go to the other side of the room and wait for me. I will signal if I need you."

Sam slowly moves through the crowd, but hears Kelsey speak to a guest. "His size is useful and a little touched in the head, but after this deal I will drop him in prison some place. No one will believe a criminal over us." Kelsey and the special guest laugh as they walk away.

He smiles at Kelsey's arrogance and pulls on his collar. Movement of the balcony doors attracts his attention. The cool air will help to clear the political stench from his nose. He makes his way to the door and searches the room, but does not see her. With so many people he could not be sure if someone would see him scanning the room. The risk has no advantage or worse. It would take away her reasons for keeping him around. He will wait to see if she returns.

With his hands behind his back, he casually strolls around the perimeter of the crowd and stops in front of the first door. Nodding to a guest his hand grips the door handle. It is locked. Side-stepping to the next door, it is also locked. From across the room Kelsey glares at him, but he continues to the third door. A guest interrupts Kelsey's stare. The door handle turns with a click. Everyone is busy with their little world and do not appear to notice him. He steps onto the balcony and closes the door. Still no one in the ballroom seems to have noticed his absence. Only two chairs and a small table accompany him on the balcony. He steps to the rail and looks over. It is not that far to jump if he has to leave in a hurry.

He loosens his collar and takes several deep breaths. The cool air does as he thought it would. The pressure in his head subsides.

"Ok, I'm here. What am I supposed to do?" He calls to the stars.

They do not answer. With the cool breeze and counting the planets above the horizon, his anxiety calms. Maybe he should have waited a few days before trying to approach her. If she does not remember, he needs to move on. A glance back at the self-declared important people brings disgust. Another guest mistreat the castle staff. Does she see what they are doing to her people?

A few guest inside the room stare at him. He reverts to an old trick to make others think he really is touched in the head. A conversation with himself will make most ignore him, but it does not fool everyone. As long as they leave him alone, he will continue. Rubbing the back of his neck, he turns back to the stars. Now is not the time to lose focus.

A meteor shoots across the sky. "Okay, you have my attention. I don't understand. You know me. How can I serve the Queen if I do not know where she is? I beg you, Lord, I need your help."

The door rattles and he quickly looks over his left shoulder. He is taking a chance of getting caught on the balcony by Kelsey or a guard. Either one will cause him a lot of pain. He stares at the aristocrats with distain. "Lord, I don't belong in there. Is it the Queen who does not belong among them either?"

His head slowly moves from side to side, before looking up. "Lord, she is very young. Have you prepared her for the duties and pressure she will be facing? How will you use me to help her?" He looks around to make sure no one is watching, and then he kneels and bows his head as his hands clasps together.

"My Father in heaven, Your Will, will be done. Is this the right spot? Did I misunderstand what you wanted me to do? How can I help her? I beg you, Father. I don't know what to do. I do not wish to mess it up because of me. Please reveal your plans for me and the new Queen. I know you know her. I just wish it is Your Will that I get to know her. While I do not know your plans, please Father use me in a way that will fulfill your plans, In Jesus' name I pray, Amen."

He places his hand on the rails and continues to kneel for a few seconds more before he stands. His eyes closes and takes several deep breaths to enjoy the last few moments of cool air before he has to go back into the stench. Suddenly something cold touches the back of his hands. His eyes open. A delicately small hand rest on his comparably large hand.

It is her hand and a moment of indecision strikes. Was she here the whole time? Was he so distracted that he did not hear her exit the door? He never did learn how her mother would sneak up on him. Did her mother pass the trick on to both of her daughters? Is he too emotional to be thinking clearly? The time is not right and he must continue the deception for a little while longer.

His eyes follow the arm attached to the delicate hand and he smiles. "Elsa, you made it. I'm glad to see a friendly face here. Did you need a break from the pompous aristocrats in there?"

Elsa chuckles, "Do you think all of them are pompous aristocrats?"

"Not all, I would hope the Queen is not. The castle staff and guards I would guess most of them are not, but there are a few in there who are just as pompous." He looks at the way her hair seems to glisten with different colors.

Elsa smiles. "You have not seen the Queen, have you?"

With a slight shaking of his head, he looks towards the castle wall. "No, I have not. I all most did when you went through the curtain, but a guard caught me in the side room. I asked them to let me see the Queen before they lock me up, but they would not hear of it."

Elsa reaches up to his chin and turns his face. "Did the guards do this to you?"

He starts to move his head away from her hand.

"Don't move. Please answer my question. Who did this to you?" She removes her left glove and hands it to him, "Hold this."

Her voice and the words she used are the confidence of her mother. How many times did the previous Queen order him to answer her question or turn his face so she could see the bruise? He detects a slight hesitation in her hand as though she is fighting not to run, but maybe to prove herself.

He answers, "Sir Kelsey has a special ring. I have seen him use it on his other staff members with the same results. He said I embarrassed him by having his guest see me being escorted by the guards. It is too bad the guards did not put me in a cell."

She places her left hand over the bruise area and her fingers trace the cut on his face, "Why would you want to be in a cell?" She watches his eyes.

His face absorbs the coldness radiating from her hand as one other did for him many years ago. He places his hand over her hand not wanting the sensation to end. His eyes close. "Thank you, your hand is easing the pain. If I am in a cell when his ship departs, I'm free of him." He opens his eyes. "It's not like he was going to pay me for moving the crate from his ship to the Weselton's ship. I think they were up to something. I overheard him say that no one would believe a criminal over them."

The door rattles as it opens.

Elsa drops her hand and struggles to put her glove on. Sensing her fear he steps between her and the person in the door way. With arms straight and angled out from his side, he creates an optical distortion to block the view of whoever is coming through the door. She slips her gloves on and for a long moment, her icy blue eyes pierce into his mind. Her fear has passed. With a smile she nods to him. He steps to the side and turns to face the intruder.

"Elsa, I mean Que . . ." Anna stutters as Elsa shakes her head and holds her finger to her lips to hush her. Anna moves her head in understanding and glances at him. "You have to hide me. That Duke of Weselton wants to dance again."

The glass distorts the Dukes image as he approaches the door. Sam turns his heads slightly and asks, "Elsa, Do you think the Queen would put me in a cell until they leave?"

She replies with a grin, "I believe I have some influence to guarantee it."

"Thank you," he turns to Anna, "Princess, please stay here. I'll take care of him." He steps in front of the door. Standing tall with his hands closed by his side, he waits for the arrogant Duke to lay his hands on him. Sam will take the opportunity to extract the Duke intentions for Arendelle and his Queen.

The Duke pushes the door open and it stops against Sam's foot. He peeks around the corner of the door. "Step aside, you big ox. My business is with the Princess."

He starts to squeeze through the door, but Sam puts out his hand blocking him. The Duke takes a step back and points a wiry finger at him, "Do you know who I am? I will have you put in jail and flogged for touching me."

Sir Kelsey walks up behind the Duke. "What is going on, my friend?"

The Duke points to Sam peeking in. "He is not moving out of my way."

Kelsey steps to the door and adjust his ring. "You have obviously forgotten your place. Step aside or I'll have the Queen lock you up. Maybe she can use you to plow her garden."

Sam steps back as Kelsey shoves the door open and starts to push pass him. He pokes his hand into Kelsey's chest, causing him to step back. Kelsey acts surprised. "How dare you touch me."

The Duke leans close to Kelsey. "See, he did the same thing to me. Can't you control him? He is embarrassing you in front of the other guest."

Kelsey bares his teeth as he growls. "I'll have the guards' drag you back to the ship in chains. Once at sea, you will be flogged until your flesh is ripped from your back then your carcass will be tossed overboard to feed the fish."

Kelsey reaches under his coat. The commotion has drawn the attention of the guest and the guards.

Elsa steps to the side where the Duke and Kelsey can see her.

The Duke stops Kelsey from drawing the dagger out as he points to the Queen. They both bow and the Duke speaks, "Your Majesty, I wish to speak with you on a certain matter of commerce."

Elsa whispers to Anna.

Anna gives Elsa a confused expression, but speaks, "Duke, we are not interested in talking about trade at this moment, but tomorrow will be a good time." Anna steps next to Sam, "Guard, please escort Sir Kelsey back to his ship."

Kelsey starts to protest as two guards grab his arms. The Duke walks away quickly.

"Check his coat for a dagger and remove his ring before he strikes one of you," Sam says as he taps his cheek just below the cut under his eye.

The guard removes Kelsey's rings and removes the dagger from the inside pocket of his coat. The other guests murmur and point as the guards escort Kelsey out of the room.

Anna steps back to Elsa observing the back of Samuel. She leans towards Elsa and whispers, "He does not know who the Queen is?"

Elsa grins at her sister. She hushes her, "No, he does not."

Anna's grin widens. "Will he be meeting the Queen later?"

A light pink sweeps across Elsa's cheeks. "Anna, if it is his desire to meet the Queen later, I am sure she will be very receptive."

"I bet she will," Anna chokes on the snicker.

"Do you have someplace to be other than here?" Elsa pokes Anna's side. With a giggle, they both notice Samuel watching them with his mouth slightly open.

Anna steps to the door and touches his arm. "Ignore it, it is what sisters do." She opens the door and glances at the guest still murmuring about Kelsey before sneaking back into the ballroom.

Sam moves towards the rail still with his mouth open and points his finger like he is counting. He points to the door and says, "If Princess Anna is your sister that makes you." He snaps his head around towards her. "The Queen."

With a slight nod, she smiles at him.

His eyes widen as he bows, but is a little too close to the rail where his forehead impacts. He falls to his knees and holds his hand over the new injury. "My apology for not recognizing your Majesty, this is why many say I am a dumb ox."

She steps closer to him as she removes her right glove and places her hand over his injured forehead.

His hand covers her hand and his eyes partially close. For the briefest moment his energy fights against her energy causing a tingling sensation. The tingle stops. The cold energy radiating through her hand synchronizes and supplements with his energy. It awakens an emotion that three other females in his previous life were able to generate. Soon the crystals drifting in her blood will have a greater influence in her life.

Her expression of wonderment looks down at him.

"Thank you, this feels nice."

"Are you sure we have never met? I feel I know you." She smiles. "I can feel your pulse racing. Why are you apprehensive?"

His eyes open. "I was right. I could not imagine the Queen being more beautiful than you. Now, I know you are one in the same." His head shakes slightly. "I hope I was not inappropriate to you." He stands. "Maybe I should go."

Her hand slides down his face and rest on his chest. "Do you want to leave?" For several moments he drowns himself in her blue eyes. Those wonderful blue eyes still have the power to calm him. He draws his lips tight and fights his emotion to hold his beautiful little angel who stole his heart long ago.

He places his right hand over her hand and takes a deep breath. "No, I do not wish to leave. I want to stay and work for you, but I know royalty does not associate with commoners. There will be members of the council who will wish for me to stay away."

"Then it is a good thing I am the Queen. I get to say who leaves and who stays. I want you to stay and . . . work for me." His lips gradually form a smile as he glances at her crown. "Why are you smiling?"

"You were wearing your crown in the room with the curtain and I missed it."

She slides her hand down his face, "Do not worry about it. I do not see a bruise forming where you kissed the rail. It is too bad you did not try to kiss me instead of the rail."

Behind them, they hear the familiar voice of her sister. "You said what?"

Elsa again struggles to put her glove on. Sam automatically shifts his body to block Anna's view while still staring at Elsa's hair.

She glances up, "What are you looking at?"

"The light is playing tricks with your hair. It is almost like tiny ice crystals creating different colors. " He whispers, "It would not be proper for me to kiss the Queen."

"Would you kiss, Elsa?" She stops in mid motion of slipping her glove on as she stares up at him with a hint of a smile.

"Yes," he responds with a slight nod. "I would have liked to kiss Elsa."

"And now that you know I am the Queen, you do not wish to kiss me?" She continues to put on her glove.

"I would love nothing more than to hug and kiss Elsa, but because you are the Queen, it would not be proper for a commoner to kiss the new Queen. Your struggles are just about to begin in dealing with those snakes in the room and the people in your kingdom. I will do what I can to help if you will permit me." He steps back to open the door.

Elsa stands tall with her shoulders back and her hands crossed in front of her. She walks to the door and stops, turning her head slightly to him, "You work for me. I expect to see you by the doors at the back of the room. When I am ready to leave, you will escort me out."

With a smile he nods. "Yes, my Lady."

He watches Elsa walk back to the dais area to resume the 'meet and greet' of the delegates.

A grinning Anna stands next to him, "So you kissed the rail instead of kissing the Queen." She shakes her head at him, "You really did not know Elsa was the Queen?"

He shrugs his shoulders, "I heard the announcement of the Queen's entrance. I did not put two and two together. I though her crown was kind a like a tiara. I have never known royalty to be so nice. She was very nice to me, but if I had known she was the Queen I would have returned to the room instead of talking to her out here."

Anna steps into the room, "Uh huh." Just as she starts into the crowd the Duke calls her name and she darts away from him.

Sam steps into the ballroom and scans the room. Sir Kelsey is nowhere to be seen. Everyone gives him a wide berth as he walks towards the back wall. He stays to the left of the door and speaks very little to the guest. Those few who speak to him, smile and nod, then move on to the next person. He has more conversation with the staff than the guest. Each time his body is angled towards the dais, his eyes are drawn to his friend standing in the front. Instead of fighting his feelings it flows freely. Several times he looks towards her and she is speaking to a guest. This time their eyes meet. With a growing smile he nods to her and she smiles and slightly nods back. As quickly as the moment began it is broken as Queen Elsa politely speaks to another delegate.

The musicians stop for a break. Sam spots Anna moving towards the dais. Anna and Elsa appear to be having a good conversation as they laugh. A few seconds later Elsa reacts to Anna. He closes his eyes for a second and senses confusion and anger coming from Elsa. Anna steps down from the dais. He glances toward her and Elsa barely moves her head from side to side. He feels her stress level's increase as though a pain had struck her. Fear builds and she struggles to fight it.

Anna moves through the guests and trips. Prince Hans catches her. Sam watches him, but without getting close to make a physical connection to scan his thoughts, the hair on the back of his neck gives the only indication of a possible problem. For now they are only dancing.

He continues to keep his eyes moving across the crowd in case someone is watching him. He does not wish for them to think they are being singling out, but there are at least two other individuals he is keeping a close eye on them. His eye movement stops a few seconds on the most gorgeous woman he has seen recently, hoping she would look back at him. Those extra few seconds pay off, when she looks across the room at him. He moves his hand to his lips making the motion of drinking something and then points to her. She nods. A guard steps through the door next to him. His hand shoots out to pin him against the door. The guard struggles for a second, but he interrupts his movement, "Do you work for our Queen?"

The guard, a head shorter than him, is startled by the hand that is preventing him from moving and looks up with a nod. Sam leans down, "Get whatever is appropriate for our Queen to drink. She . . . is . . . thirsty."

He removes his hand and the guard hurries out the door. Sam scans the room and notices one individuals he was tracking has left the room with Anna. It would be easy if he could walk into a closed room to scan the area for them, but that would mean leaving his assigned post. The quick scan he uses for this room would reach out into the courtyard if they are there. Several minutes later a member of the staff steps out of the side room and carries a tray with a slight yellowish bubbly drink. Since it looks similar to the other drinks in the room, he assumes the Queen's drink is also champagne. Elsa holds up the glass and nods toward him. He smiles and nods back.

A couple of hours later, the doors burst open as Anna and Hans quickly walk through the crowd towards the Queen. Sam gets the doors closed as the Queen announces the party is over. He moves to the side and prepares to escort the Queen out of the door.

Anna taking Elsa's glove creates a commotion behind him. He turns as Elsa tells Anna to leave. Anna begs why they grew apart. It creates a conflict for him as Elsa's fear begins to overwhelm her. If it was anyone other than Anna he would step between them, but instead he slowly moves towards the door when Elsa reveals her powers. Unfortunately, he is too close and an ice spike pierces into his side. He wraps his left hand around the spike and generates just enough heat to melt the ice without creating steam. Elsa is afraid. She glances at him and the ice just long enough for him to mouth the word, 'leave', and waves her to go. The one thing he did not wish to happen has happened as the Duke of Weselton comments about sorcery.

He stays at his post until most of the guests have left the room. His injury prevents him from following. Taking a chance he covers his eyes to scan for her. In his mind, he sees Elsa at the fjord edge.

 _Look down, the water will freeze with your steps._

Elsa looks down at the ice forming around her shoes. She takes a step on the water and it freezes.

 _Run, run, I will find you, run._

She crosses the fjord and runs towards the mountains.

He reaches into his side and sends a burst of energy radiating around the spike. It activates the elements in his cells to speed up the healing process. His body temperature drops to just above freezing, so the spike will melt slowly and his body repairs the damage. As the healing process begins, his skin color changes to a pale blue.

He hobbles to the courtyard in time to see Princes Anna on her horse racing through the gates. He struggles to get down the steps without falling. The large gentleman stops him. Kai whispers, "Where have you been? With the Queen and Princess out there, the snake Hans was left in charge. You need to get out there and save them before it is too late."

Sam watches the familiar gentleman walk back into the castle. "I promised and I will."

He does not have time to waste, at least there is another person who thinks Hans is trouble. At the moment he cannot help either Elsa or Anna. Hopefully they will survive until he can heal, then he will help them. He walks through the main gates.

The cold atmosphere begins to hinder his progress even before he gets to the bridge. There is something different about the air. Changing his vision he scans the frozen fjord and the falling snow. The energy waves undulate in a pattern he has seen before.

His mother had spoken to him.

 _I know you can see the lines. Follow them to the source and you will see._

He did follow the lines. There were two sets of multicolor lines. One set were steady evenly spaced. The other set undulated and crossed over each other. He remembers finding the two sources. His mother generated the calm set and he created the chaotic set.

 _I can't control it. I'm scared._

She touches the back of his neck and the coolness of her hand calms the fear. _I know you can do this. I will help you._

The confusion of colors becomes orderly and his energy follows the order of the lines to his understanding. His eyes follow the colorful energy lines to the north mountain. "She ran from her fear and now the lines are orderly. She is not afraid."

A cold gust stiffens his injury. He will be useless trying to climb the mountain. His better choice will be to stay near the castle. If they can survive for twelve hours so he can heal, He will be able to help Elsa as his mother helped him. He hopes Anna will make her way back to the castle before it gets too cold. Over the bridge rail, he jumps and slides down to the fjord edge. He crawls under a bridge arch and creates a snow barrier to block the wind. A sharp pain stabs into his side. Ice from the fjord moves up his body and covers his side and hand.

 _This is not supposed to happen._

After several minutes his eyes slowly close and his world turns to a snow white.

Awakened to sound of the snow storm and the ice cracking, he breaks the ice around him and rolls to his knees. The grogginess in his mind fades. "How did I get here? What am I doing under the bridge?" His questions echo in his mind.

A twinge in his side reminds him of why he was in the ice. His fingers find an indentation where the ice stabbed him. The indentation is colder than the flesh surrounding it. It should not be almost healed after twelve hours.

His mind clears and he looks past the bridge archway. "Elsa?"

Struggling to his feet, his side reminds him it is still tender to movement. Using the archway, he staggers out from under the bridge. The wind, blinding snow, and freezing fog obscures everything.

"What has happened?" His question echoes in his head again.

Using the bridge to keep himself upright, he does not bother covering his eyes. The fog around him takes on the glow of his green eyes. Piercing through the fog, he detects four individuals on the frozen fjord. One individual is walking out onto the fjord. Their body temperature has dropped dramatically. Very little heat remains in their body. They will freeze to death if he cannot get to them. He hears Anna calling. He follows a projected line in the direction she is walking. Another individual further out on the fjord runs towards Anna. He detects a reindeer. "Kristoff?"

Sam starts to run, but the fjord ice grips his leg. His injured side radiates in pain. The storm stops. Snowflakes float. An energy surge of great force pushes the fog away. The sound of metal sliding against metal draws his attention to Elsa. Standing over her Prince Hans swings his sword down.

His heart pounds in his chest. Channeling all of his energy, he generates a sonic blast just as Anna steps between Elsa and Hans. The sword shatters on Anna's frozen hand a fraction of a second before the sonic blast slams Hans to the ice. He watches Elsa morn for her frozen sister. He has failed to protect them. A moment later, he feels the warmth of Elsa's heart as Anna unfreezes and Elsa's final understanding she has the ability to control her powers. He crawls to the shore as the ice melts. An overwhelming joy fills his heart, when Elsa collects the ice into the shape of the snowflake he taught her eighteen years earlier.

A voice calls down to him from the bridge rail. "Samuel, What are you doing down there? Did you see what happened?"

"Yes, Kristen I saw. What do you think of the Queen now?" He crawls up the bridge footing and scales up to the top. Kristen helps him to climb onto the bridge. He looks towards Elsa just in time to see Anna punch Hans into the fjord.

Kristen glances up at him. She looks in the direction he is focused. "You seem to be interested in what's occurring on that boat. Is it the Queen?"

With a smile he glances down at her. "What if it is?"

"Mom said you should visit us. She needs to talk to you."

He continues to watch his Queen. "Do you know what I learned today?"

"You will catch a cold if you stay in your wet clothes?" She grins at him.

"The cold does not bother me." He looks at her. "I learned Queen Elsa can disrupt the weather pattern in the immediate vicinity. Even when she is afraid, she is powerful. With the snowflake, she demonstrated her powers under her control. If she can maintain her confidence, Arendelle will become a dominant force in this region."

Turning back to the scene on the fjord, he smiles at his not so little snow angel.

"How did you know I was here?"

"Mom and I heard a plea for help." She glances at the scene on the fjord. "Good luck with that," she snickers as she runs back over the bridge.

Sam watches several small boats, row out to the ship. "Yes, we shall see."

 **End of Chapter**


	29. Chapter 28 Gates Open

**Title: Chapter 28: Gates Open**

 **4 Years, 5 Months until Correction**

The great freeze in July has thawed and the gates are finally open. Will the people of Arendelle forgive their new Queen? Even with a large population, not all will be as forgiving. They will be the ones Sam has to identify and track. Humans being human, he is sure they will reveal themselves while they believe the Queen is weak. He hates to play the charade with his little snow angel, even though she has become a very beautiful young woman. For now, there will be two targets, those who wish to take her Queendom by marriage and those who wish to remove her permanently. To keep his promise to the previous King and Queen, he knows what he has to do.

Samuel Ryan strolls into the castle courtyard with the other villagers. Not wanting to attract attention despite his height, his clothing matches the others. He picks a spot several meters to the right of the gate with his back to the wall near a large planter. This spot gives an unobstructed view of Queen Elsa and Princess Anna.

In the center of the courtyard, his snow angel in her sparkling ice blue dress, asks her people, "Are you ready?"

The people cheer. Queen Elsa stomps her foot and ice rapidly spreads out in all directions, laying out a layer of ice on the courtyard. With a flick of her hands the two water fountains transform into ice sculptures. The people cheer again.

"I am impressed my dear. You do have some control of the ice, but the big question is, are you ready for when they forget about this day and the attacks come. Bathe in their cheers and happiness. Soon you will need a teacher." He watches the children and the adults show their ice skating skills. Despite a slippery start, even Princess Anna seems to be improving her skills.

His senses detect he is being watched. He scans the crowd and looks directly into a beautiful set of blue eyes. _Uh-oh, she is staring at me. Does she remember?_

Erik, Andreas, and Kristen skate over to him. Erik speaks first, "Come on Sam. Let's skate."

He shakes his head. "You go ahead. I'll stay here and watch you have fun."

Kristen grabs his hand pulling him away from the wall, "Come on. When you skate with us, we have more fun." She pulls the snowflake glove off his hand.

He reaches for the glove, but she has back too far from him. With a slight giggle she skates away with his glove. Now that his back is not against the wall, Andreas and Erik get behind him and push him towards the center of the ice. The speed of his movement creates an unstable balance as his weight shifts behind his feet. Not wanting to fall on one of the boys, he turns his body just as he falls between them, but his momentum slides him across the ice out of control. Not wanting to hit anything or anyone, he applies pressure to the ice, but a sliver of ice from a skate trail pulls his other glove off.

He calls to Kristen skating past him, "get my glove before someone falls on it."

With ease Kristen changes direction and skates over the glove to pick it up in one motion.

His momentum has him in a gradual rotation, but his center of projection is aimed for a collision with the castle steps. Several people avoid skating into him as he curls into a ball. The back of his shirt coated in ice reduces his resistance and most of his momentum will conclude with a sudden and painful stop against the stairs. His right arm extends out and his palm presses against the ice. His right hand generates an ice ridge for him to grip. The ridge melts back into the ice a second after his hand passes over it. It slows his forward momentum and changes his course away from the castle steps. His body finally stops, but his hand continues to cover the ridge until it melts.

He does not move for a few seconds. In the course of hiding his ice powers, he loses track of his location and sees a pair of ice blue shoes next to him. His vision slowly tracks upward to Queen Elsa's smile.

"Are you ok," She asks and glances at his hand.

His right hand does not move, but presses the centimeter of the ridge into the ice. His hand sweeps the ice to verify it is flat. He answers, "Yes, I'm ok. The children think I can skate, but as you can see, my back does more of the skating than my feet."

"I saw what you did."

A little concerned he may have been caught, but it would be the ice breaker he needs. His eyes narrow at her. "What did you see?"

"The ice, I saw what you did with the ice."

An opportunity for a test, he states, "I did nothing out of the ordinary with the ice."

"You are going to tell me, I did not see ice form under your hand to slow your movement towards the steps, or the ice melt to fill where your fingers dug into it to stop your momentum?"

No one could have seem what he did, unless they knew what to look for. He smiles up at her. Other than the trolls, he has never revealed his ice powers to any human, except one. Does she remember? Does she remember she laughed and said it was amazing when he showed her how to layer the great room with snow? Does she remember he gave her the snowflake she revealed to her people, the other day?

Queen Elsa places her feet overlapping his toes and offers both hands. He holds her hands as she bends her knees and leans back to stand. Her momentum pulls him to his feet. Her hands are so soft.

Not letting go of his hands, Elsa narrows her eyes at him, "I know you."

Composing himself he continues the test. "I live outside of the village and have helped to deliver supplies to the castle. You did see me at your coronation party."

She glares at him for a moment. The corner of her lips curl up. "How do you feel?"

Her icy blue eyes make it difficult to stay focused. His heart beat increases creating a pounding in his ears. His smile disappears. "I feel fine, Majesty."

Her head turns slightly. "Really, did you not notice my cold hands?" Her smile grows bigger. "Does the cold bother you?"

In his head, He had rehearsed how he was going to react meeting her again. With all great plans, he did not expect her to remember him. She was three years old when he put the memory block in her mind as King Agnarr had asked. Even time has the power to erase memories. His test is to determine what she remembers, but he had not prepared a response if she knew him immediately. "Most of the time it does not bother me. Many times I enjoy the cold."

Elsa turns her head slightly the other way as though she was trying to peek behind his curtain. "Really, you must be enjoying it now. By now most other people would be groaning in pain with a frozen hand."

Surprise stabs at him as he looks at the ice crystals covering most of his hand. He pulls his hands from her and sticks them under his arms as he takes a step back. "Majesty, it's time for me to leave and allow you to be with your people."

He skates towards the gate, but spots his gloves on the planter by the wall. Changing directions he skates to the planter. Hurriedly, his red hands slip into the gloves. "Stupid, stupid, stupid, I can't believe I let a pretty smile distract me."

His hand rest on his waist and his other hand covers his eyes. He shakes his head. "It wasn't her smile but her blue eye that destroyed my focus. She is smart. She may already know."

He pushes against the planter as he turns. Elsa stands behind him. His hand clenches the planter rim as his feet slip out from under him. His back and head thumps against the planter base with his feet to either side of her ice blue shoes.

Elsa smiles down at him and placing her knee on the inside of his knee. "What do I know?"

The last time a female put him in a compromising position, he had given his heart to her. In these few minutes, he knew he had lost composure twice. He had a very difficult decision to make.

Elsa Inhales. "You have a pleasant fragrant about you. Are you wearing cologne?"

"No, I am not."

She leans a little harder into his leg and inhales as she points her finger at him. "I do know you?"

"Other than seeing me around the village? Please understand. I'm here to protect you."

"Protect?" A moment of confusion passes across her eyes as she looks around. No one appears to notices them. She speaks with clarity. "Say these words as I say them. 'Believe in yourself. You are stronger than you know. I will protect you with all of my heart and all my soul, waiting for the day I meet my snow angel.' Repeat it."

Still holding onto the planter, he takes a deep breath. Her tantalizing fragrance assaults his sinuses creating more distractions. He struggles to focus and repeats her words in as close to a monotone as possible.

She gives him a slight smile and places her hand on the side of his face. Her other hand places her finger and thumb on either side of his nose. "Do I need to freeze it?"

His head shakes the answer, no.

Elsa's smile grows as she speaks softly, "Repeat the words again with compassion and sincerity."

Her deep blue eyes strangle his thoughts, but one moves to the forefront of his mind as it reminds him of the last time he spoke those words to her. His heart hopes she will remember. The fingertips of his right hand lightly traces the outline of her face to hold her chin. With a noticeable sigh, he speaks with softness, compassion, and sincerity, "Princess Elsa, I will always be here for you. In these trying times, I know you are afraid of your abilities. Believe in yourself. You are stronger than you know. I will protect you with all of my heart and all my soul, waiting for the day I meet my snow angel. If you call, I will hear you."

Still touching his face, she places her other hand on his shoulder.

He continues, "Elsa, I prayed for this day when we would meet, but definitely not in this manner."

Slightly off balance Anna skates up to them. "Who is your friend?"

Elsa leans in close and exhales a cool mist. Pushing away, she stands and slides back from him.

"Whoa, I did not see anything." Anna glances away as she locks her arm around Elsa's arm.

He pulls himself up the planter and tries not to look away, but his heart stirs with a feeling he has not felt in eighteen years.

Kristen and Erik skate up to them. Kristen says, "Come on Samuel. You have to whirl us around faster."

Erik grabs her arm, "Kristen stop. This is Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. Momma is going to hit me if we don't act proper." Erik promptly bows to Elsa as Kristen curtsies.

Queen Elsa nods to the two children. They both skate away. A few seconds later, Andreas skates up to Sam. He bows to Elsa and Anna, but hesitates as his mouth opens. "My apologies to you, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna, my sister wants to know if Samuel is in trouble. If not, could he come and skate with us?"

Elsa's smile grows bigger as Anna speaks to Samuel. "Well, you seem to be popular with the children. What is your secret?"

He pushes away from the planter and grabs Andreas' hand. "I listen to what they have to say."

Anna waits until Sam is a distance away before she asks. "Who is your friend?"

She points towards Sam, "I know him. His name is Samuel."

Anna smirks, "of course, you know him. He nearly knocked you down sliding across the ice."

"No, I have known him before then."

Anna stares at Elsa with interest. "You were talking to him on the balcony during the ball."

"I know. I also talked to him in the side room before I was announced at the ball."

With wide eyes, Anna grabs Elsa's arm. "Wait, you talk to him before the ball? You did not call the guards into the room?" She wags her finger at her. "Did mom tell you not to talk to strange men?"

She places her hand on Anna's hand. "Of course she did, but he is different. When I saw him in the side room, he was looking through the curtains. He asked if I had seen the Queen. He did not know who I was. Even then I did not feel afraid of him."

Elsa giggles. "He pointed to you and asked if you were the Queen." She glances at her sister. "He pulled me towards the curtain and did not notice my hands were cold. He thought the gloves were to keep my hands warm. He even asked if I had heard the rumor that the Queen was the most beautiful woman in Arendelle. He did not believe the rumor because he found it hard to believe somebody more beautiful than me." She places her hand over her heart. "That is when I knew he had a kind and gentle heart. My heart was being drawn to him. Do you know what he asked me when I stepped through the curtains?"

Anna shakes her head slightly.

Elsa watches him skating with the children. "He wanted to know my name?"

"What did you tell him?"

She looks at her little sister and looks back at him as she partially covers her lips with her hand. "I said Elsa."

"Is that when you decided to meet him on the balcony?"

"I did not see him again after going through the curtains. After meeting so many people I stepped onto the balcony to take a break. I sat at the table and bent down to remove a petal that fell on my shoe. I heard the door open and close. I froze for a moment. When I sat up he was standing near the rail searching the sky. It sounded as though he was talking to someone. He kneeled and prayed."

She wraps her arm across Anna's shoulders. "His prayer was for me. He must not have known I was there until I placed my bare hand on his hand. The cold did not bother him, even when I touched the cut on his face. He said thank you. That is, when you came onto the balcony asking me to hide you from the Duke."

"Yes, and shortly after that he kissed the balcony rail instead of you." Anna teased.

"No, he said it was not proper for him to kiss the Queen. He has honor." She watches him and the children laughing and having fun skating.

Anna follows her eyes staring at Sam. She grins. "I heard the children calling him Samuel."

Elsa looks at Anna, "I know. I remember him telling me several times that for now his name is Sam."

"When did he tell you that?"

"When we were little girls, I told you I had a friend and you said."

Anna interrupts, "I wanted to meet your friend, and you said."

Elsa interrupts, "You cannot until you learned to hear him." They both turned towards Sam.

Anna points to him. "You mean him?"

"I don't recall seeing him, but his voice sounds like the voice I heard." Elsa nods. "It was not just his voice. He has the same physical structures as the man in my dreams. His face appears similar to the one who carried me in his arms and allowed me to rest my head on his shoulder? I remember hearing his heart beating." She stares at Sam.

Anna watches her sister and glances at Sam. She states, "He looks a little bit older than you." She pauses before she continues. "Ok, he looks a lot older than you, but I do not see any gray in his hair."

"What if I tell you there maybe someone who has powers similar to mine?" Elsa grins.

"You mean the snow and ice? Are they a friend or foe?" Anna observes Elsa.

"What would you say if I told you, I know for a fact there is a person who has powers like mine?"

"How do you know?" Anna glances towards Sam

Elsa mimics with her hands. "I saw him create an ice ridge to stop himself from hitting the steps."

They both stare in Sam's direction. The three children hold a length of rope. He wraps one end around his gloved hand and several other children, along with the three, hold onto the other end of the rope.

Sam comments to the children. "We are in a confined space with many adults who wish to have fun also. Do not knock the adults down. The first one who does and this game is over. Older kids help the younger ones. We will go slowly, until you can prove to me that you can control your skating. Okay?"

All the children nod in agreement as their happy faces express an anticipation. He starts to pull slowly until all the children are skating.

Elsa watches Sam skate backwards and maneuver around others without looking over his shoulder.

Anna interrupts her thoughts. "If he does, maybe he can tell you how he received his powers which could explain how you got your powers."

Elsa glimpse Anna. "When I had him pinned to the planter, I had a strong desire to kiss his cheek. I cannot explain it. I felt calm. The world did not matter. I wanted to be with him. On the balcony and in the side room, I was not afraid. I felt as though I have always known him."

"Like a brother?"

"No, not like what we have. It is like someone you have not seen in many years, but we must have had something special between us. Despite our separation I knew and saw you several times a week." She looks away, not at a specific, but searching. "But I knew him and at the moment I wanted everyone to leave, his presence gave me courage. If I can remember what we did together."

Anna raises her brows. "Together? Were you betrothed to him?"

She shakes her head. "No, I do not believe it was like that, but I do remember Mother telling me there was someone who will be watching over us."

Anna points at Sam as he skates near with several children trying to hold on. "Him?"

Elsa calls out. "Your name is Samuel Ryan. I called you, Admal."

Sam performs a tight turn and drops the rope. The children skate in different directions. Kristen reels in the rope. Slowly, he skates over to them and stops just outside of her reach.

He bows. "My full name is Samuel Christopher Ryan." He stands up straight and looks directly into her eyes. "I'm here to help you, if you will let me."

Elsa slides a step forward. "Why did you stop talking to me?"

He slides a step back as he shakes his head slowly. "I didn't stop. I never left you. As the years began to go by, the storm inside of you became too loud for me to overcome. I never gave up. I honored your father's wish. Physically, I stayed away, but I did watch you grow up. It hurts my heart to know that your pain was going to get worse as you grew older, but I never gave up."

He slides back a meter and holds out his left hand. "I have fulfilled your Father's command, but you are in charge now. I will honor you as I honored your Father and your Mother."

Anna points to his hand. "That glove has the symbol for fire and the other is just like the snowflake you created."

Elsa stares at both gloves, but fixates on the snowflake, "What do the symbols mean?"

"They are in my blood."

For a moment she stands motionless, then slowly she reaches out for his hand.

He slides back another step. "Please understand. Just as the snowflake is a part of you, the fire and snowflake are a part of me. Years ago you and I had a special bond, not brother and sister, not husband and wife, not in betrothal, but when we were together our energies synchronized. We calmed the other. I don't know how or why, but it does. When we were apart, I could hear you and you could hear me. I heard you cry out in pain when you injured Anna. When fear entered into your life, the bond began to crumble."

"But it was an accident," Anna defends as she holds on to Elsa's arm.

"Yes, it was at that moment when you began to lose the ability to hear me. With the passing of time, your fear became too strong for me to overcome. I could hear you, but there was nothing I could do. When the King and Queen were reported lost at sea, I was tortured feeling your pain."

Anna squeezes Elsa's arm and wipes the corner of her eye. Elsa glances away and blinks several times, before she touches the corner of her eyes.

Sam watches them for a moment. "I apologize. I did not come here to cause you more pain." He pauses to formulate his thoughts, but he needs to push through the muddy waters of their memories. "I wanted to reach out to you, but I made a promise to Queen Iduna and King Agnarr. I would stay away until I was released. I understood his concerns. He knew enough about me to be afraid of the path of life that you will have to take. Elsa . . . Anna . . . your parents loved you so much."

He lowers his hand and eyes, "I know because they were thinking about both of you in the end."

Their raw emotion amplifies his emotions and he fights to hold back, but a tear rolls down his cheek. He swallows hard and raises his hand out to them. With a deep breath, he slowly exhales through his nose. "Queen Elsa, the emotions you are feeling now, is why you have to be absolutely sure you want this bond to be created again. This bond is mental. There is nothing physical about it. I can feel your fear after all that has happened to you the past several days, but I also feel a calmness that started when you skated over here. If it is open, initially, you will see, and hear, and feel my presence all the time until I can teach you to control it. Your mind will be acutely aware of everything around you."

Elsa asks, "If after the bond is created and I change my mind, what will happen?"

His hand lowers. "With great sadness I will close it. I know of only one time when the bond was closed. We knew enough of each other that it created a distrust. We had to go our separate ways." His hand sweeps over the area. "This is your home. I would have to leave and never return."

Elsa wipes the tears from Anna's face, then wipes away her own tears. "How long does it take to establish the bond?"

"It's not the amount of time, it's a sequence of events. Upon the last event the bond will connect us together. You said you knew me. You were not afraid and that you felt we had something special between us. The answer is, yes we did. I was the stable boy under your mother and father's rule. Your Father thought I would lead you astray." He sweeps his hands in the air. "Unfortunately, the recent events verified my concerns. Your powers cannot be held in. The stress you will feel in your new role will leak them out. You must learn to control them or maybe the next time someone could die."

He slowly rotates around and observes who may be watching them. Across the yard on the steps Gerda and Kai watch him. He nods to them and grins as he completes the circle. His hands move around each other and opens them. A ball of snow transforms into two tall figures and two shorter figures. The figures form into Agnarr, Iduna, young Elsa and young Anna. They dance and play together in his hand. "When you are ready, you will be able to do the same thing. When you know all that I know, my promise to your parents will be complete, then I will continue towards my goal."

Anna and Elsa stare at the snow figures. She asks, "Will I be able to make the snow dance?"

He closes his hands together and opens them to pour the water onto the ground. "You already know the basics. You froze the fjord. What is snow made of?"

"Water," Anna answers.

"I saw you thaw the fjord and transform the ice into your snowflake. Why do you think you were able to do it?"

"Because I wanted them –"

"To know you are not a monster," He lowers his head nodding. "I know what it feels like for all to be afraid of you, but you continue to try. Why did you think you felt comfortable around me in the side room?"

"I did not feel threatened. Wait? How do you know how I felt in the side room?"

His eyes dart back and forth between her eyes. "You did not call the guards. If you had, I would not be here now. You had a recognition. A long time ago in a previous job I was taught I could affect others. In that line of work my survival depended on the other person's hesitation. It has served me well."

"You are manipulating my sister?" Anna narrows her eyes at him.

"No, I did not influence you. Your responses were your own."

She stares at him with the wonderments as she did, when he told her stories.

"My presence calms you. If you had told me to go away, I was prepared to leave Arendelle forever. You were afraid you would not honor your mother and father. You were building a wall not to protect you, but protect them from you. I was a lit candle in the dark. You felt no fear so you hesitated. I took a chance and touched your cold hand. The renewal of the bond has already started." He holds his hand towards her.

She smiles at her sister who nods her head towards him. Elsa touches her head to Anna's forehead, "will this bond interfere with us getting to know each other again?"

"Absolutely not, it will give you a different perspective of your surroundings. As a sequence of events, this will not happen overnight. Think of it like this, each event, we must give up something of ourselves to be given to the other. You will know when an event occurs."

"How will I know?"

"Usually, a sudden realization of something meaningful, to each of us it will be different."

Anna turns Elsa and pushes her in the small of her back. She glides towards him and takes his hand.

He lowers his head and his lips touch the back of her hand, "With this kiss the bond can be established again."

She reaches behind his neck and pulls him down as she rises onto her toes. She whispers, "With this kiss build the bond as I remember." Her lips touch the tip of his nose as she exhales a minty cool mist that he eagerly draws in. Her cheek slides along his face and she whispers into his ear. "Is it you, Admal?"

"There it is. My sweet little angel sees me. For so long I worried if it was too late."

"But you lied to me."

"Yes, I did and I apologize for it. It was a tactical decision that would have minimized the consequences to you."

She steps back, but rest her hand on his chest. "What consequences?"

"If you did not see me, I would have stayed in the background. I would have tried to contact you every day, but I also knew that you would become busy at running your Queendom. You would have little time for me. You are not the little girl I knew. You have grown into the beautiful young woman I knew you would become." His smile fades as he looks down. As his head nods, he steps back and properly bows to her then kneels on one knee. "Your Majesty, I am here to serve you in whatever capacity you see fit for me. I am a citizen of your Queendom and I await your command."

His heart screams in pain, ' _why did you do that? She recognized you. You should have stopped.'_

His mind replies, _'because it was a lie. She needs to make the decision for herself not for us.'_

A cool hand brushes his cheek. "Sam, please stand."

He looks up into her blue eyes and rises to his feet.

She steps closer to him. "Tell me if I am wrong. I remember feeling safe when I did this." She lays her head on his left shoulder and her left hand holds on to his collar. Her right hand holds his left shoulder.

His arms slowly wrap around her waist. "Not quite in the same physical position, but I think you are correct. This also creates calm for me.

Kristen skates to a stop a short distance from them and pushes to the side. Erik stops next to her. "What is he doing?"

"Quiet, he's kissing the Queen."

Erik makes a sour face. "Ah, I would rather pick my nose and eat it, than to kiss a girl." He skates away.

Anna chuckles.

Kristen says, "Your Majesty, please forgive my brother. Though he is older, he acts weird when he gets around pretty girls. Momma says when he gets around beautiful women, there is no telling what will come out of his mouth."

Anna snickers, "Wait until he gets older. He's going to be absolutely miserable."

Kristen giggles as she skates away. "It's already started".

Anna starts to look away, but Sam pulls her into Elsa's open arm and he hugs both of them.

A few seconds later, Kristoff slides to a stop behind Anna. "What's going on?"

Anna reaches for Kristoff. Sam pulls Kristoff to Anna. "Group hug."

For several moments, Sam closes his eyes. A feeling he has not felt in many years begins to stir in him. When he opens his eyes, Elsa smiles as she stares up at him.

She asks, "What were you thinking?"

"Do you know of the word, Ohana?" Not receiving an answer, he continues, "The Polynesian people in the Pacific use this word to express an appreciation for a group. Ohana means 'Family', you are a family." Anna leans into Kristoff.

Elsa leans her head against Sam's chest and closes her eyes. "This does feel nice."

A very short time later, several of the children skate past him and giggle and snicker. He hears a female's voice scolding someone. "Get away from them. Our Queen can do whatever she wants in public."

The comment drills into his mind to separate his heart from the emotion. He glances around and notes the number of people watching them. A large man standing on the top steps shakes his fist at him. The woman standing next to the large man crosses her arms and grins as she shakes her head at him. He recognizes the two individuals. They were his friends. Are they still?

He steps back and his hands slide along Elsa's arms. Finally he lets go of her hands.

She asks, "What is wrong?"

"I crossed a boundary." He glances over his shoulder. "You are their Queen and as such should be treated with proper respect in their eyes."

Sam notes the sun dropping behind the western hills. "It will be dark soon. I try to look out for the children, so I need to make sure they get home safely. I should be back before you close the gates for the night. If they are open I'll meet you on the steps. If they are closed I'll be back. Also, it will give you some time to think."

Elsa squeezes him tight. "You think I would let you go. I remember talking to you. I remember the good feelings I had and hoped that Anna would hear you one day. I'm not going to let you go. You take the children home and hurry back."

He lightly kisses her forehead and skates away to round up Erik, Andreas, and Kristen. With the light fading, He drops off each child to their parents.

Andreas' mother speaks before he leaves, "I'm impressed how better behaved Andreas has become since he started working with you. A couple of other parents have also noticed how many of the children in the village talk about how much fun it is to spend the day with you."

Andreas' father pats Sam on the shoulder. "I know you live outside of the walls. You should find a place in the village. I can pass the word around, you are looking for a place to live closer."

He patiently talks with Andreas's parents. When he finally departs back to the castle, the only light comes from a few homes and the mostly full moon. Even with the streets memorized, there are too many shadows to hide obstacles that would trip him. His blue vision would blind him with the moon light. Moving slowly through Arendelle, he arrives at the bridge and sees the closed gates. He walks over the bridge and notes two guards along the wall watching him.

"Do I dare go down this path again? As young and beautiful as she is, Prince's from all over will come to court her. I'm an old man. I was old before she was born. What if someone comes through the temporal ribbon, I may not be able to save her or this village. What if she has time to think and blames me. Would her parents be here if she did not have her powers? What if I had moved on instead of hiding in the cave, her mother would not have been attacked by the wolf and Elsa would not have been born with her powers."

He stops short of the castle gates and sits in the center of the bridge facing the village, but far enough from the gates so the guards can see him. "If I leave now, my heart will suffer, but it will get over it. I cannot deny the good feelings when she touched me and leaned her head on me. To hold her in my arms, her small, delicate hands disappear into mine. How she took my breath away, when she finally recognized me and followed after me. She stirs feelings I haven't felt since I lost the bond completely with LadyCat." The pain of remembering LadyCat and his daughter SaraCat causes his throat to choke as his swell in his eyes.

He wipes the tears and leans back on his hand. He considers going back to the hills to give her time to think about her new circumstances. "I will be a distraction to her."

She has already distracted him. The temperature changes and he looks over his shoulder. A sheet of ice moves from under the castle gates and surrounds him. There are only two who can make the ice move like water. Her ice captures his arms and legs freezing them to the bridge. The ice stops moving. The gate creaks open for a few seconds, then closes.

 **End of Chapter**


	30. Chapter 29 Decision

**Title: Chapter 29: Decision**

 **4 Years, 5 Months until Correction**

Sam detects a temperature change and looks over his shoulder. A sheet of ice moving towards him from under the castle gates surrounds him before he can respond. The ice captures his arms and legs freezing them to the bridge. The ice stops moving. His upper body and head remain unfrozen. The gate creaks open for a few seconds, then closes.

Only the sound of the fjord lapping at the foot of the bridge disturbs the silence. He detects a faint heart beating with anxiety behind him. "If you are going to strike me down, make it quick and true. I will not fight . . . this time."

The heartbeat quickens. Several seconds pass. Light footsteps approach him. His heart leaps with joy as the delicate touch from a soft hand on the back of his neck sends a shiver down his back.

"I thought the cold did not bother you?" Elsa whispers in his ear.

"Normally it doesn't, but your touch is different from a cold hand. I can feel the warmth of your heart through your hand."

Her fingers push through his dark hair. "I remember the stable boy had long, white hair." She pulls back his collar and her finger traces a shallow scar.

"What happened here?"

"A drunk stranger's reply after I caught him cheating at cards."

She slides his collar back into place. The ice crunches under her shoes as she steps behind him and stops.

He rotates his head in either direction, but is not able to see her. "Queen Elsa, my body has healed twice since you last saw me those many years ago. This is not the same physical body you leaned against when we rode the horses together. My mind holds the memories of the events experienced by all of the previous bodies before they were repaired.

Her cold hand slides across his neck again. His eyes blinks a long blink. His bleary eyes open. Shimmering colors float around him with chaotic movement. His mind forces order and the chaotic transforms into flowing waves of beauty. Sensing an energy source near him, he looks up and into those tranquil blue eyes.

"Did you fall asleep?"

He mumbles, "Holy crap."

"What did you say?" Queen Elsa sits on an ice chair a meter in front of him. Her hands rest folded in her lap.

"The last thing I remember, ice was flowing under the gates. I assume it is yours. How long have I been asleep?"

"About five minutes." She stares at her hands. "I did not know my cold hands could cause others to sleep. I will have to wear my gloves, again. I cannot touch anyone."

His hand tries to break free, but the ice holds. "That is a false statement. It has been so long since the last time it happened."

With smile and a long forgotten pain squeezing his heart, he says, "My mother told me, we have a weakness. She didn't know why. She said we were creatures of nature. Only one like us could cause the other to sleep. With an icy finger she would touch my neck. It calmed my anger and frustration. She even allowed me to touch her neck after setting up a device to record the event."

His voice wavers to a whisper. "She fell onto the floor. I couldn't wake her up. I cradled her in my arms the best I could. I was afraid they would think I had killed her. She did wake up and asked me how long she was asleep? I pointed to the recording device. She left my room with it."

He chuckles.

"What is so funny?"

"In less than a day, you have found one of my weaknesses. For you it could be the most important one."

She sits back in her chair. "Why did you say it is important for me?"

"Because you need to know who are your friends and who are your enemies." He shakes his head. "Many have called me friend when I did what they wanted. When I questioned their ethics, I became their enemy." He stares into her blue eyes. "There may come a time when you will not know if I am a friend or enemy. If you can get past my defenses, your cold hand on the back of my neck will subdue the beast."

"Then why should I be in a bond with you?"

Her expression seeks answers. Is she ready for the truth? She is not afraid.

"Understand, this bond is a form of communications. I can create temporary links to others that last a few hours or a few days. It is very useful when leading others into battle. There are many ways to communicate an idea. If more senses are used to convey an idea. The better it is remembered. Under better circumstances, your parents would mentor you for several years, before they stepped back. You need to get up to speed in a hurry, especially for the spring trade negotiations."

"How do you know about that?"

"People talk. I listen."

Her hands move to her waist and bows out. "You used your link with someone in the castle?"

He glances at her arms and she repositions her hands in her lap. He answers, "One of my previous job was to collect information. A piece here, a piece there, add the pieces together and you may have enough." He smiles. "In this case, Kai said come spring, I better keep my buffoonery to myself and not interfere with the trade negotiations."

She glances at the gates. "I guess I need to leave instructions for him when you are around."

The ice crackles and cracks. He lifts his right arm over his head and opens and closes his hand. "It is not his fault. He is protecting you and Anna the only way he knows how. He is a good man. Please don't treat him harshly because of my actions."

The ice on his left side crackles. Another crack and the ice falls onto the bridge with two of the larger pieces sliding and bouncing off the rail. He stretches his left arm over his head.

He says, "Why should you be a part of my communication bond? I can go through the motions that you will need to learn and you mind will remember them as though you had done them. This communications works in both directions."

The rest of her ice cracks. His legs push away large chunks. Lying on his back, he stretches from his toes to the tips of his fingers.

She watches him each time he moves, but she does not move. A small piece of ice bounces off her shoe and she moves her foot. She steps back and the ice chair melts into a pool of water.

Standing next to the rail in her regal pose, she says, "I am not sure if your meaning is the same as mine, but through this bond I can teach you, correct?"

He rolls onto his knees and bows his back. "As in a classroom, if we are willing to listen to the other, your statement is correct, but there is more to it."

"Like what?"

He stands and stretches his arms across his chest. "My mission here is to protect you, your sister, and anyone you designate. A promise I made to your parents makes you my top priority. If I am able to sense when you are in danger and can see your surroundings, ninety-nine percent of the time I will be able to keep you safe from harm." He shakes his head as he looks at the stars. "But there is a tradeoff."

"A tradeoff, like I would be able to sense when you are in danger?"

With a nod he answers, "Yes."

"That does not sound too bad."

He rubs the back of his neck as he turns away from her. "Well, it could be."

He hears the splash of the ice water on the bridge a moment before she grabs his arm and jerks him around.

"It could be?" Her brows contract an expression of displeasure. "Meaning you can sense more than danger."

"Yes, I can sense your emotions."

"And what emotions are you sensing now?"

He steps back. "At this moment not very nice ones. When you were afraid, I felt your fears. The joy you felt for Anna, I felt that too."

"And I would know everything you feel? How do I know if I am feeling anything from you?"

He takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. "It is hard to explain. I'm not sure what words to use that you will understand. As an example, right now, has your anger lessened?"

"You cannot tell?"

"Of course I can tell. You are still angry. That is the point. It means a level of vulnerability and trust."

Clenching her hands closed, she spins around and walks to the other bridge rail. "Trust, vulnerability," She snaps around and places her fist on her waist. "Have you created this with anyone else?"

"Yes,"

"Who?"

"My companion, my friend, my partner and my lover, she was my wife."

"So is this bond still connected to her?"

"No, she died."

Elsa lessens her stance. "I did not mean to—"

"It is okay. She died long before I came here."

"I am sorry."

"We were a team. I rescued her as many times as she rescued me. Because we were linked together, she knew what I knew and I knew what she knew. We terrorized many Kings and Queens by knowing the answers before they did."

"So what happened?"

"I happened. My ship was the rear guard to allow the rest of my fleet to escape." He looks at the western sky and his voice lowers to a whisper. "I stayed too long and my ship was attacked. In order to save me, they pushed me through the gate. When I regained my senses, I could not find them. I searched for other gates. The few I found lead me to different lands and kingdoms. I would stay just long enough to restock with supplies. Sometimes, I would have to leave sooner than I wanted, but I always found another gate."

He half smiles at her. "It was one of those premature departures that caused me to crash here in Arendelle. At the last port I lost the bond to my partner. If she had just closed the connection to our bond, I would still be feeling her presents, hearing her thoughts, and her pain. This was a complete break of the bond. When it happened my assistant noticed my pain immediately. She knew what had happened. She questioned me if anything else could have caused the break. I disappeared for eight days. I did everything I knew how to re-establish the connection to the bond, but it was not to be. When I came back to work, my assistance said I had changed and she was right."

Leaning against the rail with his arms crossed, he faces her.

"All of your life you had the storm inside of you. Not because you could not control it, you didn't know how. It took Anna's sacrifice to show you how. You fought with your storm your entire life. I controlled my storm for most of my life, but for three years, the storm controlled me. I didn't care. Governments used my powers to control their people. As long as I was useful to them, they kept me around. My assistant Krystal helped me to calm my storm long enough for us to leave. I met a preacher who taught me to forgive as I was forgiven for the blood on my hands." He rubs his hands together and looks to see if the blood returns.

"And where is your assistant?"

"A few days after we crashed here, she didn't want me to heal her. She is buried up there." He points to the northern hills.

Elsa looks towards the north. "It sounds like you still have issues and anger being one of them. This communications bond will allow me to see your issues. It is as though you are trying to scare me away."

He shakes his head. "No. this is a big decision. People make bad decisions because they are angry, afraid or uninformed. I'm trying to give you as much information as you need to make an informed decision. You and I are two very unique creatures. In all of my travels, I have never encountered any person with the powers we have. Great power comes great responsibility. It is because of what you had to endure that will make you one of the greats, if not the greatest ruler in Arendelles' history, possibly in all of the world. Just as I needed Krystal to help me through the rough times, I desire to be at your side and help you navigate through the troubled waters you will encounter. But, it has to be a mutual agreement on your part."

A glimmer of two eyes reflect on the distant hill. "Perhaps if I demonstrate, you will understand." He stands next to her and points to the hill. "Up there are several wolves. If you will permit me to stand behind you and allow me to touch your face, I'll show you what you are not seeing."

"Okay." Her hands clench to her sides.

Standing behind her, Sam places his thumb just below her left ear, two fingers below her cheekbone, the third finger at the corner of her lips, and the fourth finger under her chin. His right hand mirrors the right side of her face. He leans close to whisper into her ear. "Place your hands on top of mine. Ready, you may feel a little disoriented at first. If it is too much, pull my hands away, okay?"

She nods.

He closes his eyes for a couple of seconds and takes a deep breath. Slowly allowing the air to pass between his lips, he opens his eyes to see the blue tint.

Her body jumps back as her hands grip his hands.

He locks his arms over her shoulders and whispers. "It is okay. I'm here. I will not let you go. It takes a moment for your brain to understand what it is seeing. I can see what you see. Look up and left along the ridge line."

She moves her head up and to the left. With a slight gasp she sees a wolf. "Why is it so close to the village?"

"It is watching us?"

"Why us?"

"I have seen it every other night the past few weeks. It is mostly watching me. I am a part of its pack. It is watching to see what I will do to the female."

She gasps to speak, "Um, I will have an issue with it watching you do anything to me."

"I would not do anything that will diminish your standing in your people's eyes, but the wolf will understand that if I claim you, the pack will protect you as one of their own. Besides, I will not do anything to you without your permission."

"How do you know the wolf is watching us?" Her hands turn and grip his arm.

He senses Elsa becoming calm. Her mind adjusts to the new visual information. "Another gift I have that has saved my life many times. I quickly learn languages and have recently been able to interpret animal sounds."

"Look, there are two more wolves over there." She points in their direction.

"Yes, they are from the same pack."

"I am not even going to ask how you know." She shakes her head.

"That first wolf, he is the great grandson of the wolf I encountered when I crash landed here." He howls and yips.

"Now they are leaving?"

"I sent them away. They will return tomorrow evening."

"You talk to animals?"

He could feel her question more than her words. He slowly moves his hands and steps back from her. "I did not know I had the means to communicate with the animals before crashing here. I should not be surprised. The sounds, they make to communicate, are just different from the way we communicate. Look to the sea along the horizon."

She faces the waterway that leads to the sea.

"See what looks like a pole sticking out of the water on the horizon?" He makes sure he is out of her line of sight.

"A pole, it looks like a twig in the water."

"Focus on the twig. Concentrate. Allow your eyes to zoom in on it." He stands behind her in case she starts to rock back as others have.

"Is that a flag on the stick?"

"Do you recognize the flag?"

"Yes, it is the Irish flag that was here the other day. Did their ship sink?"

"No, if you watch the flag long enough, you will see it sink into the sea. The Irish ship sailed earlier this afternoon." He steps into her peripheral site waiting to see if she notices. "Now draw your site back to normal by slowly following the water back to the castle wall." He watches the blue orbs of her eyes return to their normal color. He waves his hand.

She blinks several times at him.

"Do you see me?"

"Yes, I did not feel you move away from me."

He just smiles, "Do you notice anything around me?"

"You have something shimmering off of you."

"Look at the roofs in the village. Do you see the same thing?"

She turns towards the village. "Yes, what is it?"

"You see the thermal heat drifting up from the chimneys. Look at your hands."

"They are blue. I do not see the thermal heat."

"You are generating thermal waves, but they are so minuscule, the background is hiding it. Now look at my hands."

She looks at him. "Your left hand is white and I see lots of waves. Your right appears similar to mine."

"Yes, and now you know how to find me in a crowd. Before you ask how I display both conditions, I don't know. There are a lot of things I can do and have no explanation as to why I can. Someday I hope to know for myself and I will explain it to you. For now, cover your eyes and relax them. Your vision will return to normal."

Covering her eyes she opens them after a minute. He stands in front of her placing his hands on her shoulders, "How do you feel?"

"I feel fine. It is just that everything appears brighter."

"It may take a little while for your eyes to adjust to the experience. Just don't go into the sunlight right away." He glances to the East. "We still have sometime before the sun rises. I'm sure your eyes will be adjusted by then."

He takes her hand and leads her to the other side of the bridge, "I want to show you a trick." While he gazes at her, he makes a stirring motion with his hand over the water. Three small rocks float up to his hand. He places one rock on the bridge rail, a second rock on the street, and places the third rock in her hand.

"Now hold onto the rock and don't let it go." He smiles.

She grins back at him. "Okay."

With his open hand he points at her, "You my dear, I have seen you change the material in Anna's boots into ice skates. I can't do that, but I can make an object move. Watch."

He waves his hand over the rock on the rail and points at it. The rock shoots out a distance and splashes into the water. He motions with his finger for the rock on the street to rise. The rock rolls onto its edge one way, then rolls onto the other edge. A mini cloud of dust swirls around the rock as it floats up above the bridge's rail. He looks left and right. The rock shoots off in the direction he is looking. A few seconds later they hear a thump as the rock hits on the other side of the fjord.

Elsa giggles as she points. "I saw it hit the pier over there."

"Do you still have the rock?" The corner of his lips curls up.

"Yes, right here." She opens her hand. Instantly the rock smacks into his open hand.

"Why did you let it go? I told you to hold onto it."

"I did not know you were going to take it from me."

"How do you know I made it leave your hand? Maybe it wanted to leave by itself. After all, you made a snowman come alive and made the large snow creature guarding your ice castle."

She slides her hands down with one over the other and shifts her weight. Her shoulders roll back as she positions her body into her regal stance. "Well, I did not know I could do that until after the fact."

The rock splashes into the water. "And that is why you need to determine what your powers can or cannot do. You need to test yourself by pushing the limits. You need to know what your capacities are. You need to negotiate from a position of strength and keep your weaknesses hidden from your opponents. Learn this and you will do well for your Queendom."

"Do you know your limits?"

"Mostly." He looks past her at the ship tied up to the outer pier.

"Come here." He leads her to the other side of the bridge. "Watch this."

His eyes close for a second and then blinks them open. His vision sees the blue tint around everything. With his palms up, his fingers wiggle. Bubbles boil along the ship's hull. A burst of bubbles explode from the sides and the ship sinks into the water. His arms shake. Every muscle in his body strains. His chest heaves to take in oxygen. The low rumble stops as the bubbles stop. The ship pops up like a cork held under the water.

Several members of the ship's crew run on the deck. They look over the rails. They yell at each other and one by one they return below the deck.

With wide eyes and her hands resting on the rails, she asks, "Did you do that?" She steps back, staring at him as her hand covers her lips. "You could have sank that ship and killed the crew."

"Truthfully." He takes a deep breath. "This is the first time I have done such a thing." Pointing a shaky finger towards the ship, he struggles to breathe. "If I wanted to sink the ship, making it top heavy with ice on its sails or layer one side of the side could cause it to roll a particular direction. It would be easier to use the wind to drive it a shore, but." He drops to his knees and rest his head against the rail.

Elsa steps next to him and places her hand on his shoulder. "What were you going to say?"

He barely turns his head towards her and answers with a whisper. "I can take the ship." He peeks over the rail. "In an attack, if I roll the lead ship and the ship with the fleet Captain or Admiral, the crews of the other ships would not fight and the battle would be over shortly afterwards, but hopefully before the battle begins."

"But only if they were truly attacking."

"And there lies the problem. If I wait too long, some of your people will die. Either way some of their men will surely die." He glances up to her. "This is why you need to absolutely understand your strengths and weaknesses."

She steps back and grabs the left side of her head as she reaches for his hand. He jumps up and wraps his arms around her shoulders. Her eyes close. She presses the left side of her head against his chest.

Lightly touching the side of her face, he commands, "Show me what you saw."

His hand glows blue. She moans and takes a deep breath. His eyes closes to see what she is seeing. A person glowing red and orange walks on the castle wall.

He opens his eyes as he turns his head. A castle guard watches them from the top of the wall. He lightly taps the side of her face.

She opens her eyes and looks towards the wall. "Is he still there?"

His hands sweeps a few strands of her hair from her face. "Yes, he is watching us. Has your vision cleared?"

Her right brow rises as she looks up at him. "You know it has. I have the sensation you can see what I see, was it my imagination?"

He grins and his hands fall to his side. "Not your imagination, another lesson learned. I may ask to see what you see, but only with your permission. If I or others try without your permission, usually pain in the form of a headache will be your clue."

"You imply others have this ability to see what I see. How do I prevent you or the others from seeing?"

"Excluding myself, distract them. If you think someone has invaded your sight, seek them out. Once you spot them, in every case that I know of, they will take a moment to determine if you really are looking at them. If you maintain your focus on them, they will break the contact. Their mannerism usually gives them away. Again, everyone that I know of, who has this capability must focus on their target to see what they see."

She steps away from him. "And you?"

"I'm sorry, one of the reasons a government keeps me around, is that I can see, hear, and feel what the prisoner is experiencing. If I search their mind for too long, they will suffer excruciating pain. I am the exception. I do not have to be looking at them to get the needed results. But on my honor to you the Queen of Arendelle, I will not invade your thoughts. I will let you know before I look unless it is an emergency."

"Emergency? Even if we do not have a bond?"

"That will be up to you. If there is no bond and you are not a prisoner, there is no need for me to be looking." His hands grasp together behind his back.

"But you could if you wanted?"

He forces a smile as he steps back from her. "Okay, here is a truth for you. During the three years I was lost, I made a deal with the government. Think along these lines. A King rules his people with an iron fist. The King knew I was a threat to him and his kingdom. As long as he allowed me to do what I wanted and I was available when he called, He left me alone. When he negotiated treaties and trade agreements, he demanded I be by his side or in the next room."

He slightly chuckles and looks down as he shakes his head. "Did I tell you the human mind is very noisy? It takes more effort on my part to single out one person from the others."

While his head is down, he stares at her shoes. "I did not have a bond with him. He demanded a break once an hour to hear my report of what information I extracted from the other participants. All was going well until I slipped up. I had my gloves off and the King grabbed my hand."

His head rises up as his shoulders rolled back. "I did tell you the human mind is noisy. What do you think happened when his flesh touched my flesh?"

Elsa stands in her regal pose and barely shakes her head. "I would guess the King's mind screamed at you."

With a nod he replies, "You guess correctly. The King's thoughts revealed his plan to take over another kingdom by having the people execute their King and his family."

He holds out his hands. "So much blood, finally, I had enough."

Remembering the many faces of those he caused their pain, he tries to smile, but it fails to appear. The memory of the Kings advantages that he gave him, cut into his heart. "When I left the meeting, I leveled the playing table. Sometime later, I heard the King suddenly died." He rubs his hands together and inspects them. "I could not get their blood off my hands. I had to repent for the wrong I did to those prisoners. Most of them were in prison for their deeds, but a few were truly innocent of the charges. To answer your question, with or without your cooperation, I can extract information from your thoughts." He rolls his shoulders back and stares directly into her eyes, "Are you Okay with this?"

She returns his stare. "You cause a rock to float to your hand. You almost sunk a ship from here. You admit to torturing prisoners because you were lost. What is to prevent you from getting lost again and rolling every ship in the harbor or ripping the minds of whoever crosses your path?"

"You will." He points to her.

"I will what?"

"You will stop me."

She clenches her fists to her sides. "How?"

"When you thought it was a good idea to build an ice castle, Anna came looking for you despite you pushing her away. She did not give up on you even to the point of sacrificing her life for you. That's how much love she has for you. At that point you found the courage to do more than hide. You remember how frighten your people were on your coronation day. Only after they saw your sister's love for you, did they give you a second chance. Most do not see you as a monster, but their Queen. Knowledge is a powerful weapon when used properly. They understand you. They accept you."

His shoulders slump as his hands hang loosely to his side. He looks everywhere but at her. "I am asking you to accept me for who I am despite what I did in the past. We all make bad decisions. It's not our powers that are bad, it's what we do with them and we can change." He reaches for her hand, but she hesitates. "I know I have given you a lot to think about, but hold on just a little longer. I have another trick to show you."

He steps to the center of the bridge and visually measures the wall. Her height and weight would be no problem to carry her up the wall, but how to do it in a dignified way that would not lower her status in this society. He walks past her and faces the town square. He spots an idea.

With a smile he stands next to her and motions to the wall. "Together we go up the wall."

She points as her brows draw together. "You plan to fly over the wall?"

"Not fly, climb." He grins and squeezes her upper arm. "Can you hold your weight off the ground for about a minute?"

She pulls her arm free. "I never had a reason to do such a thing, so the answer is no."

"Okay, let's do this." His right hand touches the street and slowly rises to her shoulder height. A solid piece of ice forms into a small bench with two hooks at the top.

He points to the seat. "You kneel here. I'll hook it onto my shoulders. You put your arms around my neck and I will climb the wall."

She studies him and the ice seat. "That would be interesting."

He squats and hooks the ice over his shoulders. Not feeling her added weight on the ice, he turns his head and pats the ice. "Kneel on it. Lean into me and don't choke me. Whatever you do, do not lean back. If you fall, place a layer of snow on the street to cushion your fall before hitting the bridge."

She backs away and glares at him. "If I fall? I saw you practically sink a ship. If I fall?" She takes several steps back and with a snap of her hands, her ice throws the ice bench into the water with a splash. She continues to glare at him with her hands on her waist.

The ice bench floats towards the open fjord. "I was wondering how far you were going to let this trick go. I would have been very disappointed had you not stopped me."

With a smile he walks towards her and stops with his hands on his waist. His smile changes into a grin. A sheet of ice forms under their feet.

She glances at the ice and back up at him. "Why are you smiling?"

"To do this," he bends his knees and wraps his left arm around her waist to pull her closer to his body. As he stands, his right hand shoots a rainbow of energy onto the ice. The ice sheet grows into a leaning column towards the top of the wall.

She wraps her arms around his neck and presses her face into his shoulder. In a few seconds they are leveled with the top of the wall. She does not move.

He carries her onto the wall's walkway.

Elsa opens her eyes and looks past the edge. The melting ice column flows into the fjord. "That is a trick. Why do I get the feeling this is not the first time you created a column of ice?"

"You are correct, but you generated the column, I just help you to channel your ice powers."

Elsa pushes away from him. "What? I was not trying to make the column. How did you do it?"

"I suggested the idea and you willingly complied, another lesson taught."

Two guards run towards them from opposite ends of the walkway. They yell, "Halt, don't move."

He monitors both guards closing on them as he steps to the inside edge of the wall. Nothing is directly below them. The guards approach with their swords drawn. He steps next to Elsa. His hand opens and closes, creating a gust of air. He hands her the train of her dress.

"Hold this."

She starts to protest, but he scoops her up into his arms and in two steps jumps off the wall. Just as he jumps, she wraps her arms around his neck with a death grip and closes her eyes as she buries her face into his neck. Two seconds later, he slides to a stop and steps onto the courtyard stones.

"Stop him. He has our Queen," yells a guard from the top of the wall. Three guards in the courtyard run towards them with lances and swords in hand.

Elsa slowly opens her eyes.

He smiles at her.

She kicks her feet and he lets her stand. Pushing away from him, she balls her fist. Her fist move as though to punch him, but she opens her hand and a blast of ice slams into his chest. "What is wrong with you?"

The ice throws him several meters back. He stumbles and falls to the ground. The ice locks him to the courtyard stones in a block of ice.

The ice crunches under her shoes. She walks to him and points her shaking finger at him. "You scared a year's life out of me. Why would you do such a thing?"

The clatter of boots running across the stones attracts her attention. She holds up her hand and the guards stop.

He smiles and rolls his hands up to surrender, "Lesson three is now complete."

Elsa steps closer and places the palm of her hand on the ice above his chest, "I should freeze you completely and tell the guards to throw you into the fjord."

"I would eventually thaw out"

"Not if they run you through with their lances."

"Then we both lose." He grins.

She speaks to the guards. "You can go back to your post. I can take care of him."

The three guards bow and move away, but they keep a watchful eye on him.

A wave of her hand creates an ice chair a meter from his head. She watches the guards. After they were a distance away, she looks down at him with a slight smile of confidence. "You do know you scared me?"

"Why, is it because you were not in control? For two seconds, you held onto me for your safety. You could have used your ice and snow to break the fall. Why did you not?"

"I did not think you were going to jump, let alone take me with you."

"Yes, but you have not answered why."

"Okay." She leans over him. "All that you have done tonight, I am astonished by your different powers, but I never felt threatened."

"And what have you learned?"

She slides the ice chair closer and presses her finger between his brows. "To expect the unexpected from you."

He sees the glimmer of curiosity from the little girl he once knew. "Not normally, but what else?"

"If you wanted, you can sink a ship, lift small rocks out of the water."

"And?"

Elsa rolls her eyes, "You can throw a rock a long distance. See things I cannot. Evidently use my powers to get you what you want."

"And?"

"You can jump off the castle wall without killing either one of us. And," she runs her finger from his hairline down to the tip of his nose, "You know how to scare the life out of me, but I was holding you tightly."

"All is correct, but who was in control the whole time?"

"Okay, you were."

"Yes and did you notice I did not hesitate. I just did it." His left brow rises.

"If I had time to practice, I probably would not hesitate either."

He nods with a grin. "Now, you are thinking with your brain and not with your heart. But I will point out that which may not be obvious to you at the moment. When I displaced the water from around the ship, it truly was the first time I have ever tried to sink a wooden vessel of that size. But you my dear, you created a snowman, a large snow creature, an ice bridge, and an ice castle. Did you practice doing those things? You were having fun testing your abilities when it was just you. I've seen your ice castle. That's impressive, even Kristoff said he would cry because it was perfect ice. The snow creature did exactly what you wanted."

She stares at him for a moment and whispers, "The creature was to encourage Anna to leave."

"Why?"

She looks away from him, "I did not want to hurt her. She would have been safer here in the castle."

"But she wasn't safe. You inadvertently hurt her and both of you almost died." He waits a moment before continuing, "You made a decision to protect yourself thinking you were protecting Anna. That was your moment of inexperience."

She interrupts, "I was lucky, I am lucky to have Anna as my sister." She buries her face into her arms.

A torch light reflects off the ice as Kristoff approaches, "What's going on?"

Elsa sits up quickly and faces the wall.

Sam turns his head slightly towards Kristoff, "We are just having a conversation."

Kristoff glances at Elsa and observes the ice covering most of him. "I heard the guards say someone has the Queen, so I thought I would come out to help."

Shaking his head, "Um, we don't need any help. We're just having a good talk."

"Really," Kristoff comments.

A clatter of heels running across the courtyard stops next to Kristoff. Anna peaks over the ice. "Whoa, when you said you spent more time skating on your back than your feet, I thought you meant on top of the ice. Is it cold lying there?"

Elsa stands with her back to them and dabs the corner of her eyes as she walks around towards them.

Anna watches Elsa sniffle and wipe away a tear. She glares at him. "Are you there because you hurt Elsa?" She storms around Kristoff towards him. "I am going to stomp on you if you hurt my sister."

Kristoff prevents her from getting closer. Elsa gives Anna a big hug. Anna hugs her but still stares at him as she waves her finger at him.

"Anna, it is not his fault. He is trying to give me a new perspective of my powers. I need to know exactly what I am capable of doing and what I cannot do. With great power comes great responsibility. Anything I do must become second nature to me, so I do not inadvertently hurt anyone or someone I love."

"Hallelujah, the blind shall see. You have completed your first lesson." Sam stretches his arms out and snaps his hands together with a loud crack, shattering the ice. He stands quickly and walks towards the castle gate.

"Wait, where are you going?" Elsa asks.

He stops and turns his head, "As I said, this lesson is complete. Besides, it looks like you and Princess Anna may need some time together before the next lesson." He looks to the East. "The first rays of sunlight will soon be here and I have kept you up all night. You need your sleep." He starts walking again.

She appeals, "Samuel, please do not leave."

He stops and half turns his body.

Elsa slowly walks towards him. "I remember years ago, you performed tricks with ice and I wanted to do what you did. You are correct. I could have cost us our life. Perhaps my father should have allowed you into the castle to tutor me, but that is in the past. You are here now. Teach me to control my powers as you have demonstrated your skills."

He faces her. With the rattle of the gate Sam steps back. "I have one more trick to show you and don't either of you say or look at me." He points to Anna and Kristoff.

The inner wall gate opens. Two guards walk into the courtyard. They both bow to Queen Elsa. The closer guard asks, "May we help you, Majesty?"

"No, I am taking an early morning walk," She replies.

Without a sound Sam moves behind the two guards and tickles the ear lobe of one guard. The guard rubs his ear and glances behind him. He speaks to the other guard, "Did you touch my ear?"

The other guard searches the first and then looks behind them. "No, I did not touch you. What the . . ." He grabs his ear as he looks around. "Something just touched my ear."

The first guard comments, "I didn't see anyone touch you."

Sam jumps up and lands flat footed to make a noise. The two guards turn towards him, startled by his presence. He opens his hand and a moth flies away. "Maybe the moth was playing a trick on the both of you."

"Maybe?" They bow to Queen Elsa again and continue towards their destination. Anna walks up to him quickly, "Can you teach me that trick?"

He lightly strokes the side of her cheek. "The lighting has to be under the correct conditions. If the sun was behind the guards, they would have seen my shadow and me. The guards up on the wall saw me the whole time because they had seen me earlier. But it is useful to blend into a crowd, especially if your pursuers are not sure as to what you look like. But to answer your question I would have to bond with you or let me infuse some of my blood with your blood."

"Will it hurt?"

"Which are you asking, the bond or the blood?"

Elsa steps next to him. "No bond and the blood thing seems too painful."

For a moment, he stares into her blue eyes. "It was."

He turns back to Anna. "You saw me the whole time. If I had waited a few seconds, it would not have worked. They would have seen me. Timing and lighting is everything. If the guards on the wall had called out to me, those two would have seen me, but the trick has saved me once or twice."

He observes the sky. The first rays of the sun touch the bottom of the clouds moving over the mountains. He pivots and moves towards the gates. "Time to go, for now."

"Admal . . . Please do not leave me alone."

Stopping in his tracks and partially turning his body, he looks over his shoulder. "What did you call me?"

"A long time ago you said I could call you Admal and you would listen to me. Please listen to me now. I remember feeling safe when you talked to me and explained how things were on the outside of the wall. I remember seeing you dancing in the snow and the wolves."

"That was a very long time ago."

"Admal, I need you now, just as I needed you back then. Please stay with me," Elsa pleads.

 _You know Arendelle will want to know why you are allowing me to stay._

"As Queen, it is my prerogative to allow anyone to stay. Whomever I wish."

Anna and Kristoff glance at each other and back to Elsa.

 _Will they accept a commoner entertaining the Queen?_

Elsa frowns. "I do not think they will have a problem with it, but I do not know for sure."

 _They may accept me if I am here in an official capacity, but they may object seeing me around you in a non-official settings. Someone could spy on me if they did not see me leaving the castle every evening._

"You are here and you are mine. I am not letting you go anywhere."

"Uh, Elsa," Anna says as she slowly walks to her sister with Kristoff behind her. "Who are you talking to?"

She turns to Anna. "Samuel, who do you think I am talking to?"

"Well, we hear you talking and no one else," Anna answers and Kristoff nods in agreement.

She looks up at Sam. "They did not hear you speaking?"

He smiles with closed lips. _No, only you heard my thoughts._

"But it sounds just like you were speaking to me."

He holds his hand up and snaps his fingers. _Your ears convert the sounds to electrical impulses which travel to your brain. Your brain interprets the sounds of what you think you hear. My thoughts skip your ear to create the electrical impulses. Your mind does not distinguish where the impulses come from, only that it did receive the impulses, so your brain hears what I'm thinking._

 _Can you teach me to do, uh, speak as you do?_ She asks with her thoughts.

"You just did," He answers so the others could hear.

She looks at Anna. "What did you hear from the time he snapped his fingers until now?"

"You were staring at him. He said 'You just did'," Anna answers.

Elsa turns her head towards Kristoff. "You did not hear me ask Samuel to teach me to speak as he does?"

Kristoff slowly shakes his head. "I did not hear anything. He just smiled at you."

Anna speaks up, "Kristoff is right. If you two were talking, we," pointing to herself and Kristoff, "missed whole parts of the conversation."

She looks at him and starts to speak, but stops for a moment. "How do I determine if I am to speak or –"

"If I hear your thoughts," he continues her question.

Her right brow rises.

He chuckles, "I can hear your thoughts whether you speak with your lips or not. Some people lose their voice, but not their mind. Sometimes it's hard for a person to say what they really want to say, so hearing their thoughts can be very useful."

"We could make your presence here, official." Elsa warmly smiles at Samuel.

 **End of Chapter**


	31. Chapter 30 Winter Fest

**Title: Chapter 30: Winter Festival**

 **4 Years, 2 Weeks until Correction**

The sun hides its warmth below the horizon. Halfway down the hill, the snow flurries stop. The clouds move east to apply another layer of snow in the valley. When spring marches into the valley, there will lots of cold water pouring into the fjord, but for now, traveling is slow. Even Arendelle seems to be slowly waking up.

Samuel Ryan follows the castle staff through the side gate. A half-meter of snow blankets the courtyard. The guards at their barracks have made little progress to clear the snow from the barracks to the castle steps. Several older women hold onto each other for support and struggle to walk through the snow as they try to keep their dresses dry. He pushes his way pass the other staffers and approaches the older women.

"At the rate they are clearing the snow, breakfast will be late for everyone."

"Ladies, do you need some assistance?" Sam stands towering over them.

"Unless you have a shovel under your shirt, we are fine."

One of the women helping her friend take a step in the snow points towards the guards. "They know they will not be fed until we can get to the kitchen. Why do they start over there? They should be clearing the snow from the gates to the castle first."

"Good question, when I see the Captain of the Guards, I will ask.

The three women turn around and one falls back into the snow. She says, "He is big."

He and the other two women help the third to her feet. The older woman stares at his hand. The youngest of the three wraps one hand around his finger and her other hand around his thumb. She says, "Your fingers are long."

"And thick," the third says. "Can your middle finger touch your wrist?"

"Touch my wrist?" The middle finger of his left hand touches his right hand wrist.

"No, not like that," she demonstrates the finger to wrist on the same hand. "Like this."

Sam stretches his middle finger as much as he could, but did not quite touch his wrist. He glances up. Six women watch him. "I had a female friend tell me that the thickness of a guy's finger and length, where his middle finger touched close to his wrist, gave an indication of the length and thickness of his family scepter." He stands tall with his hands resting on his waist. "Do you believe that myth?"

The women look at each other, but one answers." We can dream."

He pushes past them. "Well, I read a medical report that stated the size and dexterity of the male finger has no correlation with his manhood, but in rare cases the correlation proved to be true."

Using his hands to sweep the snow, he drags his feet and creates a path wide enough for the women to pass with minimal snow sticking to their dresses. They follow behind him, all the way to the castle. He falls onto the steps and pants for air. That has been the most energy expended at one time since he crashed there. He scoops a hand full of snow and wipes his face to remove the beads sweat. He sits up and each of the females slide their hands across his arms and brush against his face.

When the last of the women entered the castle, Sam turns his head towards the three guards shoveling snow. "And that gentlemen is how you get a female to show interest in you."

One guard points to the door. "But all six of them did touched you."

"Yes, and there are six opportunities to keep me warm on a cold night." He grins at them.

"I bet you could not get one of them to sleep with you. They were feeling sorry for the old man and giving him a cheap thrill."

"Believe what you want. Your way is obviously working so wonderfully for you," Sam retorts back at them.

Other members of the castle staff follow the path in the snow. Each thank him as they pass up the steps.

Sam removes his animal hide shirt and stuffs it in the snow. He wipes down his upper body with the snow.

The Captain of the Guards steps past his guards still clearing a path to the castle's steps. "Once again, Samuel Ryan makes the castle guards look back in front of our new Queen." His boots click on the stone steps and stops next to him. "If the stable boy is going to work in stables, it is not proper for him to tease the female workers. Not to mention, you will hurt the feelings of several guards who take pride in their muscles."

Sam rolls his head back and grins. "Captain Larsen, I knew you would make Captain, if you lived long enough. When did you put them on?"

"They were given to me the day the Captain left."

"Retired, did he?"

Larsen looks across the courtyard at his men. "He said he should have been on the ship with the King and Queen. Even alcohol could not drown the memories. After two months, he said he had enough. He boarded a ship for England. Said if he had enough money, he would go to the Americas."

"I suspect it was hard on everyone. I actually like the Captain." Sam scoops another hand full of snow and rubs it across his chest.

Captain Larsen taps his leg. "That is why the guards work slowly as not to overheat themselves."

"It caused a few to smile, so it was worth it."

A giggle sounds behind them. "Ladies, there is nothing out there for you. Back to work." Several pairs of shoes scuff across the stone floors.

Sam slips his partially frozen shirt over his head as a pair of hard sole shoes stop behind him.

"Captain, let me give you a bit of advice when it comes to the stable boy. He is a distraction. He always was. You are in charge of everything outside of the castle. But when stuff outside begins to disrupt what goes on inside of the castle, it becomes my problem."

Kai grabs Sam ear. We have proper protocols and one of them is you will keep your shirt on at all times."

He pulls his ear out of his hand. "It gets rather hot in the stables."

"What you do in the stables is your business, in the yard is the Captains, and in the castle is mine. There is no one here to protect you. If she says you are to go, I expect the Captain to use whatever force is necessary to get you out." The sound of the shoes takes two steps back and stops. A hand rest on his shoulder. "It is good to see back. I wish the circumstances were different." The hand slaps the back of his head. "Now you behave yourself." The sound of Kai's shoes walk back into the castle.

"Let me count. You teased the female staffers, insulted my guards, and agitated the castle manservant, and all in less than a half hour, so what are you going to do for the rest of the day."

Sam nods and wakes an open hand towards Kristoff and Sven exiting the stables.

Kristoff waves a half-eaten carrot at him.

Sam props back on his arms. "Well, for a first day back to work, I believe I have impressed everyone."

Larsen takes two sidesteps. "Not everyone."

As Sam turns his head towards the Captain, a crunching pain steps on his right knuckles, a weight pushes against his right shoulder, and three sharp stings slice across the back of his neck. His defensive mode takes over his body. His right hand generates a blast of cold that accelerates his hand up. The weight behind him travels over his shoulder. His left hand grabs the nearest clothing of the assailant and pulls. Their weight pulls his body off the steps. He lands on top of the assailant with his arm across their chest and throat. His right hand hovers next to his right ear and ready to thrust three ice spikes into the attacks body.

A green tint covers the snow and a halo surrounds Princess Anna's body, under his arm. Her expression is more of a surprise than fear. He plants the spikes into the snow as he moves off of her and kneels. A quick scan reveals no broken bones or abrasions. He sits her up. "Are you hurting anywhere?"

She brushes the snow off her arms and dress. "I am fine. I have never seen anyone move so fast."

He helps her to stand.

"It was crazy. You moved as I reached for you and I accidently stepped on your hand. The next thing I know, I am looking up at your green eyes and you had too many fingers pointed at me." She rubs the front of her neck. "And your arm pressed against my chest."

Heavy feet stomp through the snow. "You grabbed her chest," Kristoff yells as the club of his fist shoots past Anna.

Sam's concern for Princess Anna's health delayed his reaction and he does see the fist until it was against his face. The impact forces his head to his right and his body follows it to the ground. He does not move, but allows the snow to ease the pain in his face and for the noise in his ears to stop ringing.

A hand grabs his shoulder and roughly rolls him over. He is given a perspective that Princess Anna saw a minute ago.

She grabs Kristoff's arm. "Stop. I am not hurt. I stepped on his hand. It was an accident."

"He grabbed you." Kristoff starts to step around her.

"He grabbed my coat. When I fell, his arm was here." She taps her collar bone above her breast bone.

"You sure you are alright?"

Anna wraps her arm around his arm. "Yes, I am okay. He did not hurt me."

Sam notes Anna's expression as she looks up at Kristoff with admiration. He watches them walk into the castle. "Well, that could have gone worse."

"Worse for you, stable boy." Two guards hold the points of their swords against their shoulders. "He is our friend and we will fight for him."

Captain Larsen runs down the steps, "Put your swords away before he takes –"

Before the Captain could finish his statement, two swords fly over his head and stick into the barrack roof. The two guards moan and groan as they roll in the snow hold their legs.

Sam slowly rolls to his feet and brushes the snow off his cloths. He walks past the Captain. "Their legs are broken. You may wish to get them to the doctor."

A shadow flies across the snow. Sam partially blocks the fist, but enough connects to the same spot he was hit minutes ago. He falls and rolls to his feet with Kristoff swing his fist at his head again. His left hand moves faster and catches the fist a few centimeters from his face. His hand squeezes and twist.

Excruciating pain forces Kristoff to his knees.

"The first I deserved. The second was a cheap shot. The third is not going to happen." Sam leans close to Kristoff. "It was an accident. Let it go or the next time I will not be as forgiving." He let go of Kristoff's hand. He walks towards the stables.

Two-thirds of the way, Larsen calls to him. "Sam, Queen Elsa summons you."

He looks back. Kai stands next to the Captain. Sam walks back towards the castle and mumbles, "Great, my first day in class and I get called to the principal's office. In the history of the human race that is never a good sign."

Kai and Larsen escort Sam across the lower room and down a short hall. They stop. The first time he stood in front of this sturdy wooden door, he had a touch of anxiety waiting to meet another Queen. He already knows his little snow angel, so why the anxiety or does the title Queen evoke it?

Kai knocks on the door twice.

Her muffled voice answers. "Enter."

"Stay here," Kai says as he enters the room and closes the door.

Sam glances at both ends of the hall and motions with hand. "You know a coat of paint will brighten up this hall. It could be a little intimidating to stand here."

Captain Larsen does not reply, but stares at the door.

The door opens. Kai steps out. Larsen enters the room. The door closes. With his hands on his waist Kai stares at him as though he is severely inconvenienced.

"Nice weather we are having after last night's snow."

Kai continues to stare at him.

"So how is your day going? Mine seems to be sliding downhill the moment I step through the gates."

"She is not her mother. For some reason only God knows, Queen Iduna liked you. Queen Elsa is struggling in her new position. She has vague memories of you." Kai points his finger at his face. "You were a distraction back then and you are a distraction now. She doesn't need this. If you are not going help, leave."

Before he can reply the door opens. Larsen motions an open hand towards the door and says, "After you."

Sam walks into the study. The large desk dominates the room as it did when the King and Queen were in there. He stops at the half way point between the desk and the door, which closes behind him. He glances at Kai and Larsen standing to either side of him.

Queen Elsa dips a quill in the ink well and writes on paper that looks like she is creating a long list.

He points to it and looks at Kai. "Is that for me?"

"Shh," The Queen holds up a finger.

"If we are interrupting –"

"QUIET," she snaps at him.

Neither Kai nor Larsen looks in his direction. The only noise comes from the quill scratching ink on the paper. He observes the room. A partially folded faded map of Arendelle barely hangs onto the self in the book case. The small table and three chairs are missing. Not a lot of good memories in this room, especially at the end.

The quill stops. Without moving her head, her eyes look up at him. "You had to bring that up?"

He glances at Kai and Larsen. Again, neither look at him. Cool air drifts past him. He stares at the not so friendly blue eyes. "I didn't say anything after you said quiet."

"Not a lot of good memories in this room, especially at the end. You are telling me you did not say it."

"Why don't you ask these knots on the log what they heard?" Now definitively, the air around him is getting colder.

"Majesty," Kai replies. "I did not hear him say anything after you said quiet."

"I agree with him. I did not hear Sam speaking," Larsen adds.

Elsa looks back at the paper and the quill dips in the well. The list gets longer.

A realization occurs and the corners of his lips curl up. _You can hear my thoughts, so the bond is connecting. Your mother would be proud you._

The ink well closes with a thump as she drops the quill. "Since you insist on making noise, let us get this over with. I have work to do." Her chair slides back with a screech of wood on wood. Queen Elsa adjusts her icy blue dress as she walks to the front of her desk. Her head held high, her shoulder back, and her left hand covers her right hand, she stands in the regal posture. With a hint of a smile she says, "Mother also said you were trouble and I needed to keep my eyes on you at all times."

"Yes, and she also said she loved me like a brother." Sam grins.

"Save that grin for a later time. Mother also said you have a problem with authority and that is why Father had issues with you," she nods with emphasis, "especially at the end."

His grin disappears. She is establishing control, setting the boundaries, or a test.

"This is no test. While Mother said you had many good characteristic, authority is your weakness. You had a problem with the previous monarch's authority over you. Is this correct or not."

"Even Admirals have someone with authority over them. I am an Admiral."

"But you did not demonstrate that when you arrived this morning."

"Oh?"

 _Gain control. Do not show weakness. No matter who it is, show no fear. You are in charge. CONTROL._

With a slight deep breath Queen Elsa begins. "Let me start when you passed through the gates. One, you made a sexual innuendo towards three older women on my staff." She shakes her head. "I do not like that, not one bit."

"I can explain –" Sam starts to reply.

She interrupts, "You will get your turn. Two, you flaunted your prowess of the three women to the two guards sweeping the snow. Three, you threw Princess Anna into the snow and grabbed her breast."

"WHAT?"

Elsa snaps her hand up. "I am speaking. Do not interrupt. Four, Kristoff had to punch you to get you off Princess Anna. Five, two guards tried to restrain you from going after Kristoff. You responded by throwing their swords at other guards and injuring their legs. Six, Kristoff hit you from attacking the guards. You responded by crushing his hand."

She shifts back into her regal pose and glares at him. She does not blink.

He stares at her.

 _Mother said you could stare down a wolf. She hated it when you stared at her._

Elsa rolls her eyes. "Do you have anything to say?"

"Now, is my turn?"

 _You will not intimidate me._ "Yes, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"I have heard your words. The tone and attitude sound –"

She blinks, "Attitude?"

He interrupts, "yes, your attitude. Please give me my time explain or dismiss me."

She clenches her fist to her side and shifts her weight forward. "You are displaying the attitude of disrespect. Mother was right. You have a problem with authority. I cannot have that here." She stops and holds her breath for a few seconds and slowly releases it.

Sam shifts his weight to touch his heals together with his feet angled forty-five degrees apart. His hands close to his side with the backs of his thumbs forward. He stretches his spine and rotates his shoulders back. "If you permit me, I will address the issue of authority and then respect, first."

They stare at each other, neither blinks.

 _She is strong. I like her_ , Seventeen says.

 _She is pretty. Do you think she will like our snow mountain? Please, can we bring her in here?_ Eight asks.

 _She does not control her powers as well as she could_.

 _I will teach her,_ Seventeen says.

 _Put your hormones back in your pants._

 _Why is her face turning red?_ Eight asks.

 _Because she can hear us. I have underestimated her. Gentlemen new rule, when she is near only one of us may speak at a time._ Fifty-four says.

 _What did I hear? Who are you talking to? Take control._ She commands, "Speak."

"As a commanding officer, Admiral, General, or Captain, we are awarded these ranks in the military by someone who has the authority to give the ranks with their own sets of authority. The one, who gives it, can take it away. You did not give me my ranks of Admiral. Under the current circumstance, I am not able to prove my statement that in a military, I am an Admiral. Nor am I a citizen of Arendelle, despite what your mother tried to do.

"We had our moments of contention, but there never was an indication she wanted me to leave. I was caught totally by surprised when your father asked me to leave and your mother said nothing." His shoulders slump for a moment as his eye look to the floor. "Fool me once, shame on me. Fool me twice, shame on me." His body returns to the attention posture and his eyes focus on her again.

"You have the authority to make me a citizen of Arendelle. I will follow your commands. But respect, either you forces it from others with the end of swords and pikes, or they freely offer it to you. Once you earn their respect, they will be loyal to you. Earning respect is not a one-time event. You have to continue to earn it. It is only hard when you try to earn it the first time, but it becomes easier after it is earned."

He glances at Kai and the Captain. "While your six points are mostly correct, it is one sided. When I arrived, your female staffers were complaining about the guards not clearing a path for them to the castle. I offered to help them. They made the comments about the size of my hands and fingers, and asked if I would touch my middle to my wrist. I told them it was a myth and proceeded to clear a path in the snow to the castle. They made the sexual innuendo."

 _What myth has to do with the size of his hands and fingers?_ She glances up at him. _Why is his left brow, higher than the right? They are staring at me._ "Are you finished?" _Why are you smiling?_

"No Majesty, I have five more points."

"Please continue." She shifts her to be more balance over both feet.

"Second point, I sat on the steps to catch my breath. Six of your female staffers walked past me and swept their hands across my arm and face. Three of the Captain guards watched the whole thing, so I teased them, and said that is how to get a female to show interest in them. I will take this point and should have kept my mouth closed.

"Third point," his head turns towards Larsen. "I congratulated the Captain for making Captain. He distracted me long enough, I had to remove my hand out from under Princess Anna's boot. Her forward momentum threw her center of gravity past my shoulder. She tried to catch herself by scratching my neck." Sam turns back to her.

"I responded to the attack and assisted her into the snow. My arm landed below her throat, but well above her breasts. She was very surprised and sitting when I encountered point four. I was not on Princess Anna when my face got into the way of Kristoff's fist.

"Point five, I pulled my face out of the snow to have two swords pressed against my neck. Again, I was attacked and disarmed them. The last I saw, their swords were on the barrack roof. I swept their legs out from under them.

"Point six, I get to my feet and once again, my face intercepts the trajectory of Kristoff's fist. I fell in the snow and rolled to my knees. My hand caught his next punch and I bent his wrist back. In a couple of days, he will be fine."

Sam glances at Kai. "I will apologize to everyone involved. If this morning is a typical morning, I will arrive an hour earlier, so as not to encounter the staff." He stares directly into her eyes. "I am not a distraction. I do things differently. You may find out that some of my difference can be a benefit to you."

"Samuel, I will take your testimony into consideration. I need to speak to the others. Please go to the stables and begin your work there. You are dismissed."

Sam bows to her and exits the room.

She waits until the latch on the door clicks. "Gentlemen, what you said and what he said are not the same." She crosses her arm and glances between them. "All of you give similar information. I suspect Kristoff will give a similar account. Kai talk to the women again. Captain Larsen speak to your guards. Present the information Samuel provided."

"Yes, Majesty." They nod to her and start out the door.

"Gentlemen, While Samuel may have given my mother's grief, she never called him a liar. She trusted his words, and yes at times, they sounded misleading, but he never lied. I trust my mother's advice. I hope whatever animosity you have against him will be resolved." She walks to the other side of the desk. The door closes.

"Momma, he was your friend. I understand why you said he was your unofficial advisor. He definitely says what is on his mind. You had time to get to know him and learned to trust him. I give him a job and he has a conflict. What magic did you have over him?"

A pain stabs behind her left eye. The sound of a wolf's growl and chocking invades her mind. She sees Sam's hands at Kai's and Larsen's throat. She races out of the room and down the hall. Her mind sees his vision is moving towards her. Her frosty, cold hand touches the back of his neck. His vision fades as the ground rushes up to him. Her shoes are the last thing he sees.

A staffer pulls a coughing Kai out of the way as several guards with swords drawn run into the hall.

Larsen rubs his necks and waves for the guards to stop. He turns to her. "How did you knock him out?"

She watches the frost absorb back into her hand. "He told me."

A guard comments, "There are enough of us here. We can drag him to a cell."

"No."

"Majesty," Kai asks.

"He was not trying to intimidate you."

"My neck says he was trying to choke the life out of me." Larsen steps in front his guards.

"No. If he was trying to kill you, your bodies would be lying on the floor. He would be running towards the mountains." She looks at the Captain and Kai. "I still expect you to complete your tasks. I need the answers before he wakes up."

"What about him?" Kai points to Sam. "We shouldn't leave him in the middle of the hall."

She opens the door to her study room and visually measures the floor area. "Lay him on the floor in here. He is not going anywhere in his condition."

Captain Larsen and the guards lift Sam. They struggle to get him into the room.

The first guard out the door rubs his hands together. "Did you feel how cold, he is? It was like carrying a block of ice."

"You mean several blocks of ice. He was heavy." The other guards nod in agreement as they rub their hands together."

Larsen stops outside of the room. "Majesty, I can post a guard for when he wakes up."

"There is no need. I will take care of him. I have taken up enough of your time."

"As you wish." Larsen nods and walks down the hall.

Kai stands next to her. "Did you notice the color of his skin has changed to grayish-blue? The guards mention he felt cold. Do you think it is a defensive response against predators?"

"I do not know, but I will ask him when awakens." She steps into the room and starts to close the door but Kai has not moved and continues to watch Sam. "Do you have something else to say?"

Kai sweeps his hand at Sam. "Majesty, I will not pretend to know what his intentions are. Your father asked me to help you the best I can. I strongly recommend he should wake up in a cell."

She holds his hand. "You have been a loyal friend of our family before I was born. I expect you to be a part of my family for as long as you wish. I considered having him dragged to a cell."

"But?"

"You were here when father banished him. You have seen the way Anna and I grew up. I am not asking you to judge my father. He did what he did. But I ask you, would my life have been different if Samuel had been allowed to stay?"

He looks down the hall and then pats the back of her hand. "Majesty, when your powers grew, Queen Iduna begged the King to let him come back to teach you. I never knew his reason. One day you became ill. You would not eat, or drink, or talk, or doing anything. After about a week, your father sent for him. They received word Samuel had left the country. Your mother was extremely angry at the King, but you survived. Towards the end, your father confessed he made a mistake."

He shrugs his shoulders. "One thing your mother did and I disapproved of it. She had something over him that kept him here. I don't know what it was. If he chooses to leave, let him go. My personal opinion, ask him lots of questions. He likes to show off his intelligence." He bows to her and walks down the hall.

Elsa kneels next to Sam and moves his arm next to his body. "You do feel cold. You must have felt very cold to them."

She lifts his hand and opens it. Pressing her palm into his hand, she aligns her fingers with his fingers. "Your hand is big. You could cover both of my hands with your one hand." She lays his hand on his chest.

She peeks back at the door expecting someone to be there. She listens for footsteps in the hall. After a moment she observes him. She cannot tell if he is breathing. His chest does not move. Has he died? She places her ear over his heart. A thump sound in his chest. She counts. Two seconds and a half pass until the next thump. _Is that normal?_

She glances at the door again. The corner of her lips curls as she lifts his hand. She pulls his middle finger down and her thumb marks the closest it reaches to his wrist. Opening his hand, she measures the distance from the tip of his finger to her thumb.

Her head slowly turns until her eyes focus on his private parts. She looks back at his sleeping face. "Is it really that long? Is the myth true?"

"What myth?" Anna asks.

Elsa drops his hand and leaps to her feet. Adjusting her dress she stands in her regal pose. "I thought you were tending to Kristoff. Why are your shoes off?"

Anna mischievously grins as she slips her shoes on. "Kai said the guards left Sam on the floor in your study. I waited for you, but you did not come out." She slides next to her. "I asked myself, would you be sitting at the desk working or would you take the opportunity to find out more about him. I sneaked over and heard you say 'myth true'." She sheepishly looks up at her sister. "What myth would be true?"

Elsa twirls around and walks to her chair. "So you are spying on me."

"And you evade the question. Why drag him in here instead of leaving him in the hall?" Anna leans over her desk. "Why?"

"If you must know," she stands and leans towards her sister, "I am responsible for his unconsciousness."

Anna rocks back and looks at Sam. "I do not see any blood on the floor or his shirt." She looks back at her. "So how did you do it?"

She closes her hand tight. Opening her hand, ice covers her palm. "I touched the back of his neck."

"Wow, the Queen has powers over the giant." Anna stares at him and leans against the desk.

Elsa opens and closes her hand. Each time another layer of ice covers the previous layer. When she froze him to the bridge and lightly touched the back of his neck, he appeared to have fallen asleep. When he awoke, he said it could happen again. This time more layers covered her hand and it stayed in contact with his neck longer.

"Will any ice on his neck knock him out?" Anna asks.

"Up to now, just mine," she whispers. She wipes her hand and her dress absorbs the ice. What did he say? Only his adopted mother had the capacity to cause him to sleep with her cold hand on his neck. He did not understand how or why, but she did. And now I can do it.

Anna continues, "During the winter would he have to sleep like a bear? I hear he lives in a cave that no one has found."

She sits and rubs her hands together not feeling the cold or heat. "Where he lives is none of our business. If wants me to know he will tell me."

"Tell you." Anna peaks over her shoulder. "You do not know where he lives?"

"No, I do not." She picks up the quill and opens the ink well.

"Is that why you are not concerned about the myth being true?"

She encourages the quill to release it ink on the paper. "I have to finish my speech for tonight. Were you and Kristoff supposed to be helping with the decorations for the children in the Great Hall?"

"We are. I wanted to check on you."

She continues to write. "As you can see, I am doing well and I am looking forward to the children's party."

"What about him? Is he doing well?" Anna's mischievous smile returns.

"If you have doubts, check him." She returns to her speech.

"I will."

Elsa finishes a sentence and reads it. "That sounds a little harsh. I would not say that even if I am angry." She makes a change and reads the sentences again.

"His hands are big."

She glances up. Anna moves her head as though she is watching something.

"What are you doing?"

"You said to check him and I am checking again to make sure." Anna smirks.

"Sure of what?" she rises from the chair.

"Since you do not wish to know, I will find out for you, if the myth is true." Anna presses her thumb above his wrist and stretches her fingers to touch the tip of his middle finger.

"What if Kristoff sees you?"

"I have already asked him. In due time, I will know if his hand size is correct."

"Anna." She moves around the desk.

"Do you want to know?" She shakes his hand. "He is asleep. We can take a peek. He will never know."

"Never know what?" Sam asks. His eyes are still closed.

With wide eyes Anna drops his hand and scoots back to the wall. "He is awake?" She slides up the wall and stands. "He tricked me."

Elsa stares down at him. Her finger presses against his neck. His chest barely moves with each breath. "He is asleep. His heart beat has not increased."

Anna moves closer to the door. "Then why did he speak?"

"You have never heard anyone speak in their sleep?"

"I have heard people moan and maybe say a word, but not three in a question. If he does wake up, please do not tell him what I did to his hand." She slips out of the room. Her shoes tap rapidly down the hall.

Elsa moves back around her desk. "Well, I guess you can add Anna to your list of people you intimidated today."

Barely a half-hour passes, before she hears. "How did I get here? They were blue shoes." A thump and scuffle sound against the wall and floor followed by silence.

"Sam, are you okay?" Quick breathing answers her. "Samuel?" She plants her feet on the floor and her hands against the desk ready to push back.

A little boy's voice answers, "Is that you?"

"Yes, it is Elsa."

The side of his face and an emerald green eye peeks past the edge of the desk. His eyes blink as he sits up. Twisting his neck, it cracks and pops. He stands. "Majesty, I apologize for my behavior." He rubs the back of his neck. "I must have hit my head very hard on the ground. I don't remember slipping. Why didn't they leave me on the steps instead of dragging me in here?" Rolling his shoulders more cracking and popping sounds.

Elsa walks to the front of her desk. "What is the last thing you remember before waking up?"

He stares at the wall. With a blink, he answers, "Kai said you wanted to see me. I remember walking to the castle." He shrugs. "Then I woke on the floor."

Elsa lightly brushes his arm with the tips of her fingers.

Mother said she could tell if Sam was telling the whole truth by how long she could touch his arm before he moved it. If he moved it quickly, a static charge would raise her hair. He did it a couple of times shortly after they met. Later it was his mannerism that gave him away. She never told him how she knew.

Sam stares at her hand. "I apologize. You have me at a disadvantage. Am I supposed to say or do something?"

She slips her hand under his arm. "Come with me. I want to show you something." She leads him down the hall and up the spiral staircase to the very top. They stand in front of a narrow door.

He peeks over the rail. "What do you hide up here?"

The lock clicks and the door opens. She pulls on his hand and they enter a room with covered furniture.

He walks to the two pane window. "Wow, what a gorgeous view. From the outside of the castle, I thought this was a small attic." He opens the window and a cool breeze floods the room. "This would be a great hideout to get away for a short time."

"I know. Do you like it?"

He looks at her. "This is not the first time you have been here since your coronation, is it?"

"I have been here many times since that day." She steps in front window. "One evening I came up here. I saw someone up there." She points to the top of the hill. "At first I was afraid the person was attacked by wolves. I sent the guards. After an hour, they came back. They had found nothing, not even traces of blood. I sent them out the next morning."

"Ah, that would explain why the sergeant yelled wolf attack as he rode by. I knew none of my pack would have been involved. I check with the merchants to see if they had heard anything, but none did. Unfortunately, I was late for work that day."

She looks at him. "Is that why you were fired?"

He chuckles, "That, and a few comments, I should have kept to myself." His left brow shoots up. "Have you been spying on me?"

She looks towards the hills. "What if I have?"

"Then I hope they gave you a good report of my character." For a moment the breeze whistles threw the room and out the door. "They did give a good report?"

She peeks over her shoulder. "You have a problem with authority."

He stands next to her and places his hand on the window seal. His finger touches the side of her hand. She does not move it.

"Majesty, I don't how many times your mother told me that. I guess it was her way of saying I stepped over the line. If I have crossed that line and said or done anything to diminish your stature as Queen, I will make corrections for them." His knees thud against the floor. "Majesty, I will apologize to you. Please tell me what I have done."

She looks down at his hazel colored eyes. He holds his palm up behind her hand. She faces him. "By the time I sent the guards on a fool's errand, I had three reports on my desk about you. Each report ended with you and the owner yelling at each other. As of this morning, I have seven reports. All end the same way. I am sure the Captain's report for this morning's incident will not end the same, since you did not officially report to work. Do you know what all of the reports have in common?"

He continues to stare up at her. "Instead of me wasting your time by explaining each incident, please tell me the common factor you have found."

"I have told you. You have a problem with authority."

Now his eyes look at the floor. With a deep breath, he slowly exhales. "Your logic is faulty."

"What do you mean faulty?"

He lifts his chin. "There is a difference between not allowing others to have authority over you and wanting others to live up to their potential in their authoritative position. The reports are missing the key evidence in the exchanges of the words. All of my childhood, I can remember someone had authority over me. When it was just my ship, I was in command. My crew and I volunteered to join another fleet of ship. We were under their command." His head nods. "Yes, I had conflict with many of them, but over time, my words were proven true. I commanded a fleet of a hundred ships, but there was one who had authority over me. He allowed me to do my job and I won many victories for him."

He slides his palm under her hand. "I ask you for the same thing. Allow me to do what I do and I will bring you many victories. Give me the leeway to challenge your decisions, not to override, not to disobey, but to make your life easier when the hard decisions come." His hand closes around her hand. "You are my Queen. I will follow each and every command that you give. I will not say I will follow them blindly, but will follow them upon my understanding."

His head turns to the door. "I will do for you what I did for your mother. Beginning now and until you walk out that door. I will answer every question as truthfully as I know it. Be careful what you ask. I will not filter my answers. Some question I answer will be the truth, but they may have circumstantial evidence you may not understand. I will mention those to you, but if you do not wish to here please tell me."

She squeezes his hand. "Mother said you would do this. I will ask a simple question. Where do you come from?"

With a smile and a flick of his hand, a sheet covering a chair flips up and chair slides to stop behind her. He urges her to sit. "It seems that is the first question everyone asks, and it is not simple. When it comes to me, there are no simple questions."

He sits back onto the heels of his boots and cups both of his hands around her small hand. "I do not know where I was born. I only know what I was told. In the North America's southwest will be a state named Arizona. My first memories are on a military base. There I became who I am." He looks at his hands. "This is where I could stop and have technically answered your question, but there more to the question."

She cups the back of his hand. "Do not stop. Tell me the rest of the answer."

His head nods. "Yes, Majesty. My ship crashed landed here. It is nothing that you will see in your lifetime. I wish I could show you, but I made deal with the local grand troll."

"Pabbie?"

"So you remember him. When I crashed here, it was the lowest point in my life. He could have killed me. I would not have stopped him."

"Pabbie would not hurt anyone. Why would he want to kill you?"

"Because he knows what I am capable of doing. He is afraid of me. He said I live only because there was another who predicted my arrival, and that I must finish my mission."

"What mission? Who predicted you would come here?"

"I don't know who. As for my mission, I am building a bridge between my world and her world."

"Who is she?"

"I don't know that either."

"You said you ship crash landed. Would there be any evidence of it on the shore?"

"Technically, no, my ship crashed several kilometers north and east of here in the hills."

"In the hills, take me to it."

"I can't."

"Why?"

"Part of the agreement that I am still alive, is that Pabbie will not tell me where my ship is located and I agreed, but there is one whom he will tell." He holds her hand tight. "If you ask he will tell you."

"Why would he tell me, but not you?"

"Because of who I am . . ."

Several hours later, Ann stomps into the room. "There you are. We have been searching for you the past hour." She points at Sam. "Did he force you to come up here?"

Elsa and Sam stand. "I knew I could not be left alone long enough for Sam to answer my questions, so I brought him up here."

"The plans for the children's party need to be finalized. Gerda is looking for him. Maybe she wants him to help the staff set up the tables, if he is through entertaining our Queen.

Elsa grabs Anna's arm. "Come on. I will tell you what he said about you when he woke up."

"Oh." Anna shakes her fist at him. "What did he say?"

Sam waits until they had started down the stairs. As he closes the window a flash of light strikes at him from the hill. His vision zooms onto the light source. "I see you. I am not a threat to her or you. She needs to know. She must decide on her own. Do not interfere little toad."

His mind hears the thoughts. "Then you behave yourself and I will let you be." The toad transforms and rolls out of sight.

A few days later, Sam sits on the edge of the cliff that gives him a good view into the castle's courtyard. Behind him miniscule sounds of pebbles and rocks slide against each other as a heavy weight presses against them.

A gruff voice asks, "Why are you up here and not down there with her?"

A large rock steps on his hand. "If a troll cannot fly, get off my hand." The rock rolls back. He rubs the back of his hand and creates a thin layer of ice over the scrape.

"Can she do that?" Pabbie points at his hand.

"Currently no, but she does have the capacity. I will teach her." Sam glimpses Pabbie. "You come to push me over the cliff?"

"Given sufficient time, I believe you will voluntarily jump off." Pabbie leans one way then the other. "It looks like they are getting ready to ring the bell for their festival. Again, I ask, why are you not there with her?"

Sam points. "See the peak of the castle, there is a nice size room under the peak. I'm not sure why, but she insisted on taking me up there."

"Did you force yourself on her?"

Sam snaps his head down and glares at him. "Why would you say that, toad?"

Pabbie laughs, "You are so easily distracted when you are confused. I said it for the same reason Queen Elsa took you to the top room. We need you to focus. What did you do in the room?"

He shakes his head as he looks back at the people in the courtyard. "What do you care? I have not, nor will I do anything to harm her."

"I believe you are telling the truth. You will consciously not cause her harm, but what about unconsciously?"

For everyone else, Pabbie makes statements directed to the point. He does not like having to repeat himself. But for him, he encrypts his statements, almost like a game to test his abilities. He is not in a mood to play games. Why did he choose this moment? One more day and he would be tending to the horses.

Pabbie rolls two stones in his hand. "I will assume you are thinking and that is why you are rude for not answering my question, so I will ask you another. Why did she want you in the room alone?"

"What are you implying?"

A shadow sweeps across the snow covered ledge below him. Looking up, he spots a large bird casually flapping its wings. Its shadow passes over the castle and moves towards the cliffs across the fjord. He returns his focus to the festival bell arriving at the castle.

"She took me there because I was distracting her staff. In a matter of minutes after walking through the gates, I had a conflict with everyone I met, including Princess Anna and Master Kristoff."

"So she took you in the room for punishment?" Pabbie snickers.

Sam narrows his eyes at him. "What is so funny?"

"You are. Perhaps I should shove you off the cliff so you can get your focus back. You are not distracting her staff. You are distracting yourself. That is funny. I have not laughed this much in a long time." Pabbie grabs his arm. "What were you doing before she dragged you to the room?"

"She didn't drag me. I woke up on the floor in her study room and we walked up together."

"You got upset and fell asleep because she chastised you."

He jerks his arm from him. "No, Actually I don't remember why." He looks down at Pabbie. "I remember bending Kristoff's hand after he punched my face twice. I remember walking to the stables. It was like I was having a dream, and then I woke up."

"Your skin is turning gray. What was your color when you woke up?"

He stands and makes a fist at the castle. "Definitely not a wise decision."

Pabbie taps his leg. "What do you see?"

"They are lifting the bell to the tower and it is passing over Elsa and Princess Anna." He sits back on the boulder. "Master Kristoff is setting the bell into its cradle."

"You are correct." Pabbie waddles a short distance and turns back to him. "It is dangerous. Why are you not there to protect them from their foolish decisions?"

"I recall hearing someone mention grayish-blue."

"And the significant of it is?"

"You are getting nosy asking personal questions." A small stone bounces off his head.

Pabbie points a stone finger at him. "What are you hiding?"

"I'm not –"

He interrupts, "Then answer the question."

Sam rubs his hands together. A light gray radiates around the ice. "During down times, the gray is the state before I freeze in my ice. It is the time of maximum energy absorption. I can also perform minor healing. I was recharging my energy when you rudely interrupted me."

"How does punching your face twice induce your body to sleep and absorb energy?" Pabbie waddles back to him.

Sam stares at him. A logical question he should be able to answer easily, but he cannot. Shaking his head, he says, "I have been injured more severely and it did not cause me to sleep. My body absorbs energy during the down times. If you saw me sleeping after a hard day's work, you would probably see the gray. Why is this so important to you?"

Pabbie flicks up the stone and catches it several times. "It is not important to me. The questions is, why is it not important to you?"

"I don't know what you are asking, so I can't answer your question."

"You really don't know. How can you answer if you do not have the knowledge of it?"

"How can I?" He holds a deeper breath. His eyes look past his hand as they focus on his thoughts.

 _What did he say? Eight says._

 _We do not have the knowledge. Fifty-four says._

 _Did we have it in the first place? Seventeen says_

 _QUITE. Scatter and find any gaps in his memories. I will engage the troll for information. Fifty-four says._

Sam watches the troll waddle a distance away. "Do you have knowledge that I do not?"

Pabbie peeks over the edge. "I know many things that you will never know. I know some things you know." His head turns towards him. "I know a few things that you should know, but now you do not, why?"

"You are positive, you know things that I should know?"

"Yes, I know them because you told me. The questions is what did you tell Queen Elsa that you do not remember?"

A very disturbing question that he cannot answer, but there are only two events he knows of that can cause a memory loss. Sam peeks over the cliff's edge. "Have I already fallen off this cliff?"

"There have been many times I wanted to push you off of it, but no. Could you have fallen off and don't remember?" Pabbie waddles next to him.

He stares at the rock face at the bottom. "If I did, I should see crystals shimmering on the rocks. My body should have evidence of broken bones. I see neither."

His hands radiate a blue glow. They sweep across his shoulders, down both arms, down his body, and down his legs. "There is no evidence that I have sustained serious injuries. The probability an injury has caused the memory loss is significantly too small. When I have eliminated all other possible causes, I will review this again."

He looks towards the castle. "But my recent memories are not continuous. There are pages missing from this chapter of my life."

A thump sounds in his ear from an impact that has sufficient force to turn his head. A sharp pain stabs behind his eye. Responding to the attack, his body drops to the ground with the boulder between him and Pabbie. His hands and lower arms glisten with a thick layer of ice. Everything shimmers with a green halo. A warm thickness oozes from the impact point. His hand wipes it. A streak of red smears across his fingers.

"I will throw you off the cliff."

"And I will survive."

"Not if I throw you high enough and make sure you crash into that flat rock face at the bottom."

Pabbie peaks over the cliff, again. "Yes, that would hurt, but they would make sure you land on that same rock face."

Behind him a dozen or more boulders transform into trolls. Each of their crystals around their necks flash in sync to each other. With red angry eyes, each troll stares at him.

"Why are you attacking me?"

"Because I grow tired of your stupidity. The first question I asked and you still have not answered it."

Sam stands and partially lowers his arms from an attack position.

"Look at yourself."

A metallic emerald green sweeps across his exposed flesh. For a moment he stares and then reins in his emotions. The green fades. Ice drips from his hands.

Pabbie asks, "Is your lack of focus the reason you are up here? Is that the reason you were in conflict with everyone that day?"

"I do not believe I have a lack of focus. Contrarily, I am quite focused. I have not resolved the issue."

After some time, another stone bounces off his head. His brows push together and he emits a low growl as his vision sees the green halo around everything.

"Growl all you want. I will survive the fall from this cliff. Will you?"

Sam's vision returns to normal and he focuses on the people in the castle.

"You still have not answered my question and your actions indicate you have not resolved your issue, which I propose are the same."

"If you mean a common factor, yes."

"Is that what Queen Elsa needs, a stable boy with unresolved issues?"

The Winter Festival bell rings.

Pabbie waddles next to him and looks at the castle. "What is happening?"

"Elsa, Princess Anna, and Olaf rang the bell. They are entering the castle." He stands. "Something is wrong?"

"What? Tell me."

"The people are leaving." He sits back down and sighs. "Elsa is sad."

"You can see she is sad from this far?"

"I feel her sadness. She is remembering all the winters away from Princess Anna."

"You feel. I thought your bond with Queen Elsa closed after you were banished." Pabbie picks up two stones.

"The Bond between us never closed. She forgot how to listen. I made the mistake of agreeing to the King's wish that Elsa would forget me. I miscalculated she would stop listening."

"You lied to her about the bond."

Sam scratches the back of his neck and his eyes move as though they are searching. "Technically no, but I will have to explain my reason to her. Hopefully, not anytime soon."

"When you do, I'm sure I get a good laugh."

He glances at Pabbie. "Either you have spies or someone is talking to you."

Pabbie shrugs.

"It will take a little time for Elsa to learn to listen again. Why are you grinning?"

"The particular sequence of words you speak make me laugh."

Sam rolls his eyes up. "What did I say that is funny?"

"Which three people are you talking about?"

"Elsa, Princess Anna and Master Kristoff."

Pabbie snickers, "You did it again. Repeat what you said slowly."

"Elsa . . . Princess Anna . . . Master Kristoff." He shakes his head. "I don't get it."

Pabbie snap his fingers and stone smacks the side of Sam's head.

Sam jumps to his feet and a layer of ice forms around his hands. "What is it with you and the stones?"

"As an Admiral, how is it you commanded a hundred ships the way you are acting?"

"I didn't do it all myself. I had help from the Captains of the hundred ships. I made the final decisions." He sits back on the boulder and wipes the ice from his hands.

"Then I will help. Why do you need two words to identify Anna and Kristoff, but only one for Elsa?"

He stares at the melted ice fall into a crack between two large rocks. "Princess Anna . . . Master Kristoff." He looks at Pabbie. "I did not use her title."

Pabbie aims another rock at him. "And?"

He focuses on the castle. "I see her as I saw her long ago. I want her to be the snow angel, again." His head moves from side to side. "She is my commanding officer. My first day back on the job and I failed her." He stares at his hands as they rub together.

Pabbie taps his leg. "Why did she take you to the room?"

"She did exactly what I would have done if someone appeared distracted. Take them to a neutral location."

"The top room."

He nods, "Yes. A place of calm with no distractions, where I would feel comfortable to speak. I gave her time to ask questions. Yes, she did to me what I have done for others." He snorts "She is deserving of my respect and deserves to know what I am."

He searches the eastern sky. The moon has not risen above the horizon. He does not recall what phase it is in. Has the dragon changed course? If not, it is too far away to affect him.

Pabbie looks to the east. "You have seven days until the full moon. Will it be a problem?"

"No, but I cannot rule it out. Other possibilities must be eliminated before it becomes a problem."

Pabbie faces him and holds out his arm with a larger stone than the ones he threw at him.

"You're not helping when you hit me with them."

He grins. "From my perspective, it does. It gets you to focus."

"I don't know what to ask if I don't know what is missing. Instead of throwing stones, why don't you ask me a question that would help?"

"Okay." Pabbie's fingers barely move. The stone moves.

His legs shift his weight to move out of the stones trajectory. At this close range his hand does not have time to intercept the stone. A sharp pain stabs into Sam's cheek as the sound of a loud crack snaps into his ears. The pain disrupts his countermands to his body as it falls. He rolls to the ground and stops with his head up. Saltiness touches the corner of his lips. His hand feels a gash in his flesh under his eye.

"What is wrong with you? You could have hit my eye."

Pabbie shakes his head. "If I was trying for your eye, you would have rolled off the edge screaming like a human baby." He waddles towards him. "I have to admit. You are bleeding more than I intended."

"INTENDED, you intended to cause me to bleed." He rolls up onto his knees. His finger applies several layers of ice across the wound.

"You asked me to help, so I set the circumstances to ask this question." He moves Sam's hand. "I see gray around the edges of the ice. What does it mean?"

"It means the ice is stimulating the cells to reproduce rapidly. Because the stone cut deep, it will take several minutes to close the wound."

"What happen to the ice after the wound has healed."

"It will melt."

"And your flesh returns to pink?"

"Yes."

Pabbie picks up two stones and waddles to the edge. "Is that the only time your flesh will turn gray?"

"To the best of my understanding, yes, what are you getting at?" He holds his hand up incase another stone flies at him.

"What happen if your body is completely covered in your ice?"

"It only covers me if I have been seriously injured or unconscious."

"So after your ice heals you, it is like the injury never happened." Pabbie tosses a stone over the edge. "That is a good thing. All is as it was before the injury." He flicks the stone up and catches it. After a minute he stops tossing the stone and looks back at him. "I hear silence. What are you thinking?"

"Your statement 'all is as it was' is not correct."

"Why not?"

"There is a probability of one hundred percent that a memory is lost."

Pabbie drops the second stone and waddles back to him. "The cost of healing is to lose a memory. What memory?"

Drawing his lips tight, Sam shakes his head. "Usually, the more recent memory recorded will be sacrificed. There is a correlation between the duration of time, I'm in the ice and the amount of memory lost starting from the moment I go unconscious."

"So if you are in your ice for seven days. You would lose the previous seven days of memories. What if something important happened in those seven days? Is that memory lost?"

Sam nods. "My ship has a means of recording events. I trusted my crew. I can estimate how long it would take me to heal. I would isolate myself in a room for the same amount of time plus one day. I didn't lose that much information, but in an emergency, I had one who would review what I missed."

"LadyCat?"

"Yes. Before you ask about the event where Elsa and I nearly died, my brain was not injured. I talked to Elsa. Her child like way helped me to remember. Many people talked about the event. A touch of my hand and it doesn't take me long to see what they saw. I collected enough information to piece together the event."

Pabbie touches the ice on his face. "If no one told you about the event, how would know where to look? What color did you hear the person say your flesh was in Queen Elsa study room?"

"Bluish gray, but that can't be true. There was no ice when I woke up."

"How do you explain walking outside of the castle and afterwards waking up in her room?"

He stares at Pabbie but his eyes do not see him. A moment later, a shadow passes between them. He looks up. The same bird that flew over the castle and crossed the fjord passes over them.

"You saw the eagle fly towards the south, but you did not see it flying back until you saw the shadow. Would you agree it flew from the south and passed over us?"

"That is a logical assumption." He continues to watch the eagle as it drops behind a hill. His head gradually nods. "There seems to be a half-hour gap between the time I was walking to the stable and waking up in Queen Elsa's study room. Estimating the time it would take me to walk there, several minutes are missing. Something must have happened that caused me to pass out." He rubs the back of his neck. He stands and focuses on the castle. "Not something, but someone, she did it."

A smile explodes onto his face and he stomps the ground more than he dances. "SHE DID IT."

Pabbie moves out of his way. "Are you trying to cause this stone to fall below?"

He stops. "I have also detected a memory gap between the time I was walking to the bridge and waking up frozen to the bridge." He fervently points to the castle. "Queen Elsa was there both times. Do you not see? She has learned to control the beast in me and I didn't tell her how."

"That is a good thing?"

"Absolutely, it's a good thing. It means she desires to learn and is willing to take a chance." He snorts. "It also means I have to get into her good favor."

"So why are you here and not down there protecting her?"

"You changed your question. Without anyone whom I can trust, it takes me a little longer to change my course of actions." He stands and stretches. "Despite our difference and your encrypted way of explaining, you're the only one who has told me the truth."

Holding his hands together, he extends them out and up. At the apex his hands sweep out to his side as he comments. "My little snow angel has grown up." He walks along the cliff's edge and climbs up between two boulders.

The other trolls transform and roll down the path to the forest. Pabbie asks, "Where are you going? Create your ice and slide into the village."

"She needs her space with Anna at the moment. Let's see what she does with this unexpected seasonal setback. Even a snow angel needs her change to stretch her wings. I will get there soon enough." He climbs over another boulder and creates his own trail to the path that leads to Arendelle.

Later in the evening, the sounds of people walking in the snow. He hears his Queen calling for Olaf. Following her voice, he finds intricate ice arches along the ground. Ahead of him, an ice tree glows. Olaf rides on Elsa's magical snow carpet back to her. He stands behind them. They have not noticed him. "I'm absolutely impressed with the control of your ice."

Queen Elsa turns and for a moment, her expression of surprise changes to a smile, but the mask of a royal monarch slips over her face. A slight nod greets him. "Sam, what happened to you after this morning?" She touches the spot behind his eye. "You have been hurt."

He does not move his head from her hand. "Sometimes a rock is needed to get my attention." He stares into her blue eyes. "I lost focus, but I believe I have found it."

Princess Anna steps next to her sister. "If you will permit me," He steps back and bows, "Majesty, I would like to start again, but definitely not like the other morning."

The light touch of her fingertips lifts his chin. "That would be nice."

 **End of Chapter.**


	32. Chapter 31 Diplomacy

**Title: Chapter 31: Diplomacy**

 **3 years, 10 months until correction**

February, a chilly north wind reminds everyone winter wishes to cover the land with its white blanket. Sam stands by the main gates and watches a ship flying the French flag dock at the wharf. Four fancy clothed individuals stand on the ship's quarterdeck. They do not appear to be part of the crew. The crewman barking orders approaches one of the four men and bows his head. He recognizes the Frenchman from last July's freeze. Two of the others he does not recognize, but the fourth one wears a uniform similar to the one Hans of the Southern Isles wore and he fidgets with the sword attached to his belt.

"Gangway, royal booty coming through," calls the cargo handler pushing a cart with four large trunks on it. Sam steps to the side. A second cart with four large trunks follows the first cart.

He follows the carts into the courtyard and stops next to Captain Larsen adjusting his uniform. "What's in the trunks?"

"That, dear sir, is the clothing of the rich and royalty."

"Are they moving in?"

"At the end of the week most will leave." Larsen searches the courtyard.

With raised brows he glances at the Captain. "Most will leave, who will stay longer?"

Larsen gives him a light backhand across his arm. "Probably the one who peaks Queen Elsa's interest."

"Interest you say." He inspects the three men with the French Ambassador and their assistances casually crossing the bridge. The Frenchman points to the walls. One of the associates appears to be writing. He comments, "What is so important that he needs to take notes?"

"If I was escorting our Queen to someone's castle, I would be taking notes of possible weaknesses and strong points should something happen," Larsen replies.

A loud argument gets his attention. For a moment the cargo handlers struggle to get the trunks through the castle doors. "Maybe I should help get the royal stuff to their rooms." He walks towards the castle.

"I thought you might say that."

The argument ends by the time he stops at the cart and helps the handler on the ground to situate the trunk. "Whose does this one belong?"

The handler stepping from the cart answers, "This is Frenchie's."

He spins the handler and pulls him close to his face. With a glare he says, "I don't care what your personal opinion of the guest is. You will treat them and their belongings with respect." He lets go of the man and straightens his collar. "Now whose trunk does this belong?"

"The French Ambassador's." The handler points to the second truck. "This one is his also"

He gives the handler a smile. "Much better." He removes a coil of rope from the cart and threads the handles of the trunks. Securing the ends of the rope he steps between to the trunks and lifts them. Adjusting the balance he carries them into the castle foyer.

Kai reads the tags on the trunks. "What are you doing?"

"Trying to be useful for Queen Elsa. These are heavy, where shall I put them?"

"Up the stairs, Princess Anna will tell you which room the French Ambassador will be staying."

He moves towards the stairs and for a brief moment he sees Queen Iduna at the rail. It is the exact location she stood to listen to the incoming guest. He glances away.

 _Did I actually see her? Did I see a ghost described by this culture?_

He looks at the rail. No, it's not the former Queen. In a dark green dress with lighter green and gold trimmed vest, Princess Anna wears her hair tied up with purple and green ribbons.

Her usual smile greets him and she waves for him to bring the trunks. Queen Ingrid explained the acoustics of the room, where to stand on the stairs and landing to hear all that is spoken in the room. He moves several steps to his right and forward two steps. With a big grin he speaks in a whisper, "Good Morning Princess, can you hear me?"

Anna's eyes widen as her smile disappears. She slowly nods.

He adjusts the trunks and climbs the stairs. On the landing he asks, "Which room, Princess?"

"Monsieur Lamar will stay in the second room on the left." Anna points past the rail, "How?"

"Your mother was an expert at gliding along the rail and the stairs to hear every conversation in the room. Unfortunately, I discovered her talent before I observed her movements. I confronted her. She showed me a couple of locations to stand and hear a conversation at specific spots on the floor. Over time I mapped the other locations along the rail to hear what went on below. When I drop these off I will explain further."

He carries the trunks to the ambassador's room. Carefully setting the trunks in the corner of the room, he studies the design on the trunk. A tall gentleman wearing tan trousers and a green jacket enters the room. Sam nods to gentleman and speaks in French, "My apology Monsieur Lamar. I rarely have the chance to admire trunks with such designs and beauty. Were they made by German hands?"

"Yes, you have a good eye. My brother purchased them in Germany." He removes his gloves off and lightly slaps his hand. "Did I see you after the unfortunate freeze last summer?" Lamar asks.

"You have a very good memory. I was working on the wharf. You may have seen me loading your ship."

"Perhaps." Lamar nods and points to him. "You have improved your station to the castle."

He shakes his head, "No, I'm just temporary help for the day. Actually, I work in the stables taking care of the horses."

"Ah, which explains your strength to carry both trunks. If I wish to ride in the hills, should I speak to you for a horse?"

He moves to the door. "Yes, I will prepare a horse for you." A castle staffer stops in front of the door. "Make your request to her and she will let me know."

She glares at him. "Did you lose a horse up here?"

He bows. "Monsieur Lamar that is my cue to depart." He squeezes past the door frame and the staffer refusing to move.

A short distance down the hall a gravelly Russian voice comments, "Arendelle will make a great outpost to expand into the northern countries."

A second younger voice speaks, "Did you see their Queen and her sister? They will produce many Russian babies." They both laugh.

His first instinct is confrontation. For a moment, he wishes he was on his ship. He would throw them in the brig or nearest airlock, but today, a more subtle persuasion will work. There is no since in making Elsa's life harder. The evidence of her lack of experience will be a hard teacher on her. He needs to take care of the surrounding noise to give her the time she needs to gain the experience. If she is like her mother, she may not like him meddling in her duties. He waits for the prey and stands in the middle of the hall with his feet shoulder width apart and his hands rest on his waist.

One stops by the door and calls back to his partner, "Come on sir. We have to me meet the mothers of our future children." Still laughing the two Russians walk into the hall and stop.

He speaks to them in Russian, "What is so funny, boys?"

The two Russians in black animal clothing stand a couple of meters from him. The taller and younger of the two stands slightly in front of the totally gray hair older man. Both stand with their backs positioned to each other. The older Russian with leathery skin and a scar from his throat to the side of his neck displays his share of battle, but the plump abdomen reveals a job administrating instead of physical work. His brown eyes focus on his face and the taller male searches him. No doubt searching for any weakness to exploit. His broad shoulders give him strength with his black hair framing his square jaw line. He stands in a position to conceal a weapon. His grin reveals a missing tooth and a slight breeze reveal their desire for fermented vegetables.

The older Russian snarls and the younger moves his hand to his wrist. "This peasant has forgotten his station in life. I wonder if all Arendelle peasants are this stupid."

The young Russian shows a dagger and moves toward him, but the older grabs the younger's arm. "No, Dimitri, after we have won the hearts of our brides then you can teach him a lesson."

Dimitri slides the dagger into his sleeve. "Yes, I look forward to that day." He walks towards Sam. "Get out of the way peasant so your future King Ivan can pass untouched by your filth." Dimitri tries to pass by throwing his shoulder and elbow into his side, but Sam does not move. Dimitri glares at him grinding his teeth and then lunges at him with both fists. Stepping to the side at the last second, his foot blocks the young Russian's foot. Sam gives Dimitri a gentle push towards the floor with the back of his hand. A hard thump on the floor leaves Dimitri motionless. Ivan steps back.

He studies Ivan. "Well, I guess we can't leave him in the middle of the floor. What will the other guest say?" He kneels next to Dimitri and detects a pulse. Lifting him onto his shoulder, he carries Dimitri back to their room. With a gentle push the young Russian flops onto the bed.

Sam grins at the older Russian. "You should have kept your friend on a shorter chain. Make comments like I heard and you will become a permanent resident at the bottom of the fjord." He leans close to Ivan, "Your friend's demeanor may frighten most others, but he is afraid of dying at the hands of an assassin?"

Ivan's eyes do not flinch, but he steps back against the wall. Ivan wears the mask of a warrior to hide his emotions in a stressful situation. No doubt he has had plenty of practice in his homeland. Sam reaches for the door. "Enjoy your stay in Arendelle."

The door closes and he bumps into Kai.

"What are you doing here," Kai asks.

"I was assisting the guest to their rooms with their personal stuff." He emphasizes the last word.

"Did that include the thump I heard a few minutes ago?"

With a slight grin he replies, "hmm, yes," and continues down the hall.

Anna asks, "Is this the last one?"

"Yes Princess, last one," answers the cargo handler handing her a small piece of paper.

Anna adds the paper to the stack of guest's papers. "Take it to the last room on the left. I'll be glad when these vultures leave." She bumps into Sam and drops several papers.

He kneels to picks up the papers. "My apology Princess, I miss judged the distance between myself and the trunk." He stands and hands the papers back. Her expression indicates her mind is focused on something else. He asks, "May I ask you a question?"

She blinks at him. "Sure, go ahead."

He watches the two individuals at the bottom of the stairs as his hands clinch to his side. "What did you mean by vultures?"

Anna shakes her head. "One or two dignitaries could teach Queen Elsa all she needs to know for the trade negotiations." She peeks down the hall. "And maybe their assistances, but the rest are vultures vying to entertain my sister's heart."

"Vultures to court the Queen." He studies the gentleman's uniform.

Anna looks where he is staring. "Yes, the biggest vulture has arrived. Change his black hair to red, add a blue vest with a gray and black jacket, and lose the metals, he looks like Hans –"

"Of the Southern Isles," he interrupts. The uniform familiarization flashes his mind back to a garden from long ago. "Prince Georg?"

"You know the traitorous Prince?"

"Calm yourself Princess. Your sister also knew him a long time ago. They hunted for bugs in the garden. I wonder if they remember." He glances at Anna. "Don't throw the whole barrel of fish overboard because the one on top has worms in it. The rest may be perfectly good."

She watches the two walking up the stairs, "You got that right. Hans was a worm."

"To ease your conscience and mine let me do my job and I'll find his intent." He walks past her and stops at the top of the stairs. Elsa and Georg stop at the second step from the top.

Elsa asks, "Samuel, what are you doing here?"

Georg flinches. Is it a moment of recognition?

He answers, "I brought up the French ambassador's trunks." He notes a royal pouch under Georg's arm and reaches for it. "May I deliver this to your room?"

Elsa grabs his arm. "What are you doing? Do not violate Prince Georg's space let along touching anything on his person unless it is offered to you."

He bows to her and she lets go of his hand. "My apology Majesty. I was trying to help." He backs out of the way.

She walks past him, but Georg stops next to him and comments, "I am not nine. I do recall, you did not know royal protocol back then either. If Queen Elsa was not here, your blood would be staining the carpet." He follows Elsa.

"Are you sure it was not your blood you see?"

Prince Georg stops for a moment. His head turns slightly as if he was about to reply, but continues to follow Elsa.

Sam moves down the stairs and at the bottom he glances over his shoulder. Anna holds her head in her hands. He moves to a specific spot on the lower floor. "I'm just getting started. I need to contact their assistances then we shall see who is staying at the end of the week."

As he reaches the foyer, Elsa calls, "Samuel Ryan, do not leave the castle. You better be in my study in the next ten minutes." He bows to her, "Yes ma'am."

Gerda meets him at the door. "Sounds like the Queen is a little upset at you, so will you make her upset by walking out? What did you do?"

With a wink "I got their attention, but one question. I know the French, Russian, and Southern Isle representative, but who is the fourth?"

She moves her fingers as though she was counting. "I think he is Danish?"

"Danish, I thought someone from Cristiana would be here."

"They will arrive for the trade negotiations in two months. This is to help our Queen practice before the real negotiations begin."

He looks back at the stairs. "Practice, if that is truly what they are here to do, I will stay in the stables. The Russians have other ideas." He glances back at Gerda. "What is the Queen's payment for the practice?"

"I have no idea."

"Does Anna know?"

"I don't have any answers. Don't push Anna against her sister. You will find yourself outside of the walls, again."

"Actually, you have given me some answers. I would not push Anna against our Queen. I'll find the answer elsewhere." He takes a step towards the door and stops. "What does Arendelle have that they want?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "We are not that big. There are several larger kingdoms north and inland west. We make some tradeable goods."

"That's the point, Arendelle is not easily accessible, so why come here? Why not go to a larger kingdom to host the negotiations?"

Gerda shrugs her shoulders again.

He glances in the short hall leading to the royal study. "Maybe I need to set my goal higher then push." He walks towards the royal study.

"Sam, she is not like her mother. Anna pushed and look what happened. Please go easy on her," Gerda pleads.

"She wants to practice, I'll give her practice. She is her mother's daughter. If she does not allow fear to take hold, she will survive and grow."

Inside the Queen's study room, he stands by the window observing at the stable. If he saw Ingrid looking out the window, it was her way of saying she needed to talk. He wonders if she taught Elsa this.

"What has your attention?" His head snaps around and gazes into the most beautiful set of blue eyes. "Did you hear my question?"

He quickly moves pass the desk and bows. "My apology Majesty, your mother would stand near the window to watch me work with the horses."

She smiles at him. "I know. I remember the horses followed you. Do they still do it?"

"This is a new group of horses. I have not worked with them long enough to try." He stands with his hands clasped behind his back and his feet shoulder width apart.

She walks to the other side of her desk and stacks her papers. "What happened between you and the Russian delegates?"

"They made several inappropriate comments concerning you and your sister."

She continues to stack papers. "Like what?"

He hesitates and waits for her response. She sets the papers on her desk. "Their desires to make you and Anna their wives and make lots of babies."

"Dimitri is hansom."

He interrupts, "Will you sacrifice Arendelle for love or a roll on the bed?"

Her eyes dart at him. For a second her icy cold glare challenges him to cross the line. "Are you choosing who I will see?"

If he is to perform his duties well, he crosses the line. "You can see whoever you wish. Once you begin to make stupid mistakes, I will intervene."

She clenches her teeth. "Who I choose to see is none of your business. I can have you banished if you don't behave."

"Yes, your mother said the same thing and they hid you away, stupid decision. They prevented me from educating you with your powers, another stupid decision. You froze Arendelle in the middle of summer. Do you know many died indirectly of the freeze?" He watches, but she does not respond. "43 died of complications of your freeze. They banished me and in the end refused to talk to me, another stupid decision and it costed them their lives. I begged the staff to delay their departure by one day. The pride of your father encouraged your mother to leave. I made a promise to them and I will keep it."

"Do you think I am stupid?"

"Stupid is having the information and choosing the wrong course. It is inexperience due to lack of information that causes one to make a bad choice. You are not stupid. If later in life and you have the knowledge, but choose to make the wrong choice, then at the time, I will call your choice stupid." He glances at the door. "My mission is to keep you safe. If at a later day you choose a companion, it will be my duty to make sure you have all the information on that person."

He stealthily walks to the door and slowly slides his hand along the door. At the height of a person's head, he swings his hand back and strikes the door. A minuscule flash of light escapes from under his hand. The door rattles and he quickly opens it. Prince Georg stands in the doorway holding the right side of his face.

He looks over his shoulder at Elsa. "You can't afford to have another Hans walk into your life and make it short."

She walks past him. "Georg, what is wrong?"

Prince Georg rubs the side of his face as he watches him. "I am not sure what happened. I heard noise in the room and put my ear to the door to determine if you were in here. I saw a flash of light. My ear popped and my face tingles."

Elsa touches his face and several sparks crackle from his face with her hand.

Georg moves her hand from his face and says, "It must be the static in the air."

"Yes, that is as good an excuse as any." Sam stands by the door with his fist on his waist.

Georg's face blossoms into a deep red. "Do you have something to say to me?"

He narrows his eyes and drops his voice an octal. "The red is unbecoming of a Prince. I'm not the one holding her hand."

Elsa's right brow rises. Georg drops her hand and marches towards him. His boots echo against the floor. Georg glares up at him. "Until your manners improve, you should stick to the horse." Georg removes his glove.

Sam focuses directly at him and opens his hands. "Slap me with that glove and you better know how to swim."

"How dare you speak to me or your Queen in that manner?" Georg's arm moves, but the gloves stop halfway up.

Elsa cries out, "Samuel stop."

He slowly removes the knife from Georg's throat and steps back. He flips the knife and holds the blade. Without a blink he whispers, "I will protect my Queen at all cost. Do not make the same stupid decision your father did."

Georg's expression transforms from hesitation to anger. He takes his knife from Sam's hand. His brows move together. His face changes to a deeper red.

Sam backs away. He bows to Elsa and opens the door. A strong red hand grips his arm. In the instant Sam sees Georg's thoughts.

Georg moves the knife close to his side and whispers, "I have seen people like you. You have the physical size for intimidation, but that can be used against you. Why do you not leave before you embarrass your Queen?"

"Have you learned nothing from your military experience? You want to know if I have any information about your parent's death. How old were you, twelve or thirteen? I suspect the rebel leader was on your father's ship. He would have been the one with the hole in his right hand."

The anger begins to drain from Georg's face.

Sam continues, "I told your father the man was trouble and to keep an eye on him. I guess he did not investigate the man's friends. I actually liked your father." He jerks his arm from Georg's grip. "I'm not the one you should have a concern. Search the one who is not who he claims. He arrived on your ship."

Georg asks, "How do you know?"

He pulls back his anger and speaks to Elsa, "If you know what you're searching, it is easy to spot the one like yourself." He steps into the hall and closes the door. _Georg is not the threat. The two Russians are wishful thinkers. Three to go._ He moves along the hall and bumps into Lamar around the corner. He speaks in French, "Are you ok? I did not expect you to be here."

"I am well, no harm done." Lamar points past him. "I thought I saw Prince Georg go this way. Did you see him?"

He looks towards the hall and the back of his hand touches Lamar's hand. "Prince Georg is in Queen Elsa's study. They probably do not wish to be disturbed." He takes a few steps, but Lamar grabs his arm.

"Are you ok? You are tense."

He stares at Lamar long enough to gage his intent, but his thoughts do not match his actions. He smiles. "Today has not been a good day for me. I'm spending too much of my time apologizing, so I will return to the stables and let you delegates do whatever you do." He bows to him and departs the castle.

Later in the day the bottom of the sun dips behind the mountains. Sam steps through the stable's service door. Two Russians laughing draws his attention to the side of the building. Three guards hold their arms with blood escaping between their fingers. Dimitri has another guard backed against the stable wall.

Dimitri says, "To remember your defeat, it will cost you some blood." The sword twitches and the tip scrapes under the guard's chin. "See that didn't hurt." He and Ivan laugh.

"Is that how you practice your skills, extracting blood from those less skilled than you," Georg walks towards them.

Dimitri points his sword at Georg. "I know you have training. Unless your brother promoted you in the military, you earned your rank. Care to show us what you know?"

Georg falls for Dimitri's trick and unsheathes his sword. He takes his stance. Dimitri and Georg salute each other with their sword. Georg charges first and Dimitri blocks. After several minutes, it is an even match.

Dimitri gives Ivan a quick glance and charges Georg.

Ivan removes his sword and rest his hand on his leg. He holds the sword at an angle.

Dimitri pushes his attack. Georg backs close. Ivan drops the blade scratching the back of Georg's arm. Georg loses focus. Dimitri taps his sword against Georg's face leaving a thin red line and knocks the sword from his hand.

Sam's first instinct is to walk away. He thought Georg was smart, but his actions prove himself differently. In a fair fight Georg would have outlasted Dimitri, that's why he signaled Ivan for help and Georg missed it. He walks towards the group.

Dimitri comments, "If all of your brothers are as skilled as you are, why has your island not been taken away?"

Ivan points his sword at him. "What do you want peasant?"

He pushes Ivan's sword out of the way and picks up Georg's sword.

Dimitri holds his sword in a defensive position and steps back. "The peasant wants to play soldier. Let's see what he can do?"

Sam ignores him and sheathes the sword in Georg's scabbard. Georg holds the back of his arm. A thin trail of blood slides down his face.

Dimitri snickers, "The peasant is a coward. I have defeated their champion. Their kingdoms are ripe for the picking."

Ivan points his sword at Sam. "I believe you are correct. He does not have the will to fight." He flicks his sword cutting Sam's sleeve.

A red stain forms on the sleeve. Sam glances at the stain.

Ivan steps back and points the sword at his face. "Are you still afraid?" Sam wraps his hand around the blade. Ivan tries to pull it free, but Sam tightens his grip.

Dimitri moves towards them. Sam twists the sword from Ivan's hand and grabs the hilt. The blade twists around and the flat side of the blade impacts the back of Dimitri's sword hand sending his sword to the ground several meters away. Dimitri stops with the point of Ivan's blade pressed against his throat. A shadow appears at the upper window. The same window Ingrid would watch him. Another with blond hair watches him now.

Sam backs the sword away from Dimitri. "Gentlemen, I recommend you agree on a plausible story when your gracious host and my Queen asks, and she will ask." The three say nothing. "Come on. This is not that hard. You were having a sport that got out of hand and the peasant broke it up." He wipes the sword across his sleeve and places it in Ivan's scabbard. He retrieves Dimitri's sword and places it in its proper place. "Unless you have the skills to tend to your wounds, follow me." The three follow him to a small home with a small garden.

He knocks on the door and a young girl answers. "Momma, Sam is here and he brought guest."

In the background her mother replies, "He did not pay me for the last time he brought a guest. Tell him to go away."

He whispers in the young girl's ear. She nods and closes the door. Pointing to the two small boulders by the door, he speaks to the Russians. "You two sit there. Georg, you sit there." He points to the boulder across from the door.

The door burst open. A light brown hair female wearing a garden apron stomps out and looks at the guest. Shelby glares at him. "I am told these are Queen Elsa's guest. I will fix them up. You have not paid for the herbs I gave you last time."

"What do you want for payment," he asks.

"I have more work in the garden plus one of those guards are stealing my herbs." She moves to each of them and inspects their wounds.

"Okay, I will find the thief to help me work in your garden, but it will be after the Queen's guests depart." He stands next to the Russians. "Your payment is to give her daughter a story about your homeland. If she likes it your debt is paid."

"What if she does not like the story," Dimitri asks.

Shelby grabs his finger. "This will be your payment."

Dimitri speaks to Ivan, "I guess it better be a good one."

Shelby inspects the injuries on Prince Georg's face and his arm. She examines Sam's arm. "Do I need a fix it or will you do it yourself?" She does not wait for an answer and walks inside her house.

Sam standing next to Prince Georg watching the little girl stare intensely at Dimitri telling a story. He asks, "I'd thought you were smarter than that. Didn't they teach you not to enter a fight, two on one?"

Still holding his left arm, Georg replies, "I had a backup. You were there."

"What if I had not stopped?"

"I would have walked away from them," Georg replies as he glances at the Russians.

"If it was not for Ivan, I believe you would have won. You stayed on the defensive until Dimitri appears to get tired. A very good tactic if you have the time and equal numbers. You took a chance I stopped. Were you briefed on what your brother Hans did? That is reason enough I should have continued to walk away, so why did you take the Russian bait?"

Shelby carries a small bowl of a thick liquid and a piece of cloth. She dips the cloth in the bowl and slides it across the cut on Georg's face. She repeats the process on his arm. The area on either side of the cut blossoms a bright red.

Georg yells, "What the hell did you put on my face? It feels like it is burning."

Shelby replies, "I put this on my daughter's injuries and she does not cry, so stop acting like a baby." She reaches to touch his face.

He leans away from her and mumbles, "Goth are way fro mutt."

Shelby grins and Sam smiles. "Did he call me a mutt?" She quickly pokes his face. "Do you feel that?"

Georg touches his face. "Odd for itch."

"You have an itch?" Sam snickers. Georg kicks at him. He steps back laughing, "Okay, you are not the only one to have half a numb face. You will be able to carry on a normal conversation in an hour."

"Three hours," Shelby interrupts.

He shakes his head, "Just in time for the Queen's dinner."

"Oots in honey," George mumbles.

"He said it's not funny." For several seconds Sam and Shelby watch him and then both burst into laughter.

Shelby pats his numb face, "You should wait for the numbness to decrease before the other guest laugh at you."

The sound of boots march in his direction. Sam turns his head slightly. "It seems your host has sent the guards to rescue you from the gardener's magic."

The sergeant of the guards stops next to him. "Queen Elsa saw the last part of you disarming the Russian. What happened to these three?"

The Russians walk towards them. Sam looks at everyone in the group. "Unless you wish to be confined to your ship, I recommend all of you agree to a story like it was a friendly sport that got out of hand."

Ivan nods. "Yes, we were exhibiting our skills and we took it too far." Dimitri nods. They turn to Georg and he nods in agreement.

The sergeant comments, "So it was a game of skills." The others mumble in agreement. "She saw you Sam. Don't leave the courtyard."

He waves over his shoulder and walks towards the stables.

Sam holds up his shirt searching for any missed blood stains. The stable's service door creaks open. He snaps his shirt spraying the wall with tiny ice fragments. The door creaks close. A female's voice gasps, "You have a cut on your arm." He slips his shirt over his head. "Your shirt is cut. Did you save the Prince from the Russians?"

"Indirectly, I did. Why am I not able to sense you?"

Gerda touches the cut in his shirt. "Does it matter? Queen Elsa has requested your presence at the dining room."

"Will I be eating with them?"

She replies with a smirk. "Don't count on it."

"That's what I was afraid of. I guess they did not stick to the agreed story."

"No, they did not. They are pointing a finger at you." She moves towards the door. "You have five minutes from the time I get back to the dining room to see her. Don't be late." The door creaks close.

He scans the stables to verify no one is in the service room. His eyes close for a few seconds then open. Several horses move, but all look in his direction. A miniscule blue light reflects off a polished horse's reins. He slowly rotates his right hand over his left palm, then turns the right palm up. Swirls of blue vapors rise from his palm and sparkle like tiny explosions of light. They swirl together, creating more mini explosions that create more explosions. The lights form together, creating the intricate snowflake he presented to Princess Elsa many years ago. "I hope she remembers."

Several minutes later, Sam approaches the dining room door. The guard opens the door and speaks to someone inside of the room. The door closes.

He stops next to the door and smiles. The guard does not move. "I was requested by Queen Elsa." The guard responds by resting his hand on the hilt of his sword. He shakes his head. "Your actions or lack thereof reflects on our Queen. I hope you did not act this way to her guest."

The door opens and Kai motions for him to enter. He steps into the room and the door closes behind him. He whispers to Kai. "Looks like the whole gang is here. Which side of the table do I approach Queen Elsa?"

Kai snorts, "You are not staying. Do not touch anything. Follow me. When I stop take one step past me. Bow to your Queen. Do not speak until she directs a question to you. Answer only the question, nothing more. Your answers are to be accurate, brief, and concise." He walks down the left side of the dining table.

Sam follows Kai and notes everyone's seating location. On the Queen's left sits Princess Anna, Prince Georg, and the French Ambassador Lamar followed by Lamar's and Georg's assistances. On the Queen's right is an empty chair then Ivan, the Danish delegate Steen, his assistant Rodolf, then Dimitri. He walks past the Danish delegates as his lead foot bumps Steen's chair. He touches Rodlof's arm long enough to hear his thoughts. He touches the Steen's arm. "My apology sir, I was about to eat when I was summoned."

"That is quite all right. Maybe Queen Elsa could spare a roll for you," Steen comments.

"Oh no sir, this will not take long. I'm sure what little I can add will only valid one, who is here." He walks past and stops one step in front of Kai. He bows to Queen Elsa. "Majesty, you summoned me." He stands and falls into those beautiful blue eyes a little too long.

Elsa says with a slight smile, "I said five minutes. You cut it close."

"If I misunderstood the five minutes, next time please provide clearer instruction for my simple mind."

"Noted, please tell me what transpired an hour ago by the stables." She asks with a slight smile.

He continues to stare into her eyes. Only her slight movement causes him to blink. "My testimony is not worthy in the company of the four distinguish gentlemen. I'm sure they withheld nothing from you as representatives of their countries."

"Each has given their accounts of the event, but what I saw, you were the only one holding a sword. Two guests had blood on them. If I could see as you see it, you would not be here."

"In due time you will see and know as I see –"

She interrupts, "Until that time happens," she shifts her body to the left and faces him, "tell me what happened."

"But –"

"I insist," she commands.

"Yes, ma'am. I heard human activity outside the stables thinking the guards were getting too close to the walls, I went outside to chase them away. I observe Prince Georg holding his own against Dimitri in sword play. Ivan interfered. As I approached Ivan raised his sword towards me. I took it out of his hand and used it to slap Dimitri's sword out of his hand."

She points at his arm. "Is that how your sleeve was cut, taking Ivan's sword?"

"That occurred a few seconds before I took his sword away."

"Interesting, anything else?"

"No ma'am."

She turns towards her guest. "You are dismissed. Please do not leave the castle grounds."

"Yes, ma'am," he bows. As he walks towards the door, he stops behind Rodolf's chair with his head turned slightly towards the others and speaks in French. "I have found him." He continues towards the door.

Lamar does not speak in French. "Who is it?"

By the door, Sam looks at Lamar. "He is like us."

Lamar briefly glances at Rodolf and barely nods to Sam.

"Samuel, Go to my study and wait for me." He nods to his Queen.

A short time later, Sam sits on the floor of Queen Elsa's study. The door slowly creaks open. He scans the room and detects no one. The door creaks close. He listens for any sounds, then detects a heartbeat. The sand slides between a shoe and the floor. His fist closes. His body tenses for a sudden movement. Other than the heartbeat, silence blankets the room for several moments. The intruder takes another step. Sand crunches under their shoes. The intruder takes another short step. He prepares to roll at the onrush of air from the intruder's movement, but the silence becomes deafening. He is not detecting anyone. His mind searches for those he cannot detect, Gerda? A new clue enters his nose. The telling hint of a fragrant which limits the target to be one of two people. Both targets have worn the same perfume. The temperature along his neck decreases.

She whispers, "If I were going to kill you, you would not be hearing my whisper." The fringes of her blond hair comes into view and she blows a cold mist at him.

"If I thought I was in danger, you would have been dead by the second step. Am I in danger?"

She walks past him towards her desk. The way she walks, his eyes are pulled towards her. He wants to reach out to her, but he vowed to keep his promise. Perhaps she is test him, but only a cold dip in the fjord waits for him. He stands with his feet shoulder width apart and his hands clasped behind his back. He waits for her comments. Moving behind the desk, she sits. Adjusting her papers, she dips the quill in the inkwell and writes on the paper. After a moment, she looks up and studies his face. She writes on the paper. After repeating the sequence several times, she lays the quill down and sits back in her chair. A slow moving smile forms on her lips. "Who is this person you found that is like you?"

"One of the eight who arrive today is not who they claim to be. I have narrowed it down to two and had hoped they would have reveal themselves, but they did not. I do not know exactly what will be done, but I believe harm is coming your way."

"Who are the two and what harm do you expect?"

"I do not wish to reveal at this time in case I am mistaken. You must always have plausible deniability." He partially turns his body to stare at the door and a few seconds later comes a knock. Kai opens the door and Prince Georg enters. Sam and Georg glare at each other as the Prince walks past him.

Elsa meets Georg in front of her desk. She points to Sam. "He has it narrowed to two individuals. How many have you narrowed it to?"

Georg replies, "I had five, but since he is in here, it is down to four."

He continues to stare at Georg. "Interesting."

She glances at Sam and stands next to Prince Georg. "You may not understand my reasoning, but I contacted the Southern Isles last winter. Prince Georg is an envoy for King Frederick. What Hans did, he did on his own."

Georg comments, "Maybe we did not treat him properly, but Hans had the best of everything that we could provide for him. King Frederick sent him to establish trade. We had no idea of his plans to take over Arendelle and for that we apologize. I hope to mend the damage Hans did. We have learned there are those forces who wish to depose of Queen Elsa. I have tracked two individuals here. The other two have not been cleared of suspicion. I was warned, due to your blatant disrespect for authority, you may be a distraction for somebody else."

He glances to his Queen. "Do you think I'm in a distraction?"

Elsa's hesitation was enough to verify what Prince Georg had said. She states, "You have placed yourself in circumstances that I had asked why, so in a way you have distracted me from my duties."

His face tenses for a few seconds. He steps back bring his feet together and placing his hands to his side. He looks at Elsa. "The number one task is your protection. If I am distracting you from your schedule, I will step back. I will do as you ask, but if I feel you are an imminent danger I will intervene and deal with your anger later."

Prince Georg steps towards him. "You will do as you are told." Elsa places her hand on his chest stopping him. "If you cannot follow orders you need to leave. My brothers and I will protect Arendelle."

His eyes dart to Prince Georg and blurts out, "Yes, you and your brothers did a fantastic job protecting Arendelle from your brother Prince Hans. Today you showed your skills of protection with the scratch on your face and on your arm from two Russians who have their own ambitions. Do you plan on standing next to her the entire time the negotiations are going on?"

Georg takes another step towards him, but Elsa pushes on his chest to stop. "When this is over, I will show you my skills with the sword."

He stares directly at Georg, "did you fall asleep? Did you not see me disarm Ivan and Dimitri? You're a stupid little man. Maybe you are here to finish what Hans did not."

Georg starts to pull the sword, but Elsa places her body between them. "Samuel leave. Stay in the stables. I will contact you. Leave now."

He takes two steps back and bows to her. With his hand resting on the door handle, he comments over his shoulder. "You draw your sword in my Queen's presence, be prepared to eat it. This is your only warning." He slips out the door.

Elsa stares at the door. Why is he concerned? He spoke directly to Lamar. He said they are like us. If Lamar is an assassin, who is his target. Is there another assassin? Is this what mother meant? When Sam becomes aggressive, is he on the prowl for a target? She said to get out of his way and let him do his job. He will tell you later.

Georg rants, "King Frederick would not put up with that attitude from a servant, let alone from any of his brothers. I'm sure my brother would have had him flogged if he disrespected him the way the stable boy disrespected you. He would have given him one chance before banishing him from the kingdom."

She moves to the door as she asks, "You said you had four. Who are they?" Her hand slowly sweeps across the door, until it begins to tingle. She locates the maximum tingle. Her hand presses on a cold spot on the door.

"I do not have enough information to name names. I hate to say it, but I have to agree with Sam's statement. You must always have a plausible deniability. If I am wrong I will deal with the consequences. Majesty?"

The tingle moves up her arm and into her body. Her heart slows. Calmness rest on her shoulders like a warm blanket. For a moment the world fades away. _I need you to do your job and find out what they are doing._

"Majesty, is anything wrong?"

The cold spot disappears. Her hand grips the door handle. "Prince Georg, despite what you think about Samuel, I have been told he does not warn anyone. He resolves the issue. Today is your lucky day. Please do not become an issue for him." She opens the door. "He has his assignment and you have yours. If the Southern Isle is a friend of Arendelle, one of you better find the assassin, before they strike."

For three days, he watches all who enter and leave the castle. He was ready to conclude that he made a mistake concerning her guest, but on the third day the weather changed. He finished his chores in the stables and walks to the gates to greet the arrivals. Near the crest of the bridge, he spots two individuals dressed in finer clothes. He motions to one of the guards standing by the gate. "Who are these two fancy pants coming across the bridge?"

The guard looks across the bridge and snorts. "They must be from the Spanish ship that arrived early this morning."

He notes the taller individual carrying a small box under his arm. "I did not know the Spanish sent delegates."

The guard comments, "I was not informed of any Spanish delegates' but the Danish assistant did ask what he needed to do to get two guests through the gates. I told him Queen Elsa would have to approve his guest entry."

A second guard approaches the two gentlemen. The taller one hands the box to his partner and opens the box. A small vile of white powder and a larger bottle with a brown liquid rest in the box. The second guard waves the two through the gates.

When the two Spaniards were half way to the castle, Sam approaches the second guard. "What's in the box the two lovely gentlemen are carrying?"

The guard hesitates. "The Danish delegate needs his evening medicine."

Sam follows the Spaniards to the castle and peeks through the door. The two speak to someone around a corner. They exchange the box for a small pouch. The two open the pouch and smile at the contents. They move towards the door. He stands next to a cart loaded with vegetables. He waits for the Spaniards pass behind him.

"This is not what they promised." He steps back into the closest one and the back of his hand stays in contact with the Spaniard long enough to retrieve useful information. "My apology gentlemen, a lot of work to prepare for this evening and they send this stuff. The head master will take it out on me."

He marches into the castle. Less than a minute later, he exits the kitchen door and observes the Spaniards pass through the gates as he continues to the stable's service door. Inside, movement by the table attracts his attention and he steps to the side of the door.

Gerda in her normal staff clothing and a full length apron slides a sandwich across the table. "What secrets did you discover?"

"I did not know the Spaniards are in the habit of delivering medicine to the Danish delegates. I believe it is at least a four day trip from Spain." He sits at the table and picks up the sandwich. "How did the Danish notify the Spaniards, he needed medicine?"

"Maybe he sent a request before leaving home."

He bites into the sandwich.

Gerda nods to the door. "Queen Elsa is having a little gathering in the ballroom this evening. Several prominent residences of Arendelle will be there. I think we'll need help serving the food and drinks. Would you be interested?"

He grins and takes another bite. His hand covers his mouth. "I will do whatever you ask as long as I'm in the ballroom with her."

She places a clean shirt and trouser on the table and holds a small bottle of brown liquid. "Use this to clean your stinky body before you put these clothes on." She sets the bottle on the table and stands. "Make sure you arrive before sunset and do not be late. The guards may not let you in." She exits through the door and a warm breeze brings in the delicacies cooking in the kitchen.

He takes the remnants of his sandwich outside and walks along the side of the stables. He stuffs the last piece of the sandwich into his mouth and stops by the water barrel for a drink. A warm breeze draws his attention to the clouds gathering in the southeast. "Great, hopefully the storm will pass after the party. My Queen, can you afford a headache now." He moves towards the stable's main gates starts to close them when he senses someone watching him. At the second floor window, a set of beautiful blue eyes stare at him. He waves and she waves back. Stepping into the stables he closes the gates.

Sometime Later, he places the top back onto the bottle with the brown liquid. He adjusts the trousers and shirt. "Evidently, someone has my measurements. They did a good job." His fingers comb his hair. A horse sniff in his direction. He sniffs his shirt. "Have to smell pretty for the Royal guest." Two horses neigh at him. "Very funny, I don't smell like a flower." Several horse neigh as he departs.

 **8572**

 **End of Chapter**


	33. Chapter 32 Poisoned

**Title: Chapter 32: Poisoned**

 **3 years, 10 months until correction**

A bee hive of activity in the kitchen pushes Sam into the service hall. Gerda smooth a wrinkle and tucks a little excess of his dark green shirt into his black trousers. She walks around and inspects him. "They did a good in the fitting."

Sam notes the other servants wear a green jacket with Arendelle symbols over olive green shirts and long dress. They wear their server's white gloves. He opens and closes his bare hands.

She grabs his hand with her white gloved hands. "We did not have time to get you gloves or you would be wearing them."

"You should have said I needed gloves. I have gloves that I do wear."

"Not those nasty ones you use in the stables?"

He cups her hands together. "I actually have ceremonial gloves, but I also note that I will stand out since I'm not wearing the same clothing as your staff."

She slips her hands out of his hands. "Queen Elsa wants you to stand out. I want everyone in the room to know you are there, in case something happens that should not."

He steps back and bows to her. "Then I will do my best to stand out."

"Follow me." She leads him into the ballroom. "Stand by this table. Your job is to make sure no one gets near the food table until our Queen has announced the food is ready." She moves to the second table. "Again no early drinks until our Queen says it's okay to do so. Any questions?"

"I'm to guard the food and drinks until Queen Elsa says it's time to eat."

"Yes, I'm sure your size will deter most of the guests, but there will be those who think they are privileged enough that the rules do not apply to them, so be polite and urge them to wait."

"How much force am I allowed to use in urging them."

She presses her finger into his chest. "No force, no violence, no ruff talk, be polite, you represent me. Don't embarrass me, okay?"

"If they are not polite –"

She interrupts, "No, a few will be rude and the others will watch for your reaction. They will test you."

"If you know they will test me, why am I here?"

She watches the staff bring in the plates, drink glasses, and utensils. "Queen Elsa wants you here. She said you will be meeting someone." She looks at him. "Would you care to reveal who that is?"

"Not at the moment and I assure you their test will fail, but let one of them touch me. They will lose a finger."

Kai walks past them. "You told him no violence?"

"I'm not a monster."

She touches his arm. "There will be at least two guests who remember what happened in the courtyard twenty-two years ago."

He whispers, "Does she know?"

"I'm not sure what her mother told them about the incident, if anything. The two guests were old at the time. They may not remember. Just don't give them an excuse to use you against our Queen."

"I will do my best, but if the person I'm to meet is here, I will do what is necessary to protect our Queen."

She squeezes his arm. "That is all I ask. You will be alright." She leaves the room.

He scans the room's defense and searches for any likely approaches of an attack. For the next thirty minutes, the staff set up additional tables and bring in the food and beverages. Guards line up on each side of the door to funnel the guest towards the dais at the other end of the room. Sam stands tall in front of the Queen's throne with his hands clasped behind his back and his feet shoulder width apart. His eyes partially close as he scans the people waiting for the doors to open. He searches for an obvious lack of energy or void in the group. All guests radiate energy. He expands his search to the whole castle and detects a void. He feels a presence and blinks his eyes open.

Captain Larsen stops next to him. "Do you remember when there were two thrones up there?"

He doesn't reply.

"Why are you here?"

 _I'm not the enemy._ "I'm here to protect the Queen."

The Captain slaps the back of his shoulder. "Well, that is a relief. Since you are here, I can send the guards back to the barracks. I believe several of them had their leaves cancelled to be here. They will be happy to know you are here."

"Your cup of sarcasm over-flows. Do you know the person who will make an attempt on our Queen's life?" Larsen shakes his head. "Nor do I, but a few minutes ago, that person left a clue to their identity." He looks back at the hall door. "You keep them under control. I'll handle the uninvited guest."

Halfway across the room, Kai asks, "Everything under control gentlemen?"

Larsen replies, "All is ready."

Kai signals for the doors to be open.

Larsen comments, "Good hunting, let me know if I can help."

Sam walks back to his assigned position in front of the center table and assesses each guest entering the room. All generate an innate energy signature. After all the guest have entered, they close the doors. Near the dais Kai announces the Queen of Arendelle. All bow to her. He hesitates to bow as he scans the entire room. Halfway into the bow, a void appears on the far side of the room. He stands and searches for the void, but does not expect to see the Frenchman Lamar. Everyone stands. Lamar makes eye contact with him and slightly nods. He searches Lamar and the Danish assistant Rodolf. A glimpse towards the throne, Kai and Queen Elsa watch him. He focuses his attention towards the void.

Queen Elsa begins her speech, "Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for coming tonight on short notice. The past three years Arendelle has not participated in the region's trade negotiations. I invited four distinguish gentlemen in their fields of expertise to give guidance in trade negotiations. The past three days have been very fruitful. I am prepared to represent Arendelle in the upcoming trade negotiations in two months. I would like to introduce my four distinguish guest; from Paris France, Monsieur Lamar, from Copenhagen Denmark, Count Steen, from Saint Petersburg, Russia, Baron Ivan, and from the Southern Ilse, Prince Georg." She claps and the guest claps with her.

Sam claps still watching Lamar and Rodolf.

The clapping dies down and Queen Elsa steps back to her throne.

Kai announces, "Ladies and gentlemen and guest, the buffet is ready. Please allow our distinguish guest to pass through first."

The guest and their friends make room for Prince Georg follow by Count Steen and Baron Ivan to move to the end of the buffet table. Sam notes Monsieur Lamar is still across the room talking to Rodolf. For a split second the crowd separates. Lamar passes a small vile containing white powder to Rodolf. The vile appears exactly like the one the Spaniards past to the stranger behind the wall.

Prince Georg approaches and he steps back between the tables. "Good evening, sir." Prince Georg does not acknowledge him and walks past.

He nods to Count Steen and speaks in Danish. "Good evening Count Steen, I hope your stay has been fruitful."

Steen frowns at him. "Are you that stable boy peasant who attack two of the Queen's honored guest?"

He grins. "Yes, I am. Shall I demonstrate?" The Count quickly walks past him.

He speaks in Russian. "Was your hunt successful?"

Baron Ivan replies, "Not as successful as I was hoping, but I gained a valuable insight to your Queen. She will be tough at the negotiations, but her lack of experience will be her downfall."

"Downfall?"

"Yes, if she stumbles with the others, it will be like a pack of wolves attacking a lost lamb. She will be devoured quickly. Make the wrong agreement and she could have an army sail to her castle."

"Is that a threat?"

"Not from Russia, we currently have too many problems of our own to be concerned with a small Queendom this far away. No my friend, she has enemies a lot closer from the south. It would be a shame if she is forced into a marriage in order to save her Queendom."

"Is there a particular place I should look for such an event?"

Ivan takes a bite of a small pastry. "This is excellent. The one across the room would be a start." He glimpses the end of the table. "I believe your target is holding up the line."

Kai stands at the foot of the dais and motions with his head towards the side wall. Sam peers across the room. Lamar talks to a female guest. He nods the Ivan. "Excuse me, I hate when nobility grandstands."

"That would be a correct statement if it was true." Ivan moves to the next table. "Do not be distracted by the obvious."

Sam moves towards Lamar. He does not see Rodolf. The female scurries back to her guest. Lamar shifts most of his weight to his right foot and moves his left foot forward and hides his right hand behind his back. The castle guards have a similar defensive stance when they expect to draw their swords. No sword at Lamar's side, but he could hide a short blade under the back of his jacket or in his sleeve. He continues his approach and stops outside the length of Lamar's arm. "You are holding up the line."

"Well, Maybe Prince Georg is correct about you. You lack the proper education to communicate with the upper class in society."

He clenches his fists. "We are from the same cloth. You do not wish to reveal yourself in front of the others."

"I don't know what you are referring. You are nothing like me." Lamar brings his feet together.

"If you can get someone else to do your job and achieve the same results, let them do it. They can take the fall if they get caught." He moves his right foot a half step back.

Lamar glances at his foot. "If what you say is true, you have already missed. The question now becomes who is the target." He shifts his weight back to his right foot.

He whispers. "If anyone is attacked and you do nothing, I will hold you responsible even if it is delayed. I will find you." He aims his head towards Kai and motions for the lined to proceed. He walks back to his station while listening for Lamar to follow. Lamar exits the room and he stands between the tables. With brows slightly push together Elsa barely shakes her head. He nods to her once and continues watching the guest fill their plates and drinks.

An hour later, the staff has removed many of the plates and champagne glasses. A staffer brings in the platter of five glasses and sets it on the table closest to the dais. Lamar and Steen enter the room. They stand next to Ivan and Georg by the dais. He searches the room for Rodolf. Two glasses clink against each other at the end of the table. Rodolf runs out the side door. A staffer pours champagne into the five glasses. By the time he reaches the end of the table the five glasses are being passed to the four delegates and Queen Elsa. He searches the table for anything and a flash of red and yellow colors reflects off the floor. Kneeling beside the table, he picks up a small vile of white powder similar to the vile Lamar passed to Rodolf. He licks the tip of his finger and pours a little of the powder on it. He tastes the powder. A recognized chemical combination causes him to spit the powder into his hand and he wipes it on his trousers. He covers his left eye and scans the five drinks. The powdery substance floats in the champagne and sticks to the side of the two glasses held by Queen Elsa and Prince Georg.

Monsieur Lamar makes a toast, "Ladies and gentlemen and honored guest, let us toast to our gracious host. May she rule with honor and wisdom, Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

A chorus of agreement echoes in the hall. He marches to the dais. Slapping the glass out of Prince Georg's hand he grabs Elsa's glass and he steps back. Before she could utter a protest, he drinks her champagne.

Elsa's brows draw together and her eyes narrow. "What on earth are you doing?"

He hands the glass to the guard. "The evidence is in the glass. You two were targets." He states holding up the vile then hands it to the guard. "Asked Lamar why he hand this vile to Rodolf."

"How dare you accuse me, peasant." Lamar tosses his drink onto Sam's face. "You have dishonored me and I demand satisfaction." His glove snaps against flesh.

Lamar's feet dangle above the floor. He holds Lamar's face within several centimeters from his own face. He whispers, "To the death, no doubt."

Lamar struggles to breathe and forces a reply, "powder antidote."

Sam detects a fruity smell and drops him. Lamar falls to his knees, gasping for air. The French assistant lunges at him with a knife. Lamar trips him, sending the knife sliding to a stop next to his boot. Two guards lift the assistant off the floor binding his hands.

In the distant background of his mind, he hears Queen Elsa speaking, "Samuel, get out. Do not make this worse for you."

Several pieces of metal slide against metal. Moisture trickles down his forehead. The air around him feels cold. The room moves in slow motion. Their thoughts scream at him. The chatter becomes deafening. Five swords point at him. The guards and Captain Larsen stand between him and Queen Elsa.

She says, "Take him away."

He shakes his head. "I am not your enemy. You do not have the hold that your mother had over me." He sweeps his arm towards the other guest in the room. "Most of them wish for your downfall."

He slowly turns towards the door and marches out of the room with the guards close behind him. He stops in the hall. "Where to?"

"Up stair cells," Larsen replies.

A few minutes later, he marches into the cell. Larsen commands, "Hold out your hands." The guards secures his hands with chains attached to the floor. "The evening meal will be late, but I will make sure you get a meal."

He grabs the chains and leans back to glimpse an upside down view of Larsen. "Don't bother with any meals unless your guards wish to eat it, but warn them someone may try to poison me."

Larsen rubs the back of his neck and shakes his head. His expression causes him to snicker. Larsen moves towards the door. Sam laughs uncontrollably. The door closes with a click of the lock. He continues to laugh for several minutes. The laughter abruptly stops. He stands and stares at the ghostly image with dark green eyes staring back at him in the cell window. Pressing his feet against the chains, he sits on the floor and uses the chains to hold his back straight. The cell grows dark except for the star lights.

The following morning, Gerda brings his breakfast into the cell. The chains rattle causing her to stop. "Do not bring in the food. If you insist, give it to the guard standing to the right of the door."

"You need to eat," she says.

"I will eat when I am released."

She sets the plate on the floor near him and walks out. He scans the area. A blue halo walks down the hall. "Guard, please remove this plate, before I use it as a weapon." The guard edges into the cell and removes the plate. The guard eats the meal.

Sometime later his thoughts are interrupted. "So this is how your Queen treats a hero for saving her life."

"You have come to gloat?"

"Contrary to your misunderstanding it was Rodolf who went after the one who put the poison in all of their drinks."

With his eyes closed, he turned his head towards the door. "I'm listening."

"It seems I did not thoroughly examine my assistances credentials. He came highly recommended. With a little persuasion he confessed I was his target, but it was his accomplice who said if they all died, the riches of Arendelle would be shared, but I am not aware of Arendelle being rich. Do you know?"

Sam shakes his head.

"Anyway, I will not make that mistake again."

"Who was the accomplice?"

"Prince Georg's assistant, Rodolf saw him running away. He kicked the vile of poison under the table when he dropped it."

"Did anyone drink it?"

"The two Russians did. We found them an hour later swimming in the bay. They said they were walking on the water. Your local herbalist is very knowledgeable. She created a concoction from her garden to help the Russians to pass the poison from their bodies. They have been asleep the past couple of days. Neither of them remember what happened."

His neck strains against the chains to turn his head. "Past couple of days, how long have I been in here?"

"I guess you are going on four days. Do you remember being placed in the cell?"

"Yes, Gerda brought me a plate of food the following morning."

"Try yesterday morning."

"Yesterday, what happened between yesterday and three days ago?"

Lamar answers, "That is a very good question. Now that you are using words we can understand, the herbalist will prepare a drink for you. I highly recommend you drink it. Between the local doctor and the herbalist, they have narrowed the poison to a plant the doctor calls Brugmansia genus."

"Angel's trumpet?"

"So you have heard of it, you encounter it before?"

He detects a slight shift in Lamar's voice. "I have used it under a different name that gives it an accurate description, Devil's Breath. Given just enough, the witness discredits themselves by their actions. Give a little too much, people say they became possessed before they died." He rattles the chains twisting his head. From the corner of his eye, he finds Lamar peeking through the cell door's little window. "How do you know about the plant?"

"Several years ago I was on an expedition to Brazil. At a stop along a river I had an extremely painful headache. The local Sharman took a pinch of powder from his medicine pouch and sprinkled it in a cup of water. My translator said I would feel different, but it would help my head."

"You're still here so it must have worked."

"It worked enough that I traded what I had with me for a pouch of the stuff. A friend travels to Brazil. He brings back a pouch and I use it for medicinal purposes. The Lucent of the local government, found I had it. Once they discovered its capabilities and after several accidental deaths they gave me a choice, either I helped them or my true nature is revealed to the public. As you have said since I am here, you know what choice I made."

He asks, "Who is the target?"

Lamar looks away.

"If I state a specific name will you tell me if they were your target?"

Lamar peeks into the cell. "Queen Elsa is not the target and I will do one better. No one in Arendelle is the target."

"Why are you here?"

"I was persuaded to go on this trip. There are to be two stops on the way home. I will meet with a certain individual and ask specific questions. If my assistant does not like the answers, I will sprinkle a little powder in the individuals' drink." Lamar whispers to someone close to the cell. He steps away from the door and the lock clicks. The door opens and Princess Anna enters the cell.

Sam faces the window.

Anna sits on the shelf behind him. "How are you feeling?"

He looks at her. "I remember being locked in the cell. I remember Gerda bringing me food yesterday morning. I was speaking to Monsieur Lamar. Other than that I do not remember what happened the last four days."

"Sam, you frightened Elsa. You were acting crazy in here. After you had injured several guards she insisted on coming in here and talking to you. I did not want her to be with you, but you seemed to listen to her. You calmed down and they put more chains on you."

"Did anyone die?"

"I heard you broke two arms. The rest have cuts and bruises. Sam, what happened to you?"

"Evidently the poison in the drinks was an opportunity. I thought they were trying to poison Queen Elsa and Prince Georg. Lamar tells me all the drinks were poisoned. I guess they were trying to start a war."

"War? Do you know who would have done such a thing?"

"According to Lamar his target was not here and yet someone knew he had his weapons with him. Who does Lamar think did this?

"Prince Georg's assistant and his assistants," she slides closer to him along the shelf.

"Where are they now?"

"Lamar's assistant is locked up on the French ship. Prince Georg is taking his assistant home in chains."

"That is too bad. I could have extracted the truth from them. Did they reveal why?"

She slides closer, "Hans is involved. The Frenchman is tight lipped. Do you have any information on these two?"

"Not with Georg's assistant. I was curious why Lamar's assistant did not show when I brought his trunks into the room. After the short talk with Lamar, his assistant did not show." He tilts his head. "Do you know if Elsa is going to send me away?"

"She did not say. She needs time to think. I do not think she will send you away."

"How do you know?"

"I do not. We both like you, until you were poisoned. Do you know how long . . ." She stops.

He glances at her. "How long will I continue to act crazy?" She nods. "I don't know. I have never consumed this type of plant. When my body has it under control, I will be all right."

"Until then?"

"It will be safer for everyone to stay out."

The door opens and three guards enter with swords drawn. An older female's voice speaks, "Sam, you have done it this time. You don't have the Queen's mother to protect you."

He nods rattling the chains. "You are correct. Any opportunity to help Queen Elsa went out the window when she told me to leave. I'm sure the vultures will be sniffing at her skirt if they have not already started."

"My sister can take care of herself."

"Yes, she started so wonderfully with her people. The one person who can protect her from the vultures is locked up. What if she is swooned by someone? No doubt they will insist I LEAVE." The chains pull taught. "I CAN'T COMPLETE MY MISSION IN HERE." He hears boots moving across the stone floor. Several hands pull his head back.

A small hand slips between the burly arms and pours a green liquid in his mouth. His body tenses as he swallows. His body convulses and his head breaks free of the hands. "Everyone out." Boots scuff across the floor. The door slams shut.

The female's voice calls from outside of the cell. "Samuel hold on. Let the drink do its work. As fast as you responded to the poison you should respond to the drink just as fast."

His head slumps forwards. His eyes burn and he squeezes them shut for a few seconds. He takes a deep breath and lets out a long sigh. The heaviness of his eyelids overwhelms him.

A dull pain in his head wakes him. He tries to move, but his body refuses and screams in pain. The door creaks. His mind focuses on the target behind him. Despite his neck protesting he raises his head and for a second he sees a blue tint change to green reflecting off the window. The top of the castle walls glow with the morning yellow. "Guard, please do not leave just yet." The door stops creaking. "Please tell me if Queen Elsa has returned."

After several seconds of silence the guard replies, "I do not know. I'm not privileged enough to be told those things." The door creaks again.

"Please send a message to Princes Anna. I need to talk to her." The door closes and the lock clicks. He scans the corridor. The guard stands at his post. He closes his eyes and waits.

The cell door opens and he opens his eyes. A star winks at him through the window. A person in a guard's uniform stands in the doorway. "Are you verifying I'm still here since you are not Princess Anna?"

"You injured my guards," Captain Larsen states.

"Why don't you drink the poison and let's see how you conduct yourself."

"From what I hear, if I had drunk the same amount of poison you did, I would have been dead long before I acted crazy. The foods the two Russians ate slowed the poison enough for the herbalist's antidote to work. I believe they said it felt like the after effects of drinking for several days. You are lucky you are still alive."

He moves his arms to get more blood flowing into his hands. "Luck had nothing to do with it. This is not the first time I've been poisoned. It's just the first time for this type of poison and I assure you it will not happen again, no matter how much of this poison I take." He rattles the chains as he turns his head towards the door. "Has Queen Elsa returned?"

"Why do you want to know?"

"My mission is to protect her despite my circumstances."

"No, not since you were placed in here."

"How much time has passed?"

After a few seconds Larsen answers, "Eighteen days."

"Eighteen days," he whispers. "When will you let me out?"

"When I have been told to let you out."

"Please get Princess Anna."

"Under the current circumstances that is not advisable."

He moves his right hand in a circular motion rattling the chains. The air in the room swirls picking up everything from the floor. A cold fog forms around him.

"Samuel, what are you doing?"

"I can't wait." He flicks his hand. A blast of cold air throws Larsen out the cell and the door slams shut. Ice forms around the door. He draws the heat from the shackles.

A heavy pounding sounds from the door. "Sam, stop. Our orders are to keep you in here until she gets back."

A sharp bang reverberates through the chains. A second bang followed by a third and fourth in quick succession. The chains fall to the floor. Sam steps past the chains at his feet. He sweeps his left hand across the door. Several minutes later, shards of ice spray across the cell floor. In the corridor, he sprints towards the movement. He rounds the corner and a guard passes through the door at the other end of the hall. They try to close it. He thrust his arm forward, showering the door with ice. It does not close.

Outside of the door a guard calls, "Do your duty and attack him."

A young guard cowers inside a cell's door frame. He stands next to the frightened guard. "I'm not going to hurt you. Stay here and you will see another day." The young guard tries to protect his arm.

Sam kneels next to him. "Your arm is broken. Permit me to heal your arm."

With dilated pupils and short, shallow breaths, the guard stares at him.

He places his right hand around the break and touches the back of his left hand to the side of the guard's face. "This will ease the pain. You will sleep for an hour. When the ice melts your arm will be healed."

The guard slumps against the wall and an ice cast forms around the break.

Sam moves towards the open door as Captain Larsen peeks through the small window. He charges the door and the guards scramble to get out of the way. The door swings open and he runs down the hall. He slides to a stop at the top of the stairs.

Anna, two steps below, stares at him. She asks, "Sam, why are you out of the cell? Please go back and wait for Elsa. She wishes to talk to you."

Not waiting for her to move he jumps over the rail crashing onto the floor below. He rolls to his feet and runs out the main doors. At the top of the steps he watches a dozen guards run towards him. He slowly walks to the bottom step. A chorus of swords is removed from their scabbards. He clinches his fist together and he pulls them apart. An ice sword forms between his hands. The two closest guards charge and swing their swords at him. He blocks ones sword and slices through the blade near the handle. He swings his sword striking the back of the second guard's hand, forcing him to drop his sword.

Anna yells, "What is wrong with you? He has been your friend for the past year. Every one drop your swords and get out of his way so he can leave."

Boots scuffle away from the steps and they part a path to the main gates. Those in the front row places their swords in it scabbards.

Sam glimpse over his shoulder. "That is the same spot your mother called me a monster, a number of years ago." He runs for the gate. The gate guards motion him through. He trots over the bridge and tosses his sword in the air, which shatters into sparkling snow. He passes the crest of the bridge.

The guards on the town side dismount their horses. The royal coach slows to a stop a short distance beyond the guards.

He slows his pace to a walk.

An individual wearing a white uniform with many medals and a gold rope over his shoulder moves through the guards. Prince Georg draws his sword.

Sam's attention focuses on the Prince. Again his fist slap together and draws them apart to form an ice sword. He quickens his pace and the Prince steps onto the bridge. Expecting the Prince to go for a kill shot he angles his body enough for the Prince's sword to pass between his arm and his body. The hilt of his ice sword impacts the side of Georg's face. The Prince stumbles against the bridge rail and Sam runs through the guards blocking all swords that came within his reach.

A beautiful blonde female yells from her royal coach, "Put your swords down. He is not trying to hurt you. He is trying to protect me."

The flat side of the sword slaps against the faces and hands of the few remaining guards between him and his goal. The coach door opens and Queen Elsa leaps at him. He catches her mid-air. "I will protect you."

She twists his face towards her. "I know you will not like this. Please forgive me."

He gazes into her blue eyes and remembers the last time he held her this close. He remembers telling her, those blue eyes will get him into trouble one day. Darkness from the sides consumes his vision by creating a tunnel. The back of his neck freezes. His body sways and with the falling sensation he rotates his body. Pain strikes his right knee followed by a strike to his side. His shoulder hits the road. He struggles to hold on to her, but the darkness wins. Finally, his head hits the road. His heart beat slows. Prince Georg takes her from his arms. The darkness consumes the last of her.

Sometime later he awakens in his cell. All his clothes have been removed except the loincloth. Chains around his elbows reach to the ceiling. Other chains pull his hands to the floor behind his back. Other chains pull his feet to his back and wrap over his shoulders, forcing him to stand on his knees. A thick metal band restricts his chest movements. With the stronger chains it will take him a little longer to break free, if he can. He moves his head slightly and the chains restrict his movements. Regardless of the direction he moves, another chain tightens around him. He scans the outer corridor. No one stands outside his door. He closes his eyes.

 _Why is she doing this to me? How long have I been here? Is it time for me to leave?_

Boots walk on the stone floor outside his cell. The cell door opens. Four distinctive boots walk into the cell followed by a pair of shoes.

"It will be OK, stand outside the cell with the door open." Four sets of boots walk out of the cell. The shoes move towards him and stops behind him. "You hurt seven guards trying to get you into the cell. We had no choice, but to put the chains on you. If you are not willing to listen to me, I will banish you from Arendelle. Do you understand?" Elsa steps closer. "Did you hear what I said?"

He does not reply.

She moves along the wall until she can see his face. "I know you are awake. If you do not talk to me, you will be locked up for 30 days. Do you understand?"

He does not move. He does not reply.

"You have given me no choice. Your actions dictate you are a danger to Arendelle." After a few minutes she walks towards the door. "Why did you come here?"

He whispers, "My mission is to protect you."

"What mission? Who gave you your mission?" She walks towards him.

The chains strain, but he turns his head to get a glimpse of her from the corner of his eye. "Your mother and father did."

"Why? They have been gone, four years. Any orders they may have given you, died with them. Your mission is no longer valid. I have done well for myself. I have negotiated a trade with two other kingdoms without you. My guards protect me."

"That is what your mother said when I encountered her in the town square. Less than a year later your family was almost wiped out."

"Could it be your presence almost got them killed?" She accuses.

"Will you apply the same analogy of my presence in the area that caused you to freeze Arendelle? Have you explained that reasoning to the people? It's been less than a year. I'm sure they will forgive you and blame me. After all Prince Hans was an innocent victim due to my presence under the bridge, while I healed from a stab injury caused by your ice displayed at the ball. What did the Duke say, you are a monster?"

After several seconds she sits in his view. "Your mission ended with my parents. Why do you imply your mission continues?"

"Despite what you think, you are like me. Maybe the poison had something to do with my actions. I do not know."

She holds her hands in her lap and looks away.

"How many guards did you take on your trip?"

He barely hears her reply. "Eight."

"If they lead you down a narrow corridor, two expert swordsman could have defeated them and you would be dead or a prisoner. What would happen to Anna if she receives word of your capture or death? Would she surrender Arendelle for your return?" He strains against the chains to watch her reaction.

Elsa sits in silence still not looking at him.

"I am not trying to frighten you, but I would have thought the poison in your drinking glass would have made you more cautious." The chains rattle. He twists his head the other way. "I am sorry for hurting your feelings, but when it comes to your safety everything else is secondary."

"Do you think I am able to control my Queendom? Do you think I have not considered my safety? I have advisers to assist me in ruling Arendelle."

"Who are these advisers?"

"The council advises me."

The chains rattle again and he twists his head towards her. "This is the same council who constantly interrupts you? How many of the council meets have you left with a headache?"

She does not answer, but stares at the door.

"They laugh at you. You are weak in their eyes. Ask Kai the last time he heard them make the statements, 'life would be better with a King'. If you lose your Queendom, it will be they who will take it away from you. All I ask is you hear my words, then decide for yourself."

"If I listen to your words, I have the final say? Will you follow my orders?"

"If your decisions does not endanger yourself, I will follow your orders."

Elsa watches him. "If you will stay in the stables until I call you, I will consider your words." She narrows her eyes at him. "Your eyes are a dark green."

He struggles to grin. "I have found my target." He wiggles his fingers on his right hand and flexes them straight. A cold blast shoves the guards into the corridor and slams the cell door close. Ice forms on the hinges and along the seams of the door. A sheen of ice spreads out from his knees. It travels across the floor, up the walls, and over the ceiling of the cell. The chains glisten from the ice crystal that rapidly expands.

Elsa runs to the door.

A cold fog drifts from his blueish-gray skin and creates a dense gray cloud around him. Thick layers of ice cling to the walls, floor, and ceiling, except for a meter of exposed floor under Elsa's shoes. The fog moves to within a meter of her and circles around as if a cylinder shape barrier surround her.

A crackle and a metallic snap rings in the cell. Sam forces his legs to extend. The locks holding the chains creak and break. The shackles holding the chains to the floor bend and shatter like glass. A gray hand bends and breaks the metal bands around his arms and his chest. He positions his legs underneath him and stands. The last chains fall around his feet.

The fog dissipates and the ice melts. His skin color returns to a whitish-pink. He stretches his limbs and adjust his loincloth.

Elsa with her back against the door stomps her foot against it. Guards on the other side, pound on the door. With wide eyes and a cold fog passing between her parted lips, her chest rises and falls rapidly.

Sam shakes his head and wipes the ice off his body. "I guess this was too much for you, but you needed to see the monster in me." The ice continues to melt. "The last time the monster came out, the bodies of sixty five rebellious guards littered the courtyard. You mother did not understand who I was until she stabbed my side. She wanted to see the color of the monster's blood."

A large pool of water floats in front of him. He drinks. The rest of the melted ice flows into the cracks in the floor and walls except around the door.

She steps away from the door and holds her palms towards him. "You could have broken from your chains at any time?"

"Yes, sometimes you have to do what is needed to achieve your goals, even if it means allowing chains to bind you. I needed to talk to you. I did ask. Did you not get my messages?"

She does not answer.

"I see. Queen Elsa, I never have, nor will I knowingly instigate harm against you." He sits on the shelf and leans against the wall.

After watching him for a short time, she sits across from him. "What do you want from me?"

"I will do as you ask. I will follow your orders, but please consider my words carefully. You're a very beautiful young woman and men in the area will see you as a prize to be taken. You have not practiced with your ice. Using brute force works for now. Those who have seen it will see a flaw in your actions. Those flaws will cause harm to yourself and Anna. My desire is to teach you to become comfortable with your ice. It should flow from your hands naturally. I wish to teach you proper techniques so you will use the minimum amount of ice for the maximum effect."

"How long will it take?"

"It will depend on how fast you learn the techniques. In the meantime I will stay near to protect you."

She leans towards him. "What about my guest arriving for the trade negotiations?"

"If it is for trade only, I will give pointers if you ask. I believe many will take the opportunity to introduce themselves to you for things other than trade. I advise you to dismiss them until after the negotiations."

"Do you think some will come to meet me only?"

"The two Russians wanted to do more than just meet you and Anna." He leans towards her. "Do you trust me?"

She continues to stare at him. "Your actions . . ." She looks down, then immediately turns her head towards the door. A hint of pink blossoms on her cheeks. She moves to the door. "Your actions were strange."

He adjusts his loincloth. "Did your guards find the Russians walking on the water, naked? Is that normal?" He walks to the door. Placing his hand on the frame, the ice cracks and crackles. The ice pushes the door open several centimeters. Ice fills the gaps between the door and the frame and freezes.

He walks to the window. "I will make this promise to you. If you will return my clothes to cover most of me, I promise to stay in this cell. You said thirty days. I have been here five days. I will stay for another twenty-five days. If at the end of the twenty-five days you do not come to talk to me, I will walk out of here. Any guard who tries to stop me will receive an equal amount of force against them. They will be responsible for their own injuries. This will give you time to ask your advisors and Prince Georg. During this time you should determine who your friends are and who you can trust. In twenty-five days, whether I'm here or not I will do as you say and not interfere with your negotiations."

"I will consider your words." She moves to the door.

"Do we have a deal?" he glances out the window. Four light blue orbs reflect on the glass.

"You are holding me against my will."

"Sometimes we must make a sacrifice for the greater good." He flicks his hand at the door and the ice melts splashing onto the floor. The door swings open and the guards pull her from the cell. Clothes are tossed on to the floor. The door slams shut.

Four days later the cell door opens and Captain Larsen motions for him to exit. He does not move from the cell's bench. "I still have Twenty-one days to complete thirty days."

"Queen Elsa has commuted your sentence."

"I don't believe you. Let her tell me or come back in twenty-one days." High altitude clouds with gray bottoms move across his window.

"I don't know who has a bigger horse's arse, you or the horses." The cell door closes and the lock clicks.

He chuckles, "Who has the bigger horse's arse, you or the horses? That is a good one Captain. See you do have a sense of humor."

Several hours later he detects motion outside of the cell. He stands and clasps his hands behind his back. The door opens and four guards march in with swords drawn.

"Unless the infirmary has open beds, do not get any closer."

A soft voice outside of the door comments, "Please do not threaten them. The Captain insisted they were for my protection." Queen Elsa enters the cell and stops in front of them.

His left brow rises. "Puffy red eyes, you're not getting much sleep. They are doing a wonderful job protecting you."

"I am not in the mood for your comments. The Captain said you refused to leave."

"As I said several days ago, one must be willing to sacrifice for the greater good."

"At least you are wearing the clothes. What are you sacrificing?"

"I'm not taking care of the horses. I'm sure they will be very upset when I return. While in here, I have listened to Arendelle."

"What does it say?"

"They're watching you. To rule with wisdom you must separate your feelings from your decisions." He tilts his head to look at the guards. "Captain, it would defeat my purpose to harm our Queen, but I need to speak to Queen Else without prying ears."

Captain Larsen enters the cell. "You are a prisoner. I will not allow this –"

"Wait," she points her finger at Sam. "Promise you will not harm me or the guards?"

He bows his head towards her. "I promise no harm will come to you. If the guards leave I promise to do them no harm."

"Majesty," Larsen protests.

"Captain, you and the guards can wait at the end of the hall. I accept Sam's promise."

"But?" Larsen steps closer to them.

Sam stands next to Elsa. "Captain, you have seen my capabilities. If I chose to harm Queen Elsa, do you really think you could stop me?"

He rests his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Probably not, but that would not stop me from trying."

"And that's why it would be an honor to fight by your side. You are a good and honorable soldier. I make this deal with you. Send the guards down the hall. You can stand by the door. Do whatever you need to keep the door open. I will not close it. I will not use my ice to block the door or you. I ask you not to repeat anything you may hear in this cell." He holds out his hand.

Larsen looks to his Queen, then to him. He shakes his hand and orders the guards out. He stands outside of the cell with the door open.

Elsa sits with her hands in her lap and observes him.

He sits across from her. "Some of your people are afraid. Few think I may be taking over. Word got out quickly that you were almost poisoned. This is why it is imperative that I stay in here for the full thirty days. They need to see you are in control. You need to be careful what you say to me with others nearby."

She glances at the door.

"There is no pretense with the Captain. He wishes the same for you, as I do." He glances at the door. "He was grief stricken for your parents and I know exactly how he felt. He wondered if he had let you down for not stopping them from leaving. That was one of those moments I should not have said anything to him. The day before they departed, I asked him to convince your parents to delay their trip. He said he would talk to the King. A month later he confessed he got distracted and never talked to your father or mother."

"That would explain why he gets a little teary eyed when he sees their portrait. I did not know." She dabs moisture from the corner of her eye.

"He will carry that burden for the rest of his life. Instead of telling him to move forward. I told him to honor them by protecting you and Anna for as long as he lives."

"You use his loyalty to keep him here? Does he have family or friends?"

"Why don't you find out and we'll compare notes at a later date." She narrows her eyes at him. He grins. "I don't have to hear your thoughts, but yes, I did manipulate you. You think I'm the only one who did it in the last few weeks."

She crosses her arms and huffs. "If all you do is manipulate, how do I know what you say is the truth?"

He jumps to his feet and moves to the window. "Your answer is out there." He motions to her. "Come and see if I'm telling the truth."

Her shoes crunch against the stones and she stands next to him. "What am I looking for?"

"What do you see?"

"Mostly the wall."

"And?"

She points, "The sky and a guard on the wall."

"If you see only one without the other two can you tell approximately what time of day it is?"

Her eyes search the world outside of the window. After a minute she faces him. "With only one I cannot, but seeing the guard in his coat as he walks the wall and what looks like a star about halfway up. It should be dark within an hour, so the time is after four o'clock."

"Very good, reading people is similar. It's not just what they say, but how. Their mannerisms reveal a lot about them. Most move a certain way and have certain manners. They do not realize they are doing it. A trained professional at hiding something, can control when to show their mannerisms."

"Like you?"

"With a grin and a wink at the right moment," he winks, "yes, just like me."

She places her hand on his chest. "Is this the real you or are you playing games with me?"

He slides her hand over his heart. "It is a matter of knowing what you're seeing or feeling to determine if it is the truth. I can tell you it is the truth, but you will have to decide on your own, if I have lied."

"Are you lying to me now?" She turns her head ever so slightly to reveal the sparkle in her eyes.

He notes the twinkle. "What do you feel in your hand?"

She searches his eyes and looks at her hand. She squeezes his chest muscle. "I feel it." She slides her hand a few centimeters. Her twinkle shines as bright as her smile. "I feel your heart. It is strong."

"The heart is an involuntary muscle no one controls, unlike the pectoral muscles," he tenses the muscle, "which can be controlled."

"You are playing with my mind."

"Educating, yes, playing, no, I'm an opportunist. I'm given lemons and I will make lemonade." Her expression states she did not understand. "To rule wisely, you need information from many different sources. You need to interpret the information as to what is important and what is not." He touches her arm. She does not move from his hand. "All that I have said here is the truth. Watch everyone and see how they conduct themselves. You will see a pattern which is a warning sign and can be used against them or for their benefit."

She steps back. "You have given me a lot to think about. I will appear strong and in control if I leave you in here." She moves towards the door.

He waits until she steps out of the cell. "Queen Elsa, I'll give you a useful tidbit. When you and Princess Anna are together, note what her eyes are doing. When she comes to you wanting your attention, note what her eyes are not doing."

Her right brow rises and she motions to the Captain. The cell door closes with a click from the lock.

 **END CHAPTER.**


	34. Chapter 33 Misunderstanding

**Title: Chapter 33: Misunderstanding**

 **3 years, 8 months until correction**

Late Afternoon of day thirty of his imprisonment, Sam steps out of his cell and approaches Anna at the end of the corridor.

Anna wrinkles her nose. "When was the last time you washed?"

He sniffs his shirt. "I do smell a little ripe, since these are the only clothes provided."

"Guard, please get him some clean clothes and water to wash the stench off of him. You smell worse than Sven after he has run. Let me know when he is more presentable." Anna departs the cell area.

Sam motions to the guard and waits until Anna is out of hearing range. "I need only two buckets of water. If you will be so kind, I'll be in my cell."

Several minutes later, the guard carries two buckets of water into his cell and sets them in the middle of the floor.

He motions for the guard to leave. "Give me five minutes, then send a message to Princess Anna That I'm ready to escort her."

The guard points to the door. "She is waiting around the corner at the end of the corridor."

"Then close the door and walk slowly." The door clicks shut behind the guard. He strips out of his clothes.

Four and a half minutes later he opens the cell door and meets Anna at the end of the corridor.

She sniffs at him, then leans closer and sniffs again. "You smell like clean air in the mountain. How did you wash so quickly?"

"The water provided comes from the mountain. Very few can replicate my cleaning technique with this effect."

She narrows her eyes at him. "Okay, on your honor for not causing any more trouble, Queen Elsa wishes to speak to you in the council room. She is waiting for you, now."

He steps through the door and motions with his hand for her to lead.

Anna stops at the end of the hall leading to the council room. "Go on. You are a few minutes late. She is waiting."

"So you have said, twice." He walks past her. Half-way down the hall, he opens the Council Chamber door and glances into the dark room. He looks up the hall and is alone. The door starts to close behind him when a squeak sounds on the other side of the room. The door closes behind him. Only the barest of light peaks from behind the window curtains, but not enough to reveal what caused the squeak noise. With his back against the door, he feels no threat. He waits for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but is prepared to attack if needed.

Many minutes pass, but his vision only sees shadows. He is tempted to shift his vision into the defensive spectrum, but promised Queen Elsa he would not. She said the eye color shift made the staff uncomfortable, so she passed a rule he could not use his enhanced vision except when in imminent danger. As long as there were no strangers, he would comply. He waits several more minutes. The light in the room does not improve his ability to see.

A shadow passes near the window and a second later a soft ruffle hits the floor. He takes two steps to his left and counts off six steps forward.

His knuckles scrape on the edge of the table against the wall. He slowly steps off fifteen steps, just in case someone left their chair away from the table. On the fifteenth step his hand catches the corner of the second table near the window.

The light from the window decreases and creates more shadows. Five steps towards the center of the room and he touches the table without running his hand into it. He slowly counts his steps. At step seventeen a colored material on the floor similar to the train on Elsa's dress shines in contrast with the floor. A shadow resembles a person kneeling behind the chair next to the color material. He glances at the room and looks back at the shadow. The cloth barely moves. After couple of very cautious steps towards the material, he pulls at it. "Got you."

The material pulls a chair over with a loud bang on the floor. The noise echoes in the room.

Across the room Elsa replies with a giggle. "No, you did not."

In a hurry to move back to the door, his boots catch on a chair, which trips him. In his descent to the floor, his hand contacts the floor a bare moment before his face impacts the back of his hand.

"Anna, open the door." Elsa laughs nervously.

The door opens and Elsa exits the room. The hall light shines on Anna's dress before the door closes. The lock clicks. He smiles at himself, knowing he has been bested by two sisters. "I do declare the signs were there and I ignored them. I fell into your trap."

He lies on the floor to determine which hurts more, his pride or the physical pain of falling over the chair. After several minutes of watching shadows walk back and forth under the door, he slowly gets to his feet and sets the chair upright. His knee, hip, and side ache from the fall, but he knows he lost the bet. It is time for him to take his punishment for his arrogance. She was correct. Without his special abilities, he could not win against her.

"Elsa, I will not make this mistake again."

He hobbles towards the door. Along the way, his knee hits a chair and the back of his hand finds the table again. Finally reaching the door, he knows it's locked, but tries the door handle anyway. The door is locked. His head takes the moment to leave its imprint on the door several times.

From the other side two distinctive female voices giggle.

"Who is it?" asks a voice which sounds a lot like Anna but with more giggling.

"Ok, you win."

"We can't hear you." That voice sounds like Elsa.

He speaks louder. "I said you win."

Several moments of silence pass before Anna speaks, "What did she win?"

"What we agreed upon." He shakes his head so now the torture begins.

He puts his ear to the door and listens carefully. Whispers come from the other side, but not loud enough to understand what they are saying.

Anna comments, "Elsa stepped away for the moment. What was the agreement if she wins?"

Without actively scanning the corridor, he is sure Elsa is standing nearby waiting for his reply. "I will do whatever she asks of me excluding a safety issue."

"And?"

"And I am not to complain, but cheerfully, do it to the best of my abilities." With each passing moment evidence builds against him that he has made a serious mistake under estimating Elsa with this game of chance. The evidence concludes this was set up. Again he smiles to himself. Up to this point he did not think she would take a chance. She is intriguing.

"And?"

His eyes roll. "And I will be more patient with her when she is in the council meeting. And I will patiently listen to her express her frustrations and will not suggest solutions unless she asks for them."

"One more," she says with a snicker

"Anna, are you laughing at me?" He frowns at the door.

"Yes, we are. You still have one more." Several females laugh.

"Great an audience, help me out. With most of my brain shut down, I'm having difficulties remembering." A roar of laughter impales a sting in his heart.

Anna stops laughing enough to speak, "It has to do with eating."

"Eating?" He steps back from the door. _Now she is taking advantage of me. I promise this will never happen again._ "Does it have to do with the way she eats?"

"What about the way I eat?"

There is no mistaken who asked the question. "Queen Elsa . . . I thought you had stepped away." He places his ear on the door but hears only silence. "Queen Elsa, I don't remember. What did I agree about eating?"

"How often do we eat together?" Elsa asks.

"Not very often."

"And when we do what are you doing?"

He struggles to recall what he did the last time they ate together. It was not important to him, so he does not remember. Obviously, the event was important to her. He recalls sitting at the table with Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff and remembers thinking about other things, but also recalls several expressions Anna shot his way. He steps away from the door and closes his eyes.

 _I know I said I would not, but this is important to you, so I need to see._

A blue hue reflects on the door as he focuses on Anna. He sees what she saw at the dinner table. He is staring down.

 _That's it._

He answers, "I just sit there."

Silence comes from the other side of the door.

"You have expressed a desire that I either eat a meal with you or talk with you about what I think and why. You have said, sometimes you feel like you are hindering me while I'm looking around."

 _She just wanted me to be understanding and to have a moment of rest in-between her royal duties._

He nods to himself, "Queen Elsa, are you still there?"

"Yes," her soft voice answers.

"I'm sorry. I thought you wanted your space. I thought I was putting pressure on you. I like listening to you. I want to know what you feel and think and desire. I guess in trying not to interfere with your duties, I have been kind of standing off from you. No, I'm wrong. . . I have not been listening lately and that is the last thing you wanted from me." Then a question occurs to him. "Is this why you wished to play this game with a bet?"

"See, I told you he would figure it out," Elsa answers.

"Is this my brick?" It could be worse depending on how hard she wishes to make her point.

A quiet giggle replies, "Yes."

"Queen Elsa, if you are willing to be patient with me, excluding safety, I will do as you ask. Since statistics will show it takes an average of twenty-one days to change a behavior, I propose a modification to the deal. For four weeks I will do as you say. Excluding safety, I will not question. I will not complain. I will have meals with you and I will eat whatever you eat. I will go where you want me to go. I will be as diplomatic as possible no matter who it is, agree?"

"As Queen you will do as I command, no fuss, no comments, excluding safety?"

"I promise on my honor, yes." A strategic retreat to fight another day is better than a defeat. He could have surrender to his death, but who better should he surrender. What is done is done.

A click of the lock temps him to open the door quickly, but then the action could imply he lied or still does not understand. He waits for the humiliation to begin.

"Samuel?" Elsa asks.

He replies dejectedly. "I am here."

"That does not sound very enthusiastic," comments an unrecognized female's voice.

"Shush," Elsa snaps. "Samuel . . . do you trust me?"

"Trust, you've been talking to Anna about trust haven't you?" He glares at the door. A snicker sounds from the other side of the door.

Elsa chastises, "Anna, you are not helping, please be quiet. Samuel, do you trust me?"

He hesitates. "That is the question of this century. Please understand I have always had a commanding officer, male or female, over me. I knew what I could and could not do, but just as important, I knew what they could or could not do. If they earned my respect by their actions, I knew they had my back and hopefully they knew I had their backs."

His head rest against the door. "But you are not like them. You have absolute authority over everyone in Arendelle to include me as long as I'm here. I have seen you make decision and yes, I have questioned some of those decisions to the point of vocalizing it. And yes, I know afterwards by my actions I had put you in a bad light or made you appear weak in front of the council. For all of those times, I ask for your forgiveness."

He pauses and takes a deep breath. "As a commanding officer, I would never allow one of my subordinates to treat me the way I have treated you. So why did I do it?" He waits and then adds, "I deserve whatever punishment you deem appropriate for me."

Whispers come from the other side of the door. Several seconds pass in silence, then more whispering. Elsa bellows, "Samuel, stop talking and answer the question. Do you trust me?"

He whispers to himself, "That's what LadyCat and Krystal tried to say to me and I did not listen to them. My strengths are to know who to trust. She is asking the same question. Why is it difficult for me to answer her?"

The palm of his hands press against the door frame and he rolls his head to place his cheek against the door. "Elsa, I have always relied on myself. I did not learn. This will be very difficult for me, but . . . I do trust you." In a louder voice, "YES, I DO TRUST YOU."

"Good, your payment for losing the bet starts now and for the next four weeks I will hold you to your agreement." The door opens just enough for him to see her. "Take your shoes off."

He hesitates as his eyes fixates on her dress similar to her coronation dress with gloves and a purple cape, except her single braided hair draped over her right shoulder. She taps on the door. It takes a minute to get his boots off and he hands them through the door.

"Your shirt, take it off," She commands.

He quickly hands his shirt out the door.

She points to his pants and with a cold voice she commands, "Take your trousers off."

Several females giggle out of his sight. He opens his mouth to protest, but she points her finger at his face. "No arguments, take your trousers off, now."

He steps behind the door and takes his trousers off. A little self-conscious causes his hesitation, but he reaches around the door and hands her his pants. He hears movement in the hall.

In a stern voice she commands, "Take your undershirt and underpants off."

"But."

"No," Elsa voice becomes harsh. "Take them off, now."

 _Break them down completely. Take away their identity. A good tactic to break down someone's will._ He removes his pants and shirt and hands them to her.

Her voice does not waver the harshness in her tone. "Take off anything else I may have missed. Put them in your sox and hand them to me."

He removes his sox and hands them through the door, but no one takes them. He slowly looks around the corner. Her gloved hand takes the sox.

Her calm and gentle voice speaks to him. "I know this is hard for you, but I know you can be the good soldier you think you can be, so trust me. Come on out and stand before me."

His heart jumps into his throat. His eyes close as he whispers, "It will be what it will be." He opens his eyes and stands tall. His hand clench to his side. Stepping back and reaching for the door handle, he is ready. The door swings open and he marches to the middle of the hall and stops. He looks left. Elsa holds his clothes and his shoes. He executes a military left-face and takes two steps towards her. He sees no one and expects a roar of laughter to come from behind him, but there is none. At no time does she look down, snicker, laugh or make any comments. Her demeanor is that of a professional leader, no nonsense, direct to the point. He is now sure he has made a mistake. She is not weak. If she can carry it through to the logical conclusion, she would be a formidable adversary.

She does not waver in maintaining eye contact. "Do you know why I am doing this?"

He replies in a dejected voice, "My erratic actions of the last month."

"What about your actions?"

"Several guards had a concern about my most recent outburst of arguing with myself. I recall I did apologize to the guards, but still they took over the duty of delivering my meal instead of Gerda."

"Do you remember what the argument was about?"

He glances away.

"Look at me and answer the question."

His facial muscles tense. His eyes focuses on her eyes. For a brief second, the edges of everything is outlined with a blue tint, but undulating blue energy radiates from her.

For a briefer second still, her head shifts back as her eyes widened. Her lips part but she does not speak. Her hand glistens with a layer of ice crystals, before she slides his clothes over it.

He answers her question. "My comments were against you. The argument they heard, I was trying to determine if I should tell you or not. Gerda said I became vocal rather loudly. I assume we are here because she told you."

She shifts her body to stand taller. Her chin lifts slightly. "Tell me why I am doing this?"

 _Did she see my scanning mode? Did she see a weakness? Has she found the courage to look inside of herself to be the leader she needs to be? I sure hope so. I pray she can help me._

He answers, "In order to get someone to willingly follow, you push them to the point of either running away, in which case you don't want them in battle, or get them to . . ." He stops and looks just past her as he remembers the last time he did the same thing.

She takes a half step to the side to get into his line of sight. "Say it."

"Get me to trust you."

"Why?" she snaps at him.

"So I will follow you."

The corners of her lips turn slightly up. "Are you a good soldier?"

He does not hesitate. "Yes ma'am."

"Good, when I turn around you will follow me. You will stay exactly two steps behind my cape. Do not step on it. Do you understand?"

"Yes ma'am."

She raises her finger towards his face. "First, I don't like to be referred to as ma'am. You will call me by my name proceeded by my title or you can say 'Majesty', do you understand?"

"Yes, Majesty."

She whips her cape around and marches towards the staircase.

He considers he may have unknowingly fallen through another time portal and everything has been turned upside down.

 _Why am I following her? She has made mistakes, shown poor leadership, and had foreign dignitaries disrespect her with their demands for trade. I could have ripped the dignitaries head off for saying Queen Elsa was a slow thinker and that she should be careful someone doesn't take Arendelle from her. I have expressed myself at inappropriate moments and more than once she has displayed her angry face at me. Yet I pushed. I never allowed anyone to treat me or any of my officers, the way I have been treating her. What has changed that I do this._

"Stop, stand here and do not move."

He glances down. Too close to her cape, he steps back. He stands at attention and watches her continue to the stairs.

She looks over the rail and tosses his clothes over. "Thoroughly wash his clothes and do not give them to him without my permission."

She whips her cape around and stares into his eyes. She walks towards him and points to a door. "This is your room until further notice. Do not sleep in the stables; do not walk around the castle; do not leave your room as long as I am in my room. You will escort me where ever I go. In two days I need you to show me that you can be a good soldier. I will be entertaining guest. That will be your first test. You will not speak unless they speak to you first, no facial expressions, or hand jesters. You will attend to all of my needs no matter the time of day. You will always be on my right. You will always offer your arm to me. Whether I take your hand or elbow you will always offer it to me. Face the door."

He executes a military left face and faces the door.

She moves around him and bends his arm ninety degrees. "Make a fist with this arm." She adjusts his arm and places her hand on top of his hand. "This is the height you will offer your arm, no higher and no lower. Do you understand?"

"Yes Majesty."

"When we walk I will step first and you will step off on the same foot as I do. When I stop do not continue past me. You will always be slightly behind at all times. Do not end up stopping in front of me. That alone will tell everyone I made a mistake in believing in you." She turns her head slightly towards him. "Did I make a mistake choosing you?"

"No Majesty."

"Good, inside your room are clothes laid out on the bed. You will wear them for the time being. You have fifteen minutes to clean up and put on your uniform. You will stand on the left side of my door. Knock on the door once and wait for me to answer. I will come out and quickly inspect your clothing. You will escort me down the stairs to the ballroom. If you get everything right, you will get further instructional training. If you do not you will repeat the task until you get it right however long it takes. Do you understand?"

"Yes Majesty."

"Good, fifteen minutes, do not be late." She walks towards her room.

The door closes behind him. The room is bigger than his sleeping space in the stables. The stable's small cooking fireplace would fit inside of the room's fireplace. Even the bed is larger than his sleeping space. A small table against the wall is too small to be a writing table. He moves to the bed and a dozen articles of clothing lie on it.

 _Too many clothes, why do they have to make it complicated._

At the side table he pours water from the vase into the bowl. Soaking the hand towel he scrubs all area's the small towel can reach.

 _I don't feel clean, just wet. I know her intent is that I smell clean so let me do it my way._

He pours the water over his shoulder. As the water runs down his body, it creates a layer of ice. Enough water covers his body except the bottoms of his feet. His muscles tense and his body flexes. The ice cracks. He twirls his hand. The air rotates around him. Small flakes of ice ride the breeze into the bowl and melt. A few of the heavier pieces fall to the floor. He uses them to clean the bottom of his feet.

 _That feels better and I still have six minutes. I can do this._

He puts on his clothes, but a few articles remain on the bed. He shakes his head.

 _Way too complicated._

He removes two articles of clothing to put on one then has to remove one of the two again to get the other articles of clothing installed in the correct order.

A door in the hall opens then closes. He estimates there is still two minutes. He gets his sock and shoes on and rushes out the door. Looking in both directions he proceeds down the hall. Standing on the left side of the Royal Suite and after a quick inspection of himself, he knocks on the door once. His arms hang fully extended to his side. His hands close with the tops of his thumbs pointing forward. He adjusts his face forward and waits for a response.

Several minutes pass and she does not answer. Her instructions were quite clear, knock once and wait.

 _This is going to stink if the door opened and closed was the Queen. This can't be part of the test. She has shown no signs of lying or trickery. If I misunderstood the instructions, I have failed already._

He strains to hear if she is in her room, but he hears nothing. He continues to stand.

A half hour later a guard approaches behind him. "How long are you going to stand there?"

Not moving a muscle except to answer, "Until I am given further instructions."

"Who is to give you the instructions?"

"Queen Elsa."

"Good luck, I saw her in the dining room." The guard snickers and walks past him.

Samuel stands at his post waiting for Queen Elsa, but with each passing minute he draws the conclusion the guard is correct. He lost track of time. Later, a burly guard, slightly shorter than himself, approaches him. He feels more, then detects, two guards behind him.

The guard in front asks, "Why are you still standing here. Queen Elsa told me to pass along a message for you to return to your room." He lowers his voice. "You need to move, stable boy."

Samuel does not move, but stares past him.

"Whatever you think your instructions are, they have changed." The guard pokes his chest. "You need to go back to your room. If you do not, we will forcibly move you." The guard's nose is a few centimeters from his chin. "Do you understand?" The guard places his hand on the hilt of his sword.

A guard behind him comments, "I think he is ignoring you. Maybe we should teach him some manners."

Two more guards approach in front of him. The burly guard steps to Sam's right side and grabs his right arm and wrist. The guard barely applies force to the arm when Sam's left fist impacts his face. The burly guard stumbles back and falls to the floor.

The other four guards lunge at Sam simultaneously pinning him against the wall. Each tries to lay a punch on him, but they receive just as many hits as they deliver. One gets in close to plant a knee into Sam's lower abdomen.

He responds with a head butt into the guard's face. The guard staggers against the wall and slides down to the floor.

The burly guard gets to his feet and draws his sword.

Samuel, head butts another guard, causing him to fall back against the wall. The hilt of the sword strikes the back of his head. Sam staggers forward and the blows come fast and hard against his face. The second hit with the hilt of the sword to the side of his head causes him to collapse. He does not defend against the boot impacting his chest. He closes his eyes, but is aware of who hit him last.

The burly guard pushes the guard ready to strike Sam again. "Stop." He sheathes his sword. "Pick him up and put him in a tower cell. I'll report this to the Captain."

The guards roughly drag Samuel to a holding cell and chain him to the floor. The guard who stomped on his chest takes a final kick at him before they close the cell door.

Queen Elsa slowly walks up the stairs towards her room. Her head hangs low thinking about Samuel's failure. _I thought you understood. I thought we were communicating. Did I push too soon?_

She stops outside of his room and knocks. No reply. Knocking again she opens the door. His new clothes are missing. A spot of water on the floor shimmers near the table.

She closes the door and returns to the Royal Suite. Sitting on the edge of the bed she considers what she said to him. If he had left the castle and the courtyard, the Captain would have told her. She looks in the direction of his room. "You better not have sneaked out of here. I did not ask too much of you."

Her concern transitions to clench fists. She stands by the side table and tries to release her concerns. She rips her gloves off her hands and throws them onto the table. The glove sends the cup rolling to the edge of the table. It drops into her hand close to the floor. She sets the cup back in its spot on the table.

Returning from behind the dressing curtain in her night clothes, she unbraids her hair and sits on the bed. She brushes her hair. After several minutes, the brush bounces on the back of the table tipping over the cup. She tenses her muscle and taps her head with her fists. "Samuel, where did you go? I thought you understood."

The next morning, Anna locked in arms with Kristoff enters the dining room chattering about what they should do for the day. Kristoff pulls out the chair to Elsa's left and Anna sits. He sits to Anna's immediate left.

Anna continues the planning. "I want to go with you when you bring back some ice and on the way there maybe Sven can run fast. Fast is fun. Maybe we could pick some berries. What do you think?"

Kristoff motions his head towards Elsa. Anna glimpses the empty chair to her sister's right then she glances down at the plate set in front of her. Her hand on top of her sister's gloved hand, "Maybe he's just a little late."

Elsa withdraws her hand and places them in her lap. She glances at the empty chair. "He did not show for dinner last night. I thought we had an understanding."

The three sit quietly. Kristoff reaches under the table and holds Anna's hand. The side door opens as Kai and a kitchen staff brings in the breakfast meal.

Kai stands to the right of Elsa. "Is it just the three of you?" With no response after all meals were served, he picks up the empty plate and departs with the staff.

Elsa looks up. "You two go ahead and eat. I will be sitting here for a while."

Kristoff speaks up, "Your Majesty, I'll go find him. I'll talk to him, man to man and find out what is going on"

Elsa forces a smile. "I appreciate your offer, but I need to resolve it since I created the situation." She breaks off a small piece of bread and lets it sit on her plate. She sips the tea from her cup.

They sit in silence. Kristoff finishes his meal. Anna eats half of her meal and picks at the other half. Elsa continues to nibble on the bread and sips her tea.

After the staff refills her tea for the third time. She rehashes the previous night's event and her mind closes out the world. She whispers, "Your instructions were simple. If you cannot follow those instructions, how will you become comfortable talking to a group of people waiting to exploit your mistakes? How will you handle the comments that will come your way? If you cannot control yourself, you could damage any negotiations." She slowly moves her head side to side.

Anna leans close to Kristoff and whispers.

"Anna, I'm the only one here. Please do not whisper at the table. Follow your future husband's example and eat your breakfast. You will need your energy for the activities and fun time you have planned for today." She places her napkin over her plate and clenches her shaking hands together. Glancing at the empty chair on her right she turns to Anna. "Please forgive the shortness of my comment. You and Kristoff have a great time together."

"Elsa, I can stay here. Kristoff will find him."

Kai burst into the room and approaches Elsa. "I have located Samuel."

Her head snaps up to him as the barest of smiles try to cross her lips. "Where?"

"He is in one of the tower cells."

Anna ask, "What is he doing there?"

"It seems there was an altercation with five guards." Kai looks to Elsa. "In front of your room."

She partially turns her body to him and hesitates. Her eyes narrow at him. "What type of altercation?"

"The guards asked him to move. He refused and said he was following orders."

Anna chimes, "whose orders?"

"Our Queen's orders, of course."

Kristoff and Anna stare at Elsa.

She closes her eyes and lowers her head onto her fingertips. "He misunderstood his instructions. I may have confused him by my actions."

Kristoff asks, "What did you say to him?"

Anna asks, "What actions confused him?"

"He was to follow behind me and not to step on my cape. In his room I told him to clean up and put on the clothes laid out for him. When he was ready he was to knock on my door once and escort me to dinner."

Anna leans towards her sister and watches her eyes. "When I left you at the council door, you had his boots, shirt, and pants. Was he wearing his undergarments?"

Her face warms as she looks away. "Not exactly."

Kristoff asks, "You took his clothes from him?"

"What else did you take?" Anna asks with an accusatory voice.

She covers her eyes, feeling a temperature change in her face. "All of it."

Anna leans closer and shakes her arm. "You had a naked man standing behind you. Did you look?"

"No, I did not look." She avoids eye contact with her sister. Between her and her future brother in law, they will not make it easy for her. Even Kai gives her a dubious expression.

Anna presses for answers. "Other than to demonstrate control, why would you embarrass him like that?"

She sits back in her chair with her head down. "That was not my intent. I was not trying to control him. Maybe my instructions were not clear."

Kai comments, "Majesty, you told me Samuel had a lot of military experience. Depending on how you spoke to him, he may have interpreted your instructions as a command from a superior officer."

Kristoff asks, "Why did he not protest your orders?"

"They were not orders." Elsa rolls her head up and looks at the ceiling as though she could see him. "I was just trying to get him to form a pattern of behavior that would be more acceptable to his environment."

Anna shakes her head as she glances at Kristoff. "Sounds like you took advantage of his military experience to get your way. I did not think you had it in you."

Kristoff nods. "He took it as an order and tried to obey."

Did she unconsciously took advantaged of him? He did follow her exactly as she said. "Do you think that is what he did? If there was any confusion, why did not he just ask me?"

Anna comments, "Maybe he did and you did not hear him."

Kai speaks up, "Did you tell him if he had any confusions he was to ask you."

She answers sheepishly, "No."

"If you did not give him a way out, he tried to complete your orders as best as he could, which explains the altercation with the guards when he refused to move away from your door." Kristoff nods.

She looks up at Kai. "Did you tell the guards to let him out?"

"I did. They said he refused to come out of the cell?"

"Why?" She grips her arms and stares at her plate. A slight frost forms under her hands.

"He said and I quote, 'The Queen gave the orders and the Queen is the only one who can resend the orders, end quote'."

"So he is not coming out unless Queen Elsa tells him to get out?" Anna sits back and snickers.

"It is not funny. This is serious." She frowns at Anna.

 _Did I completely misunderstand or did he? This is not a scenario Papa prepared for me._ She glances around the table. The others watch her. _Is he testing me? You tested me right after the coronation._

Her eyes close and she speaks louder than intended. "This is a test to determine my resolution." Her eyes open. Everyone still watches her. She glances up at Kai. "If he is waiting for me to come to him, he can wait in his cell." She stands and turns to Anna. "You and Kristoff have fun today. I will be working on my speech to the delegates." Anna and Kristoff stand as Queen Elsa departs the room.

Kai listens.

Kristoff puts his arms around Anna. "I think your sister is a little confused about her feelings for him. They are acting like husband and wife."

Anna giggles. "If you know what is good for you, you will not say that where she can hear you. She just might freeze something we will need later."

After they depart for their day trip, Gerda enters the room with a staff member and cleans the table. Kai sits at the end of the table reviewing the castles supply list. She stands next to him. "I saw Queen Elsa walking swiftly down the hall. She had tears in her eyes. What happened in here?"

"It seems our little girl has a very important decision to make. I just hope she does not wait too long."

Gerda hesitates for a few seconds. "Are you going to tell me or do I have to beg?"

"She took a calculated risk and it did not go as planned. Her decision will affect the outcome of the prisoner in the tower cell."

"Prisoner." She rolls her eyes. "Is that Sam up there? I wonder why I haven't seen him today. How long is she going to keep him there?"

"Until she realizes she has the command of life and death over everyone in Arendelle. I think if her father was here, he would talk to her about it. When I am finished, I will go upstairs and see how he is doing."

The next two mornings, Elsa arrives an hour early at the dining table. She reads the stacks of reports as she eats her breakfast alone. This morning, one report seems to be a repeat of another report she read a few minutes ago. She retrieves the other report and places them side by side. One was dated yesterday while the other one is dated for today. Both reports three guards injured during the previous evening and would not be at their duty for the following two days. Her preparations for an upcoming meeting prevented her from reading the incident reports, but more importantly, the incidents were occurring in the same cell. She pushes them aside and sits back in her chair. Her eyes close for a few minutes. When she opens them, Anna and Kristoff are seated and are finishing their breakfast.

With a yawn Elsa says, "I am sorry I must have dozed off."

Gerda pours hot tea in her cup. "My dear you look tired. Why don't you go upstairs and lie down for a short while. I'll wake you in a few hours."

She yawns again, "As much as I would love to do just that, I need to finish preparing for tonight's events."

Kai enters the room and stands next to Gerda. Everyone is silent as she writes a paragraph. She rereads the page again and sees the same paragraph written twice. With a groan, she lays the quill next to the speech and closes the ink well. Her eyes close as she shakes her fist and emits a low growl. Her elbows rest on the table as she places her head in her clenched hands.

Kai motions everyone not to say a word.

A warm hand touches her shoulder and Gerda speaks as motherly as possible, "Dear, what is wrong?"

She raises her head with puffy eyes. "He is, what is wrong. I should have had this speech finished yesterday. I cannot think of anything other than what I could have done differently that would not have created this situation."

"And?" Kai asks.

She dabs the corner of her eyes. "He is in the cell because of me." Her chair slides back from the table as she stands. "I went from not communicating to commanding him." She looks at the ceiling in the direction of the prison cells. "Maybe I need to listen to the words he uses and express myself in words he understands."

She moves around the table and hurriedly walks towards the door. "I have to get him out of there before it is too late between us"

As the door clicks close, Anna and Kristoff look at each other and they say together, "Between us?"

Anna grins. "She has never acted like that. I am not sure, but if I did not know better, I would think she likes him."

Kristoff grins. "Oh, I'm sure."

Kai shakes his head and sets a plate in front of the chair to the Queen's right.

Gerda snickers, "I'm also sure."

 **End of Chapter**


	35. Chapter 34 Respect

**Title: Chapter 35: Is Respect Enough**

 **3 years, 8 months until correction**

Samuel detects several bodies standing in front of his cell. Another person with lighter footsteps follows behind them. The door opens and one guard steps in. He counts to ten. A second and third guard steps into the cell. A fourth person with different shoes enters the cell. Unless one of the guards has found a perfume bottle, he wonders if she will recognize the cell, Hans used to chain her to the floor.

He sits on the floor with his head down and his back to the window. He does not move, but counts the number of steps of the approaching guard, ready to snap the chains around the guard's feet if they get too close, again. The lighter footstep moves past the two guards coming closer to him, but stops near the closest guard. Neither is close enough to snap the chains around their feet. A fragrant passes under his nose, not that of sweat and human odors, but that of a blossoming flower. He inhales the sweet fragrant for several seconds. There is only one who combines the perfume with her delicacy to create the pleasant sweet cool fragrance.

His head slowly rises as his eyes make contact with the icy blue eyes of his Queen. Nothing delicate or revealing, her dark green long dress with a long sleeve black bodice covers all of her. Teal color gloves accentuate her elegant hands. Her crown nestles in her braided hair. This is a side of her he has not seen, but she is making the point. She is Queen. She has control over him and the guards are there to enforce her rule.

Another memory of his love from long ago, also showed her strength that she could take command to give him a moment of rest. The memory pushes a smile onto his face.

His Queen smiles at him.

The memory fades as fast as it arrived. He rattles the chains as he stands. Two guards near the door rush forward and place themselves between him and their Queen.

Elsa pushes past the one guard. The clean shirt that was laid out on his bed did not survive the stresses it was not meant to encounter, but dry blood spots mark the slashes in the shirt where more than fists were used to subdue him.

Evidence of fresh blood from the corner of his mouth trails down his neck and stains the top of his shirt's collar. The swelling on his face partially closes his right eye.

She maintains eye contact with him. "Why is there blood on his shirt and why is his face swollen?"

The reply comes from behind her. "Because that was the only way we could get him to release the guard who brought his meals."

Elsa turns to the Captain of her Guards. "Was the guard hurt?"

The Captain approaches her. "A few bruises, nothing of significance. The other guards who came to the rescue received the worse end of the exchange until they learned to step into the cell with swords in hand."

She points at the bruise in the center of his forehead, "Did he do that to you?"

The Captain looks past his Queen to see Sam grins. "Let's just say he reminded me his reach was just past the front of my face. When the four guards had him subdued, I reminded him, he is the prisoner here, thus the blood on his face."

She pulls her lips tight and turns back to the prisoner. "Captain, I hope it is not a policy of yours to beat up prisoners," staring directly at Samuel, "even if they do deserve it."

Sam nods his head to her, but maintains his smile.

"No, Majesty. It is not my policy. The next time he is in here, we will not bother bringing food just so he could throw it at us."

Her right brow rises. "Everyone out, I wish to speak to the prisoner."

The Captain protests, "Majesty, if he attacks you."

Elsa raises her hand, interrupting the Captain. "Samuel, is it your plan to attack me?"

Samuel bows from his waist. "No, Majesty, I wish only to follow your orders."

She motions the guards out of the cell.

They gradually back out one at a time. The Captain stands inside of the door.

"Captain, I will be all right. I take him at his word as an officer and a gentleman."

The Captain steps out of the cell and closes the door, but watches through the door's window.

She faces him in her regal pose. "You may stand."

Samuel stands up. New blood from the corner of his mouth runs down his chin.

"Why are you in here?"

He pulls the chains taut. "I'm here because the guards and I had a difference of interpretation of your orders for me. They started it and I will finish it."

She moves to the stone bench.

"You probably should not sit there. I did drip my blood on it. The one near the door has the least amount of their blood and food on it."

She looks at the side bench and the bench by the door, but stands in the middle of the room facing him. "Explain to me, what was your interpretation of my request that evening?"

"What you did to me THAT evening, I understood completely. You made it known that you are in charge. I accepted it by following your orders." He moves the chains behind him and takes two steps. He leans towards her. "TO . . . THE . . . LETTER." He stands straight.

"That was not my intent."

He interrupts, "And yet I am in this cell three days, what were you doing?"

Elsa shifts her weight to her back leg and places her hand over her mouth. She looks away, then stands with her back towards him for a few seconds. Lifting her head, she rolls her shoulders back, "Captain, release him."

The Captain opens the cell door and starts to speak, but Elsa holds up her hand. "He will be under my charge, release him."

With a clang of metal hitting the stone floor, all turn towards him. He freezes the hand restraints on his left hand and shatters it against the stone wall.

The Captain points to him, "You could have done that at any time?"

"At any time on my accord, yes, but I was not on my accord." He turns his head to look into the ice blue eyes of his Queen, "I needed the Queen's permission."

She steps towards the door and a guard opens the cell door. Without turning her head, she asks, "Samuel, where is your position?"

He moves behind her. "Two steps behind your cape and I am not to step on it."

She smiles and walks out of the cell. Other guards, standing at attention, line both sides of the wall. She passes the last guard and hears the distinctive sound of flesh impacting flesh. A second later someone hits the wall with a thud followed by a thump as the person falls to the stone floor.

She stops, but does not turn. "Samuel, where are you?"

"Two steps behind your cape."

"Should I even bother asking who is on the floor?"

"I would not recommend it. It was the continuation of our different interpretations of your orders."

She slightly shakes her head and calmly breathes. "Let us go before I do not have any guards to protect the castle." She proceeds out of the prison cell area with Samuel behind her.

Later, Elsa enters his room. He stops in the doorway. She opens the box sitting on his bed and removes the clothing. Laying them on the bed, she turns to him. "You will wear these clothes." With a glance at his face and hands, she frowns. "They did not have to do this to you."

She picks up the vase on the table and motions him towards the chair as she approaches the door. "Take your shirt and shoes off."

Samuel steps to the side and she closes the door on her way out. He sits in the chair. His back and upper arms scream in pain reminding him of the harshness of sitting on the cell's stone floor and not moving for three days.

He struggles to get one boot off and sits back to rest for a moment before taking the other boot off. Gathering his strength and taking several deep breaths, with a groan, he stands. In one quick action, his shirt slips over his head and drops to the ground. Another groan escapes his lips as his back muscles tense. He draws his energy in to subdue the pain. His arms rebel as he picks up the clean shirt and drops it back onto the bed. His shaking hand touches the corner of his lip and pulls back a drop of red blood. He smears the blood between his thumb and finger. Sparkles of white light flash in his blood. He licks his fingers. With a deep breath, a groan sounds as he releases the air out of his lungs.

"You went too far on this one. Did you not see the puffiness under her eyes? She is under a lot of stress. You're supposed to be helping her and ease the stress, not add to it." He closes his eyes and rubs his temples. "I hope she gets here before I fall asleep."

Elsa touches his arm.

He jumps to the side and raises his right hand, holding three ice spikes. His left hand, parallel to the ground, drops to his side clenching a sword of ice. The spikes and sword point directly at her.

She stands motionless. "I will not do that, again." She waits. "Please sit down and let me clean the cuts."

The ice sword and spikes melt into a pool of water and settle in the bowl. He sits on the chair with his back straight and his hands resting on his knees. His eyes focus straight ahead.

Elsa stands next to the table with her back to him. She deliberately takes several deep breaths and slowly exhales. The trick slows her heart. Her muscles release the tension. Her hand reaches for the water vase, but a tremor run through her arm and prevent her from lifting the vase. Removing her gloves, she positions herself to block his view of her hand. Peeking over her shoulder, she notes his blank expression like he is not seeing anything. He is definitely sitting at attention, so he reverts to his military background to hide his emotions. It takes both of her hands to pour more water in the bowl. The vase clinks against the bowl and she sets it down before dropping it.

"I should have asked if you could fill the bowl before I departed." She dips a hand cloth in the water and squeezes out the excess. The tremor in her arm passes and the muscle relaxes.

"I regret you hearing my comments and for that I apologize. I have the tendency to talk to myself when I have issues."

She turns to him. He still stares forward. Pushing his hair back to reveal the source of the dry blood on his forehead, the deceptive color of his hair hides its softness. It flows over and between her fingers like silk cloth. After a couple of tries, she holds his hair back and dabs the blood with the wet cloth. She notes his eyes are greener than she remembers, almost the same color as her dress.

A momentary flush warms her face. Back to work. Collecting her thoughts with a list of questions in her mind, she can only speak one word. "Why?"

"Why do I talk to myself?" His eyes glance towards her, but returns to stare ahead.

"That is one."

"Usually, I'm alone or I'm in a situation that prevents me from getting counsel from another."

She stops dabbing the blood spots. He relies on others. She lifts his chin and turns his face to her. "I have noticed you answer questions by replying with multiple possibilities. In less than a minute you have made three statements and I have asked a one word question. You obviously have a military background. Is this how you talked to your officers?"

He looks into her eyes.

What do you see, Admiral?

His eyes glance towards the floor.

She pats the underside of his chin. "No. Look at me. I am still waiting for an answer."

His hazel eyes focus on her. The corner of his lips curls up.

She returns a slight grin at him. "Are you going to answer me?"

"Okay, down and dirty, as an officer, I would not put up with these types of responses from my subordinates as I have given you. In a needed decision, I would already have my answer, but solicit replies from others. They may consider a viewpoint that I had not considered or verify that I had the correct answer. I would give an officer one chance to correct multiple replies. My requirement for them is that they give me the best option, but I know they may have an alternative option that may be just as valuable. Before I give my decision I ask if there were any other comments. A few times, a comment is made in which it caused me to delay my decision."

"What does it tell you about the officer who cannot give you their best option?" She continues to remove the blood from his face.

"It means in a decisive moment any delay by that officer could get his troops killed. Or they have a distraction."

"What type of distraction?" She dabs the corner of his mouth. He jerks his head to the side. "I need to clean it. You do not wish to get sick." She rubs a little harder to remove the dry blood. "So what type of distraction?"

"The number one issue is relationships, friends and family. They had not heard from them or left unresolved issues."

"Why would they tell a superior officer their problems?" Her wrist brushes against his nose as she reaches to remove the blood under his eye.

He does not answer, but takes short breaths and turns his nose towards the fragrance.

She observes his reaction, before rinsing the cloth in the bowl. She holds the cloth near his forehead.

His nose flares and his lips part. The tip of his tongue wets his lips. His head moves to position his nose closer to her wrist. He inhales deeply and his eyes droop. An immediate calm causes his body to noticeably sway.

She lightly sniffs her hand and wrist. A hint of sweetness rises from the perfume, she sprayed on her wrist earlier. It is the same perfume she received lots of compliments from both Ladies and Gentleman. It appears to have a greater effect on him, but she needs to test this theory, so with a smile, she purposefully brushes her wrist against his upper lip.

His nose follows the scent.

She whispers in his ear. "Do you like the fragrance?"

His head barely nods.

"Answer my questions and I'll give you more, okay"

He nods again as her wrist sweeps close to his nose.

"Why would they tell a superior officer their troubles?" She presses the wet cloth against the corner of his mouth. His face flinches. She stares at him, "Well?"

"It was against regulations to become too friendly. Need to maintain discipline, can't show favoritism, but I felt if I knew what was distracting them, I could put them in a place that would minimize their influence on the others."

"Why would they talk to you if it was against regulations?"

"When you get results, superior officers would look the other way. When I took command of my ship, I tried to get to know my crew, but many had been betrayed by other officers. I invited them to a neutral place to meet them. Over time I developed a reputation of having a sincere concern for the crew. My ship went from all personnel wanting to leave, to many more who wanted to be on my ship."

He opens his eyes. "Don't misunderstand, I pushed my crew hard. About one out of twenty could not function under the stress and requested to leave. I didn't keep anyone who did not wish to be there. My ship was the best and toughest in battle. I saw many crew members work so hard they had to be ordered to rest."

He turns his head away from her. "Respect is the key. If they do not respect you and they feel you do not respect them, no matter what orders are given, you will not get their best. You can see it in their eyes. They want to please you. They wanted you to feel they gave their best, even in a lost battle. They fought to their deaths."

She kneels beside the chair.

He moves to get up, but she holds his hands. "No, let me wash the cuts."

He sits back and watches as she uses the cloth to wipe away dried blood. The temperature in her hands decrease and she exhales into the space between her hands and his hand. A thin layer of ice forms. He takes a deep breath and exhales a shiver.

She smiles up at him. "Were some of your crew afraid of you, hesitant to talk?"

He watches her hands. "Most did. I just needed time to get to know them. In a non-threatening place, a slight stimulus to their senses and they loosened up to tell me their problems. Some, I had to be more direct. Push them, but do not push them off the cliff. When I learned their capabilities, they were worth more to me as an ally than an enemy. I learned a lot about them and myself."

As the cloth wipes across several minor cuts, she asks, "Like what?" Is this what mother meant by listening to his words? There would be moments when he would reveal secrets. She listens intently.

"Like how far was I willing to go for them. While history gives lessons of history, but very seldom does history repeat exactly as it was recorded, different people, different ideas, similar locations but not the same. A wise person will take what is observed or taught and apply it to their life. Because of the immediate circumstances, they must have the flexibility and the courage to adapt."

He watches her wipe away a spot of blood from his knuckle. She covers it and lightly exhales between her hand and his hand. As if on cue the finger with the scratched knuckle quivers. He watches as she smile up at him.

"What were you saying about being flexible and having the courage to adapt?" She applies pressure to another cut on another knuckle. This time she digs her nail into the wound.

His arm jerks. He pulls his hand. She grips his hand tighter. He stares at her and flinches as another pain shoots up his arm, "What are you doing?"

"I am trying to help you. You need to relax. I am sorry I may be causing you pain. I need to clean the dirt from your wounds. Do you understand?"

His eyes look back and forth between his hand and her eyes.

When he looks at her she applies pressure on the wound. When he looks at his hand, she massages it.

Elsa holds her breath and stabs her fingernail into the wounds and the palm of his hand at the same time. "Are you a good soldier?"

With no response she applies more pressure and commands. "I asked you a question. Does a good soldier disrespect his superior officer?"

His head shakes, no. Pain shoots across his face, but he does not pull his hand away.

She uses both hands and squeezes as hard as possible. Between her clinched teeth, she asks, "Are you a good soldier?"

With a flinch, he quickly replies, "Yes Majesty."

She smiles and covers the wound. Exhaling between their hands, a thin layer of ice forms over the wound.

His eyes partially closes.

After a few minutes she uncovers his hand with no signs of the wound.

His eyes open and he smiles. "How did you do that?"

She places her hand on the side of his face, so he can inhale the perfume on her wrist and observes his response. "A wise gentleman taught me to heal using ice."

Her face moves to within a few centimeter in front of his face. "Do you know where you are?"

His eyes droop, but he nods his head once.

"Good, are you a good soldier? Will you obey my orders?"

"Yes," slurring his reply. His eyes close and his body completely relaxes. His head falls back against the chair and his hand falls from her hand.

Placing both of her hands over the swelling on the side of his face, she applies a layer of ice. The door slowly opens.

Kristoff peeks in. "The doctor is here."

She waves for him to enter. The doctor follows Kristoff with Anna behind both of them.

The doctor touches the side on Sam's neck. "His pulse is very fast. He feels hot. Is he hot to your touch?"

Elsa replies, "Everyone feels hot to my touch."

The doctor wrinkles his nose and sniffs the back of Sam's neck. He steps back and covers his nose. "There is a distinct odor of rotting flesh. Lean him forward."

Kristoff hooks his arms around Sam and leans him forward.

The doctor feels the front of the chair. "This is very warm, almost like he has a severe fever." He pulls back Sam's collar and reveals a patch of very dark color skin. "We need to take his shirt off."

Kristoff holds Him upright as the doctor removes Sam's shirt. He drops it behind the chair. "Please do not touch it until I can examine it."

Both Anna and Elsa gasp at the black patch covering a large section of Sam's back. The mass follows along his spine and has small stringer trails sprouting out.

"Let's lay him on the bed face down." The doctor and Kristoff drag Sam to the bed.

Removing a sharp needle from his medical bag, he pokes a hole in the mass. Dark fluid oozes out and a foul stench fills the room. The doctor places a sample of the fluid in a small bottle and holds the bottle in the light by the window. Small threads of string float in the fluid.

He turns to the others. "I need to take this back to my room for testing. I think I may have seen this before." He collects his medical bag. "He will be alright here, if we lock his room." He departs quickly.

Kristoff comments, "I'll stay with him in case he wakes up."

She shakes her head. "If he wakes up, he may hurt you trying to get to me."

"Elsa?" Anna reaches for her sister.

"He thinks I am his superior officer and as such I would be able to control his actions. He wants to please me. You two go. I will be okay. Beside which of the three of us would have the greater chance of controlling him?"

Anna starts to protest, but Elsa cuts her off, "Go on Anna, I will be alright." She escorts Anna and Kristoff out of the room.

"Elsa?" A muffled sound comes from the bed.

She runs to the other side of the bed and kneels so he can see her. She cups his face. "I am here."

With eyelids half closed the black center of his eyes creates a thin circle of green and brown next to white. A gray wash covers his eyes.

His head starts to lift, but falls back onto the bed. "I can't see you." The mass on his back undulates for a second. His lips and chin trembles as his voice calls for her. "Elsa?"

"Yes Samuel, I am here." She moves closer to his face. Her heart races.

In a silent whisper he says, "I don't feel well. I'm . . . I'm afraid for you."

All her memories of him were of a strong gentle giant and now he cannot even lift his head. He said he would always protect her, but who will protect him. Her heart demands the protocols be put aside. Her mind says she has to act like a monarch no matter what. Her bravery relents to the emotional tears she tried to hold back. One by one they run down her cheeks. She slides her hand on to the back of his neck and whispers in his ear. "Samuel, you are a good soldier, but I need you to sleep, okay."

With an almost child's like voice, he replies, "Will you stay with me."

"Yes, I will stay. Close your eyes and go to sleep." His eyes slowly close. She presses on the back of his neck and generates a blast of cold. Sam's body falls completely limp. She kisses her finger and lightly touches his cheek as more tears roll down her face. "Goodnight, Admal." She sits on the floor with her knees pulled against her body and buries her face into her hands.

Anna sits next to her and wraps her arm around her big sister.

Several hours later, the stress takes its toll on her. Elsa rests her head against the side of the bed in case he awakens, and he would see her, but her emotional state leaves her weak and she fights to stay awake. Her eyes close for a moment of rest.

A few puffy clouds drift in the sunny blue sky. Anna and Kristoff walk hand in hand by the stream flowing from the mountains.

"It is nice Samuel brought us to his secluded spot."

She looks down at the picnic baskets in her hands and the blanket laid out on the ground underneath her.

"Do you agree, my love?"

She looks up to a different smile.

Prince Georg points past her. "It is a good thing you allow Samuel to continue working in the stable or he would not have brought us here."

She sets the baskets down and glances where Georg is pointing. Near a clump of trees Sam talks to the horses as he usually does. Just as she turns back to Georg, Sam nods to her with a twinkle in his eye.

Georg comments, "I think we have everything ready for the others to eat."

She stands. "Lunch is ready. Please come and eat." She tries to turn but is not able. Her coronation dress weighs her down. "Why am I wearing this out here? Where is my summer dress?"

A moan sounds behind her. She lifts the hem of her dress and turns around. An old man wearing a Southern Isle uniform, lies on the ground, resting his head on a flat rock. He barely lifts his hand towards her and moans. She kneels next to him. "Georg?"

Gurgling and sputtering Georg replies, "Thank you for bringing me here one last time. He is looking for you."

She holds a frail weak hand. "Who is looking for me?"

Laboring to breathe and with a shaky finger, he points to the hills.

The hills are not the ones she remembers. Odd shaped buildings litter the hillside. The sound of children playing attracts her attention. Her coronation dress with tattered edges does not have the bright colors it once had. An older couple waves to her. Eight children race around and play.

The old woman chastises. "Stop that running before you run over your Aunt Elsa."

Even with the aged voice and the thin red hair, she recognizes her mature sister. "Anna?"

"Joan, get your Aunt Elsa a chair to sit in."

A strawberry blonde young lady carries a chair to her. She has the beauty and appearance of the teenage Anna she knew. Anna did say she wanted her baby girl to be named Joan.

She reaches for the young woman, but Joan steps to the side.

An old man locked in arms with Anna staggers with each step. "Kristoff?"

"Your Majesty, I would bow but I don't think I would be able to stand again." He chokes out the words. "Since the wolves chased Sven and me over the cliff, it is hard to get around by myself."

Anna rests her head against his shoulder and pats his chest. "It is okay. We all miss Sven."

Trying to understand the confusion, for the first time, Elsa feels the cold like a blanket wrapping around her body. She has to do something and says, "I am sorry, I did not know."

"There are a lot of things you do not know." Joan ducks her head behind Anna.

Sven gone, Sam nowhere in sight, Anna and Kristoff appear older than her mother and father. "What happened to the two of you?"

Kristoff answers, "Time happened."

"We have grown old, sister, but you have not changed since your coronation. You are just as beautiful now, as you were then," Anna says.

"I do not understand, we were having a picnic on the grounds here."

"Yes, we enjoyed this spot for many years. I guess that's why you buried your husband here." Anna points behind her.

As Elsa turns her summer dress flows around her. She sweeps her dress to move with the breeze, but stops. In front of her, a grave marker with the Arendelle crest displays the name, 'Prince Georg beloved husband of Queen Elsa of Arendelle'. The marker stands where she last saw Georg.

"I married Prince Georg, but he was just here a few minutes ago."

"He said you might forget," an older woman's voice answers.

Turning towards the voice, a woman older than Anna, but not her sister smiles at her. "Who are you?"

"Aunt Elsa, I am your niece, Joan."

 _You are older. What is happening?_

She staggers back and holds her hands up as if ready for an attack.

 _Am I dreaming? Everything has changed. Where is the castle? Where is Anna?_

She takes another step back and a flash of light from the snow covered mountain in front of her focuses her attention. "Where are Anna and Kristoff?"

Joan's smile fades. The moisture building in her eyes over flows and rolls down her cheek. "They have been dead twenty years now." She points behind her.

Elsa turns again. A blank marker stands next to the aged marker of Prince Georg. On the other side is a large marker in the shape of a Snow Flake with the words, 'To My Beloved Sister Princes Anna and her Mountain Man, Kristoff'.

She falls to her knees and her body shakes from the same pain she felt when Anna sacrificed herself on the fjord to save her. The emotion and tears stream down her face and chokes her words. "My God, Anna, what happened?"

The elder Joan stands next to her. "Aunt Elsa, before Momma passed, she told me to memorize a message. I was to tell it to you every time you come here on the anniversary of your husband's death. She said to tell you, 'He is out there looking for you', do not give up'."

"How did it happen?" Elsa wipes the tears on the tattered cuff of her sleeve. Receiving no reply she looks behind her. A stone and metal fence encloses the grave yard with many grave stones.

She hears a child say, "Momma look. There is that lady from the painting."

A man and woman with the child stare at her as if they are seeing a ghost. The man urgently pushes the two up the paved street. They disappear into a fog. A bell rings in the church building next to the fence. She slowly moves and observes the changes to her Queendom. More buildings fill the hills, but she still does not see her castle.

Several more grave markers are lined in a row. The weathered marker next to Georg's marker still does not have a name etched on it. A new marker sits next to Kristoff and Anna's marker with the name Joan Bergman. The date etched for her death is twenty-one years after Anna's death. An emotion beats with her heart pounding in her head. Her tears flow as a mountain stream.

 _Why do I not know what happened to them._

A high pitch whine fills the air as a flash in the sky draws her attention. A large metal object lands outside of the fence. Leaves and dust fly up into the air as the object touches down.

"My apologies for my father landing his ship so close, but he wanted to see you on this day."

A beautiful young lady with long blonde hair and crystal blue eyes offers her hand to her. She takes her hand and stands. The young lady's light blue and green dress reminds her of the ice dress she was wearing during the great freeze. "What day is this?"

"This is the anniversary of the day you told Samuel you were in love with Prince Georg and that you could not have two men in your life." He walks up to them and bows to her.

That voice she hadn't heard in many years stirs an emotion. The same height and body build, could it be him? "Samuel?"

"After all these years, I thought you were someone's imagination, but here you are. While my name is Samuel, I'm not the person you told to leave all those centuries ago. Maybe your Samuel is a relative of mine, I don't know. After I missed you last year, I decided to stay near to help my daughter in her research of Arendelle."

He touches his daughter's cheek. "You were right as usual." He kisses her forehead.

"Queen Elsa, this is my daughter SaraCat. Notice any semblance between her and you?"

Everything changes so fast. It feels like a dream, but more like a reality. If he is not the Samuel she knew, then what happened to him? _Why am I here?_ She glances at SaraCat. "She looks like me?" She holds up her hands. "If centuries have gone by why do I look the same?"

SaraCat bows to Elsa then kisses her father's cheek. "You have about three hours left, make it count." She walks away as she fades into a mist.

Her lips separate as her eyes widen. _Was she a ghost?_ She stares up at Samuel and shakes her head, "Make what count?"

He points to the grave markers. "Did you notice there is one marker that does not have anything on it?"

She hesitates to look back. She grabs his arm and glances at the markers.

He stands beside her and covers her hand. "No one has come up with a plausible explanation as to what happened to you."

"What happen to me?" Her eyes dart up to him. _You look and sound so much like him._

He stares into her eyes and lightly touches her cheek. "Some say after you buried your husband Georg, you became distraught. You either lost your mind or your family had you locked away. At some point you died, but your spirit stayed here. Over the years, visitors to this cemetery reported seeing you on the anniversary of your husband's death. Some say you are waiting for him to come and get you. Others say you are waiting for your Samuel to return. Do you know what I think?"

Elsa shakes her head as everything around her begins to change. The sky changes from blue, to gray, then to black. A shimmering wave moves towards them. Everything begins to shimmer and breaks into tiny pieces as the wave touches it.

"I think it is time for you to wake up."

"What? Samuel." Everything rapidly changes and closes in on her. She looks up with the dizziness of her world collapsing. She grabs her head and falls to her knees. She is alone.

A pair of strong hands lifts her by her shoulders. Her dizziness stops just long enough for her to look into the hazel eyes of her Samuel, "Elsa, wake up. I need you."

 **End of Chapter**


	36. Chapter 35 Naked Emotions

**Title: Chapter 36: Naked Emotions**

 **3 years, 8 months until correction**

The angle of her neck against the bed causes enough pain to awaken her. The sensation of spinning slows and Elsa opens her eyes to the bright sun shining in her face. Covering her eyes for a moment she peeks between her fingers.

Samuel smiles down at her.

"How long have you been awake?"

With a raspy voice he answers, "I heard someone crying. When I was able to focus I saw you laying there restless. You called my name. I guess you were having a bad dream."

She sits up and leans against the bed as she touches his hand. "How are you feeling?"

His hand closes around hers. The doctor said he would have a fever, but his hand feels warmer than others with a normal temperature.

"Elsa, show me your dream."

She rolls her head to look into his eyes. Without hesitation, she answers, "Okay."

He stares into her eyes and his fingertips touch four specific points on the side of her face and neck. He blinks once and smiles. "The funny thing about dreams is, if you ask ten people to interpret it, you will get ten different interpretations. Maybe your mind is trying to help you to decide a decision you have been putting off for too long. Then again, maybe my illness has caused me to project outwards. Your emotional concerns for me enabled you to receive some of my thoughts."

"I do not understand." Elsa squeezes his hand.

"In your dream you saw an event you should not know. You saw my little girl, SaraCat. She went through a similar transformation as you did. What you saw are my last thoughts of her. She was convinced that she knew what happened to Arendelle and to its Queen. Your father and I made the same mistake with our little girls. When SaraCat was born, I knew she had your traits. I placed a mental block in her mind, hoping she would grow up to be," he glances away as he sighs, "a normal young woman. One of her friends sent a picture of a painting of the Queen of Arendelle. At the time, she was studying the earth's history, specifically, a certain nation north of Europe and their influence on the world. She had seen many paintings, but this one painting captured her imagination. The more she dug into the painting's history the more questions she asked about it. It wasn't just another painting of a Queen, but there was a gentleman standing behind her chair. She had no information about him except he wore green gloves on his hands."

He stares at their hands.

"Are you tired? Do I need to leave so you can rest?"

He smiles as moisture builds at the edges of his eyes. "No, please stay with me. That memory, I can see her enthusiasm as she tells me about the painting. And her theories about who painted it and why. My little girl was very smart. She would never give up until she understood it. One glove had a symbol of fire. The way the gentleman held his hand, you can see only a partial symbol on the glove. This is where she showed her intelligence. She researched as many symbols as she could find. By twisting and bending and changing the lighting she discovered three symbols that would create the image on the glove. Through researching the meaning of the three symbols, she eliminated two of them. One day it clicked in her mind. At the time, rarely did I wear gloves around her, but she discovered the truth. She bent and twisted my glove until she declared it was a match. You have seen the symbol."

"What symbol? When did I see it?" her eyes stare intently at him.

"It was the snowflake embroider on my right glove. It was at that point. I knew I could not withhold it from her anymore. Her mother was upset at me, but a remarkable thing happened. SaraCat's hair changed to a blonde and I could no longer block her abilities. Do you know what they were?"

Elsa shakes her head.

"Her left hand can create fire while her right hand creates snow and ice."

She points to him without saying anything.

"That's right, just like me. I made a mistake once. I'm not going to do it again. Please understand I did as your father asked. I put a block in your mind to make you forget me."

"Why would you do that?"

"Your father knew what I was. He was afraid that if you followed me down my path, the people would not accept you as their Queen. He was right. Until they accept you for who you are, you would be alone."

"Just like you?" she asks with raised brows.

"Yes, just like me."

"But you are not alone. I am here, Anna and Kristoff are here for you. They are in the other room concerned about you."

"Yes and they are afraid. I can feel . . . I can feel their fear." He squeezes her hand. "Soon you will have to make a decision. It will not be easy." His breathing becomes difficult. He struggles to speak. "Elsa, I must say this before it is too late. I put a block in your mind at your father's request. Please do not blame him. I could have hidden my powers, but I wanted to be honest and it got me banished from the castle."

He touches her face, then his hand drops. "The block is removed. Soon you will remember who I was and what happened between us that caused your father to be concerned about me. You will have to decide what is right for you. I will do whatever you say."

Elsa leans closer to him. His breathing becomes labored. His body relaxes. She asks, "Why did you drink the poison?"

"I needed to show you." He strains to look at her as his eyes begin to glaze over with a gray color. "Do you remember . . . remember when I had to freeze my body. I . . . I needed time . . . time to heal." His speech falters as though his words escape him. "Elsa, I need to . . . freeze. My body will shut off energy, including to my mind. My higher levels will fail." He closes his eyes for several long seconds. "Ellssaa."

She touches her face to his, "I am here, I am right here."

Slurring his speech, "Sun . . . sun . . . heals. . . ." His body falls completely limp.

She can barely determine he is still breathing and touches her finger to her lips then to his cheek.

The door opens and light footsteps move across the floor. The bed moves. "Elsa look. The sun light on his back. The black mass has disappeared."

She looks at his back. Just as Anna said where the sunlight touches his skin the black mass has disappeared. She smiles at him. "That is what he was trying to say. The Sun heals him." She rolls to her feet. "Where are Kristoff and Georg?"

"In the hallway."

"Get them in here now," Elsa commands.

She looks out the window. Outside of the southern wall has the maximum exposure of sunshine. The three return. She lays a blanket across his back. "I need you to pick him up."

Georg asks, "Where are we taking him?"

Elsa points to the castle wall outside of the window, "He needs the sunlight to heal. Take him through the southern wall's gate to the shore. Anna, I need you to clear the halls as we travel down to the garden. You two will lay him on the rocks with his back to the sun."

Georg and Kristoff move to the side of the bed. They drape Sam's arms over their shoulders. Elsa stands near the door. Anna wraps her arm around her sister's arm.

"You ready?"

Kristoff replies, "Let's do it."

"On three we lift. You swing around and we pull him off the bed."

Kristoff nods.

"One . . . two . . . three," both men strain to rise to their feet. They stand for a moment with a secure grip on him. Kristoff moves around and they pull Sam off the bed. They keep the momentum going as they move towards the door. Anna clears the hall of guards and staff. Elsa holds the door open. They carry Sam out the room and down the stairs. Anna waits for them by the southern gate. A guard holds the gate open. Elsa passes through the garden door with Georg and Kristoff close behind. They pass Sam through the gate and slowly carry him down to the shore line.

Elsa stands next to a semi flat boulder. "Lay him here with his back slightly ahead of the sun." They struggle to position his body on the boulder. They lay his head towards the castle with his arms over his head. His feet touch the shore below the tide mark with the tide already moving to the high tide.

She sits on a nearby boulder where he can see her when he wakes up. Anna puts her arm around her shoulders and sits next to her.

"I am sorry this has ruined your plans." Elsa shakes her head.

"He did say he would try to get you out of your meetings for a little while. I just did not know as to how far he was willing to go," Anna says.

Georg stumbles up to them carrying the blanket. "I will take this to the staff so they can clean it." He walks back through the gate.

Kristoff sits on a boulder in front of Anna. "When will you know he is well?"

Elsa points to Sam. "I can see the heat waves radiating from his back. He did not say how long it would take. I am hoping today will be it."

She sees her little sister watching her.

Anna drops her arm from her shoulder and hooks her arm. "Elsa, what is bothering you? Do you not think this will work?"

She does not look up. "I do not know." She turns her head and tries to wipe the moisture from her cheek, before Anna sees it.

"Oh sister, I am here for you. It will be ok."

Georg kneels beside her and places his hand on top of her hand, "We can take turns watching him. You can go back into the castle."

Elsa closes her eyes as her hand covers her mouth, trying to hold in a sob. She swallows and takes a deep breath. "You do not understand." She does not hide her tears and smiles at Anna. "Do you remember when I covered the courtyard with ice and we met Sam skating with the three children?"

"Yes, I remember."

"I said I knew him. For some reason I froze his hands and he did not notice until I pointed it out to him." She looks at Sam. "I did know him, I just did not know when."

"What do you mean when?" Kristoff asks.

She glances at Anna. "Before you came into the room, I had fallen asleep and had a dream. All three of you were in the dream." She reveals the rest of her dream.

After several minutes she points to him. "He was awake. I told him the dream. He said I may have been receiving his thoughts. I was not sure what he was telling me, but before he passed out again." She looks into Anna's eyes. "He said that he did what our father had requested of him." Her tears flow freely down her face. She closes her eyes resting her head on Anna's shoulder.

Anna holds her.

After a few moments Elsa takes a deep breath and sits up. "He touched me with his mind and removed a mental block that had been placed there shortly after you were born."

Anna cups Elsa's head into her neck and begins to cry with her.

Georg sits on a boulder next to Kristoff.

Kristoff glances at Sam. Part of the black mass has changed to gray, and he comments, "Sounds like it worked out for Anna and myself. It will be great if it does, but I don't believe in dreams telling me what my future will be."

"Normally, I would agree," Georg comments. "Before coming here I did not believe anyone had the power of ice and snow and yet I have seen it for myself." He pauses for a few seconds and angles his head towards Elsa. "Maybe it is not our future in your dream. You said he did not control his thoughts. Maybe he influenced your dream and your dreams are his thoughts."

Elsa glances at Sam's lifeless body. "Is what Georg said the truth?"

Georg and Kristoff glance at each other than they look at him. He appears to be unconscious.

Elsa speaks to him, "Because I hurt for you. I know, but I now remember the joy I had with you. You made me laugh. Mother said she was glad you came into our lives."

Anna looks down at Elsa's face. "Who are you talking to?"

Elsa smiles with a light giggle. "Should I?"

Anna lifts Elsa off her shoulder, "Who are you talking to?"

She waves an open hand towards Sam.

Anna stares at Sam, looks to Georg, and then to Kristoff, "Do either of you see him awake?" They both shake their heads. Anna cups Elsa's cheeks. "Look at me."

She turns her eyes to her sister.

"Who are you talking to?"

With a smile she wipes away her tears and jesters to him again. "I have been talking to Samuel. That is how I knew when he was healed those years ago."

"Wait, wait, wait, you mean to tell me you are having a conversation with Samuel, right now?" Kristoff asks in disbelief.

Elsa giggles and nods. "Yes, his body is repairing itself, but his mind is active and I can hear his thoughts." She grins at Sam. "Are you sure it is ok . . . All right, I will."

"I know this may be hard for all of you to understand." She looks at Georg. "I know what I am about to say will be especially hard for you. When you got here I did not wish to have anything to do with you. It was supposed to be negotiations only and I expected you to leave right away, but your kindness was swaying me to you. At the ball I wanted to spend some time with you. I had it planned that we could sneak out onto the balcony."

A tremor moves through her hands as they glisten with ice particles. Her smile fades and she shakes her head. "Then someone tried to poison me."

She stares at Sam as moisture begins to well up in her eyes again. "I thought he was being jealous when he took the drink from my hand and drank it himself. The doctor believed the powdery substance in the bottom of the glass was poison."

Turning to Anna her lips press tight to hold back her emotion of what could have been. "If Samuel had not taken the drink from me, I guess you would be Queen." One by one her tears run down her cheeks.

Elsa looks back to him. "For the second time in my life, he saved me. Before I was even born, we had a bond between us. He did not know about it until . . . I am mistaken. The poisonous drink is the third time he saved my life."

Her eyes narrow at him. "The second time, I ran out to the courtyard looking for momma. I heard horses and a loud bang. Samuel grabbed me and covered me with his body. I remember it was very noisy. Everything around us had a bluish tint to it. Then it was quiet. The wagon moved in slow motion as it rolled on top of us. Lumber and stones fell on us."

She stares at her hands and closes them tight. A thin sheet of ice slides off her hands and disappears in a wisp before falling on her dress. "Suddenly, I could feel his pain in his arm and legs. He strained to keep the debris off of me. I do not know how long we were under the wagon, but I remember Papa grabbing my arm and pulling. I did not want to leave him in his pain." She smiles between her tears, "I kept screaming Admal, Admal, do not leave me."

"The guards and Papa dug him out. They placed him in a servant's quarter. Ice had formed around him. I think he was in it for seven days. Papa visited him at night. He would not let me see him. I sneaked into his room. That is when Admal, started talking to me, here." She taps her head.

"I do not know why, nor does he know. He is receptive of other's thoughts and feelings. Sometimes when he is in a crowded room, it is like everyone is screaming at him at the same time. Even with just a few, he has to concentrate to block out other's thoughts. Which explains why he . . ." She suddenly stops speaking as her eyes dart around looking at nothing. They focus on Kristoff.

With an uneasy expression Kristoff stares at Sam.

Anna and Georg both look where Elsa is staring. Finally Kristoff looks up and glances at everyone.

She glares at Kristoff with a forbidding expression. "You better not. I will not hesitate to freeze it off. You better be a gentleman and wait until you are married."

A wide eyed Kristoff starts to speak, but does not.

Anna asks, "What did he do?"

Elsa tilts her head to Anna as her right eyebrow rises slightly. "And you little miss, do not be teasing or encouraging him before the marriage. You two will have more than enough time together."

Suddenly her head snaps around to Georg. "What is wrong with all of you? My Samuel is laying on the rocks, fighting the poison and you choose this time to be thinking lustful thoughts." With a noticeably higher pitch in her voice, she continues. "What is wrong with you?"

Georg deflects Elsa's comment from the others. "My Samuel?"

Elsa's glare turns to anger directed at Georg. "You want to do, what to me?"

"I mean no disrespect." Georg quickly stands and bows to Elsa. "I think I just heard a sandwich calling my name. I will go check." He quickly walks back towards the gate.

"I thought I heard the same thing, but I think that sandwich was calling my name." Kristoff stands and bows to Elsa and quickly follows after Georg.

She watches the two of them pass through the gate, then turns to Anna and gives her a hug, "Anna, please be careful. I am not trying to tell you what to do. You are an adult."

"But."

"I am not sure of the meaning of his phrase, but it sounds appropriate, Sam said, 'you should not give away your goods until they are paid for'. Anna, please . . . please wait until you are married before you two get into anything more than kissing."

Anna leans away from Elsa. "I would never do anything like that."

Elsa interrupts as she smiles and points at Him. "I just told you he can sense other peoples' thoughts. You were looking at Kristoff and he was looking at you. Both of you were thinking these rocks would be a good place to hide from the watchful eyes of the Queen. I am asking you, do not make a mistake in a moment of passion. If you have to take a cold bath, do so."

Anna slowly turns her head towards Sam.

Elsa's smile grows larger. "The two men are in the kitchen eating. They are thinking about us. The town baker is trying to find some milk for his pastries . . . in his shop . . . in the town."

Anna points and faces towards the bakers shop near the middle of Arendelle.

"Yes, at least that far, which means he can sense the entire castle if he wishes." Elsa giggles, "It means all I have to do is ask him where the two of you are without having to go look for you."

Anna slowly rises and walks towards the gate.

"He has to concentrate to pick out your thoughts from the noise of others."

Anna does not speak, but walks through the gate.

"Well, that did not go as well as I thought it would."

 _It achieved the desired effect I needed,_ sounds a male's voice in her head.

He awakens. Gradually standing, he faces the ocean. The black and gray mass has been replaced with bright red similar to a severe sunburn. Elsa watches closely as his back flexes and twists and changes in muscle tone. The top layer of skin gradually peels off to drift in the breeze.

Sam studies his hands as they close and open. Large flakes of skin fall. His hands slide across his shoulders and down each arm. His hands sweep across his body, creating a shower of flying flakes. He drops his trousers and wipes the dead skin off his body. With more skin flakes inside of his trousers, he takes them off along with his boots and sets them on the shore. The water refreshes his feet and legs. The cold eases his pain. He lies back and stretches out his arms. With his face above the water, he senses his surroundings.

He does not detect synthetic materials in the buildings nor any electrical energy except from an approaching storm. The sounds of the local inhabitants are not familiar. This must be a very primitive planet, but which one.

With the sun's position a quarter distance across the sky, he follows the sun's path to a point above the western horizon. An anomaly waves at the edge of the planet's atmosphere. His vision and thoughts focuses on the object. It is not a natural object for this planet.

He stands. The water runs down his back and legs. "Talk to me. If you can hear me give me a sign," he says to the object in his native language

The object flickers green and red.

He shakes his fist. "Perhaps later, I will slay you, dragon"

Behind him, a commotion draws his attention to the four creatures making a noise on the shore. It looks like the creature with a lighter shade of mane is trying to get the other three to leave. "Maybe that one is the leader." He moves to the shore.

The creature points to the clothes he was wearing earlier and points to him.

"Modest are we?" He takes his clothes and rinses the dead skin out of it before putting the trousers and boots back on. The facial temperature of the creature increases in the area under its eyes. The creature appears familiar, but his mind does not give him the name of this species. He stands three meters in front of the creature.

"What place is this?" He searches its eyes, but is not able to hear its thoughts. "What species are you? Do you have a name?" For such colorful clothing, this creature must have a very low intelligence. They are of no use to him. He turns back to the ocean and searches for the anomaly just above the horizon. "Where are you dragon? If I find my ship, we will do battle again and I will go home."

"Sam, are you ok?" Elsa asks. "I do not understand the language you are using. Please talk to me?" She starts to approach him.

A boulder partially in the water near the base of the castle wall transforms and drags a metallic rod from the water. Pabbie calls out, "Queen Elsa stop. He is not who you think he is. We are in great danger."

Sam hears a different noise and peeks over his shoulder at the new sound. The creature with the white hair stops and holds its palm towards him. He stares at it for a few seconds, then glances at the movement behind it. His hands clench together as his body rotates into a defensive position to face the aggressors.

Pabbie waddles along the water's edge. "Elsa, you must strike when I distract him. He is too powerful in this state."

Sam recognizes the troll and speaks in his native language. "You, you are the one who attacked me earlier. Not this time, I will crush you into a pile of tiny rocks."

A bright white light flashes into his mind, causing him to hesitate. At that moment his body begins to freeze. Ice crystals form on his chest. He moves forward when another boulder rolls into his leg. Partially blocking the boulder, he stumbles and slips on the rocks. The back of his head strikes a rock below the water as he falls into the fjord. More ice forms around his body and freezes the water. Every part of his body rapidly freezes into a block of ice. Something grabs his broken leg and jerks it straight. Expecting the searing pain to stop what little defenses he has, the pain never comes. Darkness eats away the outer edges of his vision. The white hair creature stands over him. In a moment of recognition he speaks to her. "I know about you. Your father was right to banish me".

Elsa kneels beside him and cups his face with her hands. "No, he should have let you stay. You may not understand now, but I hope you will later."

A small spark leaps from her finger and into the slight depression behind his eyes. They close. She stands and encloses the rest of his body in ice.

Pabbie waddles next to her. "He will be safe here. Give him several days to heal. The poison will crystallize and when he thaws, his body will expel it."

"Are you sure?" Elsa wipes a small white cloth across her eyes. With a sniffle she asks, "Is it dangerous for you to be here?"

"I received distressing news about him. His thoughts are erratic. I am prepared to do what is necessary to protect all of us. Elsa listen to me. The language you heard him speaking is the same language he spoke to the guards who found him fighting with the wolves years ago. I was able to talk to him through his mind. He was angry after he crashed here."

"You saw him after he landed ashore? Where did his ship land?"

"I saw the ship crash in a clearing on a hill not too far from here." Pabbie points to the northern mountains. "When he says he is not from this land, he is not from any land that the waters on this planet touches." He points to the western sky. "You saw him searching. That is where his ship came from."

Elsa searches the horizon where Sam had been staring. A star winks at her. She had noticed it is in the same location in the sky for the past several evenings, but this day it is well above the horizon before sunset. She points to the star. "Is that what he has been looking at every evening?"

Pabbie looks where she is pointing. "Sam has been watching that star for many years. I have no idea what the fascination is, but it appears to be very important to him." He glances at a wave splashing against Sam's frozen body. A breeze begins to blow across the fjord. "Unless a storm comes up, he will be here in the morning. I would recommend when he wakes up, you are ready to freeze him again."

Anna stops next to them. "Is he a danger to us?"

"The longer he is in the ice, the more his body will heal. It is in this state that he is of the greatest danger. His body will respond automatically in defense. I believe that is what we saw."

Elsa leans over his head, "I do not think he felt we were a threat to him, more like we were an irritant."

Sam's eyes open.

They step back.

Pabbie warns, "Elsa get away from him. He is a danger to all of us."

Sam's blue eyes illuminate the ice. A blue mist gradually rises above him. She stands motionless.

Anna yells, "Elsa, please move away from him. You do not know what he will do."

She calmly answers, "Actually, I do know. That is why I have to touch him." Elsa presses her hand on the ice and slowly melts it.

Kristoff moves next to Anna. "Majesty, please come back. Let him heal before you touch him."

Too transfixed on reaching him, she does not notice the blue mist encompassing her body.

Georg runs pass Anna and starts to reach for Elsa, when she slowly turns her head towards him. Her complexion has changed from a pale white to an ocean blue. Her ice blue eyes glow a reflective blue. She holds up her hand to stop Georg. "I am ok. You three need to back away. His defenses are rising to protect us."

Anna questions, "Elsa what do you mean by 'us'?"

"This is what he was trying to say. In order for the bond to be completed, we would have to change."

 **End of Chapter**


	37. Chapter 36 Lost

**Title: Chapter 36: Lost**

 **3 years, 8 months until correction**

Clouds form and gather above the north mountain. Large ominous clouds from the south race across the ocean towards Arendelle. The top of these clouds reaches the upper atmosphere to create an anvil shape of a thunderstorm. Their dark bottom illuminates with each flash of lightning striking the ocean. Clouds roll in from the mountains and cover the sun. A strong wind blows from the ocean whipping up the waves as they crash onto the shore. Kristoff wraps his arms around Anna and Georg leans into the winds trying to block the fjord's spray. The incoming tide consumes the shore line.

Elsa stands knee deep in the water, but she continues to stare down at Sam. Her body tingles with the absorption of his energy. Each lightning strike sends a surge of energy coursing through her body. It is like nothing she has ever felt, but it is a good feeling that satisfies her hunger. She is surprised that she desires more. Her senses amplify all she detects. Her ears hear the town's people panicking to get into their homes and latch down loose objects. The wind howls across the fjord and rushes through the trees. Her hair stimulates her scalp with the moving air.

Pabbie moves back to the wall and transforms into a boulder.

As quickly as it started, the wind stops. The thunder and lightning stops. For several seconds two distinctive hearts beat as one, but she detects a slight delay in one.

A loud crack echoes across Arendelle and the fjord. A blue bolt of lightning pierces the clouds and strikes the ice surrounding him.

An explosion of white light gives the sensation of moving through the air. The ground rapidly slides past her feet. A momentary glimpse of Anna and Kristoff moves away from her. Gray stones replace the white light. A blunt force impacts her body. The sky passes followed by the fjord. The ground races towards her. The ground expels the air from her body. Sharp pains and burns assault her body as she struggles to breathe. Her movement strikes more pain into her mind. A voice calls her name. She reaches for the voice. A salty, burning, taste coats her teeth.

The voice calls to her again. "Elsa . . . Elsa, please talk to me."

The voice sounds familiar. With each breath and with each movement, pain shoots through her body. She tries to inhale, and her lungs spasm. A cough coats the insides of her mouth. It oozes past her lips. A shadow touches her head. Please stop. The shadow slides across her face and the strands of her hair inflict pain. She coughs again. More thick fluid oozes past her lips. _I'm so tired. Let me sleep._

The voice cries in her ear. "Elsa wake up."

Another voice calls to her, a comforting voice, a voice of peace speaks to her, _Elsa, do not give up. I know you are hurting and I will help you. Stay awake a little longer._

Anna cries to Georg. "Please get the doctor."

Georg starts to run towards the castle, but stops to stare at the glowing ice.

Sam's left hand glows orange. The ice cracks and he frees himself from his ice cocoon. After several more seconds he pushes away the remaining ice and gets to his feet. He doesn't wait for his head to clear and staggers towards Elsa. Rocks crunch and the sand shifts. Kristoff and Georg charge towards him.

He speaks to them in his language. "What are you doing? We need to help Elsa."

Georg scoops up a stone and throws it at him. The stone momentarily glows a blue halo and bounces into the water. Kristoff picks up a larger stone and throws, but it also bounces off harmlessly to the water. He stops as Kristoff picks up another stone. The sand shifts near his foot. Georg swings his fist at his face. He ducks, steps forward, and swings his right hand against the back of Georg's head. Georg's inertia carries him past and into the fjord. Sam hesitates a second before hooking his left arm under Kristoff's right arm in mid swing, and launches Kristoff several meters past the shoreline.

Georg gets to his feet.

Sam points to him and speaks, "I don't think Kristoff knows how to swim, so you better go and save him before he drowns. I will take care of Elsa until you get back."

Georg does not move.

He leaps to close the distance and grabs Georg's shirt with both hands. With a mighty push Georg sails into the fjord with a splash next to Kristoff. He turns just as a rock hits his arm and a second later, another rock hits the right side of his face. He swings his head toward the thrower and begins moving towards her.

Anna, red faced and tears streaming down her cheeks. She picks up more rock screaming at him. "You did this to her." She throws another rock which he easily deflects away. "Stay away from her, you monster, I will not let you near her."

The gate behind her starts to open. Sam waves his hand towards it and freezes it close. Guards on the other side, pound on the door and yell.

Sam continues moving forward and swats away the small barrage of rocks Anna throws at him. He scans Elsa's injuries. A pain pierces his heart upon detecting her broken arm, broken lower leg, scrapes on her arms, and the side of her face. He sees the sparkles in the red around her lips and sparkles in the red splatter on the rocks.

Without looking he catches a large rock centimeters from his face. Just as the rock hits the ground Anna launches herself at him with both hands towards his face. He catches her right arm and turns as he steps to the side. Her left hand scratches across his face. He sweeps her legs out from under her. Her back impacts the ground expelling the air from her lungs. She gasps for a breath. He straddles her and crosses her arms in front as he holds her hands to her sides. Angry eyes stare up at him.

She wheezes for air. Behind him Kristoff splashes in the water as he yells, "Get off of Anna or I will do more than hurt you.

He leans down and whispers, "Please Anna. I know I'm to blame for your sister's injury. She is still alive at the moment, but you have to let me save her. I need your help to do it. If I can't save her, you, Kristoff, and Georg can do whatever you want to me. I will not fight you. Truce for right now?"

She still has the fight in her eyes, but she nods her head.

He lifts her to her feet and blows a cool mist into her face. "Anna, I did not mean for this to happen. I will do what I can."

He kneels just enough to get Anna's arm over his shoulder and wraps his arm around her waist as he stands. He carries her to Elsa.

Kristoff and Georg wade to the shore and run towards them.

He sits Anna next to Elsa's head and kneels next to them with his back towards the wall. Clasping his hand together over his head, he slowly opens them. An almost transparent blue cone covers the three of them to the ground.

In a very weak voice, she says, "Anna, he is the only one who can remove this energy. He was not trying to hurt us." Elsa coughs up more of the purplish blood.

He moves his hand slowly over Elsa's body detecting the damage. Above them the storm clouds unleash a torrent of rain over Arendelle. He searches the sky and speaks in his language. "Why are you doing this? She is innocent. I'm the one you need to punish. I caused all of this. Strike me."

 _Samuel, it is not your fault. You need to focus. I know you can remove this energy, but my body cannot hold on for much longer._

He continues to stare at the rain.

She screams into his mind, _Admiral Samuel Christopher Ryan of the Starship Aurora, if you love me, you will stop this, that is an order._

Sam looks at her lifeless body. His brain shifts his body into action. He points to Anna and then points to near Elsa's head. "Anna move here."

She does not move. He stands behind her and grabs below her knees. He lifts her and sets her behind Elsa's head. He motions to Anna that he will roll Elsa.

Anna nods.

Sam kneels behind Elsa and rolls her body onto her back and her head onto Anna's lap. Elsa lets out a long moan. He touches Anna's arm and Elsa's arm. "She is still alive and I know you have no reason to trust me now, but please with your heart reach out to her. She will hear you."

Through her anger Anna begins to smile as tears leap onto her face. "I can hear her. She is alive."

"Talk to her. Tell her she will be all right." He takes Anna's hand and places it on Elsa's shoulder and neck. "Stay in contact with her skin and you two will be able to communicate. I need to heal the cut on the inside of her cheeks. Please do not get upset for what you see me do."

Anna continues to smile and brushes Elsa's hair with her fingers.

Elsa opens her blood shot eyes partially. Anna cuddles her face as she looks up at her. With a gurgling voice Elsa touches her hand. "Anna, promise me . . . promise me no matter what happens, you will not harm Sam. Promise me!"

Anna lets the tears stream down her face and nods in agreement.

Elsa tries to smile, but blood trails down from the corner of her lips and flows into her ocean blue hair. She reaches for Sam's hand and places it over her heart. _"You can do this. You did it before."_

Sam slowly shakes his head no. _"I don't know how."_

"Yes, you can. I believe in you." She turns her head and coughs up more blood. "I know your pain. I know the storm you fight to control. It is a tool to be used in your quest. I know you have a servant's heart. Together, your heart and the storm will do you well. If you do not wish to save us, you need to walk away and let me die."

Die? So many times he evades death with the sacrificial life of another. Death is the enemy that always accompanies him. Where he stopped death was there. Where ever he ran death was there. Whomever he loved, death took them away. Not this time, he will fight death and force it to take him.

He nods as his tear drops onto her face. It creates a trail and connects to a blood trail. The mixture turns the purplish blood red and a blue mist rises from it. He understands. He does have a fighting chance. Moving his hand over her face, the polarized charge in his hand causes the blue mist to rise. Her facial color returns to a pale white. He places his hand over the cut on her forehead and covers the right side of her face. His hands glow a light blue and a few minutes later he moves his hand to the left side of her face and to her right shoulder. The blue mist slowly rises out of her as his hands pass over her body. Gradually he removes the massive amount of energy she absorbed. He sets her left arm straight and encases it in a block of ice. His hands move just above her abdomen healing every cut, bruise, and internal injury. He moves his hand slightly above and down both of her legs. Again stopping long enough to set her left leg and encasing it in a block of ice. He sits at her feet tapping her uninjured leg.

 _Elsa, it is time for you to wake up._

He points to Anna and motions for her to tap Elsa's face. Anna stares at him. He points to his hand and slaps his own face. He points to her then to Elsa.

Elsa barely opens her eyes. "Anna, you slap me and I will hurt you."

With tears Anna hugs her big sister. "I thought I lost you."

Elsa starts to move and groans. She looks past her shoes at Sam.

 _You need to move your arms and legs._ Sam states in a monotone voice in her head.

Elsa grimaces and relaxes. _I don't think I can move my legs._

He takes her shoe off and runs his finger nail across the bottom of her foot. Her leg twitches and she pulls it close to her body. He puts her shoe back on her foot and takes the other shoe off. Running his nail across the bottom of her foot, there is no indication of movement.

 _It is possible the ice is blocking the nerve signal to your brain._ He puts her shoe back on. He glances at the movement across her face.

She states in his language. "I know why you are suffering."

He stares at her, no smile, no emotions. "Who said I was suffering?"

"You did. You have a storm in your head that has been raging for a very long time. If anything I know exactly what you are going through."

"And what am I going through?"

"Your actions have caused a lot of pain to many who trust you, even to the point that you believe they will not trust you again."

"How do you know such things?"

"You told me."

Anna patiently listens. "I do not understand. What are you saying to each other?"

Elsa glances up and forces a smile. "This is his native language. This is the language he spoke to the guards when they found him so many years ago."

"How do you know his language and why is he speaking it, when a couple of hours ago, he was speaking our language?"

"Take my word. I understand and speak his language because he taught me. He doesn't speak our language because his mind is in the process of resetting. When his mind has been completely reset, I hope he will be speaking our language. If not, he will have to learn again."

He stands and the rain stops. He touches the energy sphere causing it to pop. A shower of mist falls on to Anna as she leans forward to cover Elsa's face from the water.

Anna looks up at Sam with a not so pleasant face, "You had to do that. Could you have removed the water before popping it?"

He does not understand what the red head is saying, but notices a beam of sunlight widening to cover his hand. He glances at the sky. Clouds separate to reveal the blue sky. The sun runs behind the mountains and leaves a trail of red and orange colors. He closes his eyes and breathes in the sunlight as he breathes in the fresh air.

A grimace of pain sounds behind him. He holds out his hand to Elsa. _"Get up. Your dress is wet."_

Elsa rolls onto her right side. Anna moves to her knees and tries to help her sister up.

The pain in her arm and leg overwhelms her and Elsa rolls onto her back.

Anna glares up at Him and snarls, "Do not stand there. Help her up so she can walk to the castle."

He slightly tilts his head. "That would not be advisable for Queen Elsa to walk back to the castle at this time."

"Then carry her," Anna snaps.

Elsa grabs Anna's arm. "Please, he is not himself right now. We have to be patient until his mind clears."

A dull pain throbs in her arm and leg. She closes her eyes for a moment. When they open, she sees the blue mist surrounding the ice. A string of mist radiates out from the ice and connects to his hand. She glances up at him. "Please help me to the castle."

Sam turns his head. His eyes begin to dart around looking at nothing specific.

Anna demonstrates very little patience. "What is he doing now?"

"Anna, please."

Elsa tries the move her arm and speaks in his language. "Samuel, please help me to the castle. I cannot walk."

He focuses on her. "You are injured. Walking will make your injuries worse. I will carry you to the castle."

He sits her up and moves her left arm into her lap. He rolls her dress around her legs and slides his arm behind her knees. His other arm slides across her back. She wraps her right arm around his neck. He lifts. With a moan she closes her eyes and lays her head against his shoulder.

He whispers. "Are you in pain?"

Anna yells, "Of course she is in pain, you Neanderthal. Now do not drop her."

He asks in his language. _"_ Did I cause you this pain?"

Without moving her head, she whispers back to him, "yes, but it was not your fault."

"I'm sorry. I will fix it."

Anna slowly walks towards the gate. "You drop her I will have every guard use your body for target practice. You hear me."

"Do not listen to my sister. She is afraid."

He walks towards the gate and does his best to keep her on a leveled plain as much as possible. "She loves you. Her words are truth. I did this to you, because of what? Fear of what?"

He steps through the gate to encounter four guards pointing their swords at him. Kristoff and Prince Georg dripping wet follow close behind them.

He stops. Elsa opens her eyes. "Do not stop him. He will not harm me."

Anna is not so forgiving and commands the guards. "If you think he is harming her do not hesitate to run him through."

"Anna!" Elsa holds her head up just long enough to watch Anna move towards the castle. She drops her head on his shoulder and closes her eyes. She takes a deep breath and holds it.

"The pain is strong?"

She nods her head slightly.

"Do you want me to ease the pain?"

She nods her head again and opens her eyes as a tear runs down her cheek.

"Let the star's energy transfer to my love and ease her pain." A blue mist forms around her.

The pain subsides. Others point at them as he continues towards the castle.

Anna stands at the top of the steps. "Why do you have that blue mist around you?"

He comments as he takes each step carefully. "The pain level was getting too much for your sister. The blue mist, as you call it, acts to inhibit the neurological transmission signal from her leg and arm to her brain."

"What are you talking about?"

The town doctor walks past them and up the steps. "Basically what he said is the mist calms her pain. If he could bottle that mist, he would make millions."

Anna glances at the doctor and Sam walks past her.

He turns his body sideways and eases her through the door. Anna runs past them and up the stairs. He moves towards the stairs and a slight smile forms on Elsa's face.

"Thank you, the pain is easing." She nuzzles into his neck and awakens a sensation she has not felt in many years.

He stops at the bottom of the stairs and asks, "Elsa, when did you take my heart?"

Her smile grows a little wider and replies, "When you saved my life those many years ago."

Gerda runs from a hall and starts up the stairs. "Take her to her room so I can get her cleaned up. The doctor can examine her up there."

Kai orders four guards to take Elsa.

She turns her head to the guards. "Stop, he will take me upstairs." The guards bow and step aside to allow him to pass.

Sam takes each step slowly trying not to exert any unnecessary movement to Elsa. After ten steps he stops and looks straight ahead.

Anna runs back down the stairs. "What are you doing? Do not stand there, move," she voices loudly.

Elsa cringes her face. "Anna I am right here. There was no reason to yell at him." She looks up at his partially closed eyes. Her right hand slips under his hair and creates a faint cooling effect on his neck.

His head turns down to her. "You are hurt?"

"Yes."

"Did I cause your pain?"

"Yes, you need to carry me up the stairs." She increases the cooling effect on his neck.

Slowly he starts moving up the steps. "I don't remember hurting you. Do I need to be punished?"

"You bet your childish attitude you need to be punished," Anna scowls.

She narrows her eyes at Anna. "If my sister does not knock the noise off, she will find herself frozen to her bed in the morning." Elsa slides her hand past his neck and the tip of her finger feels his rapidly beating heart. "Samuel, it was not your fault. Had I not touched you, I would not have been injured."

"Is this why you feel angry with me?"

He said feel? Did Anna detect it before I did? He is acting afraid like a child. She watches his facial expressions. Did something happen to him in the ice? Did he not heal completely?

She answers, "Samuel, no, you saved my life."

A young boy's voice whispers, "Saved . . . your life?"

"Yes, you saved my life. You drank the poison that was meant for me."

"Why?" His heart beats visually faster in his neck.

"I'm not sure. Maybe you did it because you care for me."

"How do I know if I care for you?"

"By the things you do for me."

"Like what things?"

She searches his eyes. "Like the way you make sure I have everything I need before you sit down to eat with me. Like when you held your coat over my head to keep me from getting wet in the rain as you got soaked." She smiles with that memory.

"Do I care for you a lot?"

She raises her brows. "I think you do."

"I care enough to drink poison?"

She searches his non-emotional face. "Yes, you could say because you drank the poison meant for me, you were showing me you care." A thought occurs to her. "You like me a lot."

He steps on the top floor level and stops. "Do I love you?"

Has that been an issue for him? Is that why he keeps saying he is a commoner?

She continues to search his eyes. "Why did you ask?"

He frowns. "It is logical that if I do these things for you, and drink poison, am I showing my love for you?"

He more than cares for me. She holds back a grin. "I guess you can say you love me."

Gerda steps behind Him and pushes him to walk, "Sounds like love to me."

"Are we husband and wife?"

Gerda snickers with a grin. "There you go, now how are you going to answer that?"

Elsa narrows her eyes at her. "No, we are not husband and wife."

He wrinkles his forehead as his eyes dart back and forth.

She pushes. "Why do you ask?"

He stops and looks down at her. His eyes leisurely trail down her arm. "When I think of you, I can't think of anything else. It becomes very confusing."

She asks, "Why is it confusing?"

He stops a short distance from the door to the royal suite. His eyes dart back and forth across her face. "Like right now, I know you are in pain and as long as the blue mist surrounds you, your pain is greatly diminished. If I set you down and break contact with you, the mist will disappear and your pain will return. I do not wish for you to suffer, but the doctor needs to examine your wounds." He stares at the floor in front of him.

"What are you thinking?" He does not respond. She generates more cold on his neck.

Gerda steps back and comments, "Oh my, she is freezing his neck."

Anna and the doctor move next to Gerda. Anna clamps her hand over her mouth as she squeaks. A thin layer of ice covers the back of his neck. A trail of cold air flows down his spine.

Sam's eyes focus and he turns his head.

Elsa asks, "What is your solution?"

"Either, I can set you down and maintain physical contact with you to keep the mist around you, or I don't set you down and let the doctor examine you in my arms."

She pulls his head towards her. "You cannot do both, so which is it?"

"Which method will cause the least discomfort for you, I will do."

"Choose!"

Several moments pass before he answers, "I will sit you on the edge of the chair and sit on your left side with my arm around you. My leg and arm will maintain the physical contact with you to preserve the mist. Is that acceptable to you?"

"Yes, that is an acceptable course of action."

Anna runs past them and opens the door. "Finally, get her in here."

Sam walks to the door and turns side way not to jostle her as he passes through. The doctor and Gerda follow him into the royal suite. He sits on the edge of the chair and starts to sit her in the chair, but a low moan escapes her lips. He stops for a moment and draws her closer to him.

He states in a matter of fact voice. "Change of plan, I will sit here and you will sit in my lap. This will create more contact area between us."

With her eyes closed, she smiles as he sits her in his lap. He slides his arm down her back and hooks his hand around her waist. She feels his hand on her knee, then her arm. He shifts his weight. She opens her eyes. He places his hand behind his back. She whispers as she moves her finger on the broken arm, "Take my hand."

He watches her fingers wiggling and slides his hand under her hand.

She distinctively detects a quick intake of air on his part. She senses his confusion and asks, "What is wrong?"

The doctor kneels in front of them and looks at the ice encasing her arm. He interrupts, "Can you remove the ice?"

Sam presses his fingernail into the ice and scores a line the length of the ice. It breaks in half. The doctor places each half of the ice in the bowl held by Gerda. The doctor slides his hand over her arm. With a little pressure he slides his hand slower.

Sam watches what the doctor is doing, then says, "Stop, there is the break."

The doctor looks up at Sam, "if that is the break I do not feel it. I would not find it under my normal exam. Wiggle your fingers, now your hand."

Her hand and fingers move.

"Does it hurt? Do you feel anything in your arm?"

"It feels a little tender like I overworked it."

Sam wraps his hand around the break and a shimmering layer of ice forms around her arm the width of his hand. "When it melts, you will be healed." He lets go of her hand and looks away.

She grabs the back of his neck and turns his head to her, "What is wrong? What sensation are you feeling?"

He gazes into her eyes without emotions. "Do you know your eyes glow an ice blue?"

"Aww, your eyes are also blue in your blue mist," Anna bellows from across the room.

"Focus now, answer my question then I will answer your question." Elsa pulls on his frozen hair.

"The sensation?"

She nods.

"When I touched your hand, it felt good. Your hand is soft and smooth. It must hurt your hand to touch my rough hands."

"No. Your hands are strong. I like it when you hold my hand."

"I like holding your hand." With a twinkle in his eyes, he asks, "May I hold it some more?"

She holds out her hand and whispers into his ear. "You can hold it as long as you like."

"Then I want to hold it for a very long time."

Anna shakes her head. "Grr, are you a moron or do you like speaking as a child? That is exactly what she wants you do. Hold her hand for all of our sakes."

He closes his hand around hers. A glimmer of a smile moves across his lips.

"Do not listen to her. You listen to me?"

"Okay, but you have to tell me when I should stop holding your hand."

She smiles as she lays her head on his shoulder.

"I like that too."

"What do you like?"

"Your face touching my shoulder and the way you breathe against my neck. I can smell your hair. It is like a flower stretching its petals to the sky after a rain shower."

"My hair smells wet?"

"No, it smells like the freshness after a rain shower. It's clean and pleasant." He turns his head just enough to lay his head on hers and closes his eyes.

The doctor taps her knee. "I need to raise your dress to see your leg."

She opens her eyes just enough to grab her dress below her knee and pulls it up exposing the ice splint on her leg. "Samuel, please remove the ice from my leg."

"Okay." With his eyes still closed, he motions with his hand as though he was scoring the ice and a second later the ice splits in two and falls to the floor.

Gerda and the doctor place the ice in a bowl.

The doctor slides his hand down the length of her leg, and then starts back up when Samuel tells him to stop. He nods. "Yes, I can feel the break here. It is more pronounced." His assistant helps to splint her leg.

He presses his thumb into her hand and she wraps her fingers around his thumb. His fingertips lightly trace the back of her hand. His hand moves to cover her hand. With a light squeeze he pushes his hand into her palm and forces her hand open by pushing her fingers up. His fingers push between her fingers. She parts her lips to breathe easier and deeply.

"Do you have a husband?"

Her eyes pop open. "No, I do not."

"Did you have a husband?"

She raises her head and turns his head towards her. "I have never been married, so I have never had a husband."

"Do you want a husband?"

Gerda grins at her.

She should have expected it, but she was not prepared to answer truthfully. "Someday I would like to have a husband. Why do you ask?"

She stares at him with intent. Even Anna tries to hold back her enthusiasm, but her grin and nodding head, tells what she wants to hear. Everyone in the room hesitates as if their silence would enable them to hear clearer.

He holds her hand against his face. "I'm not sure what a husband is supposed to do. I would suspect, it has to be more than what I do."

Elsa leans her head against his forehead. "Do you wish to be my husband?"

The voice of the young boy changes to a slightly deeper voice, but not quite that of a man. "If I learn to be a husband and it is acceptable to you, May I be your husband?"

Her smile grows as the tears swell up in her eyes. "I would be honored for you to be my husband." She moves her lips close to his lip, but Anna yells with joy. "He did it."

Kristoff runs into the room. "What is going on?"

Anna hugs him. "Sam asked Elsa to marry him, but not the way most men ask, but in front of all these witnesses he did ask."

The doctor stands and pats them on their back. "Congratulations."

He looks deeply into her eyes. "Something must be wrong."

She lifts her head and leans back. "What do you mean something is wrong? Are you not happy?"

"Well, I do not know what happiness is."

"What do you feel?"

"I can hear your heart beating faster than it was a minute ago. The color of your complexion has shifted more to the red spectrum. Your eyes are dilated. I'm detecting a chemical change radiating from you."

The doctor grins. "Well, I have never heard it described like that, but your description is accurate."

Sam turns to the doctor, "What did I describe?"

The doctor places his hand on Sam's shoulder and snickers. "If all men could learn to observe the woman's reaction as you observed hers, I would think the world would be a better place. It is rather fascinating that you even describe her chemical release that science is just now asking the question of how men and women are attracted to each other. It is fascinating indeed."

"You have not told me what it is I described?"

"Sam, there is no specific word to identify what you described. Some people call it love. My personal opinion, Love is a verb, not a noun." He kneels next to Samuel. "Think of it like this. You can't point to a thing or person or object and say this is love. Love describes the overall collection of what you say, what you do, what you feel to make someone happy."

"Did I make her, happy?"

"That is not for me to say. You need to ask her and she may not answer you vocally."

"If she does not vocalize how will I know?"

The doctor shakes his head. "I am quite confident when she communicates to you that she is happy, there will be no misunderstanding on your part."

Sam turns his head back to her. "Are you happy?"

She just smiles at him.

After a few moments of silence, the Doctor intervenes, "Sam, she asked you a question a few minutes ago. Maybe she is waiting for you to answer her question."

"What question?" He searches her face, then his eyes dart around searching. He squints. "What do I feel?"

With no words she slowly nods as her smile grows wider.

"What do I feel? My heart feels warm with you next to me. I do not wish for the sensation to end. I don't want to let you go. I want to feel you against me all the time. I wish to get drunk from your fragrant. I want to explore your hands . . . your body. I want to know what I can do to make you happy, to keep you safe, and to minimize your worries. I want you to be happy that I'm here with you. I do not wish for you to be sad. I want to protect you from the world." Then his eyes fixates on the wall behind her.

Elsa watches his hesitation. "What are you seeing?" She turns his head towards her.

His eyes focus on her. "What is wrong with me?"

"What do you mean, what is wrong?" She asks with confusion.

"I am trying very hard to see you, to stay focused on you, but my mind sees many images. I'm hearing many voices."

She whispers in his ear as tears swell in her eyes. "What are the voices saying?"

"I do not understand them. It is going too fast." His eyes begin to twitch from side to side. "I have to leave before I hurt you."

Elsa slides off his lap and onto the chair next to him. Tears run down her cheeks. His body quivers. The doctor reaches for Sam. She stops him. Sam stands and wobbles as he walks towards the door.

She stands. "Get out of his way. Do not touch him. Let him go."

Anna and Kristoff move away from the door giving Sam a wide area.

For a moment he controls his body's movement and looks back at her. With his normal voice he says, "Elsa, you know what you have to do. You know what might happen. Don't let me forget. Don't forget me." Tremors run through his arms as he looks at his hands. "Whatever happens, I want you to know." He tries to turn back to her, but falls to his knees. "For the short time I was with you, I was free and happy. I do not wish it to ever end." His face twists in pain and the tremors take over his body.

Elsa hobbles towards him and stops a meter from him. Her vision blurs and the tears take the air out of her life. Her hands rise as the air around her palms form ice crystals.

He falls onto his side and pulls his knees to his chest. Sam calls to her. "Elsa, I love you."

"I love you Sam." With those words, a large shower of ice crystal from her palms completely encase his body in ice. She kneels next to the ice and places her hand above his face. His eyes are open.

Anna kneels and hugs her big sister. "Why?"

"This is the only way he can survive. He was injured by the poison. His body needed him to shut down so it could repair the damage, but he was fighting against it. He knew there was a threat against me and if he was incapacitated, he would not be able to protect me." She turns her head to Anna. "I missed it, even when you pointed it out."

"Pointed what out?"

"You said he was speaking like a child. That was the clue. His higher functions had been shutting down to protect it. His mind is that of a child in a man's body. He needs to reset his body and mind." Her face distorts in pain, "Had I not touched him in the ice, he might not have suffered." She lays her head on Anna's shoulder to sob.

Anna strokes her sister's hair. "If you had not touched him and he was functioning on a childlike capacities, you would not have known his true feelings for you."

She raises her head up. "But that is just it. I did know"

"When?"

"Last week, he told me that if he could not get the poison under control he would have to shut down for a short period of time to heal, but he warned me it was possible he could lose some of his memory or not remember me. He said I would know that something was wrong when he would suddenly stop and appeared lost. If I could get him to focus on me as much as possible, it would minimize the memory loss. Before that happened, he wanted me to know he loved me the first time he detected my presence and he enjoyed every moment we had together."

Anna says, "You make it sound like he has known you all your life and not just the last nine months."

"He has known me all my life. Only after he removed the mental block did I remember the last time he froze himself to heal."

"Elsa, you are talking crazy."

Gerda moves towards them. "Anna, Queen Elsa is correct. I remember the day the horrific accident occurred in the yard. He saved your sister's life. I saw your father pull her out from under the debris before it collapsed on him. I can still hear her calling for Admal. When they dug him out, his body was already frozen. The doctor at the time detected he was alive. We placed him in the room next to the kitchen."

Gerda place a comforting hand on both of their shoulders. She turns to Anna. "This happened seven months before you were born." She turns to Elsa. "Your mother and father would find you sitting on his cot leaning against him. You told him about what you did that day. Your father asked why you insisted on visiting him." She lightly strokes Elsa's hair. "Do you remember what you told your father?"

She thinks for a second. "I told Papa he was talking to me. He was asking me questions." She looks at Sam's frozen body.

Gerda asks, "And when he finally thawed, what did he say he did before he was able to talk to you?"

"He could hear me, but it took a few days of healing before he could talk to me."

Gerda leans close and whispers, "before that accident your mother allowed you to ride on the horses with him, do you remember?"

She turns her head to Gerda. "Yes, I remember. I remember how much fun it was. I remember he allowed me to stand on the horse while he held me tightly against his chest. I felt free. I had no fear of falling off the horse as long as Admal held on to me."

Anna shakes her head. "How many names does he have? You called him Admal."

Elsa chuckles. "For a three year old, the best I could pronounce Admiral was Admal."

Gerda smiles. "And did Admal forget you after he thawed?"

She searches her mind and smiles. "No, he did not."

"Why do you think he did not forget?"

"Because I came to his room and talked to him before he could talk to me."

Gerda leans her head against Elsa. "At the bottom of the stairs before coming up here what question did he asked you?"

She pulls her lips tight, but the tears force their way through and race down her cheeks. "When did I take his heart?"

"And your answer?"

"When he saved my life. Thank you for giving me focus." She lays her face on the ice. "I will not let you forget. I will talk to you every day until you come out of the ice."

Kristoff kneels down and hugs Anna. "Ok, I'm confused, so he is not dead, but alive, frozen in the ice." He whispers in Anna's ear. "Did you know about this?"

"I'm just as confused as you are. I can understand where he was partially frozen to be alive in the fjord, but he is frozen in a solid block of ice." Anna replies.

Gerda stands and touches Anna's shoulder. "I don't understand it myself completely. I only know what I saw back then. Elsa was reserved and kept to herself. Once she met Samuel, she would pester her mother until she was able to see him or her mother would stand just outside of the door with her so she could watch him walk the horses."

Kristoff helps Anna stand as she asks. "Mother once told me she knew Elsa and Samuel had a bond the first time they met."

Gerda nods. "Yes, Elsa was about six months old." She tells them of their mother's walk around the courtyard that one evening. "In her words she said he held Elsa like she was his own daughter. She held his shirt collar and nuzzled against his neck. Your mother knew they had something special."

Gerda ushers everyone out the room and as she closes the door, Elsa curls up against Sam, just as she had done eighteen years earlier.

Kai standing in the hallway asks, "Well, rumors buzzing around here he asked her."

Gerda gives her husband a big hug. "The King and Queen would be proud. Our little Princess has grown up. Unfortunately, he is still reacting from the poison he drank. She had to freeze him."

"Oh, does she know what might happen?"

She wipes her eyes on his shirt. "She knows what could happen."

Kai glances at the Queen's door. "Is she in there now?"

Gerda nods.

"Well, I guess we need to bring her meals to her room, until it's over."

Gerda lets go of Kai and walks down the hall. "I will say a special prayer for them."

Kai nods and follows after her.

 **End of Chapter**


	38. Chapter 37 Time to Talk

**Title: Chapter 37: Time to Talk**

 **3 years, 8 months until correction**

As she promised Gerda brings Elsa's breakfast to her room. Setting the meal on the table she looks at the bed that has not been slept in. She does not find her in the room and moves to the washroom. Not seeing her Queen, she walks back into the outer room. As she closes the door, she spots a few strands of blond hair against the color of the wall. She slowly walks over to Sam. Between him and the wall, Elsa lies curled up on the floor, resting her head against Sam's icy back.

Gerda kneels and lightly rubs her shoulder. "Elsa, it's time for you to get ready for the day. I do believe you have lots of appointments."

Elsa rolls her body against the ice and drapes her arm over him. Yawning, she says, "What if he wakes up and I am not here?"

"I think you will know when he wakes up. Let me get your bath started and you can eat."

"Um hum," she replies not opening her eyes.

"I thought you might act this way so I brought in reinforcements." Gerda nods to the red head peeking into the room.

Elsa hears stomping feet racing towards her. The bed groan as a weight bounces across it. She opens her eyes and Anna grins from the edge of the bed.

"Come on sleepy head. He will be here this evening. Your first appointment will be here in thirty minutes." Anna glances across the bed. "Oh is that the cream pastry they were making early this morning. If you do not want it, can I have it?" She bounces back across the bed and sits at the table.

Elsa opens one eye and stares at Gerda. "Not fair."

Gerda grins. "And she will be here every morning if you give me any troubles getting up"

She pushes herself up to a sitting position. "Okay, I am getting up." With another yawn she stretches. "If he wakes up I will cancel the appointments."

Gerda stands and holds her hands out to Elsa. "Maybe this would be a good time to give Anna some training for when you can't meet with others."

She reaches for Gerda's hands and pulls herself up. Straightening the dress she slept in, she walks over to the table and sees an empty pastry plate, "Did you eat my pastries?"

"I had breakfast with Kristoff. I left the healthy stuff for you to eat." Anna finishes the last bite of the pastry.

Gerda walks past them. "I'll get you another pastry as soon as your water is ready."

A Queendom needs constant attention so reluctantly Queen Elsa returns to her duties, but towards the end of each day as the last appointment leaves the room she becomes more distracted and puts off her reports to sit with him. Every evening Elsa tells Sam what happened and who was the problem child. She even noticed after lunch her mind wonders to him. By the fifth day, she persuades Anna to finish the last two hours of appointments of the day.

On the seventh day, after finishing the last appointment Anna knocks on Elsa's door. Receiving no reply, she opens the door, Expecting to see Elsa at her table or near Samuel, she does not see her. She steps into the room and quietly closes the door. She listens closely for any noise, especially from the wash room. Not hearing any sound she concludes her sister is not there, but still expects her to show up at any minute. She softly walks over to where Sam still lies in the block of ice.

She kneels next to him and starts to place her hand on the ice over his head, but the cold prevents her from touching it. Rubbing her hands together to warm them, she stares at his opened eyes. "I do not know if you can hear me. Elsa says you can and I hope she is right."

She glances at the door leading to the next room. If Elsa catches her, she has a plan, so she waits in silence. Several seconds pass with no sounds of movement. Believing she is alone, she looks back at him. "Sam, you were acting very crazy the last two weeks. I hope you remember your promise to Elsa. She would be devastated if you did not remember proposing to her. I can imagine what she went through living alone in this castle with her powers. I know how I felt knowing she was in the next room, but I could not give her a hug."

Anna sniffs back a sniffle. "Elsa wanted to be alone when everyone found out about her powers. That evil Hans tried to take over Arendelle because I pushed Elsa on her coronation. It should have been her happiest day and I messed it up for her." She wipes a tear. "So I am telling you, if you forget your promise to my big sister and you make her sad. I will hunt you down and put you in the prison until you make amends to her."

She turns her head away and wipes away her tears when the door to the next room opens. Standing quickly, she turns into the open arms of her big sister.

Wrapped in a bathrobe with her hair dripping wet, Elsa hugs her little sister.

"How much did you hear?"

Elsa smiles, "Enough."

"I am sorry, I should have not come in here."

Elsa lays Anna's head onto her shoulder. "It sounds like you did the right thing."

"Do you think he heard me?"

"I do not know. Gerda said he was able to hear the last time he went into an ice cocoon."

With a touch of defiance, Anna glares at him. "I hope he did."

"We have to be fair to him. He saved my life again."

Anna looks up at her sister. "What if he does not remember the things he said?"

Elsa shrugs. "Well, I guess I will have to deal with it."

Anna lays her head back on Elsa's shoulder. "While you are dealing with it, I will make sure he deals with it as well."

Elsa chuckles, "Let us see how he feels when he wakes up, before you decide to torture him, okay?"

Anna squeezes Elsa tight. "Okay, I will wait."

By day ten, Elsa takes care of the morning meetings and Anna takes care of the afternoon appointments. Elsa has her afternoon meals sent to her room. She sits on the floor in front of Sam, hoping his eyes would move. But with each day's disappointments, she would tell him the events that occurred in the council meetings.

"Sam, I wish you could have been at today's meeting. They are a bunch of old goats. No matter what I suggest, they take turns giving excuses why it would not work." She places her hand on the ice. "I do not have anyone to cheer for me. Anna tries, but they are wearing her down. Kristoff comforts her. I think if you are there, your presence may get them to back off and actually consider my plans. After a meeting like today I sometimes wonder if they are doing it on purpose hoping I would step down from the throne. I am so tired. I wish you were here. I miss you." She lays her head on the ice above his head and falls asleep.

On the morning of day twelve, Elsa slowly prepares for the morning business. Her first appointment is with the eldest councilman who has expressed concerns for her lack of appearance in the afternoon meetings.

"It is too bad he does not take a long walk off a tall cliff." She bows her head and covers her eyes. "Hold on now. As Queen it is part of your job to listen to grumpy old men, no matter how stupid they are." Grrr, "I make have to endure it for the greater good, but I do not have to like it." Her fist slams against the chair. "I definitely do not like it. The pompous councilman choose this particular time thinking I am weak. I will show him." She places her hand on the ice above Samuel's head. "But I do not know how." At least Anna will be there to share the misery with her.

On cue Anna knocks on the door as she walks in. Grabbing the brush off the table, she glances at her sister. "Have you been sleeping on the floor again?" She lifts Elsa's head off the chair and sits. She lays her sister's head on her lap and brushes Elsa's hair. "Has he said anything yet?"

Elsa sits up facing Sam and sits closer to Anna. "No, I thought he did around midnight. I spent an hour checking every inch of the ice, but I did not find any cracks. I even tapped on the ice, but he did not say anything."

She pulls her knees up and wraps her arms around them. "Anna, I am growing concerned. Gerda said she recalls, Samuel was in the ice seven days. Here it is almost twice as long and he has not communicated with me."

Anna puts her arms around her sister. "I wish I could do something to make it go faster. But since I cannot, I can at least help you get ready. I do not think the councilman is going to be nice if we are late."

Elsa chuckles, "I do not think it makes any difference if we are on time or not. He is just a grumpy old man."

Anna brushes Elsa's hair.

The clock chimes at the three quarters hour. Anna and Elsa enter the council room. As usual the councilman is already there with a sour expression on his face and a stack of parchment in front of him. He stands and waits for his Queen to sit in her chair at the head of the table. Anna sits in the chair immediately to the Queen's right. The councilman does not waste any time and jumps into the business.

An hour later, the councilman begins again pointing to his data. Anna argues his data is not complete if he leaves out certain information. The councilman studies his data.

Anna notices Elsa looking down at the floor. She touches her arm. "What is wrong?"

Slowly a smile beams as Elsa pops her head up. She stares at the door for a few moments and abruptly stands. "He is awake. Anna, I can hear him, he is awake."

Life returns to her sister as a flower opens its petals towards the sun. With a smile bigger than she has seen in quite a while, Elsa runs past the table and through the door as she nearly runs over Kai and says, "He is awake." She yells over her shoulder. "Anna, please finish for me."

The councilman slowly sits in his chair and stares at the door. "Well, I've never been treated like this from royalty in all of my life."

Not willing to let an obvious opportunity pass Anna makes a snide comment, "I do not believe that at all. At your advanced age, you must have forgotten all the other times you deserved to be treated this way."

The councilman quickly turns his head and scowls at Anna.

Anna flashes her pearly white teeth. "Go ahead and say something else about my sister, or is this meeting over?"

He gathers his papers. "I will reschedule this meeting at the Queens convenience." He slowly walks out of the room.

Kai steps in. "Is the meeting over?"

Anna grins.

"Do you wish for me to move some of the afternoon appointments up?"

Anna smiles at Kai as she skips by him. "No, do not bother. We need a little rest. I am going to check on Samuel. In case you did not hear from the snowstorm that flew past you, He is awake."

Elsa runs up the stairs and down the hall to her room, her cloak knocks over a flower vase and misaligns a painting as she flies past them. Into her room, she flings her cloak onto the chair and stops short. A blue glow surrounds the ice.

She hears him.

 _Majesty, I would get up and bow, but as you can see, I'm not physically able at the moment._

Without replying she watches the glow undulate in height.

Sam continues. _My apologies, the glow is my energy essence. I can't prevent it from showing right now. The deeper the blue the better I feel. I still have some time before I can get out of the ice._

She slowly walks around the bed and sits on the edge. The glow fascinates her, but the blue glow is more like a blue mist. She leans forwards and reaches out her hand, but stops before touching the mist.

 _It is ok. It will not hurt you. You may feel a slight tingling sensation._

Elsa stretches out her hand and touches the mist. Her hand moves, creating swirls in the mist. Ice crystals form on her hand and shimmer in the light. The mist moves half way up her arm. The rapid movement of the mist startles her. The mist withdraws from her arm and hand.

"What was that?"

 _I'm kind of embarrassed to answer except to say the mist responded to your affection. It was responding to your energy and when you felt uncomfortable, your energy changed. It is a way for me to know how comfortable anyone is around me._

"What will it do if I get angry?"

 _It will move away. When you or I get angry the energy will become polarized. Opposite polarities will cause a spark of energy. You may have seen it on cold and dry days when someone was about to touch something. A small spark jumps from the object to the person. As long as you are not attacking me and thinking pleasant thoughts the tingling sensation could be very relaxing."_

With a smile she asks, "Are you asking me to touch you?"

 _Only if it will please you, and by the way Anna is standing by the door with her mouth open._

Elsa quickly turns her head towards the door.

Anna stares at them with the expression of 'did she actually hear what her sister said'.

"Close the door and close your mouth. Samuel may not wish to see your tonsils."

Anna steps in to the room and closes the door. "I knocked, but no one answered." She points to Sam. "Were you talking to him?"

Elsa waves her sister over. "Come on, he is still in the ice." She pats the ice above his head. "He is creating a tingling sensation that is very relaxing."

Anna gingerly walks over to the bed. Elsa grabs her hand and pulls her to sit next to her. "Hold your hand out like this." Elsa extends her arm over the ice. The blue mist forms around her arm.

Anna hesitates, but partially extends her arm. She angles her head. "Is that the mist you were talking about?"

 _She is afraid. Tell her to touch your arm and slide her hand towards your hand. It will reduce the sensation._

"Okay."

"Okay, what?" Anna looks to Elsa.

"Slide your hand down my arm. It will reduce the sensation until you feel comfortable." Elsa encourages her.

Anna slides her hand until she holds Elsa's hand. With a growing smile Anna reaches both of her hands over the ice.

 _She is relaxing. The energy is encompassing the both of you. You should be able to see the mist surrounding her._

"What did he say?" Anna asked eagerly.

Elsa laughs. "He said you are relaxing. Now look at me and tell me what you see."

Anna looks. "I see the blue mist surrounding you. Do I look the same?"

"Look at your hands."

Anna looks. "What is it?"

"This is his energy. This is who he is."

 _Could she have met someone between here and the chamber, maybe just long enough to show some affection?_

"You mean Kristoff? Unless he returned early from harvesting his ice, I have caught them in the library and seen him sneak into her room, but when I did I would knock on her door about ten minutes later to separate them."

For a moment she stares at nothing, then she wags her finger in the air just as she turns her head towards the door. "If he was waiting for her in the library and grabbed her as she was passing the room, they could have had a few minutes of intense kissing."

 _Really, you think that is all they did, kiss._

"What do you know?" she observes him.

 _Let me remind you. You start the negative thinking and the polarity of your energy will become opposite to me. You may be shocked by the results._

She stands and moves towards the door. "I am going to shock two individuals if they are not behaving themselves."

 _Elsa, stop. Tell them no and they could sneak around you. Maybe do a lot more than just kissing. Heaven help them if they do not wait for their wedding night._

Elsa tightens her hands as she growls, "I will cut down that man if he does not wait for his wedding night." The temperature in the room drops noticeably as ice crystals begin to form on the furniture.

 _Elsa, please stop. Hear me out before you overreact._

She whirls around. "Overreact. I do not overreact."

 _Yes and the furniture grows ice on its own, because you did not overreact._

Elsa sees the ice and calms down enough to thaw her furniture. "What do you suggest?"

 _First, let me explain what I saw and what I think may have happened. Please come and sit with me._

She sits on the floor next to him and lays her hand over the ice above his head.

 _Thank you. I don't know how long I will be in here, but I look forward to you visiting me._

"Awe, I like being with you. However long it takes for you to thaw I will be here for you."

 _That's good to know, but back to Anna. Her body temperature was normal except for a spot on both arms about the size of two hands. Her face was clearly flushed, but her lips showed a higher temperature than the rest of her face._

"They kissed. Did he grab somewhere other than her arms?" She squints her eyes.

 _If he did, he was not holding on long enough to change the temperature of the area._

"So why did she leave in such a hurry."

 _As I said the mist enhances her senses. She was already excited, probably because Kristoff kissed her. I suspect when she came in here, she tried to think of you, but in the back of her mind she was fantasizing about Kristoff. Those thoughts can to the forefront of her mind and not only did she think about it her body responded in kind._

For several seconds there is silence. "So how did her body respond?"

 _Her heart rate increased, her body became very sensitive and the movement of her clothing was too much for her to control. When she turned her hands back over, it pushed her body over the edge. Her eyes closed. The intense feelings she felt at that moment, I suspect it turned into embarrassment and that is why she left._

She chuckles, then burst out into laughter. "And you may have ruined it for Kristoff." Her laughter turns into a roaring laughter as she falls back on the floor and rolls onto her side.

 _Laugh . . . Elsa . . . snicker . . . Elsa, please do not tell Anna . . . snicker laugh . . . don't tell Anna what I said, ok . . . laugh._

She sits up watching him and giggles. "Are you laughing? It sounds like you are."

 _This is a rather unique experience I'm having right now. I don't recall this ever happening. What are you feeling?_

"I feel happy."

 _As do I._

She smiles a mischievous smile. "Really, Let us test it. Suppose on their wedding night, they consummate their marriage and Kristoff rolls onto his back all hot and sweaty. He looks deeply into Anna's eyes. She says, 'I have had better'." Elsa burst into laughter again and rolls onto the floor.

After a few seconds Sam joins her, _snicker . . . snicker . . . long laughing._

The room door opens and slightly heavier feet run across the floor. Elsa rolls onto her back as Gerda calls her name loudly, "Elsa, Elsa."

She stops laughing long enough to wipe away her happy tears. "What are you doing here?"

Gerda looks perplexed. "I heard you making a loud noise and thought you were having a seizure. Are you all right? Is there anything wrong with him?"

Elsa sits up and pulls her sleeve down to her hands. "I am ok and so is he. We just conducted a little experiment and found out I can influence him to laughter."

Gerda brushes Elsa's hair from her forehead. "Well Dear, I'm not surprised. It's happened between you two before."

" _What does she mean it happened before?"_

Now Elsa looks at Gerda slightly confused. "What do you mean it happened between us before?"

"Dear, are you happy? Right now are you happy?"

"Yes," She answers searching the room to see if her sister is nearby. "Other than with Anna, this is as happy as I can ever remember."

Beaming a smile Gerda points to Sam. "And him?"

Elsa pats the ice over his head. "Yes, he is."

"And there you go. I'm not surprised you don't remember. You were only three years old the last time he froze in the ice. He was able to talk to you then." She points to him again. "Mister, you should remember. You even explained it to her parents how the two of you had a bond between your minds."

 _Connection of the minds . . . oh crap!_

Elsa stops smiling and stares intently at him. "What do you mean oh crap?"

 _Right now I do not recall freezing into an ice cube, but there is evidence in my body that it did happen before. Ask her how we interacted while I was frozen?_

She looks to Gerda. "He is asking how we interacted while he was in the ice."

Gerda sits on the edge of the bed. Elsa leans against the bed. "It was about three days after he froze. You kept telling your mother that you could hear him. At first Queen Iduna thought you were playing a game until she caught you sneaking out of your room. You would come down stairs to the spare servant room. You were quick and gave your parents quite a scare until I passed by the room and heard you talking. I opened the door. You sat next to him and leaned against the ice. The ice didn't seem to bother you. I think it was the fifth day, late in the evening, you sneaked into his room just before your father left the room. We searched again, but it was your father who found you curled up against the ice with your head resting on his arm."

"Why was Papa in his room?"

"Your father went to Sam's room every evening to talk to him. I don't think he actually believed Sam was hearing him, but maybe out of compassion he felt he had to do it for what Sam had done for you."

 _WHAT DID I DO FOR YOU?_

She turns her head quickly to Sam. "Do not yell at me, I am asking her."

Gerda lightly rubs Elsa's arm. "What did he say?"

She looks up at her. "He is asking as well as I, what did he do for me?"

She stares at Sam and with a half-smile, she cups Elsa's face. "He said this could happen. He asked a question he already knew. If I repeat it, maybe he will remember."

Gerda tells Elsa how Sam saved her from the runaway wagon in the courtyard that would have killed the both of them.

When she finished Elsa lays her face in Gerda's lap and touches the corner of her eye. A small amount of moisture clings to her finger tip. "I remember."

She runs her fingers through Elsa's hair. "I'm sorry this is so painful. He said you needed to know, what to expect."

" _How does she know?"_

"He is asking how you know." Elsa raises her head and wipes away several tears.

Gerda cups her face and leans in close. "Dear, the same way you do."

"I do not understand?" Elsa sniffles.

"He gave me the thoughts. He put them in my head to be revealed only under certain conditions. When he became frozen something in my mind said I had to do something and say something. I didn't know what it was, until Anna said you heard him. It was like someone removing a cloth from my face, then I remembered what he wanted me to say. He said I was a backup in case he encountered something that he had never been exposed to. I guess he never encountered this poison." She kisses Elsa's forehead. "He told me there would be a time that this would help you."

"How?" Elsa askes.

"I don't know, but maybe he does." She points to him. She gives Elsa another kiss on the forehead. "It's time for me to get back downstairs before Kai comes looking for me. You two have a lot to talk about. For however long he will be in the ice, why don't you stay, I'll bring your meals."

Elsa rises to her knees and gives her a hug. "You are the best."

Gerda walks to the door but before she opens it, she turns back. "Elsa, ask him to explain why you can hear his thoughts?" She opens the door. "And by the way, Kristoff looking deep into Anna's eyes and she says, 'I've had better', now that is funny."

Gerda exits and waits a few seconds. A roaring laughter sounds in the room from Elsa and her mind hears Sam's laughter. She smiles and speaks to no one. "It's good to hear you laughing again. I hope you can help each other overcome your fears just as he said you need each other."

Elsa lies on the floor, resting her head on his frozen arm, staring at his partially opened eyes. She taps the ice above his face, "Are you going to tell or do I have to do all of the talking?"

" _Your voice is music to my ears, but I guess you are referring to what Gerda said before she left."_

She continues to stare at him for some time then asks. "Do I have to beg?"

" _What Gerda said?"_

"If you were not already frozen to the floor, I would freeze you. Yes, What Gerda said." Elsa replies a little testy.

" _I just wanted to make sure we were talking about the same thing. It would not be the first time I talked about what I thought was asked of me only to find out I revealed something that should not have been revealed and made things worse."_

"Are you implying you have secrets that you do not wish for me to know?"

" _My philosophy has always been that some secrets should be kept a secret, until a more appropriate time, or if the person asks a direct question about the secret. Even then, I will try to temper it specifically if I know it would cause the person pain. Some secrets are best left as secrets."_

"Do you have one of those secrets about me that is best kept a secret?"

" _If I could shake my head no, you would be seeing me doing it now. I will answer your question this way. There is a secret about your father from long ago. The question is what will be the results of the revelation now. Will it create irreparable harm that could lead to depression and your destruction, or an understanding of relief and the distrust of all? The third possible result is an immediate loss, but in the long run of things, you would be able to look back and say despite the loss, overall it was a good reveal. There is a secret about me that I will reveal when I believe that you are ready to hear it and not one second sooner. It is a secret because it will affect our relationship."_

"What? How am I supposed to trust you knowing there is a secret that will affect us or is it me?"

After several tense minutes of silence, she props her head up on her arm. "If what you say is true and your secret could be damaging to me, would it be best that I know about it now than for someone to use it against me when I am at the most disadvantaged?"

" _You speak with the wisdom of your mother and father. I have a strong suspicion I'm not the only one who has underestimated how wise you are for your age. In order for me to fulfill your father's command, I promised I would not break his command, unless circumstances were such that he was not able to release me of the command, but that a higher authority than he could release me of my bond."_

"Who has a higher authority than my father? He is gone. By that fact, legally you are released from his command, unless it was so important, the secret would do me harm. Either I have the authority or I do not."

She sits up. Her brows push together as she stares at the floor before turning to him. "Samuel Ryan, I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle. I command you to reveal all that you know about what my father ordered you not to reveal and any other secrets that you know. I release you of any obligations to my father. You have performed your duties admirably and have honored my father. There is nothing more you can do to honor him, but I am sure at some point he requested you to honor me. Is that correct?"

" _He said you have a stubborn streak. If I could push you just hard enough, you would figure things out. He was right and you are right. You have the authority to release me of your parent's bond which I take as you have done so. Your mother and father asked me to look out for you and Anna if anything happened to them. I will continue to do so if it is your wish that I do it."_

"But that is why we have Kai and Gerda, looking out for us. What makes you different or know what they do not?"

" _Another wise question. Most people, including those who claim to be knowledgeable would ask one or the other question, but you have the forethought to ask both in the same question. I truly have to re-evaluate my assessment of you. And please, do not take my comments as belittling you. If I'm to be an advisory I will need to learn the appropriate language you are custom to hearing."_

"Does that mean you will filter your words before expressing them? If yes, then do not. Some of the words you have used have made me uncomfortable, but not to the point that I would want you to stop using them. I do not need another parrot to tell me what they think I want to hear. I need someone who will be honest and speak the truth to me at all times." She looks down for a few seconds and looks directly at his partially closed eyes. "Sam, I need you. Will you speak the truth to me?"

" _It will be my honor to speak the truth to you as I know it, but are you prepared for the heartache that may come as a result of the truth, no matter what? And I make this promise to you, Queen Elsa of Arendelle, I promise if the truth spoken does harm, I will be there with you to help you to navigate the results, this I promise on my oath as Admiral of the Starship Aurora."_

With a glimmer of a smile Elsa asks, "Three secrets, one of my father, and two about you, how many more secrets do you have?"

" _Many more and most of them, I can show you, but I'm going to guess you wish to know about why your father banished me from the castle."_

Surprised, she asks, "Banished from the castle, does this have to do with why I can hear your thoughts?"

" _It does, but please, have an open mind before you pass judgment on myself or your father. He did what he did because he loved you. His thought process was logical, but once you found your powers on your own, I believe he thought he could control it by hiding you away. Even then, if he had contacted me, I could have helped and you would not be the person you are now. Yes, it was a stressful time and yes, you almost lost everything, but because you survived the experience, I believe, you are a better person as a result of the experience. Your father did not want you to turn into a tyrant making everyone afraid of you. In a roundabout way he did you a favor, but you will never know if this is what he intended."_

"I will not judge my father. I reserve the right to reassess my option of you." She speaks with a glint in her eyes.

" _Touche' ma cherie, maybe we need to spend more time together to get an accurate assessment of each other."_

"Agreed," she lies on her side and rests her head on his frozen arm.

" _When you were three years old and your mother was pregnant with Anna . . . well, actually the Queen did not know she was pregnant. She came to me in the stables one afternoon. She had been feeling the way she felt when she was pregnant with you and asked me if I would determine if she was pregnant."_

"Why did she not go to the doctor?"

" _I asked the same thing."_

"What did she say?"

" _Since I had helped her the first time and told her she was pregnant with you—"_

"With me? You told mother that she was pregnant with me?" her eyes widen.

" _Not specifically you, but with a baby girl."_

Elsa looks away as if her eyes search for the truth. They focus on him again. "She told me she found out after her caravan had been attacked by a pack of wolves."

" _And did she mention me being there?"_

Elsa looks away again and feels a moment of disappointment. "No, she did not."

" _This is one of those areas that may have contributed to my banishment from the castle."_ He pauses. _"Elsa, Let me finish telling what happened that started the whole process of allowing you to hear my thoughts."_

Elsa stares at him and wipes away a tear. What else did her mother and father not tell her?

" _Please remember they loved you and did everything they could to protect you from those who will do you harm. When I get out of the ice I will do my best to help and protect you. You asked for the truth and this is going to be hard. Before I told your mother, she was pregnant the first time, it was no doubt a very stressful moment. The guard claimed they stopped the carriage to investigate a loud noise over a hill. They encounter a wolf pack attacking me. They missed seeing the second pack of wolves move around the royal coach. When the guards and I chased the wolves away, your mother was seriously injured. Your mother had a gaping wound that for all logical purposes should have killed her. I did what I did to save her and in the process you found me."_

"How did I find you?" She stares not blinking as though mesmerized by the story.

 _You actually drew energy from me. I asked the Queen if she knew she was pregnant. Through her pain she slowly shook her head no. I told her 'since she did not know it will be easier to remove the baby and to save her life'. She grabbed my hand. I could see it in her eyes, but she barely whispered, no. I told her the baby has been severely wounded and will be dead soon. She held onto my hand. It was as though she stared directly into my soul and said, Please save my baby. What could I do? I had to act or see her die. I just nodded. The baby lost most of her blood. I pricked my finger until the white blood oozed out. I pushed the blood into the babies wound. I did not believe the child would live past the next few minutes, but she did._

He pauses for a moment. _"As we traveled back to the castle, your mother's wound healed. The baby grabbed my finger. I felt her heart beat. She was strong. Her heart beat faster. I did not see it at the time, now I do. That moment was the first significant event. Each event increases our bond or connection. Your father saw me get out of the coach and I almost lost my head on the spot. Your mother saved me from your father's wrath."_

Elsa's breathing wavers and several drops of water land onto the ice.

With a sniffle and a whimper she wipes the tears from her face as she looks at him. Her voice wavers. "That baby was me?"

 _My Queen . . . that baby grew up to be you._ He falls silent and induces his blue mist to surround her as she cries herself to sleep.

The next day Gerda wakens Elsa. As she sits up and stretches Gerda kneels beside her and gives Elsa a big hug. "Did he tell you how you two met?"

Elsa looks up with one eye still close. "He saved my life with his blood. He saved momma's life. He did not have to do it."

"But he did. Did he tell you about three significant events that creates the connection between you two?" Gerda brushes Elsa's matted hair.

"He did, but I think I fell asleep right after he told my father about me." She turns her head towards Sam. "I do not hear him now?"

"He is probably a sleep. Take this moment to eat. I'm sure when you finish he will be awake." Gerda helps her to her feet and they sit at the table where the breakfast awaits.

Elsa sits through most of the breakfast in silence. Gerda places a comforting hand on her hand. She starts to speak, but she turns away. Gerda moves next to her. She buries her face into Gerda's hug. After a few minutes she sits up and wipes away several tears.

"Did he tell you how I almost did not survive to be born?"

Gerda lays Elsa's head on her shoulder. "Yes, he did. Please understand his circumstances at the time. He was trying to save your Queen Mother."

Gerda holds Elsa's face in her hands. "Now, you listen to me. Sometimes a woman who is in her early stage of pregnancy will lose the child before it is born. I know many women who said they knew they were pregnant. A stressful event occurs and shortly afterwards they knew they were not pregnant. It is possible your mother truly did not know she was pregnant with you. If you had not touched him, he would not have saved you. Only God would have known that for a short period of time you were here. Let your tears be those of joy that Sam saw you first."

She nods her head, as a dam burst to release a flood of water, tears race down her face. She hugs Gerda tightly.

 **End of Chapter**


	39. Chapter 38 Trade Guest

**Title: Chapter 38: Trade Guest**

 **3 years, 7 months until correction**

Sam runs his finger on the inside of his trouser to remove any bunching of his shirt. It has been many years since anyone truly were interested in his appearance. It has been just as long, since he had to wear a uniform. His arms across his chest. The tailor left enough room in the shirt not to bind his arms and shoulders. In the mirror, he nods to Elsa standing behind him with her regal pose.

"You seem to be doing a lot better since you got out of the ice. How do you feel?" Gerda tucks the edge of his shirt into his trousers.

He tweaks her cheek. "I feel fine. I'm not in pain and I believe I'm close to one hundred percent operational."

Kai holds the black ceremony jacket with red trim as Sam slips his arms into it.

But still, Sam could not stop himself and rubs his wrist where the gold cuffs make contact. He should have listened to Kai's warning to wear a long sleeve shirt underneath, but he protested it would bind his arms too much. He pushes the sleeves up his arm.

Gerda slaps his hands and pulls the cuffs back down. "Leave them down. You can tolerate it for several hours."

Sam tries to adjust the sleeve, but is not able to find a comfortable position. "Why do I need to wear this monkey suit to meet the royal baboons? No wonder royalty appears uptight in their paintings."

Kai slaps him on his back. "A royal pain of a baboon in a monkey suit, now that is something I never thought I would see."

"Okay, you two," Queen Elsa intervenes. She steps in front of him. With a smile, she adjusts his jacket. "You are not backing out, are you?"

He pulls on the jacket's collar. "Ok, I let you talk me into wearing these fancy clothes. Remind me what I'm doing since you will be meeting them later this evening."

She adjusts his collar and glides her fingers across his chest to remove a wrinkle in the fabric. "Father would have been proud of you."

"No." The tips of his fingers slide along her arms to her shoulders. "Your father was always proud of you. I, unfortunately, gave him reasons to doubt me. Isn't this suit closer to what he wore?"

"You look nothing like him." She pinches his nose. "You look hansom in these clothes. No matter what the guests say. You are wearing these for me." She picks up a folded piece of paper and hands it to him. "These are the invited guest. You will greet and shake the hands of every guest. Before the meeting, report your impressions of them to me."

"So now it starts."

"What starts?"

"Use my abilities to give you an advantage over them." He studies the guest list.

She places her hands on her waist. "Do you think if they could get a spy into my castle, they would? Would they take every advantage of me and the other guest if it would profit them?"

"Politics by any other names still smell of rotting fish. I will do as you ask, but why is Weselton on the list after what they did?"

"Sweden's Ambassador Soren assures me the Duke was acting for himself. Prince Nick of Weselton wishes to amend for the Duke's behavior."

He taps the paper. "Soren and Nick, they will become my new friends."

She places her hand over his heart. "Please do not scare them away until after the negotiations."

His hand covers her hand. He bows and kisses the back of her hand. "As you wish."

A guard opens the door and whispers to Kai. He reports, "Majesty, A German ship has arrived with several other ships close behind them."

She taps his chest. "My first guest will arrive soon. You represent me when you greet them. Be kind and respectful."

"Will they be kind and respectful to me?"

Her lips blow him a kiss and she walks out the door without answering.

Kai motions for him to follow. He marches out the door and meets Kai at the top of the stairs. "Am I correct to assume they will be measuring my conduct?"

They continue down the stairs. "The thinking baboon has figured it out. Greet the guest with minimal talking. Do whatever she asks of you and report back to her. If you are lucky it will take two hours to meet the entire guests. Do not embarrass our Queen."

"Two hours," he huffs. "Great." His boots echo across the stone floor and out the main doors.

Kai sets his list of names on a tall table. The mid-morning sun warms the crisp air, creating small whirlwinds in the courtyard. The Queen's banner and Arendelle's flag flaps in the breeze. A whirlwind ruffles the banner across the front of the table.

Kai sorts his papers. "Our first guest is from Germany. I will do all of the talking. You just stand there and look pretty."

Clasping his hands behind his back and positioning his shoes, shoulder width apart, Sam snorts, "In a pig's eye."

A female staffer steps through the door and stands next to the table.

"Welcome to Arendell, Ambassador Bertram. This young maid will escort you to your room." Kai takes the ambassador's invitation.

"Thank you, Mister Kai. It has been a number of years since I last saw you. It seems time aged you quite well." Bertram motions to the young man behind him to step forward. "This is my nephew, Adolph. It is his first trip from home. I want him to explore the beauty beyond our borders. This was a last minute decision. I hope this will not create an inconvenience."

Sam locks his eyes on the young man with the light pink cheeks. The nephew glances away.

"Oh no, we can easily accommodate. Your nephew is welcomed," Kai replies.

Bertram steps between him and his nephew holding out his hand. "What were you saying about pig's when I was walking up here?"

With a glint of a smile he shakes Bertram's hand and replies in German. "Have you tasted chicken bratwurst? It is a different delicacy."

"No right minded German would waste the seasoning on chicken. No sir, pork and sometimes beef, is the only way to make a bratwurst."

"How is King Ludwig doing these days?"

Bertram jerks his hand away and walks past mumbling. His nephew hurries after his uncle.

"Who is our next guest?"

Kai narrows his brows at him.

"What?" He shrugs his shoulders. "I'm doing exactly what Queen Elsa told me to do. Bertram is here for trade with the French. The nephew is truly here against his will, but he did not wish to disappoint his mother." He points to the next two approaching. "Who are they?"

Kai does not answer, but greets the Frenchmen. "Welcome to Arendelle, Monsieur Garron."

"Merci Monsieur Kai." He hands him his invitation. "I have brought my son Pierre. It was a last minute decision. I am hoping he will follow in my footsteps."

"Father, I have not decided if politics is for me." The young man answers glancing past him.

Grinning at the ambassador Sam holds out his bare hand.

Garron lowers his nose to look at his hand, then looks up at him. "Do I know you?"

Sam purposefully glances at the sword on the Frenchman's side and replies in French, "Admiral Ryan of the command ship Aurora."

"Lamar did say I should watch out for a brutish stable lad," Garron replies. His son snickers.

"Oui, you do know me. How is Lamar?"

"He is in an Italian prison waiting to be executed," the son gleefully states.

Garron's expression appears to be waiting for him to take the bait. "That's unfortunate for Lamar. I actually liked him." He focuses on Garron. "We are kindred spirits."

Garron's expression wavers, then his brows shoot up as if they were trying to crawl over to the back of his head.

He waves his hand. "The sword handle, is there a blade attached to it or is it just for decorations?"

The son puffs his chest out and reaches for his sword. "This is the best sword made in France. It will slice a man's head off in one swing."

Garron grabs his son's hand, exposing a finger's length of the blade. "There is no need to patronize the stable boy. We are here for trade negotiations only."

He steps closer and touches the back of Garron's hand. The father and son's intentions are revealed. "Careful sonny, you don't want to trip and fall on your sword. It would be an embarrassment to your father when he has to report your sword was inserted, where the sun doesn't shine."

Garron fights to keep his son's sword in its sheathed. "Not now, we are guest and will show our host the respect she deserves, despite the ill manner of this fool."

Kai interrupts, before other words are exchanged. "Please follow the maiden to your rooms. If there is anything you need, please let me know."

The son stops next to him. "When the trades are done, I will gladly show you Lamar's sword."

The Frenchmen follow their escort into the castle.

Kai grabs his arm. "Is your collar choking off any respect you planned to show our guest? Or is it your intent to upset the guest before the meeting starts?"

He snatches his arm from Kai. "There will be no problems if the royal pains shake my hand. You do your job and I will do mine." They both face the next guest approaching. "For your information, Garron and his son are in the same line of business I did in the past. I would let it go if he had not threatened me with the sword."

"How did he threaten you?" Kai asks as he reads the guest list.

"Intentionally exposing any part of the blade while still in its scabbard is a sign of a challenge. Since I didn't have my sword, his intent is to intimidate. Evidently Monsieur Lamar mentioned my name before he was placed in prison or dead. Sonny's sword is the same sword Lamar had when he was here."

The next two guests approach them

"Welcome to Arendelle, Ambassador Estevan."

"Thank you, gentlemen, it is an honor to be here. This is my son, Juan. I hope he will not inconvenience you."

"Not at all, he is welcomed," Kai replies.

"Safer here than at home," Sam asks in Spanish.

Estevan shrugs. "It is so. When I get back, there may be a different government and I could be arrested if I get off the ship."

The son grasps his father's arm. "No poppa, I will not let them. I will fight with you."

Estevan pats his son's hand. "You will do as I say."

The young man lowers his head. "Yes, Poppa."

Sam places his hand on both of their hands. "He could stay here until you come back for him."

"No, we fight for our Queen Isabella as you no doubt will fight for your Queen Elsa."

He steps aside and the two Spaniards walk into the castle.

Kai gets his attention. "You said the Frenchmen are in the same business as you were?"

"They think Lamar did not assassinate his target. His assistant was to witness the assassination before killing Lamar."

"And the Frenchmen?"

He glances at the castle door. "They are here to complete his mission. Before you ask, Lamar never identified the target. I did not push to find out. Before he departed, I asked if he would be back. He said no."

"Maybe he did complete his mission."

He faces the door. "Unless the target is fish food, he never left the castle. I do not believe the target was here." He looks at Kai. "Did someone not show up who was supposed to be at the earlier meeting?"

"I can search the records, but I believe you are correct. I thought Queen Elsa said there would be a fourth."

"Persuade Captain Larsen to double the guards and our guest should have an escort at all times. Something does not feel right."

They wait for the next guest. Over the next hour, he shakes hands with Prince Georg of the Southern Isles, Irish Ambassador Morgan, Swedish Ambassador Soren and son Kalle, and Representative Davin and son, Havard, from the kingdom Kristiania. Prince Nick refused his hand.

He follows Kai into the castle. "Rather interesting eight guests were invited and you signed in thirteen. The extra five male guests appear to be slightly older than our Queen."

"Leave it alone."

"I cannot and I will not. I did not receive good feelings from Prince Nick. Weselton and the Frenchmen I will watch personally."

Kai stops him in the hall leading to the kitchen and grabs his sleeve. "I'm not going to tell you how to protect Queen Elsa, but do it when she is not in the immediate vicinity."

"Excluding imminent safety, I will do as you ask."

In the early evening the guests mingle inside of the foyer or outside the main doors. Sam conducts small talk with each of the guests as he moves towards the doors. The shadows from the castle walls touch the bottom of the steps. A guard moves around the courtyard igniting the torches.

On the steps to the side of the door Prince Nick comments to Representative Davin, "I agree with the Duke. Prince Hans was stupid for what he did. A little more patience he could have persuaded the Queen."

"Yes, the young Queen would make an excellent bride for whoever captures her heart."

"Forget her heart. Hans should have taken her in the cell." Nick snickers and whispers, "Just thinking about it makes me hard. I would not mind deflowering her with my stick and spread my love all over her breast."

Davin nods his head in agreement, then scurries down the steps.

"Where are you going?"

Sam snaps his fingers. Nick steps down and reaches for the sword that is not at his side.

"Why don't you hold your stick to defend yourself and you can spread your love all over the ground?" He narrows his eyes hoping he will insult his Queen. He glances at the other delegates. "Tell the people how Hans should have raped your host." He steps towards him.

Nick stumbles down the stairs. A Weselton officer catches him. He straightens his clothing and hides his hands in his jacket. "You clearly misunderstood my statement. I said Prince Hans could have destroyed Weselton's relationship with Arendelle if he had physically assaulted Queen Elsa. His brothers should hang him. They are making a serious mistake in sending Prince Georg here. Being a stable boy, it is obvious you did not understand the big words I used. Next time your Queen should delegate a staff to remove the horse manure from your ears."

Half of the delegates laugh.

Nick continues as he puffs out his chest. "I am grateful your Queen is generous for allowing me to amend for the Duke's disgraceful actions."

The Frenchmen applaud. Davin hides behind the Swedish representative Soren.

Kai speaks from behind him. "Samuel, Queen Elsa is waiting for you."

He snaps his knuckles in both of his hands and bumps his fists together. "You are the type who will never let it go." With a crunch under his shoes as he turns, he follows Kai through the doors.

Most of the guests in the foyer watch as they move up the stairs. Halfway up Kai comments. "Don't let them push you into something you are not prepared."

"So you are on their side, you think Nick has a distinctive advantage over me?"

"How many laughed at you? I suspect everyone out there has been on the receiving end of his comments. Nick has been playing this game for many years." At the top of the stairs, Kai stops and glances over the rail. "Do you know how Weselton makes such great deals with Arendelle, and I would presume the same with the others?"

His shoulders barely shrug as he stares at him.

"The last trade negotiations held here, two years before the passing of the King and Queen, Prince Nick made a similar comment to Queen Iduna and King Adgarr struck him. By the end of the evening, Prince Nick convinced several of the participants to drop trade with Arendelle due to the King's actions. Negotiations broke down and all departed early."

"And this is where the big 'BUT', comes in."

"You are correct. Nick claimed to feel sorry and purchased all of the items the others did not."

"At a discount, no doubt."

"Correct again, He sells Arendelle's tradable goods at a higher price, but less than what the others would have paid if they traded directly."

Sam searches below for the weasel. "Everyone gets a good deal except Arendelle."

At that moment the weasel struts into the castle with several delegates grouped around him. Kai bumps his arm and starts to speak. Sam holds up his hand. The group continues their movement across the floor. "You were about to say?"

"So she told you about the acoustics from here. Don't let them hurt our Queen." Kai continues down the hall.

Sam watches the weasel and his friends. "Kai, I will give my life to make your statement a fact."

Several minutes later, he stops in front of the Queen's door. His hand moves to knock when the door opens.

Gerda frowns and grabs the door frame on both sides of the door. "What are you doing?"

His left brow rises. "I'm here to escort Queen Elsa to the dining room."

She reaches behind her and closes the door. "Not with all that noise you're making."

His brows push together as his eyes narrow. "What noise?"

She grabs his ear. "You're making the noise in here. What upset you a few minutes ago?"

He rubs his ear. "I learned Prince Nick is very aggressive. He out maneuver the late King and declared he wants our Queen, wife or not." He grins with displayed his teeth and emits a lower growl. "I will make sure he does no harm to my Queen."

Gerda grips his arm. "That noise is upsetting Elsa."

For a moment he does not understand. _How can she hear me?_

No time to waste, he steps back. "I should have known." His eyes close and he holds his breath for several seconds. His eyes open. "Better?"

She stares into his eyes. "The noise has stopped." She opens the door and lets him pass.

He moves several steps into the room. Queen Elsa and Prince Georg stop their conversation and turn towards him. He bows. "You asked to see me, Majesty?" The door closes behind him.

Queen Elsa moves towards him. "Please report your findings."

Sam stands and throws Georg a glare.

Elsa growls, "I do not have time for your childish conduct. Report your findings."

His left brow rises as he focuses on her. "Most of the guests are here to trade for a better deal than the one Weselton offers. You may have made a mistake in allowing Prince Nick to be here. He is the only one who refused to shake my hand. Other than the French, the rest are nervous."

From across the room Georg asks, "Why would the others be nervous?"

He does not answer.

Elsa rolls her eyes. "Answer his question."

"Prince Nick has a silver tongue that cuts deep. If they do not get a deal with you, Prince Nick will up the price on Arendelle's tradable goods. It would have been better if they had not come here. His tongue cut your father. The others hope you will not be like your father."

"That is why the Duke was upset at Hans for passing out the blankets without charging for them." Georg comments.

She glances back and asks, "I heard you exchanged words with Prince Nick."

He looks at the open window behind her. The angles in the courtyard do not direct the sounds from the steps to the Queen's window. "Is this why Prince Georg is here?"

"I will ask the questions," Elsa snaps. "What did you say to Prince Nick?"

"I defended your honor."

"How?"

"I told him to spill his seed on the ground instead of expressing his wish to spill it on you."

Georg charges towards the door. "I will cut his tongue out."

"Unless your plan is to take on the Frenchmen and Nick, I hope your skills have improved significantly since the last time you were here." Sam glares at him. "I am here to protect my Queen, not you."

Elsa's right brow rises and she holds up her hand.

Georg stops.

He continues, "Why have you not asked about the intent of the French?"

"Should I?"

"Monsieur Lamar had a dual purpose for being here. The French are here to finish his mission." His left eye flutters.

Elsa steps closer and touches behind his left eye. "Are you in pain?"

His eye flutters again. "A momentary stabbing in the back of my head seems to be causing my eye to act out."

"Is it –"

He interrupts before she mentions his illness, "No it's not. Was the fourth guest Lamar's target?"

"I believe I was the target," answers a soft voice of the older woman stepping out from the side room.

Elsa introduces, "This is Princess Feodora of Leiningen. A creditable threat prevented her from coming here."

Sam approaches. She holds out her hand. He bows and kisses the back of her hand. "I see the beauty of aging wine cannot compare with you. I did not know you were a Princess the last time I saw you."

"You remember," the Princess smiles.

"You are the older sister of Queen Victoria. How is she doing these days?"

"She is doing quite well. She asked me to deliver a message that you would understand. Weed the chaff and if you find someone to trust do not let them go."

With a slight nod and a smile, he comments, "I told Princess Victoria, that saying. I hear she took it to heart and it has served her well. You represent her interest?"

"Yes, and my country."

"Does Bertram know you are here?"

"Other than the three of you, no one knows. While I am here, please refer to me by Feodora."

He steps back and bows. "As you wish, but you know Garron and his son are here to complete Lamar's mission." He chuckles to himself. "This makes complete sense. Something happens to you, England, France and Germany will be at odds with each other. All three will be at odds with us." He looks at the door. "And Prince Nick buys from us at a ridiculous discount since no one else will and sells to all three with a ridiculous markup for a tidy profit." He turns to Elsa. "It helps Davin if Arendelle is weak, but which side will Soren take?"

"What about the others?" George asks.

"Spanish politics will determine Estevan's fate. I considered Morgan to represent the United Kingdom but with the Princess here, he becomes an unknown. Whose side does he represent, England or Ireland?"

A knock on the door disrupts their conversation. Kai opens the door. "Majesty, the guests are entering the dining room."

"Thank you, we will be there in a moment. No one is to repeat anything said in this room." She points to Sam. "Find out what you can and report back to me. These people are expecting certain protocols." Her right brow rises. "Do not take any actions without my approval."

His left brow shoots up.

"Excluding my safety, of course."

Sam nods in agreement.

"Georg, please escort Feodora. I need to speak with Sam."

Georg offers his arm. He and Feodora exit with Kai closing the door.

Elsa turns to him and places her hand over his heart. "This meeting is very important to me. I cannot let Weselton put Arendelle at a disadvantage again."

Sam softly touches her arms. "I understand. There are too many players here. I need to reduce their numbers." He bends down until his eyes are at her eye levelHe bends down to

. "I cannot tell you my plans. I don't know what I will do at any specific moment. This is where you will have to trust me. No matter what I do, it is imperative you perform the Queen's duties. They need to determine Arendelle has a strong Queen. I will deal with the consequences afterwards. Do you promise?"

She cups his face with her hands. "I will promise if you answer my questions directly."

For a moment he swims in her blue eyes, then answers, "I agree."

"You feel warm. Are you getting sick?"

"I do feel a little chill. My temperature is probably up."

"Do you talk to yourself?"

"I do. Before coming here I always had someone to give me clarity before making a decision. Now I talk to myself." He drops his head for a few seconds. "Gerda said she was hearing noises. I suspect you did too and I apologize. When this is over I may need time to rest and I'll let you know when I leave."

"Leave?"

"It will be for a short period of time. I'll be back."

"How short?"

"Several days, a week, I don't know."

She searches his eyes. He tries to prevent it, but his left eye flutters. "You are in pain?"

"Yes and I will block it until my job is done here. We need to go before they come looking for us."

She grabs his ears. "When the negotiations are over, you and I will talk."

He steps to her left side offering his arm. "Your Majesty, I look forward to it." With a gentle smile, she takes his arm and he escorts her to the dining room.

Several minutes later, Kai announces Queen Elsa. Sam escorts her to the head of the table and assists her onto the royal chair. Everyone sits. He stands to her right next to the open chair and observes where each delegate and their assistants sit. Elsa touches the back of his hand. He bows and turns his head slightly towards her.

"Why do you not sit?"

He hesitates for a moment. "I need to stir the pot."

She grabs his hand.

"Don't worry. I'll make sure it does not splash on you. I need to get your guest out of the line of fire."

She squeezes his hand and leans so others could not hear her speaking. "We need this deal. Delay as long as possible." She lets go of his hand.

He nods and speaks so others would hear. "It will be done." He moves to the fifth chair down the table and offers his hand to Feodora. "Madam, Queen Elsa has selected you to be her honored guest. May I escort you to the place of honor?"

She stands and winks at him. Several at the table barely restrain their gasps. Sam assists her to the chair of honor next to the Queen. He sits in Feodora's chair. With the French ambassador on his left and the son on the right, he grins at Prince Nick across from him. "Now isn't this cozy, gentlemen. We are going to behave ourselves, at least until the meal is over."

"This time father will not stop me."

He snaps his head around and speaks in French, "Little boy, I doubt you are better than Lamar in a fair fight. You're the type who has to cheat. Lamar did not complete his mission because I'm here. It takes a better man to walk away. Since you have no concept of what a better man is, let your old man go first and you can watch his death. It will build your anger and cloud your reasoning."

"Do not let the horse boy mess with your mind. As long as he does not have a shovel of manure in his hands, his size is the only thing you have to worry about if he falls on you," Nick comments.

Sam nods to Nick. "Yes, that's it. Listen to the Prince, who sent a Duke to kill my Queen. He will be number three. Besides, that is the sword Lamar showed me when he was here. Do you know what that makes you?"

"Do not answer him. He is baiting you. Do not play his game," Garron commands without looking in his direction.

He turns to Garron but Elsa attracts his attention.

"Admiral Ryan is there a problem with the chair you are sitting on?"

He drops his head for a second and replies. "No Majesty, all is well, but you may wish to ask Ambassador Garron and his son. There seems to be a slight confusion on Prince Nick's part."

Elsa glances at the Prince. "Prince Nick, what is the confusion?"

His brows push together for a second. His political mask falls into place. With a smile he pushes on the table and stands. "Queen Elsa, the stable boy is correct in my confusion. These trade negotiations are important to Weselton. While I appreciate your generosity for hosting these talks, the delicacy and level of sophistication needed in these talks should not be distracted by the buffoonery of the stable boy. How does he deserve the title of Admiral when there is no fleet for him to command?"

Sam mocks a sad face. "Now you are hurting my feelings." He leans over the table as his right arm rest on the table's edge. His left hand rests on his waist with his elbow bumping into Garron. "Tell us Prince, how do you really feel about me being here?"

Nick hooks his fingers to the inside of his jacket and holds his head up. "Since you asked, your presence here insults my sense of civility. I cannot imagine how Queen Elsa tolerates your insubordination. She should lock you in the stables with all the other animals."

Anna snickers and looks away.

Sam grins. "Majesty, may I answer Prince Nick?"

She motions with her hand.

"He is correct. I have no ships to command. Currently, I am the stable boy."

Smugness drips from Nick's face as his nose inches higher, but he does not look at him.

"If Prince Nick is truly concerned about the integrity of this meeting, it would be prudent for those individuals whose names were not on the invitations should wait in the courtyard with their staff. They should all leave now." He stays focused on the Prince.

Elsa interrupts before Nick or Garron protest. "Prince Georg, you wish to add to this conversation?"

Georg stands, "Yes Majesty, since we are already seated, with your permission, the meal may calm everyone."

Elsa feels more than she sees Sam tap the table three times.

Nick lowers his nose from the stratosphere as he shifts his weight and moves to sit. Sam flicks his index finger and the chair slides back. With a thud the back of Nick's head strikes the chair. Several guest help him off the floor. Others stand except Sam.

He watches those who attend to Nick and those who do not. His feels three taps on the table. As his fingers interlaces together, he glances towards the head of the table. With a grin Anna stares at him. Queen Elsa does not smile, but her right brow is higher than her left brow.

The servant's door opens. Elsa nods to them and stands. "Please excuse me."

Everyone stands.

"Please continue, there is a matter that needs attending." She departs the room.

Sam watches the others take their seat.

Prince Nick holds the back of his head. "I do not know what happened. I felt cold air shoot up my trouser leg, then the chair moved."

"I know exactly what happened. I saw this buffoon flick his finger, causing the chair to slide back. He did it."

With his brows up and eyes wide Garron leans forward to stare at his son. "What are you saying?"

"He has power like that bitch of a Que—" A solid backhand impacts his face. The back of the chair slams against the floor with a loud bang. A moan rises.

Two guards burst into the room and one asks, "What was that noise?"

Garron's elbow swipes the back of Sam's head as he passes behind him to kneel next to Pierre. Garron glares up at him.

Sam combs his hair back and twists his body towards them. "Say it and your son will be arrested for threatening my Queen."

The other guard points to Pierre. "Admiral, did he threaten Queen Elsa?"

Sam smiles at them. "Well Garron, you want to answer the guard?" Two more guards enter the room.

The son moans. Garron lowers his head. "My son did not threaten your Queen. His chair slipped back and he fell. He created a misunderstanding by using improper words."

"Gentlemen, if you would be so kind and help the ambassador take his son to his room." Sam waits until the last guard closes the door. He stands and flips the chair to its righted position. As he leans over the table, his eyes narrow at Prince Nick. "Do you have anything inappropriate to say about Queen Elsa and her sister?"

Nick slams his hand against the table. "You dare to attack the ambassador's son! You should be flogged and hanged."

"Maybe. There is only one reason the rest of you brought a second. Each of you hope my Queen will be smitten with them and they take over. What punishment should a Prince get who undercuts other kingdoms and forces them to buy his goods?"

"It is good business practice," Prince Nick fires back. "Everyone gets a share of the profits and cheaper prices."

"Until the kingdom collapses and everyone loses."

Nick leans over the table. "No one loses. The kingdom is sold off to pay for their debts. The people replace their monarchy. That is business without fighting a war."

"And Arendelle is your next target?"

"If her Queen does not accept the terms, her people will make their own terms and I will be there to negotiate with them." Nick stands holding the flaps of his jacket. "Nothing personal, it's just business."

Elsa walks back into the room and stands next to Anna's chair. She glares at Sam and barks at the others. "If everyone is through yelling at each other, please be seated." After everyone sits she continues. "Prince Nick, was it just business you undercut my father the King, five years ago?"

His arrogant smile nearly chokes him. "He received a fair deal as will you."

"A FAIR DEAL," Sam stands, sliding the table against the stares across from him. "Was that the deal before the Duke arrived in Arendelle or after he sent his henchmen to kill my Queen?"

Several guests, trapped between their chair and the table, struggle to keep their chairs from falling back.

Elsa taps Anna's arm and commands, "Admiral, move the table back."

He slides the table back to its previous position to the relief of the guest. His hands shake and beads of sweat form on his brow. He emits a low growl, "I will visit your kingdom and determine if your King is a tyrant as you are."

A warm hand touches his arm. The sudden movement of his head startles the hand's owner.

Anna whispers, "Please come with me." She gently pulls on his arm.

He nods to Elsa. "Majesty." Stepping around his chair and he walks towards the door.

Anna holds his arm and whispers, "Why is your arm shaking?"

Sam whispers, "I don't know. My head is killing me."

She opens the door and motions for him to pass through first.

He steps into the hall. "Why did Queen –" The door closes. He stares at the door and places his fist on his waist. "Well, that must be a new record for me. Kicked out before the meal is served."

 **End of Chapter**


	40. Chapter 39 Assassin's Challenge

**Title: Chapter 39: Assassin's Challenge**

 **3 years, 7 months until correction**

The castle guard standing near the stairs approaches him. "Sir, do you need anything?"

Sam glances over his shoulder. "If it has not already been done, when the night guard comes by, tell them to double the guards around the castle. I will be in the courtyard."

He marches down the hall, cracking his knuckles. His steps echo down the stairs. His arms move and a small amount of binding occurs in his shoulders. He unbuttons the jacket and drops it on the stairs. A wave of nauseas sweeps over him as he staggers into the wall at the bottom of the stairs. The cold wall pressed against his head brings some relief, but the pulsing in the back of his head increases his pain

A female kitchen staffer moves towards him. "May I assist you?"

He pushes away from the wall, but maintains contact with it to steady himself. "Why is it so hot in here?" His fingers fumble with the button on his collar. The light stirs the pain behind his eyes and they partially close.

The staffer reaches up. "Let me help you with that." She loosens the two buttons on the collar and the next two buttons down. "Are you feeling ok? You feel hot and you are sweating. Let me get you a drink of water."

The entry doors open and close. He peeks through the pain. "It will be cooler outside. I just need a little time to breathe." He pushes off the wall and staggers. His shoes drag across the floor as if they were made out of lead weights. The slow movement allows him to maintain some control as he moves towards the doors.

The kitchen worker picks up his jacket and calls to the upstairs staffer. "Get Kai."

In the torch-lit courtyard, kitchen members serve drinks and food to the delegate's escorts. Sam steps to the side of the doorway and leans back with his hands flat against the wall. He fixates on a star above the castle wall and scans everyone inside, including the guards. His mind fights the next wave of nauseas pushing the throbbing in his head. His lungs struggle to supply enough oxygen from the thick air. A breeze from the north finally lands in the courtyard. Sam soaks in the cool air for as long as it will last.

Nearby, a female's squeal produces male laughter. His ears receives a comment. "After we are finished taking turns with her, we will do what that Prince Hans failed to do."

A short distance away, two male voices snicker at the comment. His eyes focus on the source. Several meters from the steps and directly in front of the castle doors, the two Weselton men tasked with assassinating Queen Elsa on her coronation day, exchange other derogative comments. If he did not have headache, those two would be gurgling to breath by now. No doubt Elsa does not know they are here. A third shorter male in a Weselton uniform with an officer's insignia on the collar, barely half the physical size of his partners, fidgets with his sword. A torch light reflects of the exposed blade before it is pushed back into the scabbard. He makes another comment. "After we have had our turns with the Queen, whatever is left of her, the Prince can use her to wipe his arse."

The other two nod and snicker.

The officer continues as he slides his sword in and out of the scabbard. "I will be generous and we can toss lots to see who will deflower her sister."

"I bet she is a virgin. That will feel so good."

All three laugh before continuing to eat the generous meal provided. The tallest of the three with the bushy sideburns and mustache looks around as a good watch should and spots him. He stares at him, before he motions to the other two and speaks with the officer. The two stands partially hiding the officer from his view, but the spacing between them is enough to reveal the officer's hand signal to the one hiding in the only shadow near the wall not exposed by the torch lights.

Obviously someone has previous knowledge of the layout of the courtyard. Maybe they were here a month ago. He recalls two individuals taking notes when they visited last. This blind spot will be removed after the trade negotiations, but for now, more important business needs his attention.

He forces his body to move under his control and walks down the steps. He searches the three faces, but is more concern with the one in hiding. The two move their shoulders together when he gets within a couple of meters from them. They place their outside hands in their coat pockets.

Sam snorts, "Why would a Weselton officer need protection?

The officer, just tall enough to peak over his friend's shoulders, steps between his guards, "And who might you be?"

"Admiral Ryan, Protector of this Queendom. Do Weselton officers need protection on a diplomatic, trade mission?"

The officer snickers and shakes his head, "Only from those barbarians who break treaties with a peace loving nation."

He snarls back at them. "Peace loving. I guess you did not read the part in the Dukes report where he gave orders to these two goons to kill my Queen."

"Hearsay only, I trust the word of my guards over anyone who claims differently." The officer tears off a piece of bread and chews with a grin.

A twinge of pain flares in the back of his head. In his current mood, he is ready to settle a score. He places his fist on his waist and throws out the bait. "Are all the people in Weselton liars?"

The officer drops his plate and spews the food onto the ground in front of him. Others near the argument move out of the way. The two goons move to flank either side of him.

Sam stands his ground as the corners of his lips rise ever so slightly. "You have not answered my question."

The officer glances at his cohorts. "We will do what is necessary to protect our people."

The corner of his lips rises higher. "Are you willing to sacrifice your men on foreign soil?"

"To protect our people, yes. Before you, barbarian," the officer places his hand on the hilt of his sword and exposes the blade, "think you can get away with anything stupid, think again. Look around. Despite your size it only takes one of us to take you down."

"Will you sacrifice your life for your people?" He waits a few seconds and continues. "You will be dead before your goons can react."

Kristoff bounds down the steps with his hunting knife in hand and flanks the goon on the left. "Three on one doesn't seem fair."

A second later, Captain Larsen wearing his workout shirt and pants raises his sword as he flanks the goon on the right, "Now it's three on three."

The Weselton officer slides his sword back into its scabbard. The two goons back away and stand beside their officer.

Anna, standing by the window, catches a glimpse of Kristoff with his knife in hand in the courtyard. She yelps, "Kristoff, what are you doing?" She runs past the guests and out the room.

Prince Georg sees Anna's commotion and peeks out the window. He pardons himself to the Queen and marches out the room. The other guests gather by the windows, including Prince Nick. They murmur as to who will win the fight in the courtyard.

Queen Elsa stares at the back of her guest and tries to sense Sam like he taught her, but she does not sense his presence. Grabbing Feodora's arm she lifts the train of her dress and they calmly walks out the room. She speaks to the guard. "No one is to leave this room until I get back."

The guard bows his head. "Yes Majesty."

Sam's heart beats faster. His mind shifts more energy to block the neural transmitters to the back of his brain as the pain increases. His body draws on the energy around him. If he stays in one place they will see the ice form on his flesh. He needs to push them into attacking. A full smile forms on his face as his teeth clench together. "Don't back away now. You still have the advantage, four to three."

"You must need glasses or can you not count, barbarian? I see only three of us here." The officer motions to his two cohorts next to him.

The Weselton assassin moves in the shadow. His excessive movement indicates he is not prepared. Sam tilts his head to glance past the officer. "The coward hiding in the shadow behind you makes four."

Anna runs down the steps. A castle guard stops her. She calls out, "Kristoff, what are you doing?"

At this point, Sam needs to focus all of his energy on the four Weselton. They others will become a distraction. He maintains his eyes on the Weselton in the shadow. "Kristoff, I appreciate your efforts, but the hiding assassin and his two pets are professional killers. Please do not make your future wife a widow, before you are married. Take her back into the castle."

Kristoff hesitates, but backs away until he reaches Anna and slips his knife into his belt. She wraps her arms around him and he escorts her up the steps.

Anna glances at the guards standing around and watching. She looks back at Sam. "Why are they not helping him?"

"Because they will be in his way." Kristoff answers as he watches.

"The guards should stop it before someone gets hurt." She stares up at Kristoff, but he is too focused on what is about to happen as are the guards. She pushes away from him and starts down the steps. "If you will not help I will."

Kristoff grabs her arm. "Anna no. Every guard here has lost their sword to Sam. They respect him. They know what he can do."

Prince Georg steps out the door. "Princess, your friend is correct. I too, have seen Sam disarm three well train swordsman.

The Weselton officer wags his finger in his direction. "Ah, the little Prince of the Southern Isles has come to play. You don't have your brothers here to help you. Go back inside before your brothers lose another family member. We will take good care of your champion."

Prince Georg grabs for the nearest guard's sword, but a pair of guards stops him. He breaks free and stands at the bottom steps without a sword.

Sam turns his head slightly. "Captain, I appreciate your efforts here, but your obligation is to our Queen. Protect her at all cost. The assassin is mine."

Captain Larsen moves back to a group of guards and whispers. The guards contact the other guards.

Elsa steps down the stairs and marches towards the door.

Kai holds the door open and motions for her to stop. "Majesty, it is dangerous out there. Before you run out, allow Sam to perform his duty and protect you."

"What am I supposed to do stand here, wait for Sam's temper to create a bigger incident than he did upstairs? Several delegates are already chomping at the bit to sell-off Arendelle for their profit."

"Majesty, it is all about timing."

Sam takes a deep breath clenching his hands and blinks twice. His vision shifts to detect the thermal energy of everything giving off heat. Despite the clothing the Weselton in the shadow wears, his hands and his face shine like a torch in the darkest night. He steps towards the officer.

The two goons step forward with one hand in their outer garment's pocket. Thermal energy radiates from their hands, but more importantly, their hands hold an object not giving off heat. The shadow assassin moves his hand across his body as though grasping for something at his side.

Sam prepares to strike before they receive the attack signal. He continues towards the officer and walks directly between the two goons. The officer closes his hand around the hilt of his sword. Instead of a complete step forward with his right foot, he steps next to his left foot. His weight shifts and he steps back with his left foot. His left arm impact the left side of the goon's face. His left foot curls behind his right foot and spins his body around. His right fist connects with the chin and throat of the second goon stepping into the punch. His right foot spins around his left leg and takes a large step towards the officer. The back of his left hand connects solidly into the side of the officer's head. Sam's hyper senses makes the action appear to be moving in slow motion.

The three snapping sounds of flesh on flesh echoes against the walls and the three Weselton men lie on the ground. Two distinct sounds of muffled metal hit the ground. No one moves or speaks. The torches flicker and crackle.

Elsa flinches at the three unusual loud sounds. "What was that," she whispers.

"That is Sam performing his duty. Majesty, if you intervene too soon, he could be seriously injured. If you intervene too late, it will make you look weak. No doubt the guest are watching."

Sam's momentum stops with him facing the Weselton in the shadow. The assassin has also stopped. For several seconds neither of them moves. Sam draws himself up to stand tall. He raises his left hand towards the assassin. "Now, it's one on one."

The assassin comments, "So it is," and steps out from the shadow. He throws back the animal skin hood to reveal his face. A couple of facial scars provide the evidence of previous battles. The lack of upper body muscles reveals a flaw. The hilt of his sword on the left side does not appear similar to swords for the region.

Sam stares at the assassin's scabbard for a moment. The way the assassin carries the scabbard shows it does not belong to him. A slight smile forms on his face.

The assassin moves, exposing more details of the scabbard. In an obvious attempt of intimidation, the assassin holds the scabbard with his left hand below the guard and pushes the sword out enough to reveal a highly polished sword. The assassin draws the sword out with his left hand and turns his wrist, thumb down to transfer it to his right hand. Sam's smile grows larger and he claps his hands.

 _Push him into his flaw._

The assassin hesitates. "Why are you smiling?"

 _Push harder._

"A clown pretends to be a Samurai warrior."

The assassin studies the sword. "Is that who owned this sword, a Samurai warrior. He didn't look like a warrior with this blade sticking out his chest." He raises the sword to his eye level. "So how do you know about this sword?"

 _Push._

"I save the life of a Samurai's son. In his generosity he gave me a sword."

The assassin smiles. "Good, go get it and we will see who is better at handling this type of sword."

 _Dig in, push._

Still smiling, he shakes his head. "Those swords are to be used by the Samurai in rituals or in battle. It is not a plaything for a child to intimidate others."

The assassin puts his chin to his chest and shakes his head. "You think that is what I am doing? Playing with you like a cat plays with a mouse before it eats it? Do you know how many I have killed with this sword?"

The assassin shifts his weight from side to side and shifts to the balls of his feet.

Sam dismisses his comments and pushes him to attack. "Two or three, maybe a dozen at most."

The assassin stops his movement and lowers the tip of the sword. He opens his arms wide to make his point. "Maybe a dozen, you obviously do not know who I am. I have killed two hundred men and I will gladly make you two hundred and one."

 _Set the bait, push, push, push._

"Show me your evidence of the two hundred."

"What?" The assassin drops the sword's tip to the ground. "Did you not hear what I said, I killed them, dead."

 _Push the bait down his throat, push, Push, Kill._

"And you want me to take the word of someone who hides in the shadows. You probably killed them with their backs towards you. I bet you are no more skilled at handling that sword," Sam dares to present an obvious opportunity by turning his head and pointing to the men on the ground, "than these three Weselton men lying on the ground."

The assassin lunges at him with both hands on the sword.

He moves to the right and the sword rests on his left shoulder. He pushes more. "If you are as good as your feeble mind thinks, why am I still standing?"

The assassin laughs. "Because I'm the cat and you are the mouse. I'm playing with your last few moments of life." He pulls the sword back and at the last second he flicks it against Sam's neck. "Oh, I'm sorry. My hand twitched. Did I cut you?" He backs away with the sword in his left hand.

Sam scrapes the particles from his neck wound. Two blood trails race down his neck to see which will stain his collar first. "Is this how you killed the others? You bored them into submission with your endless self-gratification. Did they willingly allow a coward to kill them so they would not have to listen to your chatter?"

The assassin stops for a second. His smile disappears as he thrusts the sword at him.

Sam moves to the right and turns his body as the sword occupies the space where his chest vacated. He grabs the blade with his left hand and his right hand clamps on the assassins left hand. A loud metallic bang from the broken blade echoes across the courtyard followed by a scream. With his gaping mouth open the assassin falls to his knees. Sam takes the sword handle from the assassin's unnatural bent wrist. The blade and sword hilt drops to the ground. He releases the broken wrist.

The assassin cradles his hand and tries to crawl away.

Sam follows him.

The assassin rolls and throws a short blade with his right hand at someone behind him.

His left hand intercepts the blade in flight. He grabs the assassin's right hand and drops to one knee. A snap sounds as the assassin's elbow bends unnaturally across his other knee. A second louder scream echoes across the courtyard. Several females gasp behind him. He looks behind him and follows the line of projection the knife would have taken. He towers over the assassin trying to crawl away.

"Kristoff." Elsa recognizes Anna's voice and rushes out the door. Kristoff cradles Anna into his chest with his back towards the scene in the courtyard. She runs down the steps to them. "Are you alright?"

Anna peaks past her husband. Moisture builds in her eyes. She hugs and muffles a sob in her sister's neck. "He threw it at me."

Elsa comforts Anna. "Who did it?"

"The one on the ground." Kristoff answer with a stone voice.

Prince Georg stops short of him and points to the blade sticking out of his hand. "Samuel, you are hurt."

Sam feels only one pain and he struggles to keep the pain in his head under control. Large red and white blood droplets pool directly below his hand, but he does not feel the pain. "I believe you are correct." He turns to the Captain of the Guards. "Get those three onto their ship. I'll take this trash out."

He grabs the back of the assassin's neck and drags him. Near the gate, the assassin tries to break free. Sam lifts him off his feet and smashes his face into the castle's wall.

Elsa pushes Anna into Kristoff's arms. She whispers, "Do not kill him. There has to be a trial." She walks towards Sam.

Captain Larsen and three guards with their swords drawn form a semi-circle around their Queen

Behind him a stressed voice call to him. "Samuel, what are you doing?"

Sam peeks over his shoulder.

Halfway between the steps and the gate Queen Elsa shows the palms of her hands towards him. "Put him down . . . Now!" Her hands glisten with ice particles.

With a nod he answers, "As you wish Majesty."

He shakes his head and the corners of his lips curl up. Rapidly, extending his arm out, the assassin impacts against the stone wall next to the gate.

The assassin groans at the base of the wall.

Queen Elsa glimpses at the man on the ground. She glares at Sam with her hands on her waist. "What is wrong with you? You insult my guest upstairs and come down here to beat up their staff. They are our guests. You can't . . ."

The smile vanishes. His head snaps around to the Queen and interrupts, "Our guest . . . OUR GUEST."

He holds up his left hand with the blade sticking through it. "The staff of your guest tried to kill me and your sister. Ask anyone here what happened."

He pulls the blade out of his hand and points at the Prince of Weselton in the upper window. "He is the one you need to be watching carefully. I will take the trash out."

The blade falls to the ground. His hand clamps around the back of the assassin's neck. The assassin screams as he is dragged across the bridge. The town's people move out of his way and follow him to the pier. The assassin crumples at the base of the gangplank. The other three Weselton men are released next to their ship.

The ship's Captain sends sailors to carry the assassin back onto the ship. The other Weselton board the ship. The assassin stumbles to the rail. With a snicker. He laughs.

Sam growls, "Why are you laughing?"

"Why at you, fool. While I'm on the King's ship you can't get to me without declaring war. I'm sure that frosty bitch you call a Queen will be very unhappy with you." He snickers again. "Besides, I may have a broken arm and wrist, but I will be alive in the morning. You, you stupid barbarian, will be number two hundred and one, soon."

Sam points at the ship's Captain. "I will hold you personally responsible for these men. If any of them get off your ship, none of you will see your homes again."

The Captain stares to speak, but Sam slams his hand onto the pier and stands tall with his hand stretched above his head. The water around the ship boils and shoots plums of water up. They freeze at a height taller than the ships main mask. Two ropes tied to the pier snap. The ship leans back over the fjord. The Captain struggles to get to the rail.

"If I drop my hand rapidly, the ice will rip your ship apart. If they sneak off your ship and you do not go home. Do you understand?

The Captain rapidly nods his head.

Sam slowly lowers his hand. The fjord boils as the ice melts. The ship rights itself.

No one speaks or moves. Sam walks up the pier. The people give him a large area to pass. The pain in his head increases. As he staggers over the crest of the bridge a young voice calls behind him.

"Sam, you are bleeding."

He turns around and scans for the voice in the crowd following him. Kristen holds up a small cloth glistening with the sparkles of his life force. She points to his hand. He forces a smile and kneels. She wraps the cloth around his hand. "Does it hurt?"

He presses his hand against his shirt and searches her face. For an instance, the colors of the Sun radiating around her. He grins.

Kristen moves her hand to the injured side of his neck.

He grabs her arm before she touches the poison.

For several seconds, fear sweeps across her face. She places her hand on top of his hand and pulls on his thumb. "You are hurting me."

He lets go of her arm. "I'm so sorry. I did not want you to touch the poison." He tries to smile and cradles her cheek. "I am so sorry for hurting you." Tears roll from the corner of his eyes and creates a clean trail down his face.

She moves to his right side and whispers, "Your eyes are changing colors. Momma wishes to see you." She wipes the tear from his cheek. "Let's get you to the castle. I'm sure Queen Elsa can help you."

She helps him roll to his feet. She holds his right hand and escorts him the rest of the way across the bridge. The confusion in his mind clears as a warmth radiates into his right arm.

They pass through the gate and he stops next to the night Sergeant of the Guards. "Station a guard near the Weselton boat. If anyone gets off of it contact me immediately." The Sergeant nods. With Kristen's help, they walk to where the assassin's knife fell.

A glance towards his Queen with Princess Anna and Prince Georg comforting her, Sam tries to reach out to her with his thoughts, but she does not respond and he does hear her thoughts. In his weaken state, his mind is not able reach her. Her expression is neither anger nor fear. She now has to decide his fate. Prince Nick's smug grin shines through the upper window.

 _I'm not dead. You have not won yet._

Kristen taps his hand. _I can hear you. Push through it. Soon you can rest._

"You are like your mother, a good friend." Sam kneels and picks up the knife. He holds his hand over the pool of his blood. White sparkles float up to his hand. He retrieves the assassin's broken sword. Kristen helps him to stand. Captain Larsen approaches with a pail and Sam drops the pieces in. "Take these to the doctor and ask him to test for a hemlock poison. Advise him not to scratch himself with these."

He staggers across the courtyard towards the stables and almost falls onto Kristen.

Kristoff's slides his arm under his shoulder. "Hold on Buddy, I've got you."

He pats Kristen's shoulder. "I am blessed to have a friend like you, but I'm sure your mother is searching for you. As soon as I'm able I will come and visit you. Master Kristoff can help me into the castle."

"Okay, I will hold you to that promise." She twirls around and runs out the gates.

"You know, it is rather interesting since I came back here, she appears nearby in my moments of distress."

With his strength rapidly departing, Kristoff shifts to carry more of his weight. Sam glances up the window and sees Prince Nick with Davin pointing in his direction. Queen Elsa approaches him. "Stop, Your guest is watching for your reaction to the attempt on my life. Do not give him an excuse to use it against you. You need to keep your head in the meeting."

A bewildered Elsa stops. Anna holds her sister's arm. Georg comments. "Your Majesty, he is correct. Whoever planned this attack, I have no doubt is watching for your response. This is a time for you to show courage. Any weakness will be used against you."

Elsa snaps at Georg. "Do you think I do not know that? Sam tried to warn me and I did not listen. I have already failed at thinking he was doing it on purpose. Now I have to convince everyone in the room that I am in charge here and try to work out a trade agreement satisfactory to all."

Elsa whirls around and with Anna they walked back to the castle.

A guard and Kristoff assist Sam up the front steps.

A guard opens the door to a meeting room of loud murmurs. Several guests meet Elsa at the door inquiring about the commotion in the courtyard. "Gentleman there was an altercation between Samuel and several of the Weselton guards. I suggest we adjourn this meeting until tomorrow morning."

Prince Nick pushes past the others. "Altercation, your barbarian injured three of my guards and may have gravely injured the fourth guard. I demand this Samuel be placed in prison and charged with attacking my people."

Elsa counters, "Since when does your guard coat their swords with hemlock poison?"

Many of the guests steps away from Prince Nick. Those who do not, stare at him. She notices the contempt in their faces. One guest barely shakes his head as he finally moves away from the Prince.

Nick barks at her. "Poison, that is ungentlemanly to do such a thing. Where is your proof?"

"Guards, escort Prince Nick and his underling to his ship. I recommend everyone return to your rooms for the evening. My staff will bring your meals to your rooms. I will see you in the morning." The guard door closes as the murmurs erupt in the room.

Several minutes later, Kristoff and the guard maneuver Sam into his room and ease him into the lounger. "Sorry about running you into the table."

He lets his head fall back and his eyes roll up. "Don't worry about it. You saved me from falling down the stairs."

"Are you going to be ok?"

He rolls his hand over exposing the knife wound. "Unless someone refilled the water container, I need water."

Kristoff peeks inside of the container. "I'll get the water."

The guard follows Kristoff out of the room.

A percussion band plays a thunderous ovation in his head. Each pulse of his heart seeps blood from the wound onto his trousers. The light from the table candles shoot piercing pain in his eyes. He closes them and draws energy from the room. He tries to rest.

"Elsa is on the way up." Kristoff holds up the container. "I have the water."

Sam pulls himself to a sitting position. His right hand covers the hole on the back of his hand. "Slowly pour the water into the wound."

Kristoff dribbles the water over his hand and into the wound. For several seconds, the brown, red, and orange bubbles fizz in Sam's palm. The water freezes.

"Get me the cup over there."

Kristoff retrieves the cup from the table. Sam drops the chunk of ice from his hand into the cup with a clink. Kristoff swirls the cup. "What are the colors?"

"Don't touch the ice. The red and brown are my blood. The orange is the poison."

Kristoff removes his finger from inside of the cup. The door swings open. Arendelle's doctor cares the pail with the broken sword and enters the room followed by Gerda and Anna.

"Doc, you bring gifts. I'll trade you." He points to the cup. "The orange particles in the ice are the poison in a liquid state. It will be easier for you to analyze than scraping a sample off the blades. I'll bring you the blades in the morning."

The doctor places the pail on the table. Kristoff hands him the cup. "You think this is hemlock poison?"

A tremor runs through Sam's hand as he covers his eyes. "Your analysis will prove me right before they believe me."

The doctor glances over the cup at him. "I see lots of orange in here. How do you feel?"

"My heart rate is slightly slower than normal. My head is killing me." He slumps back in the lounger. "I was feeling a little off balance, but that is improving."

Gerda turns his hand and opens his fingers. "Oh my, that went all the way through. Can you heal it like this?"

Peaking between his fingers, he grins at her.

"You have to concentrate, don't you?" She drops a roll of cloth on the chair. "Unless you plan to sleep for a while, use this to cover the wound."

A soft voice speaks from his right. "Thank you."

Pain radiates from the cut on his neck, but he rolls his head towards her. "You're welcome. You do know when I made the pledge to protect your sister, it did include you." He shrugs his shoulders. "I was doing my job."

Anna kneels beside the chair and kisses his forehead. "You're burning up." She places her hand against his face.

A harsh voice comes from the hall. "Gentleman, are you conspiring to go into his room?"

A German accent replies, "No Majesty, we are curious about your Samuel's condition. We have never seen anyone do what he did out there. The one, he calls the assassin, we have individually encountered him with Prince Nick."

"Gentlemen, please go back to your rooms. You will receive a full report in the morning." Shoes shuffle across the hall floor.

His eyelids sag for a moment. A cold hand touches his left arm and radiates relief to his hand. His eyes gradually open. A sweet, warm smile forces the corner of his lips to curl up. "I have a report for you. Nothing personal." He glances at the others in the room, "but I have to give it to my Queen only."

Elsa moves to the door and holds the handle. "You heard him. Everyone, please leave." The doctor protests, but she ushers them out and closes the door.

He pulls himself up with his legs draped over the sides. He taps the lounger in front of him. She sits with her hands folded in her lap. "I need to teach you the process of healing."

Her expression reminds him of a little girl from long ago who was afraid to test her ice powers. "You have good control of your powers, but I need you to take the next step to a higher proficiency level." He turns his palm up.

Elsa grimaces with a short breath and covers her mouth to stop a comment. It is one thing to see a raw piece of meat sliced by the chef, but to see a slice in his hand caught her by surprise. She stares at it. Tiny sparkles glitter the wound. His trouser shimmer with the same sparkles.

"If you do not think you can do this. I'll give you my report and see you in the morning . . . Maybe."

She gradually shakes her head. He does this for others and now he wants her to heal his hand. Even this close, she cannot hear his thoughts. She gazes at him. In his pain, he hides it to teach her. "I have never done anything like this. I do not wish for you to suffer, because of me."

With a sly grin he places her right hand over his palm. "That is the best reason you should at least try. Put your other hand on the back of my hand."

She does.

"This is the easy part. Generate a thin layer of ice to cover my hand."

Miniscule sparkles flash. She lifts her hand and an icy outline of her hand lies on his hand.

"Very good." The door rattles. With his uninjured hand, he points at the door, then flicks his fingers. A layer of ice fills the gaps between the door and the frame and the floor. "That my dear is how to block the sounds from leaving the room."

He slides his finger across the icy hand print and glances at her. "As I started to say, you did very well, but you need to expand the ice from my wrist to the first knuckle past my hand. This is the hard part because you have to concentrate and make it expand without going too far. Align your hands together and visualize the ice from my wrist to the first knuckle, then generate the ice."

She aligns her hands above and below his hand. She concentrates. Too much ice and he freezes. Too little ice, then what? But nothing happens.

He whispers in her ear. "You're tense and trying too hard. Just let it flow like water."

She continues to concentrate, but nothing happens.

"I'll give you a little help to start." He lightly taps the back of her hand and ice forms. "You're doing great. Feel it flowing through your hands. The best I can describe is like water flowing around your hands."

The corner of her lips curls. Her energy flows out of her hands with the sensation of water, just as he said. A sense of calmness fills her mind. The tension releases her face. As she exhales a deep breath, a mist of ice particles drift past her face, but she fixates on her ice moving out from under her hand. It stops growing at his wrist and slightly past his first knuckle.

"Move your hands closer together and touch the ice."

As her hands touch the ice, a gentle sensation moves up her arms. A rhythmic pattern pulses. She frowns. "Is that . . . Is that your heart, I feel it beating through the ice?"

"Yes. You are doing a fantastic job. Where the ice touches, you can feel the vibrations. It will take a little time for you to learn the patterns. When you feel this, you need to determine if the heartbeat is from a friend or foe."

She glances up at his smile. "What distance can you feel the vibrations?"

"If the ice is a continuous solid piece and lots of practice, you can detect a heartbeat further than you can hear over the same distance."

She counts the beats and discovers a slight echo of another beat. Looking up at him, his eyes are focused lower. He eyes do not blink, but he is smiling. "Does your smile have anything to do where your eyes were?"

His eyes blink and looks up at her, but they are not focuses on her.

Her right brow rise as she slightly turns her head.

He blinks again. "I was observing your pulse in your neck. Did I mention I can feel your pulse through the ice?"

Both brows shoot up with her wide eyes. "No, you did not mention that."

He looks at his ice covered hand. "I meant to, but got distracted."

"What are you thinking about now?"

"In another time or another life I would throw my hat into the ring and compete for your affection."

She leans close to him. "But?"

He does not move. "The time is now. I will teach you to control your powers and protect you. The Arendelle law says you can marry a widower of a monarch, a monarch, one who is next in line to the monarch, or you can advocate your throne. I don't fall in any of those conditions nor would I want you to advocate."

"How do you know about the law?"

"You think the only thing I can do is to take care of the horses in the stables. I can read and I did."

"Another time, another life, it is interesting the way you answer their questions." She slides her hand across his ice. "It is as though you know what they are going to do before they do it. Can you teach me to anticipate their moves?" She drags her fingers across the tips of his fingers not covered in ice.

His chin quivers before he clenches his teeth. He looks into her eyes.

She winks at him.

His left brow rises. "I have years of experience. Maybe your father or mother told you when to fight and when to walk away. There are battles that need to be fought. Everything else is not important. I take the philosophy if it is important to you, you give it your all. Hold nothing back. For big rewards it takes big risks, but you need to be prepared for the consequences of failing with bigger risks. Once I discovered what Weselton was doing to Arendelle's tradable goods, I tried to convince your mother to take the risk, but here you are dealing with the same situation. I believe, now is the time to strike at Weselton."

"You mean war?"

His head barely moves. "No, these delegates told you, each has had an encounter with Prince Nick's assassin." He holds up his icy hand. "Nick's assassin tried to strike Anna. The Duke tried against you. The other delegates are afraid of Nick. What do you think would happen if a young Queen were to put Nick in his place or at least take away his advantage he has over the others?"

"I may get a better deal." Her lips pull tight to suppress a smile.

"There is no may about it. You slay their dragon and they will be appreciative, especially if their discount is less than what Nick gives them, but a higher price for Arendelle."

"Why would he back down?" Her hand brushes against his arm.

He glances at the sword pieces in the pail and after a moment he grins. "This is where you must be willing to risk big for a big reward. I will make it easier for you by taking the biggest risk myself."

"What will you do?"

His left brow rises again. "I'll give you my report."

 **End of Chapter**


	41. Chapter 40 New Trade Leader

**Title: Chapter 40: New Trade Leader**

 **3 years, 7 months until correction**

"And that concludes my report."

Queen Elsa swallows the last of the water from her cup and slams it down on the table. She continues pacing around the room with her hands on her waist. "I tried to be courteous and accept his argument against the Duke." She shakes her fist at him. "He planned to use last July against me for a better deal."

Sam whispers, "He saw an opportunity and believed his risk was small compared to the gain he would get if he succeeded. He brought enough force to win. You will have to show him his risk is too great."

"I was supposed to maintain current levels, not fight him." Several ice droplets fall from her hand and bounce on the floor like small glass beads. After a few seconds they melt into pools of water.

He rolls his head towards her. "Who told you to maintain current trade?"

"The councilman, Jensen said this will give me the practice, I can ask for a better deal next year."

"I do recall several members of the council were not happy you ascended to the throne. Isn't Jensen, one of the riches families in Arendelle?"

She faces him and clutches her fist to her side. "Yes, he is. Do you think he has been talking to Prince Nick?"

"I don't have any information to say he has or has not, but to hedge his bets, he would." He leans back in the lounger and closes his eyes.

"Are you feeling okay? Your face is red." She touches the back of her hand against his forehead. "You are a lot warmer than usual."

He opens his left eye. "Maybe the pain in my hand is getting to me, but we need to finish." He moves to sit up but she pushes him back.

She stands at the head of the lounger and places her icy hands against his face.

"Hmm, that feels so good." His eyes partially close. "I will be envious of the one you choose to touch like this."

"Really!" Is changing subjects another sign he is losing control?

"Yeah, he better know he is the luckiest man on this planet. I hope it's not one from this batch of candidates. I hate to break their bones for their stupidity."

She pulls his head back and his eyes stay partially closed. Kneeling next to the lounger and maintaining contact with his face, she asks, "Why would you say none of these candidates?"

"All of them have their own agendas except for Prince Georg. He is actually trying to amend for what Hans did. Estevan is distracted with the political unrest in Spain and his son's safety. He may not represent Spain at the next trade negotiations. The rest wish to take from Arendelle, even Feodora hopes to improve her sister's position here. The sad fact is, they think they have succeeded which can be used against them."

"What if I do not want a suiter?"

"Then I will be there at your beckoning."

With a smile her right brow rises. Her finger tips glide across his face. Are his defenses dropping? Will he speak the truth?

"What if I find someone who is kind and generous? Who listens and teaches me his experiences of life. Would he be suitable?" She slides her finger along the ridge of his nose.

"Yes, it would be a start, but he must be willing to share his heart and reveal all secrets to you."

"Why all secrets?" She leans close to him.

"It's a matter of trust. If he holds a secret and it's discovered later, what other secrets is he still hiding?" His eyes close for a second. They open to a wonderful smile, blowing a cool mist into his face. "Did I mention this feels good?"

A change, her smile transforms into a grin and the right brow shoots up.

He sits up with slightly wider eyes. "What was I saying?"

"You were about to tell me what you would do if you were the King of Arendelle, with the knowledge you have about our guest."

"I was?"

She stands and crosses her arms in front. "Yes, you were and I am still waiting."

He touches the coldness in his face. "I feel like I'm missing something here."

She steps towards him. "I need your information before I go into tomorrow's meeting. Please provide it."

He slides off the lounger and walks to the table. He pours a cup of water, then answers. "If I had your diplomatic knowledge, I might choose a different course of action."

"But you are not, so what will you do?"

He guzzles the water and pours another cup. "Prince Nick lost his back up with the assassin. If he determines the assassin cannot help him, he will push for a deal before his advantage slips away."

He guzzles the second cup of water and pours himself another. "I would expect a visit from him before the meeting." Staring into the cup his eyes gradually change to blue. "I need a good night's sleep." A vibration passes through the cup and creates ripples in the water. "I would make sure there were enough guards available to prevent intruders from entering the hall." He turns around.

Elsa takes his cup and sips the water dignified for a Queen. "What else would you do?"

He watches her for several seconds. "Question, is there a Captain with my knowledge and skills?"

She sips the water. "I suspect you had someone, a confidant, who had similar abilities and knowledge as you, so yes."

"The confidant would actually confront the Prince and force him to reveal his truth, but also must be willing to leave the area should they underestimate Nick. The question would be, do they leave before the confrontation to maintain deniability or stay. How will the guests perceive my actions? Will they be stronger or appear weak? They will deal accordingly."

She hands him an empty cup. "What would you advise me?"

He pours another cup of water. "Are you prepared to accept the consequences if you fail?"

"Appear weak and lose you?"

Sam guzzles another cup of water and hesitates. "There is another." If the sound of crickets were not enough, her blank expression gives him his answer. "There are three possibilities. You appear strong and you set the deals for the others. You appear weak and have to banish me. You appear too weak the council forces you and your sister out of the castle. There will be a time to be strong and a time to be compassionate."

"Any other recommendations?"

"Allow me to do what needs to be done. If it blows up in my face, I will do whatever to protect you and Anna. Do not be surprised. I promise no one will get hurt much."

She looks away. "I guess I have a tough decision to make."

With his non-frozen hand he touches her arm. She looks up at him. "You will make the right decision at the right time. I have always had great confidence in you. Get some sleep and tomorrow you will shine like the Queen I know you can be."

"What about your hand?"

He holds up his frozen hand. "The healing process is well under way. The ice will fall off during the night."

He escorts her to the door and with a nod, he closes it behind her. He returns to the lounger and positions the bucket so it will catch the melting ice. Moving several times to find a comfortable position on the lounger, he finds it and falls asleep.

His sleep does not last. Images of Soren and Davin in the hall wake his mind. An intense rumbling of voices filters under his door. He holds up his hand. A few drops fall from the ice. The rumble gets louder. "If they wake her up, they will check the temperature of the fjord."

He moves to the door and places his hand against the frame. He detects three different heart beats and recognizes one of them. Flexing his right hand, the door opens. Near the end of the hall Queen Elsa argues with the two delegates. Half way to them, he rests an ice broad sword on his shoulder and stops behind her.

"Now you did it. I told you not to wake him. Does he have his sword on his shoulder?" They do not reply but stare at Sam. "I will guess he has his sword. I'm going to step aside and you can discuss with him why you are standing here." She steps back to the wall.

He holds up his iced hand. "Do you see this? Do you know why this is dripping?" He holds his sword above their heads. "This sword will never drip as long as I hold it. What do you think would happen if I drop it?"

He flicks his wrist and the ice sword swings down. Half the paper Soren held floats to the floor. Soren and Davin depart the residence area quickly.

Elsa gently pushes his left hand down. "Your arm is hot. How do you feel?"

His head noticeably shakes. "What time is it?"

"It is just before nine o'clock."

"What time will you get up in the morning?"

"If I sleep, the staff will wake me at six o'clock. If I cannot I'll get up and work on my speech."

"It will be better if you can sleep to six. Do you have problems sleeping when you are stressed?" He receives a half smile. "I recall when a little girl would not rest, her mother would put her in my arms. After several minutes she would fall asleep. I don't know if it would work for you. Maybe if I am close by, my energy will calm your mind enough to sleep."

She pokes his side. "Are you asking to sleep with me?"

He rubs his temples behind his eyes. "That's not the response I expected. You have two chambers in your suite. You sleep in the royal bedroom and I will sit on the lounger in the outer chamber. You will be close enough for me to project my energy around you. If you have doubts put a layer of ice around the bedroom door frame.

"Do to the circumstances and I do need the rest." She marches up the hall. "Follow me."

He stays two steps behind her and follows her into the royal suite. The door closes behind them.

She moves her lounger to face the hall door. "Sit here. I am sure no one will get past you."

He straddles the lounger and sits.

She sets a wash basin next to the lounger and moves his iced hand over the basin. She goes into the bedroom and returns with a blanket and pillow. Setting the pillow on the back of the lounger, she says "Lay back and get comfortable."

"What will the staff say if they catch me in here?"

"You are guarding me." She pats the pillow.

He makes a few adjustments and lies back on the lounger. His hand positions over the basin to catch the melting ice. Finally, he lays his head back against the pillow. She lays the blanket over him and he touches her hand. "Elsa, thank you for believing in me."

Her smile gives him encouragement. She walks past him and he closes his eyes. After a few seconds he does not hear the door close. An arm drapes across his chest followed by a nice kiss on his cheek.

"You are welcome, Admiral." A few seconds later her bedroom door closes.

His eyes close for a few seconds, then a slit separates between his eyelids. He pushes his energy into the royal bedroom. It flows under the door, up the bed, and encapsulates Elsa. He feels her sigh. His mind shifts to defensive mode. During the night dreams plague his restless sleep.

Sometime later, the hall door creaks open. A female's voice comments, "Oh my Lord." She lights the candle sitting on the table and closes the door. The candle's flame distorts her image and causes the shadows to dance across the room.

He detects movement, but does not register danger.

"Queen Elsa, Queen Elsa?"

Something moves against him.

"Is it six already," Elsa yawns.

"Majesty, why are you in here with him?"

"Because he is a good pillow."

"And you are not three years old. If someone sees you like this, what will you tell them?"

Elsa sits up and adjusts the blanket. "You are the only one who knows he is in here."

The other female's voice moves around the lounger. "What if Anna catches you?"

"Anna up before the sun, when has that happened?" Elsa flops back onto him.

Gerda places her hand over his eyes. "No, no, Majesty, go to your room before he wakes up. There is no need to tempt him."

Elsa giggles, "uh-oh, feels like it's too late."

He grabs Gerda's hand and pulls it down. "What are you doing?"

"I can ask you the same thing. Why are you in here?"

"There was a disturbance in the hall. I chased them away. Elsa said she may not sleep well. I'm protecting her. Now it's your turn to answer."

Gerda yanks her hand from him. "Don't even talk to me like that. Queen Elsa can ill afford for the delegates to find you in here."

The lounger moves. Elsa flops onto his chest resting her head on his shoulder and flicks his earlobe.

"As much as I hate to say it," he rolls his head to her, "under the current circumstance, I really hate to say it, but I have to agree with Gerda. I can't be caught in here."

Elsa grins. "Are you sure." She moves her leg. "I think you like me."

"I like you a lot."

"I can tell." She moves her leg again.

"Elsa, please, Gerda's correct. I have to leave while it's still dark."

She flicks his lip. "Okay, I will let you up." She purposefully slides across his body. At the last second her hand slides across his lower abdomen.

He watches her as she moves in a sultry walk to her bedroom. She peeks over her shoulder and grins. The door closes.

"She is in a frisky mood after a good night sleep. Do you think she did that on purpose?" He receives his answer with a slap on the back of his head.

"Of course she did and I'm sure your blue eyes had nothing to do with it."

He rolls off the lounger and faces the balcony doors. "Did Queen Iduna teach you how to avoid my detection?" He rubs the back of his head. "She also had a wicked backhand."

The guard's conversation outside of the door encourages him to move towards the balcony doors. "Count to ten then go next door to wake me up."

Gerda places her hands on her waist and watches him go out the doors. "One, two . . . nine, ten." She marches out the hall door to the next room. "Out of the way, gentlemen, I have to get the old goat out of bed so he can escort our Queen to breakfast." She does not bother knocking and enters. "Get up you old goat before I take a sword to you." The door slams shut.

Several minutes later he stumbles out the door and pulls on his boots. He stomps the floor to slide hi foot into the boot.

Gerda exits his room and brushes his jacket. She holds it open. "You make her late and you can do your own laundry from now on."

He slips his arms into the jacket and buttons it down the front. "What would we do without you?" He gives her a peck on her cheek.

"You are a silver tongue devil. Now, I have to wash my face to get your spit off me."

The door to the royal suite opens. "Samuel, are you harassing my staff again?" Queen Elsa adjusts her gloves.

He stands next to her. "She started it by calling me an old goat."

Elsa pulls his chin down and inspects it. "I do not see a goat beard, nor do you look that old." With a wink she pushes his chin up. Facing in the direction of the stairs, she adjusts her dress. "If she said you were a horny toad, I would have agreed with her." She glances back at him and Gerda. "Are you going to comment?"

He shakes his head and takes a step back to bow. "No my Queen, I'm on duty." He steps next to her and holds out his arm. She places her hand on top of his hand and they walk to the dining room.

Kai announces Queen Elsa. Sam escorts her to the head of the table and scans the room. He slides the Queen's chair in as Elsa sits. With his hands clasped behind his back, he stands to her left and behind her chair. The guests take their seats. Prince Nick is noticeably not in the room. The staff enters and serves the breakfast. Very little conversation comes from the guest. For ten minutes they eat in peace.

Anna shrugs at her sister. "Samuel, you sure know how to dampen the mood. How is your hand?"

He winks and says, "Perfect timing." Lowering his head he whispers to Elsa as he hands her a note. "Majesty, it is about to start. I will take care of it immediately. I will be back for your decision." He exits through the servant's door. In the doorway he watches from the connecting hall to the main hall. A few minutes later, Prince Nick and three Weselton guards pass down the main hall. He motions to the two in the shadows.

Captain Larsen steps into the light with a pail of water and a second pail with the broken samurai sword. Herbalist Shelby holds a small vile of yellow powder and fights to control her laughter.

Larsen shakes his head. "You think this will fool him?"

Shelby snickers.

Sam grins at her. "My dear, you did put the red peppers in it?"

Shelby snickers again. "Remind me never to get you angry at me. It's in there."

"If he believes the assassin did not lace the blade with poison, my efforts will be futile, unless I can convince him differently." Sam holds the sword over the water pail and scoops the water onto the blade. "Okay, my dear, sprinkle the blade with the powder."

The powder stains the blade yellow with red specks. "And for the final touches," he dips his finger into the water and Shelby sprinkles the powder on his wet finger. He slides his finger along his neck where the assassin scratched him. "Now you need to distract those guards."

"I got this one." Shelby carries the pail of water to the main hall and passes the three Weselton guards. Several meters past the dining room, she stumbles and spills the water. Grumbling she gets onto her knees and uses her dress to wipe up the water.

He peeks around the corner and the three guards intensely study the Herbalist's partially exposed bottom. He walks up to them unnoticed. "Where are you looking, gentlemen." Three static snaps are followed by the thud of three guards falling to the floor.

Larsen approaches. Shelby gets to her feet and pinches his arm. "You owe me big for this."

"Arendelle wins if this succeeds. If it does not, neither one of you were here, okay." They both nod.

Larsen points to the guards on the floor. "What about them?"

"Leave them as they are. Don't let them run away." He stands in front of the dining room door. He takes a deep breath and exhales the cold air across his lips. "Let the show begin." The door opens to an argument.

Prince Nick vocalizes above the others. "That guard protected my back in case we need to depart quickly."

Elsa counters, "By poisoning Samuel and throwing the knife at my sister?"

Nick thumps the table. "He did not poison anyone, let alone your stable boy. He was defending himself from the boy's vicious attack. In the mayhem, it looked like he threw the knife at your sister. If the boy had not caught the knife, everyone would have seen it fall to the ground. I have already apologized for frightening your sister." He steps towards Elsa but Prince Georg blocks his path.

Nick points to Georg. "Choose carefully. I sure I can convince the others, they will get a better price by not selling to the Southern Isles."

A loud pop shutters the table where Sam drops the pail. "After yesterday, I don't think you can convince anyone, Prince Nick."

Estevan and his son Juan moves quickly out of the line of fire. The Swedish Ambassador Soren hesitates, but also moves past him.

Nick's contempt blossoms at the other delegates across the table. "Do not fall for this treachery?"

The Samurai slides across the top of the pail creating a high pitch tone that causes all to look at it. Sam glances to Nick. "My apology, please continue your threat against the others."

Nick directs his focus on him. "The only threat is from your Queen and Weselton will respond with war." After a few seconds he quickly glances at the hall door then back at him.

Sam taps the blade on the pail. "Maybe the three guards did not hear you. Scream a little louder." He moves around the table towards Nick and taps each chair. He holds the sword for all to see. "Do you recognize this sword? . . . No? . . . This is the sword that caused this." He pulls his collar down to reveal the source of the pain across the side of his neck.

Anna reaches back for her sister and asks, "Is that?"

"Yes, Princess. That is the spot Prince Nick's fourth guard scratched me with this sword before I broke it." Sam holds up his bright red left hand. "This is the result of the poisoned knife that would have fallen harmlessly to the ground if I had not caught it."

Nick interrupts, "There is no poison."

Sam slams his hand onto the table. "For a Prince you act extremely stupid for not knowing the proper monarch'S protocols." The room's silence makes the only noise.

Sam turns to Elsa and lowers his head. "I apologize for disrespecting you and your guest. I hate liars who lie to my face." He glares at Nick. "If it was not for my health and the aid of my friend, I would not be having this argument. Since I am here, I applied a certain chemical that reacts to certain plant chemicals on the sword. As you can see there are two plant chemicals." He steps closer to Nick. "It is shameful your assassin used a poison, but in this case he used two poisons." He points the sword at Nick's face. "A poison on a blade shows the assassin's inexperience or lack of confidence in his abilities. Two poisons say he enjoys making others suffer."

"Now who is the liar?" Nick moves his hand under the back of his jacket.

Sam tilts his head and whisper low enough for Nick. "I will jam my hand through your gut and remove that knife from your belt."

Georg takes a step back and Nick lowers his hand.

"You think I'm a liar? The problem with liars is they can forget which lie was spoken and to whom." Sam angles the blade forward and backward at Nick. "Take this blade. Did the assassin forget he already had poison on it and mistakenly added a second poison? Did he lie to you and state, there is no poison on the blade as you claim. Is it possible, he told you about the poison and you forgot? Am I making this up?" He looks at each face in the room. "One way to prove a liar is to test what they say."

He grins at Nick. "Shall we test this sword? What are the consequences of the results? Someone help me out? What if there is no poison on this sword?"

"It makes you look like a fool." Frenchman Garron says.

Garron's son Pierre adds, "And Prince Nick can charge you with attacking him."

"Queen Elsa either allows Prince Nick to take you to Weselton to prevent war or prepares for war," Davin from Katherina comments.

Sam's head movements concur with their statements and he flicks the blade against the Prince's neck. Nick tries to move back. Sam grins. "If there is poison on the blade, your movement will cause the blade to cut."

Queen Elsa stands next to Georg. "Samuel, what are you doing?"

Sam glances at his Queen. His left brow rises. "Are you prepared for war?"

She does not answer. After a few seconds her right brow rises.

"While you ponder the question, I'm sure someone can tell me the consequences of poison on this blade."

Anna vents. "Since the fourth guard works for Prince Nick, the poison will prove Weselton tried to kill me. Since the Prince is next in line for the monarchy, he is responsible for anything his guards have done. His arrogant attitude proves he was sure he had an advantage to blackmail Queen Elsa."

Georg comments, "If the blade has poison on it, Weselton may already be at war with Arendelle."

Swedish representative Soren comments, "Poison on the blade means Prince Nick is at war, against Arendelle's Queen and any of us will be next.

Sam continues. "Casualty of war is not limited to the peasants. More times than not, a monarchy will fall as a condition of surrender. I believe Queen Victoria will be very upset if Weselton is at war with Arendelle. She may cancel agreements and purchase directly from Arendelle."

Feodora smiles. "That is what I have heard about the Queen of England."

"Is Weselton at war with Arendelle? We may need to keep you alive as a bargaining chip in case your fleet sails up the fjord." He leans close to Nick's ear. "If we are at war, will you be man enough to accept the consequences? Do you have anything to say before we take your ship and place all of you in a cell?"

The knot in the front of Nick's throat moves up and down quickly. He parts his lips and takes a breath. "Weselton is not, nor has any plans to be at war with Arendelle." The pulse in his neck causes the blade to flinch.

Sam glances at Elsa. "Majesty, how much of an increase did he offer you before the meeting?"

"Four per cent?"

"Four per cent," German Ambassador Bertram stands sliding his chair back. "Last night, he said, because of Queen Elsa, his cost went up ten percent." He stomps the floor. "I was not sure, but I know now," he shakes his fist at Nick. "Does your father know you have been skimming off the top?" Bertram moves like a caged animal and mutters colorful German expletives.

"Stealing from dear old dad," Sam whispers in Nick's ear. "What do you think the King will say, unless the neighbors think they have all been paying too much? I'm willing to bet you twisted several arms, even when they could not afford it."

Bertram plants his fist on the table and leans over it. "Queen Elsa, I will agree to your four per cent increase if I can at least keep the six percent he was charging?"

With slightly wide eyes, Elsa fixates on Sam.

He comments, "Majesty, I recommend you and Bertram go into the next room and discuss actual numbers, not percentages. I believe the two of you will find a mutual agreement that will benefit both sides."

With a nod, she motions for Bertram to follow. The side door opens and Captain Larsen leads them into the next room.

Sam waits for the door to close. "I'm getting a little tired of standing." He applies more pressure on the blade. "I will pull the chair out and you will sit. No sudden moves unless you are sure there is no poison on the blade." He pulls the closest chair out from the table and forces Nick to sit. "Place your hands flat on the table." He sees motion from the corner of his eye.

Princess Anna moves her finger across her neck and points to Nick. Two trails of blood from the blade moves down Nick's neck.

"Well, your life is about to change. Depending how fast your heart beats will determine when you will die, but I have some good news." He holds a liquid filled vile in front of him. "This is an anti-dote for many poisons, but not all. It may work for you or it may not." He sets the vile in front of him. "I guess the question now becomes; was there poison on the blade or not. Go ahead, we're watching."

An hour and a half passes. Sam sits two chairs from Nick. The other delegates sit across the table watching. Sweat and blood stains Nick's jacket. Trimmers travel through his arms causing his hands to flinch. Nick stares at the table. His chest barely moves.

Queen Elsa and Feodora enter the room. They observe the silence. "Samuel, what have you done to Prince Nick?"

"I gave him a time-out. Have you completed negotiations?"

Elsa motions her head towards Nick.

Sam acknowledges her concern and taps the blade on the table. "Prince Nick, if you wish to resolve your situation, you need to look at me?"

Nick winces as he turns his head. The swelling has formed on each side of the cut. A reddish pink covers his face into his scalp. One blood shot eye glares hatred at him.

He licks one side of the blade and shows a shiny surface. "The blade does not have poison. Your body is reacting to the combination of mustard powder and crushed red peppers. That is just water in the vile. It will ease the burning in your mouth. Several hours from now your body will pass it out, but it may be just as painful."

Nick guzzles the water from the vile and his bloodshot eye glares at Sam. "Since I have lost do you have more water?"

Sam sets the blade in the pail. He gets the water vase and a cup from the side table. He sets the cup in front of Nick and pours the water.

Nick drops his right hand to his side and drinks. "This is much better. You have destroyed any chance I had to assent to the Weselton throne. When my King receives word of my failure here, I will be lucky if all he does is just dismiss me. May I have another cup of water?"

Sam fills Nick's cup and sets the vase of water on the table. He twists to his right.

Nick's neck muscles tense.

Sam makes contact with Elsa. In a quick blink her eyes reflect the dark green color in his eyes.

Nick rotates his body and his right hand swings out with a hand length blade.

Sam does not try to stop him. A sharp pain pierces his lower right back. In the fraction of a second a searing hot explosion rips through his body. He accelerates his body's rotation and catches Nick's right hand. With a twist and a lift, Nick's elbow pops out of the joint. His left fist impact's below and behind Nick's right ear. Sam drives his fist and Nick's face through the back of the chair. His motion stops and he holds the unconscious Prince Nick's with his deformed right arm. Movement stirs from the other side of the table. Tears from a cry sounds through the noises of angry yells.

A sweet voice calls, "Samuel, Samuel, let him go."

He quiets the pain by blocking out the noise and focuses on the soft voice. A warm hand touches his arm. His head snaps towards the owner of the hand.

Georg's eyes widen as he steps back.

The sweet voice calls to him again. "Samuel, close your eyes and concentrate."

A small cold hand covers his fist. His eyes blink. A red stain slowly moves down the front of his shirt. He touches the blade and ice forms around it. His body quivers. The searing burn through his side diminishes. Partially smiling, he wipes the tear from his Queen's cheek. "Are you safe?"

Another tear rolls down her cheek to the spot of the one he removed. He glances over his shoulder. The room is quiet. Captain Larsen approaches him. "Captain, please take the Weselton guards to their ship. I will return the Prince."

"Admiral, there is a knife in your back."

"Yes, the knife has poison on it." He lifts Nick by his broken arm and grabs the back of his collar. He drags the Prince past the Captain. On the stairs, he bends his knees to glide down the stair without the jarring an up and down motion. In the courtyard, everyone follows him. As he crosses the bridge women rush to hide the children from the gruesome sight.

A crewmen aboard the Weselton ship yells for the Captain. Several scream obscenities at Sam. A dozen crewmen and guards depart the ship. With swords drawn they move towards him. Arendelle Guards draw swords.

"Larsen, command your troops to halt." He continues to walk towards the Weselton men.

The ship's Captain yells above his men. "You have one minute to get back aboard this ship or I leave you here." The men on the wharf hesitate but one by one they climb aboard the ship.

At the foot of the gangplank, he holds Prince Nick over the water and finally drops his arm. "Captain, the Prince is not dead. He will have a severe headache when he wakes up." With his right hand, he pulls the ice covered knife from his back and drops the Prince on the gangplank. "Captain, this is the fourth time a representative of your King has tried to kill members of Arendelle's royal court. This is the final warning. I will kill any Weselton who steps on Arendelle's soil." He throws the Prince's knife and embeds the blade to the hilt into the ships main mask.

The other Weselton guards carry the Prince on board the ship. "Release the ship from the moorings," commands the ship's Captain.

The wharf crew drops the ship's lines and a northern breeze pushes the ship towards the open seas. Sam watches the ship move.

After it had traveled two hundred meters, a head with dark hair looks over the ships stern. He holds up a crossbow and fires an iron tip arrow. It lands between Sam's feet. Several crew members drag the archer down and the ship's Captain looks over the stern rail. Sam takes the iron arrow and measures the ship's distance. He rears back and slings the arrow. A second later it embeds into the ship's rudder.

Elsa generates cold over his back wound. "It looks like you hit the rudder. Were you trying to damage the ship?"

He places his hand over his front wound. "I sent a message that the Captain seems to be the only one to understand."

"You are bleeding. Let us get you inside."

"When the ship is over the horizon, I will follow you. They have to see me here until they cannot."

Three hours later the Weselton ship drops below the horizon. He turns and staggers up the wharf and onto the street. Two gentlemen move towards him, but he waves them away and stops at the foot of the bridge. A wet and cold spot forms on his trousers below the wound. His hand sparkles with his blood. The people give him room to pass. His body wavers as his mind tries to keep it moving forward. Four individuals stand at the gates. His vision loses the sharpness of the distant images. At the crest of the bridge his body stops moving. His leg weakens and he staggers into the rail. His bloody hand grips the rail as he leans over it. A school of fish swims under the bridge. His image distorts in the water. Another person with light color hair and wearing green clothing looks over the rail. He recognizes the face looking back at him. A fish plops the water breaking up both images.

Cold on the back of his neck gives him a taste of relief. The cold feels good. The cold radiates across his shoulders and down his back. The pain eases.

Someone stands on his left and three individuals stand behind him. The cold draws a smile at the relief of pain. Another cold hand turns his face towards her. The fragrance reminds him of someone. She is beautiful with her blue eyes. His body shivers from the cold that removes the pain. His leg shivers. He kneels on one knee. The cold and flowery fragrant reminds him of a young woman he saw. Her white hair brought smiles to his face. He sits back on his foot. His hands release the rail. For a moment he sees her.

"Close your eyes."

The cold takes more pain away. He forces a weak smile. "The cold, my back hurts."

As the shades of his eyelids droop, the world fades with his strength and a soft voice whispers into his ear. "I know. I will take care of you. Good night, sweet Prince."

 **End of Chapter**


	42. Chapter 41 Mate Selected

**Title: Chapter 41: Mate Selected**

 **3 years, 5 months until correction**

Samuel's horse, Aurora, protests as she stops in front of a thicket of bushes, but he encourages her to push through. On the other side, he rewards Aurora with a good scratch behind her ear. She neighs her approval. Queen Elsa's horse pushes through the thicket followed by the horses of Princess Anna and Master Kristoff. With the group together, Sam nudges Aurora to walk along the right side of Elsa's horse. A shaft of light dances along his exposed arm in his sleeveless shirt. He looks up at the tiny fireflies of dew reflecting the sunlight through the tree's canopy. With a deep breath, he consumes the freshness of the cooler temperatures under the tree's canopy.

For a moment Sam allows Aurora to move on her own as he scan's the area. He searches as far as he can see. A couple of low line areas to the north, more like a shallow drainage trail, could hide someone, if they were willing to crawl through it. Once his group set up on the plateau, he will scout the area just in case.

A cool hand touches his arm. His head turns towards the warm, infectious smile that causes him to smile back. He slightly nods his head towards his Queen.

Elsa asks, "How do you feel?"

"I feel a lot better since my body expelled the poison." His smile fades as he looks down. "I wish I had known what it was at the time. Perhaps my actions would not have disrupted the negotiations and we would not have to keep a watch out for Weselton."

Anna comments, "Are you kidding? Have you not noticed the increased number of ships moving commerce at the wharf?"

Her small hand squeezes his arm. "Anna is correct. Even the council has stopped giving me grief for now. You have nothing to apologize. If anything I should apologize to you for not listening."

A bird overhead flutters its wings and screeches.

Elsa continues, "And trusting you. It was exactly as you said. You took a big risk and Arendelle received a big reward for your actions. I receive guests from new kingdom, at least, once a week, wanting to trade with us." She lets go of his arm. "I know you were hurting. I wish I could have done more to ease your pain, but all I can do is thank you for inviting us out today."

He smiles. _Maybe she does understand._

Aurora leads the other three out of the trees and onto Lookout Plateau. From the cool to the warm sunshine, the grandeur opens to a view of fjord moving further inland to the east and down towards the ocean. The light breeze from the south make the temperature on the comfortable side despite the plateau's altitude. A slight hint of saltiness lingers in the air. Below the plateau the Queendom of Arendelle cuddles the shore line.

Near a cluster of small boulders past the tree line, Sam slides off his horse and quickly moves over to help Elsa off her horse. As she places her hands on his shoulders, he lifts her off the saddle. Just as her foot clears her horse's neck, he looks directly into her icy blue eyes. For a few seconds, time slows to a stop. Her blond hair drapes down to either side of her face, creating an image of beauty of someone lost in his past. The way she smiles at him makes his heart beat a little faster and as he slowly lowers her to the ground, a slight breeze sweeps her hair from her face. His mind is transfixed as a smile blossoms on his face. Elsa does not remove her hands from his shoulders, but continues to smile back at him.

Anna breaks his thoughts as she snaps her fingers near his face. "If you are through holding my sister, you may wish to let go of her so you can get her horse."

He drops his hands to his sides. "My apologies, I was lost in thought."

"You were lost in something and I don't think it was a thought," Anna replies.

With a slight nod, Sam quickly walks after Elsa's horse, but not before Elsa lets her hand travel across his chest. She turns to Anna. "Why did you do that? I get very little time to be in his presence, let alone touch him."

Anna comments, "He is supposed to come after you, not you go after him. Besides, you don't want to give away too much at first or he may think you're too easy."

"What do you mean too easy? I have not given anything away," she retorts as she takes Anna's arm and they walk towards the edge of the plateau.

"And what do you think you were doing back there? He had his hands on you long enough for your horse to walk around the two of you and start up the road," Anna snickers.

He hears Elsa's comment and glances in their direction as he ties the two horses to a tree branch. Elsa continues, "Leave him alone. He has been distracted the past week. For a moment, it was like he recognized someone, but not me."

Sam turns his head away from the group. A light green reflects off the polish metal on Aurora's reins. His head slowly sweeps right to left giving his eye maximum time to search for anyone or anything that does not belong in the area or is a threat to his protected group. He detects nothing out of the ordinary. A momentary flash of blue color reflects off the reins. His mind continues to scan the area on a regular interval which will allow him to interact with the group. If he times the sweeps correctly and responds to them, they should not notice his distraction.

Anna and Elsa stare in his direction. He sees them in his peripheral and they quickly turn away from him. Aurora places her head over his shoulder and leans her head against him. He scratches under Aurora's chin. "What do you think they were looking at?"

Aurora neighs then bumps her head against him. He responds, "How can you say she is too easy. She has not given me anything." Aurora neighs again. "I was just helping her down from her horse, nothing more."

He walks a short distance when all three of the horses neigh and stomp the ground. He stomps the ground. "Ok, very funny, show a little respect. She is your Queen too."

A smiling Kristoff moves in step with him. "Did you have a nice conversation with your horse?"

Sam glances over to him. "You of all people should know better than to ask such a question, especially the next time I see you talking to Sven."

"Everyone knows I talk to Sven and he gives very constructive criticism when I need it." Kristoff replies, "Just like Aurora criticized you for holding on to Elsa's waist a little too long."

"And how do you know that is what she said?"

Kristoff grins, "I don't, but all humans here saw it, including Sven."

He stops and Kristoff continues walking to stand next to Anna. Sam looks over to Sven nodding. He shakes his head as he continues towards the cliff's edge. His eyes catch a rainbow of colors flickering in the few strands of Elsa's hair misbehaving. Her hair moves in the direction of the breeze. He slows his steps. Elsa looks towards Arendelle presenting her profile. He stops upon seeing a halo effect surround her. Again she reminds him of someone who created the same type of image. His heart moves for her.

She glances back and smiles at him.

He stands to her right side and grasp his hands behind his back. His feet shift to shoulder width apart.

Down in the ravine four wolves yelp and bark as they run around in a playful manner. He focuses on the wolves, two males and two females. They have not paired off, but he suspects, one will be forced to leave the group temporarily. He hears a giggle to his left.

Kristoff stands behind Anna with his large arms around her waist and nibbles on her ear. She giggles again. He turns back to the wolves playing and whispers to Elsa. "We should have brought food. It looks like Kristoff didn't get his fill at breakfast."

Elsa barely turns her head towards them. "He had his fill last night and this morning. Anna's the dessert."

He grunts an acknowledgement and continues to watch the wolves. Elsa steps a little closer to him, but he does not move. From the corner of his eye, he sees Elsa and Kristoff make motion in his direction.

Kristoff motions his head towards the wolves. Elsa's shoulders rise slightly before returning to their normal position. Kristoff comments. "Maybe we should take time to frolic around and have fun the way the wolves are?"

Anna observes him, but he places his finger over his lips before she can comment. She looks in Sam's direction, then nods.

He turns his head slightly in Kristoff's direction, but does not stop observing the wolves. After a few seconds he comments, "Frolicking? That may be what you call it here, but where I'm from we call it a mating dance, but at this stage it's more of a selection process."

A male wolf tucks its tail yelping as it runs behind bushes near the edge of the forest.

Elsa steps closer to him and she places her hand on the inside of his arm. As if in an automatic response he bends his arm and she slides her arm along his arm to rest her hand on his wrist. She asks, "What do you mean by mating dance? It looks like they are playing, having fun."

He places his other hand on top of her hand and replies, "It may have begun as fun but it has become very serious. There are four wolves down there. One is at the edge of the forest to the far right. Those three in the ravine are a male and two females."

Anna squints in the direction of the wolves and asks, "How can you tell?"

"The two females are slightly smaller in size, but from here it is difficult to tell. So far I have seen only the larger wolf with his family jewels hanging down between its legs. If the male chooses one of the females, shortly he will be the one on top." Sam replies.

"Oh, I think that was too much information for me?" Anna says, slightly shaking her head. She looks over at Sam and Elsa staring at her. "What?"

He leans in close to Elsa. "Your mother did tell the two of you how babies get into the mother's belly?"

She giggles, "I do recall Anna said she would never let that happen to her." They both grin at Kristoff as he smiles back at them.

They observe the wolves for the moment in silence. The females jump and run around the male. Each takes turns approaching the male then running away. Finally the first female does not run away as the male sniffs her with her tail up. The second female approaches and does the same thing.

"Why are they allowing the male to sniff them?" Anna asks without turning away from the scene.

Elsa turns her head quickly leaning on the back of Sam's shoulder as she tries to hold in her laughter.

He looks past Elsa as she tries to compose herself. Kristoff nods and points to him and to Anna motioning for him to explain. "The first time Kristoff asked to spend time with you, other than your clothes, what were you wearing?"

Anna opens and closes her mouth several times about to speak when nothing comes out. She narrows her eyes at him. "What do you mean, what was I wearing?" She looks around taking a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "I was wearing ribbons in my hair, had socks and shoes on."

Elsa chuckles and places her hand over her mouth to hold back the laughter as she pushes her face into his arm. He studies her intently, before asking. "Were you wearing perfume?"

Anna looks at Kristoff then to Elsa and nods as she replies, "Yes."

Elsa wipes a tear from her eye. He asks, "Was the perfume, something you wear every day?"

She sets her shoulders back and chin out with a slight smile as she replies, "No, I wore a special perfume."

"Why?"

She looks over her shoulder and wraps her arm around Kristoff's waist and places her hand on his chest, "Because he likes the way it accents my beauty." Kristoff nods his approval.

"Out of curiosity are you wearing it now?" He sniffs the air.

"Yes, I am."

Sam leans in front of Elsa to verify the fragrance is coming from Anna's direction. His eyes partially close as he inhales. He clears his throat and shakes his head as he takes a deep breath and states, "Tropical flowers and a hint of coconut, that's what you are wearing. Anyway, since a female wolf does not have access to perfume; they release a fragrance that is very enticing to the male. Similar to a human male's response, right Master Kristoff."

Kristoff's frozen expression and the red blush rising to consume his face provokes Elsa to snicker. Anna glances up at him.

Elsa pushes a few strands of hair out of her face as her eyes widen at him. She whispers, "Other than embarrassing them what was the throat clearing and shaking your head?"

Sam raises his left brow and the corner of his lips turn up as he whispers, "I love the fragrance of tropical flowers and coconuts. I will follow you anywhere for that fragrant." He makes a biting and clicking sound with his teeth before turning back to the ravine.

Her right brow slowly rises up. "Really."

They continue watching the wolves. The male nips at both females. They growl at him. He responds with a series of barks then runs a short distance and faces them. Both females watch the male with their ears perked up. The male barks then growls. The females trot over to him.

"Watch carefully, the male is about to choose," Sam comments.

Both females stop close as the male sniffs the air coming from them. They stare at each other. The male walks over to a female to sniff her tail again. He place his head over the female's neck. The second female watches for a few seconds then runs towards the forest.

Anna still holds onto Kristoff asks, "So the male has chosen that female to be his mate?"

"He has selected her, but until he mounts her, either one can choose to break off the deal by running away," Sam answers.

Elsa points towards the wolves, "You mean like that." The male wolf mounts the female and bites the back of her neck.

He nods to the wolf couple. "Yes, exactly like that. Each year they will get together to pair up again."

Anna glances back at Sam. "What happens to the female that ran away?"

Kristoff tries not to laugh and quickly turns his head away from them. Elsa buries her face into his shirt laughing. He watches Anna with her innocent expression waiting for an answer. "Is she serious?"

Elsa looks up at him with a great big smile. "She is innocently serious. Go ahead and answer her." She presses her face against his chest. He feels and hears her laughing.

Taking a breath and releasing it through his lips, causes Elsa to laugh harder. He replies to Anna, "Remember, there was another wolf at the edge of the forest watching the other three doing their dance?"

Anna nods.

"The fragrance the female expelled also signals she is ready to receive the male. Since that female was not chosen and the other male was waiting for either female to raise her tail to him so he could give her relief from her frustration."

"So the second male was going to get sex, regardless of which female the Alpha male chose?" Anna asks.

Sam nods.

"Well, it's a good thing you men don't act like that second male wolf," Anna comments looking up at Kristoff. He burst out laughing and Elsa follows with her own loud outburst of laughter as she wipes away her tears on Sam's shirt.

Anna scrunches her face at them. "Why are you two laughing?"

Sam narrows his eyes. "Either you two are truly laughing at Anna or the three of you are up to something at my benefit."

"Oh please, Every time you talk, I learn something about you and you don't talk much," Elsa states as she wipes away the last laugh tear.

His left brow rises. "When I have something to say, I will say it. I just don't rattle off everything that pops into my head."

Elsa raises her brows as she steps back. "Are you saying I talk too much about nothing?"

Sam reaches to touch her arm as he speaks, "Actually."

She steps out of his reach.

He lowers his hand and bows his head to her as he places both of his hands behind his back. "As I was about to say after you cleared up my miss-communication of your desire for me to have a meal with you, I like listening to you. You always say something I didn't know." He looks past her. "I was referring to the two behind you. When they get flustered, they seem to rattle off whatever comes to their mind."

Anna steps away from Kristoff placing her hands on her waist to glare at Sam, "Did you just insult me?"

Elsa takes several steps back out of Anna's line of fire. Sam tilts his head clasping his hands in front of himself and asks, "How can a truth be an insult unless you are denying the truth? Which part did I state is a lie?"

She crosses her arms and drops her head down. Kristoff takes her into her arms as he glares at Sam.

Sam presses his lips together and slowly nods as he bows his head, "I thought I was stating an obvious everyone knew, but clearly I'm mistaken." He takes several steps towards her, but she turns her back to him. "I see. In the future, I will refrain from comments unless I'm asked, please accept my apology."

Anna moves to the other side of Kristoff. He steps back. "When you are ready to leave, we will go or you can leave by yourselves." Sam walks back to the edge of the cliff.

Elsa turns her head with her hands on her waist. "Anna, he apologized to you. Do not act like this."

"Like what, an immature child who cannot string two sentences together? I know I am not as smart as him. It does not hurt any less." Anna snarls back.

Kristoff places his arm around Anna's shoulders. "We'll go back to the castle."

"Kristoff, be careful on the way back." Sam points to the other side of the ravine where two grays and a red wolf crest the ridge. "There is another pack moving into the area."

Kristoff looks across the way. "I haven't seen that wolf before."

"I have. A couple of years ago, he tried to take over this area." He turns his head to Kristoff. "Just to let you know, the wolves that attacked you and Anna going up to the ice castle were from Red's pack."

A cold hand slides to the inside of his arm. He states before Elsa can comment, "I have to help my family. There is more of Red's pack coming behind him. Alpha's pack is too far away to help him."

On the far side, seven wolves trot into the ravine. Kristoff points to the wolves and comments, "Now your friend is in trouble."

Sam steps away from Elsa holding his arm out to create a space of separation. He slaps his fist on top of his other fist and draws them apart to create an ice bow.

Elsa places her hand over her mouth. Kristoff and Anna stare with their mouths open. He draws the bow's ice string back and a large arrow forms. Angling the arrow up, he lets it go. The ice arrow splits into seven smaller arrows. Before they impact the arrows form into ice balls hitting the seven wolves. They all yep then look around for the source. Sam fires another ice arrow that transforms into ice balls hitting five of the seven wolves. All seven runs back into the forest.

The Alpha charges the red wolf knocking it to the ground. Alpha charges the other two wolves. Barks and snarls echo in the ravine. One wolf runs away, then a few seconds later the second wolf limps away. Alpha turns holding its paw up. Red lowers its head showing teeth and stalks the Alpha. A high pitch yelp sounds from the forest. Sam spots the female wolf selected by Alpha. Red turns and charges the female.

His mind shifts to targeting mode. "No you don't."

Sam draws back on the ice bow lowering the angle to a near straight on shot in front of Red. As fast as the ice arrow leaves the bow, he fires another arrow. No Ice balls, but straight arrows create a wall between Red and the female wolf. Red stops. Sam howls and Red looks up at him. "Leave this valley or you will never leave."

Red bares his teeth and growls. Sam draws back another ice arrow and Red runs out of the ravine. The Alpha hobbles to the female and they depart the ravine. Sam melts the ice bow and arrow.

Kristoff comments, "Nature may object to your interference with the transition of the pack leader.'

Sam snaps his head around glaring directly at Kristoff and growls. "No one attacks my family. That Alpha's grandfather adopted me into their pack."

The fingers on his right hand freeze white with spike extending from the tips. "You of all people should know better to make a comment, being raised by the trolls and your friend Sven. Do not be presumptions about my family."

Elsa steps in front of Sam holding up her hands towards him. She commands, "Calm down, I do not wish to see any blood here."

The green glow against her icy palms change to blue, then to hazel. He watches her. "If you think my actions are terrible against the wolf, those who attack my human family will not receive the same gentle response. Humans do not learn and will return. Is this not the way most wars are started? If they attack my family I will put an end to it before it escalates."

He moves towards the horse and speaks over his shoulder, "I leave in five minutes with or without you. Red's pack will be here in fifteen minutes at their current speed. I recommend you be gone well before they get here."

Kristoff nods in Sam's direction. "He's right. We do not want to be here when they get here. I'm quite sure they are looking for a fight over what happened." He nudges Anna to move towards her horse.

Sam leads Elsa's horse towards her then bends down, cupping his hands together as she approaches. She stops in front of him, but does not get onto her horse. She does not move her foot. He looks up. Her arms are crossed and no smile. He stands and states, "Say what you wish to say. In three minutes I leave."

She exclaims, "You did not have to say that to Anna and Kristoff."

"You wish to chastise me? Do it when we get back to the castle and we are out of danger."

She continues to glare at him.

"If you can get on your horse without my help, say so and I will leave." Still no response he gets onto Aurora. Nudging his horse towards the cliff's edge he looks into the forest across the ravine.

Kristoff helps Elsa onto her horse, then gets onto Sven. Anna rides up to them.

Sam turns his head towards them. "Kristoff get them moving. Your time has changed to four minutes before they get here. I will hold them off long enough for you to get down the hill."

Kristoff slaps Anna's horse on the rump to get it moving. Elsa's races her horse after Anna and Kristoff follows them.

Sam waits until they were out of sight and dismounts Aurora. He places his head against Aurora's neck. _You will have to trust me. I will protect you if you do not run, ok?_ Aurora nods her head. He makes a fist in his right hand and points it at the edge of the clearing.

A cloud forms just past the cliff and slowly rises into the air. In the distance he hears several wolves howl. He points to the rising clouds and sweeps his hand over his head, then points towards the road. The clouds slowly move and block the sun. He closes his eyes and opens them to see in the blue vision. He brings his fist together pointing towards the clouds. An energy wave shoots from his fist into the clouds. Snow begins to fall. With each passing minute the snow accumulates on the ground. The snow becomes heavier and wetter sticking to everything that it contacts. The snow quickly covers the trees causing the weak branches to break. Several minutes pass and four feet of snow cover the ground from the edge of the cliff to the face of the mountain.

In the distance the wolves hesitate to run across the snow. Several wolves try to cross, but sink. At the far edge of the snow bank the Red wolf stares at him. After many minutes the snow bank has risen two meters. Sam steadily pushes the clouds towards the Red wolf's location. His ears track any movement on the snow. In the distance the wolves howl. He lowers his hands and the snow fall gradually diminishes. He scans the snow as far as he can reach and does not detect the wolves. It will take them a considerable amount of time to get around the snow banks. If they are patient the snow surface will be hard enough for them to run across.

Sam walks to Aurora patting her head and scans the area one more time. "This will give them the time they need to get back to the castle safely." He climbs onto Aurora's back and nudges her to follow an alternate trail down the hill.

Less than a half hour later Aurora trots into the northern section of Arendelle. With his short cut down the hill, he and Aurora crest the bridge when he hears Anna speaking, "Look up there. Is that Sam? How did he get here before we did?"

Kristoff's snickers, "He found a shortcut."

Elsa comments, "He is full of surprises."

Sam sets Aurora's saddle and bridle onto the fence when Kristoff leads Sven into the stables, followed by a stable boy pulling two horses. Kristoff leads Sven into his stall and Sam pours a bucket of water into Aurora's water trough without saying a word. Kristoff walks past him again. While Aurora satisfies her thirst, Sam brushes her side. The stable gates open and close. He does not detect the person, but they walk with a light touch to the ground not like Kristoff's heavy footsteps. He stops brushing Aurora and without turning asks, "If you have something to say, say it."

Heavy footsteps move across the floor, but not by the gate, but Kristoff answers, "I understand what you meant about the wolves being a part of your family. The trolls are my family and I would do anything to protect them. What you said is true. When I get frustrated there's no telling what I will say."

Sam stands tall, resting his hands on Aurora's back and waits for the conversation to continue. After a few seconds he comments, "Is that all? Are you saying this because you really mean it or because Anna twisted your arm?"

Kristoff responds gruffly, "Nobody twisted my arm. I am here on my own accord."

"Queen Elsa, do you also concur with his assessment?" He continues to brush Aurora as she sniffs in the direction of the guest.

Elsa shifts her weight. "How did you know I was here?"

One more clue to add to his collection about his Queen. "I did not. Soon I will know you from the others. Kristoff might be able to fake two people breathing, but he cannot fake two different heartbeats. He was out of position when the gates opened and closed. Plus, it does not help that I can hear Anna and Gerda standing outside the gate trying to listen."

Kristoff moves through Sven's outer gate. With a brush in his hand, Sam moves to the Queen's horse, but keeps his back towards Elsa. She shifts her weight again. Her shoe crunches the sand. A gate opens and slams shut. A short time later, he places the cleaning tools back in their locations. The stalls of the two horses and Aurora have fresh water and oats.

He sits on a worn stump next to the stables main gates. With a bucket of water, he washes the day's dirt off his face and hands. A horse gate opens and closes. Another undetectable person enters. This time of day the Queen would not come back in here if she washed up earlier. There is only one other who can sneak up on him. He nods to her over his shoulder.

Gerda hands him a small container of water. "This will probably taste better than the water you feed your horse."

"Thank you."

She watches him closely as he drinks. "So are you going to tell me what happened or do I have to beat it out of you?"

Sam looks up at her with his left brow raised, "you are getting feisty for your old age."

"I don't like it when my children fight. Now tell me what happened up there?"

"Why don't you ask them?" He motions his hand in the direction of the castle. "I have told you I do not fit in with royalty," and continues to drink.

"I will eventually ask them, but I am asking you now." She places her hand on his shoulder.

He turns his head to face her with his brows down. "Did you know they had set me up?"

"What do you mean set up?"

"The three of them had a plan to get me to talk. Instead of just asking me a question, they convinced Anna to ask questions as though she did not know the answers. I caught on to what they were doing after the third question. I don't remember too clearly what I said, but I remember Kristoff commenting about my family and instead of shutting my mouth I threw a comment back at him. There was an exchange of words, Anna got upset, and Elsa stood between me and them with her icy palms pointed at me. I backed away."

He looks in the direction of the castle. "I do not belong with them. You know what really hurts? All three of them were here and no one asked about my family. Kristoff came close by saying he understood about the wolves, but no one apologize for their actions, even Queen Elsa could not bring herself to talk to me." He turns towards Aurora placing his head into his hands. He closes his eyes and muffles a comment, "I think I made a mistake by sticking around here. I should leave before the snow sets in."

Her hand slaps the back of his head, before he could move, Gerda grabs his ear and twists it. "Now you listen to me. I didn't come out here to see you wallowing your self-pity. It sounds like the four of you were in an uncomfortable situation. In case you didn't notice, you have the tendency not to talk unless a question is asked. Why don't you try opening up to them. You say you are good at listening, well listen to their clues and you ask questions. I'm willing to bet if you ask they will answer and you find something in common with them." She lets go of his ear and walks towards the gate. "Have you eaten today? Probably not, come into the kitchen and I'll get you a sandwich."

"Aurora gave me some of her oats. When she is ready to go to sleep, I will head back up into the hills to check on my family."

Gerda stops at the gate and turns back to him. "Promise me you will come back tomorrow for breakfast?"

He shakes his head, letting out a long sigh. "I promise to be back tomorrow, but I cannot guarantee it will be in time for breakfast." He looks at her. "Do you know how much work I get done before they get out of their beds?" Gerda tilts her head as she glares at him, but he answers his question before she answers, "Of course you do. You probably do more work than I do getting everything ready for the royal's Gluteus Maximus." He ducks as a stick flies past his head. The gate opens then closes.

 **End of Chapter**


	43. Chapter 42 Dinner and Dessert

**Title: Chapter 42: Dinner and Dessert**

 **3 years, 5 months until correction**

Sam returns to the castle in the early afternoon. The remaining snow covered plateau from the previous day creates a chilled breeze that flows into the kitchen door.

Gerda greets him. "Good, the shirt fits you and you cleaned up nicely. Now wash your hands in the pail. They are waiting for their meals so we need to hurry."

He turns his head slightly towards the hall and narrows his eyes. "Who is waiting for their meal?"

"The royal family of course, but before you ask, the staff is working elsewhere and the family wishes to eat earlier than they normally do, so here you are helping me." Gerda moves quickly setting the several food containers onto the cart. She places two baskets on her arm and walks towards the hall. "Don't stand there. That cart is not going to follow me by itself. Help it along."

He shakes his head and pushes the food cart after her into the serving room next to the dining room. He starts to leave, but Gerda grabs his arm. "I can't put the food on their plates and serve them at the same time."

She hands him one basket and a small container of butter. "Take these to the table and place it to the left side of our Queen's plate, but not too close to the edge where she may accidentally knock it into the Princess's lap. Come back in here and I'll have you carry the next basket and butter out to Kristoff." Sam nods and reaches for the service door when Gerda comments, "You represent me. Please do not drop anything on anyone."

With a second nod as he looks back at her. "I will do my best to make you proud."

The door opens and the conversation stops. He steps into the dining room. Anna leans to her left and whispers to Kristoff as he motions with his hand in Sam's direction.

Sam moves towards the table and his eyes catch Elsa's left profile. With her head down and her shoulders slumped forward, he feels a twinge in his heart wishing he could put his arms around her and say it will be alright, but even he is vulnerable to be a little prideful. She is the Queen and such inappropriate contact could get him sent to a prison cell or worse executed. He hides his emotions before he slips up. This is no different than when he served her parents.

Behind him Gerda clears her throat and pokes his back. "Uh-hum, you can do the eye coloring thing later, you need to move."

Anna smiles at him. She looks to her sister, then back at him. The warmth of his blood flow increases in his face. He moves towards the table. Anna slides her hand across the corner of the table towards Elsa's arm. He barely shakes his head which causes Anna to grin more as she touches her sister's arm. Elsa shifts her body back into the regal pose with her head up and her shoulders back.

Not wanting to look at either of them, he places the bread basket equal distance between Anna and Elsa, but the butter dish rattles as it drops onto the table. He grabs the dish to stop it ringing. He bows. "My apologies, Majesty, this is my first day on this job. I will do better."

Before he can back away Anna leans close to him and grabs his hand. "It is ok. You will be alright."

Elsa glances up.

Anna holds onto his hand. "She maybe a little scary at times, but she does not bite . . . much?"

"Anna!" Elsa says a little forceful.

He walks quickly back into the service room, closing the door and leans against it. He stares at his hands.

Gerda puts down the food ladle and grabs his shaking hands. "What's wrong? Why are you shaking?"

With wide eyes and his heart racing his head slowly swings from side to side. "I can't believe I'm acting this way."

 _There is no expected combat. There are no perceived enemy. Why did Anna have to pick this time to tease? Am I giving away too many signs? She is a young woman. She is my Queen. Why is it happening now? I need time to analyze._

Sam closes his eyes for a moment and the shaking stops. He stands and nods once. "I have it under control, now. I'm ready to serve the plates."

Gerda pats the back of his hand. "Think all you want. You already have the answer." She goes back to serving the food and asks, "So what happened?"

"For a moment I let my emotions get the best of me. I was not prepared for what I saw in there," he answers.

She hands him a plate. "What did you see that made your emotions fall apart?" He just looks at the plate and his lips draw tighter together. She hands him the second plate. "Are you thinking of a response or just ignoring me?"

"No."

She places food on the third plate. "No, you are not thinking of a response or no, you are not ignoring me?"

"Yes."

"Ok, have it your way, but I will find out. The left plate is for our Queen and the right plate is for the Princess. Now move I'll be right behind you." She opens the door and pushes him through.

He carries the two plates to the dining table and carefully places the left plate in front of Queen Elsa. Gerda places a basket with butter and a plate in front of Kristoff. Just as Sam places the right plate in front of Princess Anna, she smiles showing her teeth and winks at him. He squints his eyes and wrinkles his nose at her.

Anna's smile grows bigger as she whispers, "Let the hunt begin." He freezes for a moment with wide eyes staring at her then slowly shakes his head. She taps his face with her fingers. "Too late, you have been tagged. Now you need to determine if you are the fox or the hound."

He stands straight and marches back into the serving room quickly.

Gerda stops next to Anna. "I wish I could get all of the staff to move as quickly as he just did." She touches Anna's arm. "What did you say to him?"

With a mischievous grin Anna says, "I told him the hunt has begun and he has been tagged."

Gerda looks back at the service door. "Oh, I don't think he knows that game."

In between taking a bite of her meal Elsa looks up and asks, "After yesterday's little adventure, you may wish to hold off playing a game without telling him the rules. But just in case he catches on, what game are you playing?"

"The fox and the hound," Anna replies. Elsa takes a bite of the food, then points the fork at Anna as she chews.

Anna says, "Before you ask he is the fox."

She swallows her food and asks, "And who is the hound?"

"Well, like you said, we do not wish to scare him away if he catches on that it is a game. I need to collect more clues as to who the hound could be."

Gerda winks at Anna and mouths the word 'Who'. Anna stares at Elsa for a few seconds. Gerda nods and walks back into the serving room.

Sam stands at the end of the service cart with his hands behind his back as he stares at the cart. She hands him a container of water. "I will hand you a cup. You fill it with water and place it on the right side of their plates. Don't let Anna shake you up. She is just trying to get you to talk."

He turns to exit the room and comments, "Maybe, but I think she is up to something."

He follows Gerda to Elsa's right side. She hands him a cup. He fills and places it onto the table without spilling a drop. They fill and place Anna's cup. Gerda looks at the bottom of the third cup. She points to the cup on the side table behind them. "Fill that cup for Kristoff until I can get another one." She walks into the back room.

He sets the cup of water on the table to Kristoff's right. Gerda returns with a plate and sets it in front of the chair to the Queen's immediate right.

He points to the plate. "Do I need to get another cup?"

"Only if you need something to wash down your meal." Gerda winks at Anna.

"What?" He moves to the end of the table.

"I know you have not eaten since yesterday. Sit down and eat." Gerda walks past them towards the service room.

Anna grabs his arm and grins up at him. "Gerda can be very persuasive, so you might as well sit down and eat with us."

Elsa glares at Anna. "If he is not hungry, don't push him."

Anna leans close to her sister. "I bet he gets just as grumpy from not eating as you do when you have not eaten."

"I do not get grumpy. I get upset when others push." She pats Anna's arm.

 _Great, now they are going to fight over when and where I eat._ He glances to Elsa. She appears distressed. If he resists, how much more tension and stress is created. "Majesty, Princess, please, I will sit down to eat if you will stop."

He walks around the table and picks up the plate. Setting it in front of the third chair, he sits.

Gerda sets a bread roll on his plate. "Why did you move the plate?"

 _This must be a test._ He looks at each of them and looks up at Gerda. "Because the immediate right is reserved for the most trusted or prominent individual. As a commoner, I am neither the most trusted nor the prominent. I suspect the protocol says I should not be here at all."

Elsa smiles to him and taps the table to her right. "It is ok. You can sit here."

"I thank you for the offer, but I must decline." His hand sweeps across the room. "The walls have eyes and ears. I have no desire to diminish your stature by having someone see me sitting on your right."

Her smile fades. For a slight moment her disappointment shows past her defenses. She looks down. Sadness shows up, then she pulls her shoulders back. A sigh escapes as her regal presence closes the door on her emotions.

He grins, showing his teeth at Gerda. "But since she is standing here I will eat this meal." He faces his plate and bows his head as his hands clasps together for a prayer. After a minute, he says "Amen." The chair to his right moves and Elsa sits next to him.

Before he can comment she says, "You can't complain. You are on my left."

Gerda moves the Queen's plate to her new location. He shifts his chair to the left and Elsa shifts her chair closer to the table. Gerda stands behind them and comments. "Will you stop fidgeting, before I nail your britches to the chair." She moves to the other side of the table.

Sam observes the other three not paying him any attention. He slightly leans to his right. "Was she talking to me or you?"

"She was definitely talking to you." Elsa holds a piece of bread close to her lips. "The Queen does not fidget in her chair and besides, I am not the one wearing britches."

Sam slowly turns his head to a smiling Elsa. He also notices her pulse in her neck. _She is trying._ He moves his legs closer to her chair and whispers, "I can see your heart is beating fast. Put your hand on your leg."

She stops motionless for a moment, then whispers. "What did you say?"

A little louder he replies, "Place your hand on your leg."

"Why?"

"Because one of my jobs for your father was to help people to calm down. I am able to draw out their negative energy that is usually frustrating them." He glances across the table. Anna and Kristoff talk to each other.

He turns his head more towards her. "I promise I will do nothing inappropriate. I wish to reassure you I am not a monster despite what happened yesterday. I apologize for my behavior and I wish to amend. Allow me to touch your hand and I will draw away the negative energy. Your heart rate will slow and you should feel better."

Elsa continues to eat. She glances at Anna and Kristoff as they converse with each other. She places her hand on top of her leg. He dips his bread in the sauce at the bottom of his plate. He slides his hand under the table and barely covers her hand when static snaps under the table.

Anna and Kristoff both look at them, but Anna speaks first, "what was that popping sound?"

Sam nods to Anna. "That was a static arc neutralizing the potential differences between two objects or individuals. The air is a little dry here. You may wish to be careful when you touch a metal object. Touch it with the back of your hand in case it does arc. It will be less painful."

Anna stares at him for several seconds, before she returns to her meal and the conversation with Kristoff.

Sam slowly turns his head towards Elsa, but she whispers, "Explain to me why it arced between our hands?"

He whispers. "I should have anticipated the energy differences between us. It has been a long time since I had to consider another." He stares into her eyes. "The arc between our hands is a result of the energy between the two of us being at the maximum potential differences. If you will permit me when our energies align together, you will see."

His hand moves closer to her hand. The energy build up again. Quickly covering her hand, he closes his eyes. A sudden sharp pain stabs into his mind. He sees and feels confusion of painful thoughts, images of the former King and Queen, great sadness and pressure of many people of Arendelle asking questions and wants. He forces their energy to settle into a rhythmic pattern. His eyes open. Her eyes are closed and her pulse in her neck is barely visible.

A smile forms on her lips and her eyes open. "How did you do that?"

"I have a calming effect on some people. Your energy is easy to line up instead of the noise of chaos."

She quickly moves her hand above the table. He glances across the table. Three faces smile back at him, but Anna's smile is more of a grin. "What?"

Gerda says, "I was just wondering if you two might have fallen asleep. You both had your eyes close."

Anna chuckles, "Whether they were asleep or not, whatever he did, he got you to smile," pointing to her sister.

Elsa frowns.

"I am not implying anything, but you do seem more relaxed now." Kristoff nods his head and picks up his cup to guzzle his water. Sam continues to eat.

Elsa picks at her food and whispers, "May I ask a question?"

He whispers, "Majesty, I will always be here for you if it is your desire. One of my jobs for your mother and father was to be available to them when they needed to vent or express their frustrations. I can do that for you as well, so you do not need my permission to ask a question, but please ask."

A glimmer of a smile forms on her lips. "Yesterday I saw you with green eyes. At first they looked like crystal green, but then they changed to an Emerald green."

He glances across the table. Anna and Kristoff speak to each other. He looks at Elsa and blinks once. "You mean like this?" Her eyes widen as she slowly nods. He blinks again and his eyes change to a deep Emerald green. "Then you saw this?" She nods again. He blinks his eyes to his normal Hazel color and glances across the table. Gerda watches him. He asks, "What?"

Gerda moves past Kristoff. "I am getting him more water."

Sam slightly turns and leans his head towards Elsa. "The light green indicates my senses are hypersensitive. You could say it's a warning sign that I'm about to focus on something or someone." He studies her expression for a moment of confusion or fear. Seeing neither he continues, "when they change to the Emerald green it means I'm focusing on the one."

"You focused on the red wolf."

He nods, "Yes and Kristoff's comment moved my focus from the red wolf to him. Normally, no one sees the green eyes, but yesterday, please understand. The gray Alpha wolf is my brother. Not my biological brother, but I am part of his pack. The Alpha wolf is the great grandson of the wolf who adopted me into his pack. So when I said the wolf is my family I truly meant it. Under different circumstances, I would have agreed with Kristoff."

He watches her move her eyes back and forth as though searching for something. He looks down at the table. "Another one of my gifts is my ability to learn many languages. Speak to me in a different language or take me to somebody who speaks in a different language and let me prove it to you." He shakes his head slightly. "You must have seen me talking to the horses and they respond as if they understand me."

Elsa looks at her plate for several seconds before looking at him. "I was not sure I had actually seen it, but now that you mention it, I recall you doing it."

"They just have a different language than we speak. On this planet there are many cultures that do not use words to speak and yet, people understand them. I don't know how receptive I am to the many animal species in this area."

Elsa leans very close to him and whispers, "you can speak to the animals?"

He answers, "Not the same way that you and I are speaking."

Elsa glances across the table. "What?"

Anna looks away and answers, "I am not the one close to him, but still I am not saying anything."

He observes Anna's actions and notices she is not wearing a ring. He starts to speak when she winks at him. She looks at her sister and back at him as she winks again. Sam's left brow rises up and he says, "Is it a tradition for a married couple to wear wedding rings?" Anna's smile slowly disappears. He looks to Kristoff. "When is the wedding day?"

Kristoff appears to freeze motionless before he sits back in his chair. "We really have not set a date."

"So how long have you two been going together?"

Looking up at the ceiling, Kristoff answers, "Since the great thaw."

Anna turns her head away and comments, "18 months."

With a slight smile Sam shakes his head. "You two have been going together for 18 months and you have not asked her to marry you? If you're not married what was that noise in the library a couple of days ago?"

Elsa glares at Anna. "Yes, Anna, what was that noise you two were doing in the library?"

Anna shifts her body away from them as she stares at her plate, but does not answer.

He catches Kristoff glancing at him. "Do you love her?"

"Of course I do," Kristoff responds immediately.

Anna and Kristoff look away from each other. "I know Kristoff will do the right thing at the appropriate time so let us move forward. Have you decided how many children you're going to have?" Silence fills the room, but he persists, "Anna what type of wedding dress do you want?"

She with a beaming smile. "I want a traditional white dress similar to the one mother described for her wedding."

Kristoff interrupts her. "I thought you said you wanted a dress that represents nature." They begin to quarrel about the dress.

Sam shakes his head and turns to Elsa. "Sounds like they need more time to talk. Again, I must apologize. I thought this would be a bad idea. They are a part of royalty and a place I'll never fit in." He stands and bows. "Majesty, I will be at your command." He starts to walk towards the door, but she grabs his hand.

A slight hesitation and the hint of a smile pleads for him to stay. A rush of emotions assaults his mind. It is not just she is holding his hand, but he feels her hand. The gentleness and frailness of her hand, which can easily be hidden in his closed hand, brings an emotion of the vulnerability of a child begging not to leave. In that moment he picked up the child and rested her against his chest. His arms covered her like a blanket. Elsa is not that child, but her emotional needs are still there. He is happy she reached out to him. She needs an ally.

Her eyes plead. "If I ask for you later this evening will you be available, so we can talk?"

He maintains eye contact and bows. His lips lightly touch the back of her hand. "It would be my pleasure."

She holds the back of her hand where he kissed it and watches him leave the room.

With the click of the door closing, Elsa stands and slaps her hand onto the table. "Enough, Sam was an invited guest and you two validated his reasons for not getting involved with us. Anna, you and Gerda picked the wrong time to play matchmaking." She walks towards the door, but stops at the end of the table. "And what is also sad, he apologized to each of us for yesterday and no one, including myself, apologized to him for our actions." She walks out the door.

Gerda comments from the service door. "I think you're right, she likes him."

With a slight chuckle Anna replies, "I told you she did."

Kristoff comments, "Yes, and she is right about what we did not do."

Early evening in the stables, Sam hurriedly washes the stable dirt off his arms, hands, and face. He slides his hand over his shirt several times to freeze it. Not completely frozen solid, he opens the shirt and snaps it. A shower of water splashes against the wall. Slipping the shirt on, he removes his trousers and repeats the cleaning process.

Kai watches him clean his clothes. He sniffs his shirt. "If you could teach the staff to do that, laundry would not be an all day ordeal. If you are finished, follow me." They exit the stables

Minutes later Sam follows Kai into the castle and up the stairs. Sam asks, "Did she say why she wants to see me?"

"No, she did not. They have already had a light evening meal. I was told to send you to her. If you are hungry, there will be pastry and honey." Kai stops and points his finger. "Whatever you do, do not sit before your Queen sits and do not eat until she begins to eat first." He continues up the stairs.

Sam peeks over the rail. Gerda waves at him to continue up the stairs. He mumbles. "This can't be good since I upset everyone this afternoon."

Kai stops by the door. "I did hear you mumble. My advice is to answer questions only. Do not elaborate unless asked." He opens the door.

Sam glances into the room. Elsa stands in her regal pose by the fireplace. She stares with no emotions at him. Anna and Kristoff play chess on the sofa. A staffer stands by a small covered cart. He comments. "This doesn't look good."

"I believe you are correct, good luck." Kai pushes him into the room and closes the door.

"Samuel, thank you for coming. Please have a seat." The Queen motions to the long table.

"Well, it is about time. I am hungry for dessert," Anna says. She moves her chess piece and grins at Kristoff. "And this makes check-mate."

"Not again," Kristoff comments and studies the chess board.

Sam looks at the others. "Am I being set up?" They stare back at him.

Elsa motions to the table. "Please sit anywhere you want."

"Is it not protocol to wait for you to sit first?"

"It is, but for this occasion I have suspended that part of the protocol. You will sit and I will sit, then Anna and Kristoff." Elsa replies.

"Why?"

"Because you are our guest, will you please choose a seat so we can have dessert," Anna says. As she gets up, she knocks over the chess pieces, but stops and rubs her left temple.

Kristoff touches her arm. "Are you okay?"

"I am fine. It feels like someone poked a spike in my eye. As soon as I get some dessert I will be fine."

They stand. Anna leans her head against Kristoff shoulder as he wraps his arms around her. She looks at him with pain in her eyes.

"Anywhere?" He points to the table. Elsa nods to him. He scans the table and processes the probability of where the others will sit, before he moves to the center chair with its back to the fire place. "I choose this one."

Elsa stands by the chair to his right. "Why this chair?"

"It keeps my back to the wall and minimizes the possibility of being on your right."

Kristoff starts to comment, "But Queen Elsa could sit on your left Why not –"

Elsa watches him as she holds up her hand towards Kristoff. "This is a good choice. Please sit."

"I will sit here if you are going to sit there," he points to the chair on his right.

She nods and grabs the back of the chair.

"Please let me."

She steps back. He pulls the chair out. As she sits he slides her chair towards the table. Part of her blue dress slides across the back of his hand. He pulls his hand away quickly. A thin layer of ice covers his hand and gradually moves up his arm. He grabs his arm above the ice and sweeps his hand over the ice. It melts. His fingers wiggle with a popping and crackling sound.

Elsa watches him flex his hand.

"That has never happened." A long forgotten memory surfaces in his thoughts. An image of his mother lightly stroking the back of his hand causes ice to form on his hand. She asked if he could feel the cold. She taught him how to use the ice to heal his body. One of the few memories he will always cherish of his adopted mother. After several seconds he glances into Elsa's blue eyes. The glance turns into a gaze. _Did you notice? Will you ask what happened to cause the ice? She is looking at me. Are you the one whom I can trust with my life?_

"I'm mistaken. You are the second person in my life to cause ice to form on my hand." He sits in the chair to his Queen's left.

Kristoff assists Anna into the chair directly in front of him. He sits to her left. The staffer sets a plate with two pastries in front of Queen Elsa, a plate in front of Princess Anna, a plate in front of Kristoff, and finally a plate is set in front of him. The staffer proceeds to repeat the sequence with a warm beverage in front of each of them.

Sam waits until Elsa takes the first bite. They eat their pastry in silence.

Elsa slides her hand closer and taps his little finger. "May I ask you a question?"

His little finger taps her finger. "Please do."

"Earlier today, when you held my hand –"

A fork bounces on a plate and comes to rest on the floor. Anna glares at him. Sam notes the red in the corner of her right eye. Kristoff retrieves the fork and wipes it off as he sits. Kristoff whispers in her ear as the staffer places another fork next to her plate.

Anna looks at Kristoff and nods. She continues to eat the pastry.

Elsa lowers her voice. "I was angry at everyone. After the first spark I forgot what I was angry about. The second time I felt content. Did you influence my mind?"

"You experienced the effect of removing negative energy. We have positive and negative energy competing to dominate our thoughts. The more negative the energy we experience anger, hatred, sadness, and if it dominates for an extended period of time, we become depressed. The more positive the energy we experience happiness, joy, and a greater fulfillment. When the two energies are about equal, any external event can push it one way or the other. We become complacent and don't care. You can determine if the person has a balance energy by their non-committal or easily accepting others suggestion, good or bad."

"You saying Elsa had bad energy until you removed it?" Anna glares at him. The red in her right eye has increased in size.

He watches her and notes her movement is limited and purposeful. "The energy is neither good nor bad. It is what we do with it that determines if it is good or bad." He moves his hand into the confines of his body. "I use the terms positive and negative as a reference to the resulting action it causes. When one stands and fights, it is the negative energy that is influencing their mind. It is the negative energy that is used to inflict pain and death on others."

He focuses on her. "Anna, have you ever been so angry that you screamed, punched a pillow, or cried. Afterwards, you were tired, you did not want to do anything and you realized your anger had passed?"

She places her fork next to her plate as she sits back. "Yes."

"That was the release of the negative energy. Your energies were in balance. You can probably remember someone saying something and you felt happy or they may have done something that got your anger roaring again."

He turns his head towards Elsa. "By changing the energy in you, your thoughts changed."

He places his hand in his lap as he lowers his head. "I can influence the energy in others. By placing their energy in a balanced state, I can make a suggestion to get them to respond as I need."

Without moving his head, he looks directly into Anna's eyes. "I have to be consciously aware of my ability at all times or I may inadvertently push someone where they do not wish to go."

She stares back at him without blinking.

He gradually turns his head towards Elsa. "Another gift and most of the time it's a curse, I sense other's thoughts. For a moment I felt your pain and confusion. I'm sorry to say I saw a lot of images."

Her eyes glance at his hand.

"Please understand I did try to reach you, but your thoughts were very erratic. Over the years I could hear you only, but you could not hear me. I felt your panic, and sadness and feeling totally helpless when it started with Anna." He looks up.

Anna holds the butter knife as though she is going to seriously injure someone.

In a very quiet whisper, he asks, "She does not know?" Elsa motions with her hand in her lap to wave him away from the question. Anna tries to lean closer to the table and squints her eyes at him.

Sam sits straight in his chair, "My apology for crossing the line. Evidently today is not a good day for me."

Gerda removes Anna's and Kristoff's plate and she asks Anna, "So what's going on? Even I can feel the tension between them."

Kristoff answers before Anna can answer, "He is walking on thin ice and on his next step he will fall through."

"Unless I stomp on the ice and make him fall," Anna replies pointing the butter knife at him.

Gerda grabs the knife. "Let me have that before you really poke someone's eye out." She walks around the other side of the table collecting Elsa's plate then looks at Sam's plate. "Are you not hungry?"

He looks at her. "My palate for food is very limited. This is a little too rich for me." Gerda picks up his plate and slowly walks back to the server's room.

With the click of the door Anna turns her head quickly to Sam, "Now what was that you were saying about me?"

"Anna, enough, you two have been distracting me all morning. Please leave so I may talk to Sam without interruptions." She holds up her hand to silence Anna before she speaks. "I will talk to you later this afternoon, please give us a little time."

Kristoff grabs Anna's arm as he stands. "Come on, you can browbeat your sister for the information later." Anna stands up and shakes her fist at Sam as she follows Kristoff out of the room.

Elsa watches them leave. "She means well. She can get a little pushy."

"I'm not offended. She loves you despite what you did to her."

Elsa turns in her chair to face him and crosses her arms. "And what are you referring that I did to her?"

He faces her. "Years ago your ice struck her head. Until you revealed your ice power on your coronation, she did not know why you stayed away from her. Despite your refusal to permit her marriage to Hans and freezing Arendelle, she went to find you in the mountains. When she did find you, you repaid her with ice in her heart. When Hans was about to kill you, she could have kept going and received a kiss from her true love, namely Kristoff. Instead, she was willing to take the sword, probably hoping you would get your act together and stop Hans. Either by the sword or freezing to death, she protected you. If the worse Anna does, is to wave a butter knife or her fist at me or make some other comment to me, then God bless her and let her continue to do it. If she does these things for you, let me get out of the way for the love she has for you."

A glimmer of a smile begins to take hold. Elsa pulls her lips tight, but her facial muscles turn up the corner. She lowers her hands to her lap. She looks down as her smile blossoms.

He hesitates for a moment. "Take any one of these events or all of these events, if I knew nothing else except what I have told you, I could believe what a few individuals state how selfish you acted, but in that moment our hands touched, the images I saw," nodding towards window to Arendelle. "They had no idea what you were going through, but I knew you were afraid. You tried to do the honorable thing. I know you have self-doubt as to whether you are able to rule Arendelle or if you might trigger another freeze."

He searches the floor and barely shakes his head. In a low voice, he says, "If anything I know exactly what you were feeling as you were running to the mountain. I got lucky that I found an open space to test my abilities to break the rules and go beyond them." As He leans towards her, he tilts his head looking into her eyes and touches the top of her knee. "You never had that chance," then he stops for a moment and clasps his hands together looking down.

After a few seconds he raises his head with a hint of a smile. "You built your ice castle, now that's impressive. You created Olaf and Marshmallow. No, I'm mistaken, you had an opportunity and you did a wonderful job." He lowers his head again. "You created beauty where there was none. I was created to destroy life." A cold shoots up his arm as she touches the top of his hands.

He glances at her as she leans close to him and she whispers. "I remember a time when I talked to a friend, but since Anna did not see him she thought he was invisible. You are correct, however, after I hurt Anna, I do not remember hearing him afterwards."

Elsa moves his hands apart and holds them with her hands. Tilting her head, she asks, "Are you my friend I heard long ago?"

Sam squeezes her hands and just for that moment he perceives more than a twinkle in her eyes. A hint of a blue sparkle flashes at him. The more he stares at her the more spellbound he becomes as she watches him. An emotion from long ago invades his mind. The image is of Queen Ingrid with child. His mind switches to a snow capped mountain. He walks above the snow not leaving footprints. A shadow passes above him. He sees his love as she was before that night of death.

Elsa taps his hand. "Sam . . . Sam, are you there?"

He blinks and the blue tints surrounding everything disappears. "You have a question?"

With a grin she asks, "Where did you go?"

With a slight confusion, "I've been right here."

"Your body is right here, but your mind definitely was on the mountain."

Leaning his head back with a frown, "What mountain are you talking about?"

"The snow covered mountain, you were just talking about it."

"Was I?" He tries to recall if he was speaking. "I was thinking about it, but I did not realize I was talking about it."

"Neither one of you were speaking for several minutes, then you, my dear called his name." Gerda comments from the other side of the table. They both pull their hands away from each other and stare at her. She smiles at them. "If you two could see the peace you have with each other, life may be more bearable, but don't let me get in between your holding hands." She snickers and cares the rest of the meal utensils back into the service room.

A few seconds of silence passes, he feels the cool sensation of her hand grasping his hand. "You know she is right. Before lunch I just wanted to go and hide, to get away from everyone. I wanted to be left alone." She shakes her head and looks up at him. "I did not want to sit next to you. I could have easily walked past you and out the door, but I stopped. It was like I was being drawn to you." She squints at him. "Did you use your magic on me?"

He snickers, "our magic as you describe it, is not compatible at the moment. Because of the incompatibility, it is what caused the static shock to occur between us."

"I can understand the first time, but there was no shock when I touch your hands, now."

"Hum," nodding his head, he studies their hands. "You are correct. There was no arcing the second time." He slides his other hand across the top of her hand past her wrist, slightly squeezing and releasing, then moving his hand down to her wrist and squeezes again. For a moment he detects her pulse and instinctually counts the beats. Without looking up, he comments, "Good heart beat." He turns his hand to support her wrist and he uses his finger tips to lightly trace the back of her hand. "I'm not feeling any static build up, which means our energies are aligned together." He touches her pulse again and detects it has increased. He glances up. Her eyes are closed and her lips slightly parted.

She opens her eyes with a big smile and comments, "I bet you give a great massage."

Letting go of her hand, he places his hands in his lap and he leans back into his chair. "Please forgive me, I was not intending to . . . well."

She turns her head slightly raising her brow. "Yes?"

A warming sensation builds in his face. "I . . . well, and I was not trying to."

"Yes?"

Taking a deep breath, he speaks rapidly, "I was checking for a static charge that I expected to be there and it was not, so I was trying to determine why it was not there."

She touches his knee. "I did not think anything inappropriate for what you did, but I stick to my statement about your hands being great for a massage."

With tight lips, he closes his eyes for a moment and suppresses an emotion.

"Is that how you were able to read my mind?"

"I can, as you say, read other minds with a little effort on my part regardless of what my energy is doing. Most people do not have energy the way we do, but there is a familiarity about the way our energies are co-existing."

"Sam? Are you the only one who can read minds?"

"If you know what you are looking for, I do believe it is within your capability to read other minds." He squints his eyes at her. "Do you think you read my mind?"

"I do not know. I saw my mother. It looked like I was carrying her." She motions to her left arm. "Her head was here and she had perspiration on her face and neck. She was holding onto my arm and smiling at me, then she grimaced in pain squeezing my arm. I saw her belly move."

He watches her motion as she mimics his actions of long ago. "What were you feeling just now?"

"Confusion . . . anger . . . sadness," Elsa wipes her hand on her sleeve looking at her hand as though she had something on them. "I do not understand."

"In this case, you may have seen a moment in my past. What you described did happen. The emotions you described were your mother's emotions at that moment. She was in pain. She had eaten a mushroom that had not been prepared properly. She was out in the courtyard with your father watching the Royal Guards train when she doubled up onto the ground. I dismissed the troops and your father tried to pick her up when his knee gave out." He waits for her response.

She stares at him like she did when he told her stories. Her world did not exist until he finished his story. "Well, what did he do?"

With a quick smile he answers, "Just seeing if you were still listening."

Elsa grabs his hand and shakes it from side to side. "I'm listening. What happened?"

"I helped your father to his feet and told him not to move. I picked up your mother and she wrapped her arm around mine. Your father held onto my other arm and we slowly walked back inside. Going up the steps your mother regurgitated stuff on to my shirt. She started to apologize. I told her not to worry about it, that's when I looked down and she was smiling."

He grabs the back of his left arm. "Just as we reached to top of the steps, she squeezed the life out of my arm. That is when I felt her baby move. The child didn't move, just a limb, but repositioned herself. Your mother told me later that day the baby was trying to get closer to me."

Her brows rises. "Which of us girls tried to get close to you back then?"

He leans forward looking away, then turns his head back to her with a grin on his face as his left brow shoots up for a moment. "I'll let you discover that one on your own."

"What," She places her hands on her waist, "I could order you to tell me."

He nods to her. "You could, but then the taste of discovery would not be as sweet as when you discover it yourself."

She wrinkles her nose at him. "What are you hiding?"

"I'm hiding a lot of things and in due time I will reveal them to you." He shakes his head. "But not now. So to answer your question of being able to read my mind, I'm not 100% sure, since I have the ability to influence other's thoughts."

"If that is the case, why would you wish to put my mother in my thoughts and of that scene?"

"Good question, I don't have a good answer. Give me some time, I'll come up with something."

"Will it be the truth or something to placate me?"

"Majesty, I promise you. I will never intentionally lie to you. I may be hesitant to tell you the complete truth, but I would not lie to you. I guarantee if I hesitate I will give you a reason and if you insist afterwards, the complete truth you will get."

She places her hand on his knee. "My apology for making an assumption."

He covers her hand with his hand. "There is no need for apologies. In your position I have done the same thing, until I had evidence that I could trust the individual. Unfortunately, tragedy has the greatest lessons that are not easily forgotten."

Another bump from the service door causes them to withdraw their hands to themselves. No one enters the room. He stands and steps back from his chair. "Majesty, I have been honored with the pleasure of eating a meal with you, but it's time for me to get back to my chores in the stables. I'm sure Aurora thinks I have abandoned her." He starts to bow, but Elsa stands.

"We have to do this again. I enjoyed myself with you. You have a very different perspective about life." She holds out her hand as he bows and kisses the back of her hand.

He stands and releases her hand, but she does not let go. He stares at her hand. "Depending on your schedule, please let me know when would be a good time for me to come back. We can talk some more and I'll have a few more answers to your questions."

She still grips his hand. "I would like that. Maybe next time we can leave Anna and Kristoff here. You and I can spend more time watching nature."

He does not hold back his smile and observes her blue eyes. "I look forward to it." He glances at the door and his smile fades. "I hear Anna and Kristoff coming up the stairs."

She loosens her grip and their hands slide across each other until only their fingertips touch, then they part. He slowly moves towards the door.

"Sam," she calls to him. He turns back to her. She smiles. "You did a wonderful job releasing the tension in my neck. Well . . . maybe next time."

He bows his head. "I will always be available to shower you with my blue energy when you need to relax." He puffs his chest out and walks with purpose. The door closes behind him. He walks the short distance to the stairs. Half-way down a storm of emotions assault his mind. He sits on the steps and leans against the wall. His head lowers as his shoulders slumps forward. His hand covers his eyes to block any light that may get past his eyelids. A roar of thunder drowns out the external noises. The emotions fight to get out. He struggles to hold them in until he can get to the mountains. They gradually calm down until he hears only his heart beating. His emotions struggle in a losing battle. His mind suppresses the last emotion for the time being.

A board creaks several steps down from him. He opens his eyes and wipes his face on his sleeve. Anna starts to speak to him, but Kristoff pushes her up the stairs. He walks the rest of the way down the stair and holds up his hand to stop Gerda before she speaks to him. He walks out the servant's door. By the time he reaches the stables, one emotion is almost free of its restraints.

Anna burst into the room, marching directly to Elsa. She grabs her sister's arms. "Are you alright? What happened?"

"I am fine. Actually, I feel better than this afternoon." She strokes Anna's arms.

"Well, that is good." Anna releases her arms and starts to walk past her. "The way he was acting out there, I thought maybe he did something to you."

Elsa grabs Anna's arm spinning her around. "What do you mean the way he was acting?"

Anna pulls her arm free. "He was leaning against the wall and it looked like he had tears running down his face."

"It was more of an emotional distress," Kristoff comments.

"Emotional distress," Elsa stares at the door. "No wonder my emotional states lifted." She points towards the door. "He did it."

"Did what?" Anna asks.

Elsa marches towards the door.

"Where are you going in a hurry?"

She replies over her shoulder. "He may have inadvertently given me a gift and I am going to thank him." Anna and Kristoff follow Elsa out the door, down the stair, and across the foyer. At the exit door she turns holding up her hand. "You two stay here. I do not want any interruptions."

Kai steps out into the foyer.

Elsa says, "I need to talk to you and Gerda along with my sister and her mountain man. No one leaves until I get back." Elsa continues out the door and towards the stables.

Gerda sticks her head out the side room. "Is she gone?"

Kai answers, "She's gone. What have you been up to?"

Gerda shyly stands next to him. "I have done nothing except to observe."

Anna asks, "And what did you observe?"

With a little giggle as she holds her hand up and states, "They like each other a lot."

Anna slaps Gerda's hand, "And I agree with that observation. Who do you think will ask first?"

 **End of Chapter**


	44. Chapter 43 Stable Accident

**Title: Chapter 43: Stable Accident**

 **3 years, 5 months until correction**

Sam clenches and releases his hands as he walks across the courtyard. A star winks at him. He nods to it. A leisurely cruise in the silence between the stars would calm his emotions, but he does not have his ship. There is no silence in his mind, only temporary moments of distractions. Altering his direction towards the stable, even the moon tempts him as it peeks above the eastern forest. He averts his gaze. There is no sense in adding the dragon's voice to his stress. At least his horse, Aurora, does not seem to mind him releasing his frustration by brushing her coat and pampering her. This evening she will get a long brushing.

The stable's service room door slams shut. All the horse gates rattle. Metal tools clink together. Several bridal reins fall to the ground. Several stalls from him, a saddle falls with a heavy thump into the aisle. The noise calms with the equalization of the atmospheric pressure in the stable.

Sam stands motionless and stares at the floor and waits for one of the stable boys to complain. Not hearing any movements his eyes look up. All the horses in their stalls, watch him. His eyes close as he rubs the depressions on both sides of his head. With a deep breath and a long sigh, he opens his eyes and walks down the aisle between the stalls. "I guess it's a good thing no one is here."

He returns everything that fell to their proper places. Aurora sniffs at him and emits a low rumble. She flicks her brush with her nose. Once again the brush is not where it was place the previous night. As he opens the gate and grabs the brush off the hook, he notices several silver hairs stuck in the bristles. He pulls the hair out and a flowery fragrant brushes the tip of his nose. He sniffs the hair, then the brush and immediately knows who has been using Aurora's brush. He rests his head in his hands on the rail. "Anna, I have asked you not to use Aurora's brush after you have just perfumed your horse."

His comment brings the stress from earlier in the day back into his mind. He had no intentions of having a meal with Queen Elsa, but the temptation to be near her became overwhelmingly powerful. He rattles the gate, hoping it will get her out of his mind, but the moments of holding her hands push to the front of his thoughts. With a slight smile he lifts the gate latch and steps into the stall. His shoe emits a squishing sound. Looking down and closing the gate, he eyes Aurora. "You had to leave your deposit right here and a nice steaming fresh one, didn't you?"

Aurora looks back at him and lets out a loud neigh.

He drags his shoes on the ground to get most of the deposit off of it. "Very funny, it seems I have been stepping in it all day. What else do you think is going to happen before the day is over?"

Aurora turns and places her head in the middle of his chest and lightly nickers. He presses his head against her head and rubs behind her ears. "I love you too. Tomorrow, we'll go see if the Red wolf is still in the area. If he is not, we'll go up to the river before it gets too cold for you."

Aurora places her head over his shoulder and snorts as the brush rotates in a circular motion on her neck.

Elsa hurries out the door just in time to see Sam barge into the stables. A second later, most of the stable doors rattle. She stops on the top steps. "Great, it sounds like he is not going to be in a talkative mood."

One of the stable boys also noticed the commotion from Sam's visual displeasure. He shakes his head and continues with his duties.

Elsa walks down the steps and approaches the stable boy. "Excuse me."

The elder man turns with a moment of hesitation before he bows to her. "Majesty, how may I help you?"

"Please rise." She points towards the stables. "Does he do that often?"

"No Majesty. The few times I have seen him slam the gate it never rattled the doors. He must be very upset or something is really bothering him." He motions towards the stables. "Do you want me to get him for you?"

"No, I will check on him myself."

She walks several steps before the elder man says, "Um, your Majesty." She looks back at him.

"If you go through the end door, to the master's desk, he will not see you enter."

She notes where he is pointing and nods as she continues towards the stables.

After stopping twice to wince for stepping on a rock and stubbing her foot against the corner of a loose yard stone, she determines next time to take an extra minute to put on better suited shoes. She steps on the first step which creaks. Gently stepping on the second and third step without making a sound, she opens the door very slowly. At the moment her dress decides to float with the breeze and brush against the door. Regaining control of her dress she steps into the small room and stops upon hearing a male's voice. Despite trying to time the closing of the door with the male's outburst, the world goes silent as the door's locking mechanism clicks shut. She holds her breath and freezes her movement for what seemed like forever. Just as her body forces her to breathe, the male's voice sounds familiar, but not quite.

It has been many years since she was in this small room. It is barely larger than the table and the two chairs. An odor of burnt wood draws her attention to the small fireplace with a kettle hanging over the half burnt wood.

Her feet slide across the floor as she moves towards the stable area. Something brushes across the top of her foot. She clamps down her instinct to kick and move back as her hand covers the scream trying to escape. Barely moving her foot the thing falls between her feet. If she cannot determine what it is in the next few seconds or if it moves up her dress, she will bolt out the door. Queen or not she is going to run. Gathering her courage, she moves her dress. The frayed end of a broken bridal rein lies next to her foot. She takes a step back and releases her breath. Her hand drops to her neck and feels her rapidly beating pulse. Again her other shoes would not have allowed the reins to catch her off guard.

Inhaling through her mouth and exhaling through her nose several times calms her emotions. She glances towards the entrance arch and expects the owner of the male voice to laugh at her. The voice sounds a short distance into the horse's area. After regaining her composure, she moves to the archway and peeks around the corner. The male voice, with his broad back towards her, brushes Aurora.

Aurora does not tolerate strangers brushing her. The voice must be Sam's, but the exposed skin of this person appears to have a shimmering green tint. Each time he moves, a metallic green sweeps across his back. She continues to watch him for several moments until she sees Aurora watching her. Silently moving back into the small room, she considers if it was a mistake coming here. If she could slip out, he would never know she was ever there.

The sound of her hands rubbing together attracts her attention. A horse rumbles a noise. Her hand moves to her neck. She feels and hears her heart beating faster. Her hands are warm against her neck. As she generates a thin layer of ice to cool her hands, her dress clings to her legs. She reaches for her dress and miniscule sparks leap between her hands and the dress. A crackle sounds with each spark. Her dress moves and many sparks leap to her hands. She stops.

"Did you hear that?" Sam asks peeking over his shoulder towards the small room. A slight breeze moves the stable main doors. He studies the doors, then continues brushing Aurora. A sharp pain stabs into his head and the brush bounces off the floor. He leans his head against Aurora.

Aurora makes a noise like she is trying to clear her throat and moves into him.

The pain subsides and he opens one eye. "What's wrong girl? Are you feeling my pain? I better get it under control, before both of us get sick." He bends down to pick up the brush and nausea strikes. He pulls on Aurora's mane to stabilize himself as his mouth fills with saliva.

His head rest on Aurora as she looks back at him. "The last time I felt this severe, LadyCat and I discovered we could affect the balance of our energies after she was injured. He rubs her forehead. "Is it possible, I'm missing something?"

He looks up as though he can see through the roof. "LadyCat are you finally getting back at me for not staying on the ship like you asked?"

Rubbing his belly does not reduce the excess saliva building in his mouth. He removes the water bucket hanging on the corner post rail and holds it close to his chest as he struggles to keep his last meal down. The slightest movement of his head causes the imbalance to get worse. "I wish you were here to make this feeling go away."

He leans against the rail and generates a layer of ice on the back of his hand. The nausea subsides for the moment and the bucket drops from his hand. The pain in his head increases. His eyes close and memories leap back to the last moment he held her in his arms. She pushed him away and said not to interfere, but let the events occur as they should. LadyCat walked away. Now knowing, that was the last time he would hold her, the memory still stings his heart. The physical world assaults his senses, causing his knees to weaken. The torture of the memory strikes at him again.

His hands press against the sides of his head. "LadyCat, I'm sorry I did not listen to you. My circumstances prevent me from finding you again. I should have been there for you. I have finally lost. I can't get to you and have been condemned to this isolation. Even the temporal ribbon taunts me. I can't find my ship. No one here can possibly understand."

Sam groans and his knees give out from under him. He catches himself on the lower rail and tightly closes his eyes. A static charge builds up on his arms and body as his hair stands out. The clomping of hooves on the floor causes him to open his eyes partially. Aurora moves in her stall. His heart beats faster. He steadies himself to stand. Miniscule sparks arc across Aurora's mane. Her ears lie flat and back against her head as her tail switches hard and fast

The static charge in her coat and on his body will create a powerful discharge that will injure them. He has to get out of the stall before they touch.

Aurora backs towards him. Instinctually, his hand lifts to keep her from crushing him against the rail. His laps of thoughts, clarify as an arc from his hand jumps to Aurora's rump. She squeals.

She hits the back of the stall and kicks back towards him. In this instant, time slows. He watches her rear hooves move from the ground towards his face. He tries to move to the left, but his body refuses to obey him. As her hooves get closer to him, his body moves into her path. A short distance from her hooves his frozen hands rise to block the kick.

 _This is really going to hurt._

His forehead explodes in pain that travels into his face. A crack sounds in his ears. The sensation of flying lifts his body. Broken rails move past him. A rail breaks free from the post and twist in the air as it flies towards him. All the air expels out of his lungs as he lands on his back and slides across the ground. He struggles to breathe and fights a losing battle to stay conscious. A shadow passes over his eyes. It touches his head and a hand dripping in red hovers above his face. It crashes onto the floor. Another shadow in green moves towards him as his mind stops.

Static builds on the surface of her clothes. The delicate hairs on her arms stand up. Strands and the ends of her hair separate. Minuscule arcs leap from her hands to her dress. Snaps and pops echo from the horse area. She peeks around the corner and a loud crack sounds just as Aurora kicks. Samuel crashes through the rails impacting the floor with a thud sending loose straw and dust into the air. Aurora screeches as she drags her partially frozen hooves across the floor. Her hooves break the ice and she stomps around her stall.

Elsa runs past Sam and opens the stable gate. She opens the remains of the stall gate and stands over Sam encouraging his horse to leave the area. Aurora runs past her and out the stable door. Elsa follows the horse out and spots two guards watching the commotion.

"GET THAT HORSE UNDER CONTROL." Elsa points to a third guard. "GET THE CAPTAIN, I NEED HELP IN HERE NOW. SAMUEL HAS BEEN HURT." She runs back into the stable to the broken stall, but does not find him on the floor. She searches, but does not find him and calls out, "Sam, where are you?"

A muffled voice sounds behind her. "Here."

She turns towards the sound. Sparkles flash in the splatter of blood on the floor. Under her shoe a pool of crimson blood leads a trail of sparkles into the shadowy corner of the empty stall. His left arm hangs over the rail.

Sam struggles to stand. His right shoulder and arm hangs to his side with a bent right leg. He moves his left hand to his face.

She approaches him. "Aurora kicked you."

He almost falls. Gripping the rail, he tries to turn away from her.

"You should not stand. Let me help you sit down until the doctor gets here."

"NO . . . no . . . No doctor, they not . . . they . . . not understand," his voice erratically replies.

His blood covers his shoulder, as it also sparkles. It drips from his lifeless fingers. Each drop that splashes in the pool below his hand radiates a rainbow of sparkles.

She takes a step closer.

"Stop, please . . . hard control." A flash of green, then blue reflects off the polished bridle near his face.

A Private and the Captain of the Guard enters the stable. The Private moves along the side of the stall towards Sam. Captain Larsen stops beside her and looks at the trail of blood. "Majesty, what happened to him?"

Elsa steps towards Sam and tries to get a better look at his face. "His horse kicked him."

"Where?"

The private stops moving and grimaces as he points to Sam. "It looks like a glancing blow to his forehead. A flap of skin is pulled away from his head. I see bone."

Larsen steps in front of his Queen and blocks her from moving forward. He turns her to block her view. As she starts to protest, he says, "Please Majesty, he may be out of his head and a danger to you."

"YESSSS," comes a moan as Sam moves against the back of the stall.

They watch Sam struggle to stand. Larsen commands the Private. "Go outside and get more guards in here, now."

The private backs away quickly and runs out as he calls for all available guards to get to the stables.

Larsen grabs her arm and urgently pushes her towards the door. "I need to get you out of here for your safety."

They walk quickly towards the door. She stumbles as she looks back and calls to him. "I will be outside waiting for you."

As they pass the next stall, a loud growl echoes in the stable. The other horses move in their stalls and snort. Elsa and Larsen turn towards the growl.

Sam's head jerks. The flap of flesh falls forward and covers the open wound. He slowly moves towards them. Elsa clamps her hand over her mouth. She gasps at the sight of the crimson red covering the left side of Sam's face. His blood oozes down his neck staining the front of his shirt. Other than a slit where his left eye is supposed to be, his swollen face pulls the torn flesh opening the wound on his forehead. He pivots his head so his right eye can see them. His eye changes color from the crystal green to a dark green.

They watch him drag the right side of his body towards the next stall. They move back towards the door. Elsa has never seen so much blood let alone the sparkles flashing their brilliances like diamonds. She watches him move towards them. Sam stares at Larsen. She raises her hands and a gleam of ice forms around her fingers in case he lunges at them. Inwardly she hopes he will pass out so the doctor can attend to him.

With each step he growls like a wolf and speaks an unfamiliar language, "yeiyíʼaah atsilí adeezhí" (give brother sister). His growls get louder and he almost falls, "yeiyíʼaah atsilí adeezhí", (GIVE BROTHER SISTER).

Sam reaches out to them. Larsen pushes Elsa towards the door. With a loud groan Sam turns his palm to them and emits a low growl.

Elsa sees the thermal swirls around his hand. She pulls Larsen out of the path. Sam fall's as he shoots a fireball. It hits the upper frame of the door and splashes the fire on to the roof. Voices outside the stable call for a water brigade. The Private yells, "Captain, are you and Queen Elsa safe?"

For a moment Elsa stares mesmerized at the fire. She did not know he had the capability for creating fire. She glances back at him lying on the floor.

Sam pushes himself up the best he can and watches her. His arm shakes and finally collapses. His hand moves as though motioning to her. His lips move, but no sound comes out. Barely holding his head up as it moves from side to side, he blinks and a dark spot appears on the floor below his right eye. Extending his arm, he rolls onto his back.

Larsen barks out an order. "Private, go over the horse doors and get in here now. You are authorized to use all force necessary to protect our Queen."

Elsa grabs Larsen's arm. "NO, He is not trying to hurt me. He sees you as the threat and any other guard who charges in here. Order them to stop. I will put the fire out."

She raises her hands and a shower of snow covers the fire hissing and steaming until it goes out. A horse door opens as she turns and several guards with swords in their hands rush in. Sam raises his arm towards them as thermal waves roll off his hand.

"ORDER THEM OUT," she screams running past Larsen and drops to her knees to cover Sam's face with her body. With all of her strength she leans into his arm and pushes it down as steam boils up between her cold hands and his arm.

"Sam stop, please stop, I am right here. I am safe." His body goes limp and she rolls onto his chest still holding his arm down. His blood covers the front of her dress and sleeves. Gingerly she moves the torn flesh on his head to cover the exposed bone.

"Elsa?" comes a whimper below her.

She moves to kneel next to him and with trembling hands, she tries to wipe his blood from his face. "I am right here. Sam, I am right here."

He rolls his head so his right eye can see her and tries to smile. "You came back for us. I told them you would come back for us. Can we leave now?"

With a smile and moisture building in the corners of her eyes, she pushes his hair away from the blood. "We will go where ever you wish to go."

He closes his eye and speaks softly, "I don't feel well."

"Sam . . . SAM, WAKE UP. Do not go to sleep. It is time for us to go. I will go with you," Elsa pleads fervently.

The footsteps of the guards crunch the hay on the ground as they back out of the stables. The sound of the horses quiet. A murmur sounds from those outside. Someone says, "Make room for the doctor." A shuffling of boots allows a different sound to enter the stables.

"Oh no, how long has it been since the injury?"

"A couple of minutes longer than it took you to get here." Larsen answers.

"Sam, the doctor is here. He will fix you. Please hold on." She pleads and brushes his hair with her finger.

The Doctor kneels. "Your Majesty, I need to take a look at his injuries."

She sits back onto her heels and holds Sam's hand.

The Doctor bends down and lifts the flesh, exposing the bone damage. He lays the flesh back over the wound, then pulls up Sam's bloody shirt. Wiping away the blood he places his ear on Sam's chest. For a moment the Doctor does not move. He whispers, "I can barely hear his heart, but it's very slow."

The Doctor looks up at Larsen, then to his Queen. He touches her hand. "There is no way to repair this. It will be just a matter of time?" He rises to his feet and steps back.

Her lower jaw quivers as her teeth chatter. Her hands clench together tightly as she tries to maintain a little dignity. Her teeth clamp together. Sparkles of light glitter in Sam's blood on the doctor's britches. A trail of sparkles in his blood glitter on the floor. Her sleeves and the front of her dress sparkles from the blood. They sparkle like a meadow covered with a light frost glittering in the morning sun, then the sheen of light fades.

A hand touches her shoulder, but she doesn't wish to look away in case the sparkles of light return. From slightly behind her Captain Larsen says, "Majesty, we will take care of him."

She stares at the motionless Sam waiting for him to open his eye, or move his hand, or do anything that would tell her he is still trying to live. Even the sudden commotion of Anna by the door doesn't turn her away from him.

Kristoff asks, "Please let Anna get to her sister."

A muffled voice sound, then a softer hand touches her shoulder with a gasp from Anna, "Oh my God."

Anna's comment pushes her emotion over the edge. Elsa places her shaking hands on his face and leans close to him. "SAM . . ." Her voice crackles, "Sam, do not leave me. I can take you with me. I said I would return for you."

Despite no response from him, she continues to hold his head and lightly kisses his forehead. A tear drops into his blood. She turns his head and uses her white sleeve to wipe his blood from his face. The end of her braided hair falls into the blood on his neck.

Anna kneels and wraps her arm around her sister's shoulders and moves her braid. Elsa continues to wipe the blood away. Words sound in her mind, unfamiliar words that have a rhythm and she begins to repeat them, " **tin ajéí** **cah-da-khi** , **be-ki-asz-jole** **ta-ei-tay-a-yah** **cah-da-khi,** **tin ajéí** **cah-da-khi** , **be-ki-asz-jole** **ta-ei-tay-a-yah** **cah-da-khi.** (Ice heart wound, conceal only wound).

The chant opens her senses to a greater acuity level, she has never experienced.

Kai voice wavers. "Oh Lord."

A voice behind her commands. "Captain, get everyone out of here."

It is Gerda's voice, but they sound like they are in a large open area where their voices echo.

Anna grips her tighter. "I am not leaving until she leaves."

Her body appears to move on its own. Her hands slowly wipe the blood and tiny sparkles of light in his blood flare up in multiple colors. The sparkles get bright as she hears herself chanting. " **tin ajéí** **cah-da-khi** ,"

Gerda kneels next to her. "Majesty, do you understand what you are saying?"

She continues her chant, " **be-ki-asz-jole** **ta-ei-tay-a-yah** **cah-da-khi.** "

A warm hand slides under her chin, lifting her head up. Elsa sees Gerda speaking, but her image has a blue haze around her. She speaks the words spoken to her, " **esat-tsanh** **bee** **adeezhí,** **esat-tsanh** **bee** **adeezhí.** " (Listen with sister). Elsa blinks, then looks at Anna.

Gerda comments, "There is our Queen."

Elsa sits up and blinks her eyes rapidly. The blue haze around everything fades. "What just happened?"

Anna gives her a hug. "You were chanting in a language. I have never heard you speak it."

She turns to Anna. "What language?"

"His language my dear," Gerda says pointing to Sam.

Elsa looks at the blood on her hands as the tiny sparkles flare up. She glances past them to Sam. The sparkles in his blood pulsate as the sparkles on her hands. Her emotions build in her chest and the pressure in her head blurs her eyes. "He spoke to me?"

Gerda's hand lightly massages the back of her shoulder. "Did he give you the answer?"

Anna glances between them. "What was the question?"

Gerda translates, "' **tin ajéí** **cah-da-khi** ,' roughly means 'ice heart wound' and ' **be-ki-asz-jole** **ta-ei-tay-a-yah** **cah-da-khi** means 'conceal only wound'."

Anna stares at Gerda. "How do you know his language?"

With a smile she answers, "That is a long story. Your mother also knew his language."

Elsa clenches her teeth and her hands together. Her hands shake. "I do not understand?"

Anna leans her head onto Elsa's shoulder. "May be he is asking you to use your ice powers to heal his wound, but cover the wound only." Elsa and Gerda look at each other then look to Anna. She peeks up at them. "What? Ice is her powers, Wound is his head, Heart could heal, conceal is cover. Cover what, only his wound."

A tear rolls down from the corner of her eye. Elsa kisses Anna's cheek. "You are right, dear sister."

Elsa places her hand over his wound without touching it. Within a few seconds ice crystals form on her hand and his forehead. Soon a layer completely covers the injured area. "How am I supposed to know when to stop?"

She hears a voice in her head, _I will tell you._

She looks at Anna then Gerda. "How do you know?"

Gerda replies with a mischievous smile. "How do I know, what?"

"You said you will tell me when to stop."

Gerda shakes her head. "I didn't say that."

Elsa turns to Anna.

She shakes her head. "I did not say anything." Anna points to Sam, "Maybe he said it."

Elsa leans over and examining him for any signs of movement. She hopes he would take a deep breath or open his eyes. She stares intently at Sam and asks, "Did you tell me . . . you will?"

She sits up quickly as her eyes widen from the answer.

 _Yes, I did and by your expression you have forgotten._

"Forgotten what?"

 _What my thoughts sound like in your head."_

Anna leans slightly in front of Elsa and asks, "Forgotten what?"

Gerda reaches around Elsa and touches Anna shoulder. "Don't mind her, she is talking to him."

Anna frowns looking back and forth between Elsa and Sam. "How can you tell?"

Gerda grins. "Because she has done it every time. He does not remember."

Sam speaks to her in thoughts, _Elsa, I need to provide you with very important information and what you do with it will determine my destiny in this life._

The pressure in her head changes to confusion. Is she really hearing him or is this her mind's way of handling the unknown, but she maintains the ice over his wound and asks, "Why now? You are not completely frozen."

 _First, anything you think, I can hear. Second, this is not the first time we have communicated in this manner. A long time ago, for a week, you and I communicated like this. It took a lot of convincing of your mother and father that you really were able to hear my thoughts, but to your question of 'why now'. It is because you literally hold my life in your hands. Apply too much ice and my body will freeze, making it vulnerable to an attack, too little ice and my brain dies from the swelling. This is an opportunity to show you can control the ice when it is important to you._

Anna leans close to her sister and whispers, "What is he saying?"

Elsa sniffles as she maintains her focus. Another tear races down her cheek. "He says I am holding his life in my hands."

Anna glances down at Sam and whispers, "Do not drop him. Despite our little disagreement he has been a gentleman to me."

 _Tell her thank you, that's all I wanted._

She relays Sam's message.

Anna leans down and whispers, "I apologize for our misunderstanding on the hill. I hope you will get to feeling better." She points to his hair, "It is freezing. Is that ok?"

She glances up and her eyes widen. "Elsa, your eyes are completely blue."

 _Tell her your blue eyes are your narrowly focused attention and I accept her apology._

"Anna, they are blue because I am trying to focus on him. He accepts your apology and is fine for the moment."

Gerda says, "Anna, I think they need to talk and Elsa needs to concentrate on him. Let's go until they finish." Anna kisses Elsa's cheek. She and Gerda moves to the door.

" _Elsa?"_

"I am here."

" _I am placing my key in your mind. It is a chant similar to what you spoke several minutes ago. You will not understand them, but when they are needed you will remember and you will speak them exactly as I have given them to you, okay?"_

"Okay," she closes her eyes for a moment and opens them to a fluctuation of colors. Tiny ice crystals flow from her hand to his head. He looks up at her with a glimmer of a smile and speaks, _"Welcome to my world. You have accepted the instructions from the chant. You are doing wonderfully. Please repeat the words to me three times."_

She repeats the chant,

" **Bóhólníihii di azhéʼé , Bóhólníihii bii' wót'ááh**

 **Bóhólníihii di azhéʼé , Bóhólníihii bii' Nahasdzáán**

 **Bóhólníihii di azhéʼé , yeiyí'aah éí bí ndiists'a' di yízhí éí ni jo yeiyí'aah bí, tsin naa'eeł ah-na-ghai Admal Yiska, Admal yiska"**

" _You are doing extremely well. You need a moment of rest as I explain a side-effect of the healing ice. Where I come from we have a device that records thoughts and history. I am locked in a room for my safety and protection. The process is similar to what I'm about to go through with the ice. The duration depends upon my injury. Unfortunately, I do not know how long, it will take for me to heal, but however long it does take, I pray you will keep my body safe and secure."_

She replies, "To the best of my abilities, I will keep you safe from all."

" _Then I have made a good choice in making you my key."_

"What do you mean key?" Elsa asks as she brushes his hair with her fingers.

" _Your ice will either kill or heal me. Elsa, please understand. I did not mean for any of this to happen, especially to you. I was just trying to survive. I had no intentions of coming to Arendelle. If I had not, you would not have your power. Maybe your parents would still be here."_

Her parent statements catches her off guard. "What are you saying? You caused our parents to leave," she asks accusingly.

" _Not directly. I don't know why they left when they did. They left with a lot of stress on their shoulders. I purposefully tell you this now, because I'm giving you an option. Apply more ice and my body freezes. You could throw me into the fjord and never see me again. Or you could reduce the ice on my head, my brain swells and eventually I would die."_

"Why would I kill you? Will your death bring them back or change the situation now?"

" _You are as intelligent as you are beautiful, so I have comfort in telling you this. You may have a future need to kill me. Before you say you will not kill me, in my moment of madness, I may give you no choice and you will be given one chance to do it. I have never told anyone how, because no one has had the capability to do it, but you can."_

She interrupts, "Why are you talking like that?"

" _I will lose some of my memories as a result of the ice healing process. It's a side effect that is not preventable. I don't lose the memories permanently, they are just disconnected from my mind until I can reconnect them. In my previous healings I would record my thoughts and memories to be read back to me. Here I do not have the devices to record my memories, so I'm giving you enough of my memories that maybe you can tell me what I have forgotten. It leads me to say, if the need arises for you to kill me, this is what you have to do. Place your hand in front of my heart and your other hand behind my heart, then generate the coldest blast you can possibly do. The ice will freeze my heart solid and part of my body. Take any heavy object and smash my heart to pieces."_

She rebuffs. "Stop! Stop talking like that. I will not kill you."

" _I know this is hard, but you need to be prepared, just in case. My time is growing short. We need to finish quickly. Please concentrate on a certain snow covered mountain."_

 **End of Chapter**


	45. Chapter 44 Snow Covered Mountain

**Title: Chapter 45: Snow Mountain**

 **3 years, 5 months until correction**

The stable floor comes into focus for a moment, before it begins to dissolve to the dirt underneath. Elsa looks up at an empty stable, even the horses are missing. As she gets to her feet several snowflakes float past and her face detects a current of cold air. She turns in the direction of the light breeze. What is left of the stable walls melts into the ground like someone pouring oil on a painting that has not completely dried. The colors drip into a pool on the ground and reveal a white canvas. The rest of the stable washes away into a snow covered landscape. The cool breeze brushes against her face. Her eyes close. She holds her arms out and takes a deep breath of the clean air from a freshly snow covered mountain. This is how she imagined it would be if she could have gone up to the mountains before her coronation. Her eyes slowly open. The ice crystals in several snowflakes floating past her hands glitter a rainbow of colors. As the last of the rainbow falls off her hands, a moment of recognition appears.

"I have seen this mountain."

"You have. Where?"

Her head turns to the voice and she steps back. Her hands rise in a defensive position. For a split second she does not recognize him, but then he looks different, many years younger. His dark gray pants, teal-blue shirt with a black stripe running down his shoulders and his sides, accentuates his underlining body. His close are tighter fitting. Nothing like the loose fitting clothes the men and women in Arendelle wear.

With his hands clasped behind his back, he stands as the guards and military stance. She has seen Samuel stand that way when he stares into the distance. A warmth builds in her face for staring a moment too long. He turns his face with a slight smile towards her. She smiles upon seeing the blue tint in his eyes before they change to the normal Hazel color.

"Oh, it is you." She lowers her hands. "You do not look the same as you were on the stable floor."

"I assure you, my body is still there with a nasty gash on my forehead." Sam replies as he places his hand on her shoulder. "Before Anna and Gerda begin to take notes, you are still speaking through your physical mouth. Let's change that." A slight spark snaps.

She automatically reaches for her neck, but stops as she searches his eyes. "I heard the snap, but did not feel anything."

With a nod he sweeps his hand in front of them. "In this world, all of your senses are active, except your mind does not register it. You could stick your hand in fire and feel the heat, but you would not feel nor see the fire burning your flesh as it would in the physical world." He points to the mountain, "You said, you had seen this mountain, where?"

She touches her face and feels the warmth increasing. She has seen handsome young men before now, but her body responds like the first time she saw Prince Georg. She glances away from him and the warmth disappears. After a moment her eyes track back towards him and the heat in her face returns. She steps past him and hopes her expression has not revealed her emotions. Pointing towards the mountain's north face, she says, "My ice castle is over there."

The snow crunches as he moves next to her. She turns away to bring her emotions under control.

"Do I make you uncomfortable?"

"I am not sure what I am supposed to feel," she replies glancing at his strange woodland color boots.

"Most new things take time to get comfortable. This is no different. To your brain this is just a dream."

A warm hand holds her arm and she looks up at his warm smile.

"Create your castle here." He gazes at her and a blue twinkle flashes in his eyes.

Slowly shaking her head, she turns away. "I cannot. I have not been able to do anything that big since the freeze."

He leans towards her to be within her view.

 _Do not look at him. Look away._ Her body responds differently. The warmth of his hand slides down the back of her arm and completely surrounds her hand. For a moment, nothing happens. All is quiet. All is calm. She stares at his hand. She feels safe. In her head she hears the word, _Distraction_.

"Here, you can do anything you want. Nothing is real. Everything is in your mind. Some things appear more real than others." Releasing her hand he points to her dress. "Do you like blue or red?"

Her blue dress changes to red.

"How about white?"

She blinks and her dress changes to white.

Slowly she shakes her head. "I do not like either color. I prefer the blue I normally wear." She blinks again and her dress changes to her familiar ice blue dress.

"You're getting the hang of it. This is where I trained and perfected my skills." For several seconds he focuses on a distant object. "I was seven years old the first time S5 brought me here."

A hint of a smile forms as moisture builds at the corner of his eyes. "In the real world, for three years I knew her as S5. In here she said her name was Elsa. I asked her, what is the significance of the name?"

Elsa notes the blue tint to his eyes.

He stares to reach for her, but shifts into his military stance. "She said when she first arrived here, no one could pronounce her name. She had read a report about a Queen in a northern country who had done great things for her Queendom and the surrounding areas, so she took her name."

Without a smile Sam watches her. "Do you know which northern country the Queen ruled?"

Elsa slowly shakes her head and watches his expressions.

"I had never heard of the Queendom. What do you think the odds are that I would hear the name early in my life and encounter that Queendom later in my adult life?"

She does not answer, but again slowly moves her head from side to side.

"Arendelle, the spelling may have changed over time."

Her eyes widen with the revelation. How would he have heard of Arendelle as a child? Before she could reply, he steps back and points past her. "Look out."

Her head turns in the direction he points and a large snowball rolls over her. She lies planted in the snow waiting for the pain to occur, but it does not. _He is right. I should be hurting all over, but I am not. Wait, he just rolled me over with a snowball._ Snow crunches next to her and she looks up at him leaning over her.

"I told you to look out." He offers his hand.

 _You dare to roll a snow ball over me._ A light breeze flutters her dress and she moves her hands to keep it from exposing too much of herself to him. _Wait, I do not feel the cold or the wind._ She narrows her eyes at him.

His head barely moves. Where the sunlight touches his face, a metallic green replaces his pale, pink colored skin. His head tilts and a rainbow of colors sweep across his face.

"I know you are not hurt. If you can think of it, you can create it."

She stares at him with tight lips and squints. Slowly the corner of her lips curls up and a round shadow covers them.

He tilts his head back. "Well, if it's not marsh –"

A very large snow fist sends him flying through the air. He tumbles through the snow coming to a stop face down. After a few seconds he rolls onto his back. "Holy crap, she learns fast."

She stands over him with snow clinging to her dress. He wipes the snow from his face. She does not hold back her laughter as she offers her hand.

"You catch on quickly. When was the last time you rolled down a hill?" He points to a flat area of snow that changes and forms a depression to create a long sloping hill.

He grabs her arms and pulls her across him. Her momentum pulls him out of the snow and they roll down the hill. She stares at him flying over her then she flies over him. The movement creates a sense of enjoyment. Halfway down the hill he lets go of her and her momentum keeps her tumbling.

She slides to a stop still feeling the emotional high of doing something for fun and not caring. The hem of her dress tickles her chin. Her hands throws her dress back to its proper place. For a moment, she wonders what Anna would say if she saw her with her dress over her head. The thought of Anna's expression encourages her to release her bottled up laughter. A short distance away a tree branch cracks. Clumps of snow fall to the ground. She sits up pulling her hair out of the corner of her mouth. Snow crunches and a young boy crawls over to her. Her pent up emotions bully its way out. Her dignity and training allows only giggles to sound. "That was fun."

The boy falls onto his back and stares at the blue sky. "It was fun. It's been a very long time since . . . since I intentionally rolled down a hill for fun.

Elsa peeks at the top of the hill. "I do not think I have ever rolled down a hill, let alone one covered in snow." She glances at him. "You are a handsome boy."

"Boy!" Sam sits up quickly and pulls the collar of his shirt open. Closing his shirt he glances back at her with raised brows. "It seems the inner child has come out with the both of us."

"Both!" She grabs her chest not feeling what should have been there and looks down. "What happened to us?"

"We were having fun and the inner child took over. As I said earlier, if we can imagine it, it can happen in here. I did not come here often since I was the only one, the fun lost its appeal." He searches the sky and lets out a long sigh. "If you want, you can come in here. I think I can set it up so you do not need me to be in here or if I can't, I can bring you in and I'll hide out of sight. You can do whatever you wish in here."

She stares at him with one eye closed and the other partially closed from the sun in her face. "I spent most of my younger years in isolation." She shakes her head slightly. "I will not come in here to be alone."

A smile quickly blossoms on her face. She points to something over his shoulder. "What is that?"

Sam looks where she points. Seeing nothing he turns his head. "I don't see what you –" A large snowball slams him to the ground. He digs himself out and hears the young Elsa giggling as she runs into a grove of trees. _She is getting good at this._

Sam begins his life altering chase by throwing snowballs close to her. After receiving more hits than he delivered, he crawls next to a tree to make several snowballs. He peeks around the tree and ducks back behind it. Not seeing her, he formulates another strategy of attack. The snow crunches, but it is moving away from him. He stops his movement and listens carefully. As much noise as she is making he can target a location a couple of meters in front of her and let the snowballs rain. It would give him the opportunity to move closer, before she could respond. He peeks around the tree again. Elsa walks out in the open towards the hill. Collecting his snowballs, he tries to move as stealthy as he can in the crunching snow. He moves from one tree to another several times. Elsa is well away from any cover and she is within his throwing range. Gathering as many snowballs as he can carry, he charges towards her. His arm swings back ready to throw, but he notes she is covering her eyes from the sun. His charge slows to a walk as he looks up the hill and stops next to her. "Who is that?"

"I do not know. I thought you brought her in here." She drops her hand from her face.

"I didn't bring anyone in here except you."

"She called my name."

His head snaps around to her. "What do you mean she called your name?"

"She said, 'Elsa, I need to talk to you.'"

Sam cups his eyes to narrow his focus on the stranger. Images flash in his mind. He continues to stare at the stranger. His heart beats faster as one image holds his thoughts. A familiarity surrounds the person. A warm and safe feeling enters his mind.

He yells, "IT'S HER." He grabs young Elsa's hand and pulls. "Come on."

Elsa falls after a few steps and he helps her up. He shortens his steps, but Elsa still struggles to keep up with him.

"You know her?"

"Yes, she is S5. She is my trainer. She has come to take me home," Sam gleefully says.

Elsa pulls her hand free from him and stops.

He goes back to grab her hand. "Come on, she can take us home with her."

Young Elsa snatches her hand from him again. "Sam, we are home . . . in Arendelle."

He holds his hand out to her. "Arendelle is your home. You have family." He shakes his head. "I don't have anyone there."

Sam stares up the hill and watches S5. He turns back to her. "She is the only family I have ever known."

Young Elsa tucks her hands under her arms.

He lowers his hand. "I lost her once, not again." He races up the hill.

After falling and sliding, Sam finally reaches the female as she kneels and he leaps into her arms. If it was not for Sam's blue shirt, the female would have disappeared into the snow white background. Young Elsa transforms back into Queen Elsa watching the young boy receive hugs and kisses from the female, he called S5. A breeze swirls the snow and flows through S5's long blond hair. Elsa instinctively runs her fingers through her own hair draped over her shoulder. A thought of familiarity begins to gnaw at her mind. She considers if she is feeling Sam's strong emotions for the woman.

 _Is this what he was talking about, a hidden secret revealed? Did I make a mistake by coming here?_

"No, you did not make a mistake," S5 answers.

Elsa looks up quickly. S5 carries the young Sam on her back with his arms around her neck and his legs around her waist. She grabs his arms and flips him over her head to his feet in front of her. "Sam, please introduce me to your beautiful friend."

He stands at attention and replies, "Yes ma'am." He bows from the waist to Elsa. "Your Majesty, I wish to introduce you to my unit leader S5." He turns to S5. "S5, I wish to introduce you to Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

S5 tilts her head with her left brow raised. "So you are the Queen from Arendelle." She curtsies. "I hope you do not mind that I borrowed your name when my shipped landed here." She offers her hand. "I understand why Sam has a strong attraction to you."

A grinning Sam slides under S5's arm wrapping his arm around her.

Queen Elsa slowly takes S5's hand and shakes it as she watches Sam. "It seems he has a strong attraction to you, as well."

"You do not see it, do you?"

Confusion crosses her mind as she glances at Sam and back to her. "No, I do not."

S5 taps Sam on the shoulder and points. "Look over there."

A small figure pops her head out of the snow. "Hey soldier, fraternizing with our commanding officer? Get back at the end of the line before I have you busted down in rank."

Sam perks up and yells, "I'm not in your unit any more. I have been sent on a single mission." A snowball splashes at his feet.

S5 taps his shoulder again. "Krystal wants you to chase after her, so go chase her. I need a few moments with Queen Elsa."

He scoops up several snowballs and launches them as he runs towards Krystal.

Elsa smiles at the sight of Sam playing. He runs with no cares. "He likes to play. Perhaps that is why the Arendelle children eagerly greet him when he walks down the streets."

"Yes, he does. Once I gave his humanity back to him, he likes to look to nature for his inspirations." S5 glances at Elsa. "I saw you playing among the trees. You even laughed as the two of you rolled down the hill. Did you enjoy yourself?"

The thought of rolling down the hill brings a grin. "I did greatly."

"But?"

Elsa watches this young boy, Sam, throw a snowball which causes the young girl, Krystal, to land face first into the snow. It reminded her of a dream she had after she was locked away. She begged her father to let her and Anna play in the snow, but he never said yes. Even after these many years the dream is still painful.

Elsa turns away from Sam and looks up at S5. "When I was growing up, my parents kept me isolated from other children and my sister."

"You wish you could bring Anna here to relive a dream that might have happened?"

Elsa nods slowly. _Did you hear my thoughts?_

With a gentle smile S5 continues. "Maybe over time he will be able to bring her in here, but until then, you need to take the moments as they are presented. Let the inner child out to play. I have been around enough human adults to know that they lock away the inner child. When you see human children at play, you have a desire to play as well, but your responsibilities prevent that from happening."

She places her hand on Elsa's shoulder. "I know the Queen of Arendelle has great responsibilities to her Queendom, but you have to look for the moments and when they present themselves, have fun."

Elsa watches the two children playing and smiles when Sam gets rolled over by a large snowball.

"Do you like him?"

Elsa snaps her head around to S5, "What?"

"You heard me, do you like him?"

Elsa turns back to Sam and shifts her weight fidgeting.

"I don't care if you tell me or not, but you need to tell yourself if it is true." S5 steps next to Elsa and places her arm around her shoulders.

"Look," S5 sweeps her hand in front of them. The snow on the ground changes into a pool of water, then freezes into a smooth shiny glass. She points to the glass. "Look and tell me what you see?"

Elsa steps to the edge of the glass and peeks into it. "I see myself. I definitely need a brush for my hair."

S5 steps next to her and leans over the glass. "Now who do you see?"

Elsa stares at S5's image in the glass. For a moment she searches her own image. One by one the facial features become obvious. Her eyes widen as she places her hand over her lips. Her eyes dart back and forth between the two images. She steps back and stares intently at her. "Other than your increase in height, you could be my twin sister."

With a smile S5 turns towards her. "I'm a little bit older, but yes. Do you remember your earlier statement? You said he has a strong attraction to me as well?"

Elsa steps back. "I thought he was just being nice." She points to Sam. "You mean he is attracted to me?"

"Whether he sees you for you or me in you, you looked into the glass and saw for yourself. Does it make a difference? You may remind him of me, but there is more going on in his brain than our appearances."

She shifts into her regal pose with her hands crossed in front. "What do you mean?"

"You have touched his heart. You would not be in here if he did not trust you. There has been only one other who he trusted completely to bring in here. I brought him into my relaxing place and shortly thereafter he created this place." She points to the two children still playing. "I do recall those two played well into the night before they finally stopped."

 _Why does that sound familiar?_ She grabs S5's arm as her brows drop together, "How did I touch his heart?"

S5 stares at her for a moment.

Elsa feels uneasy as she should have known before now.

"He didn't tell you?"

She shakes her head.

S5 holds her hand near Elsa's face. "May I?" Elsa nods once. S5 lightly touches her face with her fingertips and closes her eyes for a moment. She moves her hand away, taking a deep breath and steps back. "He has placed a mental block covering several of your thoughts and it has been there for many years."

Her muscles stiffen with her hands to her side and orders, "Take it out."

"I can't."

"Why not?" she asks with a downward jerking motion with her arms.

S5 stares at the snow for several seconds and answers, "Since I am nothing more than a thought in his mind, I cannot undo what he has done. If someone else had done it, I could remove it."

"What do you mean, you are just a thought in his mind?" Elsa asks cautiously.

"I died a long time ago," she states in a matter of fact manner.

"WHAT?" She takes several steps back. _I am talking to a ghost . . . in his mind . . . what has he done to me? What if I cannot get out of here? Why is she staring at me?_

"Do you want to know the answer or not before you talk yourself into doing something foolish that will hurt the both of you?"

Her head barely moves.

S5 points in Sam's direction. "Look at his friend, do you see anything different about her?"

Elsa watches the younger Sam and his friend, but now that S5 mentions it, the female does appear different from him. "If she is just his thoughts, her image has faded colors."

"Yes, his memory of my Krystal has faded and soon he will forget what she looks like. He may remember her name, but all will be a ghost to him, as I will be when he leaves here."

Elsa quickly turns her head to S5.

"The original S5 or Elsa as he knew me in here, taught him all he knows about his powers. She hoped that one day she would meet you."

Elsa clenches her hands. "I do not understand. You were a live person, but now you are not."

"Correct, S5 placed me in here on the chance he would bring you in here. If he had not I would still be waiting and he would never have known. Just like the mental block he has placed in your mind, S5 placed me here for one last task." She reaches behind her back and brings out her closed fist. She opens her hand and holds a snowflake necklace.

Elsa's eyes widen. "That is my snowflake."

"Where do you think you got the idea for this specific snowflake?"

She glances up at S5.

"Correct. When you get back to your world, watch the back of his hands. The symbols of his powers will be revealed." She holds the necklace up, "May I?"

Elsa bows her head as the necklace is placed around her neck.

"There it looks nice on you. I will tell you this much, He wanted to give it to you in person, but he was forbidden and I agree with the mental block. He is the only one who can remove it. Use your feminine charms to persuade him, but don't push him and he will reveal all to you. Listen to the words he speaks."

Suddenly the ground shakes. S5 searches the area. "It is starting."

"What is?" Elsa asks, watching the ground undulate in small waves.

"His mind has started to shut down. Because of that, when you leave here, you will see many of the horrors he had to endure to get here. If you can looks past them, you will see the good he has to offer. All of it makes up who he is." Another undulating wave passes under their feet. "I must finish before it is too late."

S5 grabs her arms and leans close to her face. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, I beg you to hear and understand what I say. Samuel Christopher Ryan never knew his mother or father. At his age of seven, I am the closest he has to a mother. Krystal is my daughter and he sees her as his sister. If I had arrived sooner, he would have become my son and we would have lived as a family. Possibly you would have never known him, but I arrived just as the attack started. Krystal and I died the same night the government tried to shut down a program they created. Sam is the result of that program. When he gets confused, he will either walk away or revert back to his training. They trained him to be an assassin. His heart was in the right place, but he struck in anger and killed many. Queen Elsa of Arendelle, I need you to help him to complete his mission. He needs you to allow him to finish his task."

Sam and a mostly gray Krystal runs up and wrap their arms around S5. The ground shakes again. S5 begs, "Will you do it for him and your future."

Elsa starts to ask.

S5 interrupts, "Ask Sam, he will tell you, but will you help him to complete his mission?"

Elsa nods slowly and then nods vigorously. "Yes."

S5 kneels and pulls him in front of her. "Sam, I'll give you one last gift." Krystal changes into vivid colors and sharpness as she pulls her in front of him. She grabs Sam's face, forcing him to look at Krystal, "Look at her and remember everything about her."

After a minute she turns his face back to her. "Now look at me and remember everything about me." She waits a few minutes. "Sam, you are a very good soldier."

Tears run down her face as her voice shakes. "I love you and always have. Your final mission is to protect Queen Elsa of Arendelle no matter what happens to myself and Krystal."

His breathing increases as it chokes him. He fights to catch his breath. "Are you leaving?"

"Yes, we are leaving."

He clamps his arms around her neck and begs, "Take me with you, please, take me."

Hugging him tight she kisses his face. "You can't go where we are, not yet."

Tears roll down his face as his lips quiver, he begs more fervently, "No, not again, please don't leave me alone. Please momma, take me with you." He grabs her long blond hair and tries to get his legs around her waist.

Krystal pries his fingers from her mother's hair. She places her face against his cheeks and whispers, "Brother, when you have completed your mission in Arendelle, I promise I will come and get you. Then we will be a family again."

S5 pushes him towards Elsa. "Take him and if you truly love him, do not let go of him."

Elsa wraps her arms around his body and grabs his wrists. With all of her strength she pulls him against her.

S5 lifts Krystal in her arms as she stands and takes a step back.

Sam fights even harder to break free, kicking and biting and screaming, "NO, I'M GOING WITH YOU. I WILL COME BACK HERE AND STAY UNTIL I FIND YOU."

"Sam stop. If you come back here by yourself, you will never see us again. I know it's hard. You are a very good soldier and I know you will complete your mission. You have to promise me, do not come here unless Queen Elsa is with you. Do you promise?"

His head drops as he stops fighting. His tears rain onto her arm.

"Sam, my son, do you promise?"

He holds her arms and raises his head with a wet face and swollen red eyes. She feels him swallow hard, "I promise to protect her and not come in here unless Queen Elsa is with me."

For a brief moment she can feel his heart breaking. As their bodies fade, Krystal waves and S5 blows Sam a kiss. After a few seconds they were gone. Elsa holds Sam as his tears create more dark spots on her sleeves. Her heart goes out to him upon hearing his whimpers.

Suddenly he shakes and throws his head back as his chest heaves. "ELSA YOU PROMISE, AS I WILL."

His body collapses as his eyes close. His dead weight shifts her balance and she falls on top of him. She rolls off and turns him over, but sees no life in his body. She opens his eyes and they do not respond to the light.

Her heart races and her breathing labors. She places her ear against his chest, but hears nothing. Pulling his shirt up and moving her head from one position to another on his chest, she still does not hear anything. On the verge of giving up, she slides her head across his chest and hears a faint beat. She presses her ear tighter against his chest and hears his heart beating very slowly, but it is definitely there. Repositioning herself, she cradles him in her arms. Sadness creeps up to her like a fog rolling in to consume her. Her lips brush against his forehead and she pulls him closer.

Her finger brushes his hair behind his ear. She whispers, "I am so sorry for your loss. If I can do anything to help you, please," a tear drops onto his cheek, "Please tell me what to do." She tightens her hold onto him and slowly rocks as her eyes close.

Elsa opens her eyes and stares up at a dark blue sky. Her arm moves in the snow, but does not feel Sam nearby. She rolls to a sitting position and searches the white snow. No footprints or other signs show that anyone had been there except her. As her eyes try to distinguish any color change in the white snow, she tries to make sense of what has happened.

"Why am I still here? If he had died, I should be in the stables."

In the distant a soft moan and a cry sounds. She spots something gray along the horizon. "If this is his mind and all I have to do is think, it should happen. I want to be next to Sam." She blinks and in front of her a large cross and four smaller crosses stand marking graves.

Behind her a weak voice speaks, "I was wondering if you were able to get here or not."

She turns. A young Sam in gray pressed military clothes with white gloves, stands at attention. She falls onto her knees and hugs him, but he does not return the hug. Leaning back she asks, "What is wrong?"

Sam looks past both sides of her, before staring into her eyes. "I have been taught that no matter the circumstance, I must maintain my bearing if I am to survive. I am sorry, you are not my Elsa."

He clamps his mouth close and moisture builds at the edge of his eyes. He points to the grave markers. "This . . . this is where I have buried them. My Elsa is there," pointing to the large cross. "My team leader Krys . . ." he chokes back a sob, "Krystal is there and the other three graves are the rest of her team."

Tears race down his face. "I could not save them." His gloves disintegrate to reveal a snowflake on the back of his right hand and the symbol for fire on his left hand. His fist clench.

"With all of my powers I could not save them." His head lowers and the tears roll down his face as his body begins to shake. His lower lip quivers.

Elsa wraps her arms around him laying his head on her shoulder. His warm tears drop onto her neck. She does not speak. After a few moments he hesitantly pulls his arms up and around her. A few minutes later, he whispers, "All that I knew is gone. I know they are not in the graves here. I do not know what they did with their bodies. What am I supposed to do?" His voice strains, "I have no home."

She struggles to maintain control as her tears drop onto her face. She sits back onto her heels and lifts his head. "Samuel, you have a home with me. You can live in my castle."

"Do you promise to take me with you?" he asks wiping away the tears.

"Yes, I promise, I will take you with me."

The ground shakes and a cut develops over his left eye. He touches his forehead and pulls back blood on his hand. "You have to hurry. I am dying and soon my mind will shut down. You can't be in here when that happens or you will be lost as I am." The ground shakes again and the cut over his eye gets bigger.

"If I leave will you be here alone?"

"You can only see me like this in here." He points to the blue sky. "Out there I have an old body but I'm still in here. You will have to convince the older me to let you back in. If you don't keep your promise I will understand and if by chance you don't make it back in here," he points to a new grave marker above an open grave. "There is where I will be."

She grabs his arms. "I made a promise and I will keep it. Do not give up. I will come back for you."

Sam wraps his arms around her neck running his fingers through her hair then holds it out. "You have soft hair. It feels nice. Oh, your hair does the same thing like my Elsa's hair. When the light is just right, your hair creates a rainbow." The ground shakes a little longer than last time. He leans back, cupping his hands around her face. "My Elsa did tell you when you go back you will see the horrors in my mind."

"Yes, she did. I am ready for it."

"Are you? I ask one thing from you. When you get back, you will have to decide fairly quickly whether I live, or die a slow painful death as my brain shuts down. If you do not wish to see it, freeze my body and have the guards smash the ice. At some point the damage will become irreversible. It will try to protect itself from all, including you." He glances back and forth between her eyes, then kisses her forehead, "are you ready?"

She nods. "I will be back."

"I pray you will. Queen Elsa of Arendelle, it's time for you to leave, good luck." His hands slap against her ears with a pop.

 **End of chapter**


	46. Chapter 45 Elsa's Ice

**Title: Chapter 45: Elsa Heals Sam**

 **3 years, 5 months until correction**

A popping sounds in Elsa's ears as she open her eyes. Her hand still hovers over Sam's injured head. Her head dips. Sparkles of light flash in Sam's blood on the front of her dress. A torrent of memory images not her own flood her mind.

Gerda stands by the door, conversing with Anna and Kristoff as they wait to see if Elsa's efforts will heal Sam. Elsa parts her lips and takes short quick breaths. Beads of sweat form at the edge of her hairline. One bead breaks away from the rest and races down her cheek. Elsa's chest heaves as she takes a deep breath. Her head drops as she emits a low moan. Elsa snaps her head up. Her eyes open to display an icy blue tint. More sweat runs down her face. Her breathing becomes more labored. Closing her eyes tight, her head swings from side to side and lets out a loud moan. Her back straightens. Anna begins to move towards Elsa, but Gerda grabs her arm.

Elsa shakes her head faster as she speaks, "no, no, stop doing that. Please stop, oh my god, they killed her. Sam stop killing them. Run away, SAM, PLEASE STOP. NO."

Elsa's hand breaks contact with Sam's forehead. She pushes herself across the floor until the wall presses against her back. Her icy blue eyes stare at him and bellows an ear piercing scream. She wraps her arms around her drawn up knees. Her body shivers.

Gerda and Anna race to Elsa and kneel next to her. Anna wipes the sweat from Elsa's face and holds her tightly. "I've got you. He will not hurt you."

The ice crackles and Sam opens his one good eye. He lifts his left arm towards Elsa. In a gravelly voice he calls to her. "Elsa, you have to take control. I cannot do it for you. We must complete this or I will be encased in ice. I need you."

Streams of tears roll down her cheeks. Elsa trembles as she watches him.

He drops his arm and closes his eye and speaks to her in his language, " **ni dooda** **yah-a-da-hal-yon-ih** **atsilí** **,** **yeiyíʼaah** **atsilí** **aniné** **"** (you not take care of brother, give brother death).

Elsa yells in his language, " **Dooda** **aniné** **atsilí** **, ni** **dah yootįįł** **adeezhí** **ajéí** " (No death brother, you hold sister heart)

She starts to crawl to him, but Anna grabs her shoulders. "No Elsa. He is hurting you. Let the guards take him to a cell. They can watch him."

Elsa looks up at her sister. Her eyes change to their normal color. "You don't understand." She stares at the blood on her sleeves. "I know why he does the things he does."

She grabs Anna's arms. "He is not a monster. They created him. I saw his friend try to rescue him and they took her life." With a slight smile, Elsa continues, "Anna, we have been very selfish. All these years, he has been in the shadows watching over us, protecting us."

Elsa looks to Gerda. "How many attempts have been made on our lives and our parent's lives?"

Gerda's eyes dart around uneasily before she answers, "There has been a few against your parents and another against you on your nineteenth birthday." She touches Elsa's cheek. "And yes, he was there each time to break up the attempts."

Elsa pulls free from Anna and crawls to him, " **shí** **ádee hazhdidziih** **ni-dih-da-hi** **ni** **dóó** **adeezhí** **dah yootįįł** **ni.** " (I promised to guard you and sister hold you.) She places her hand over his forehead and generates the cold. The ice retreats back under her hand. After several minutes, ice encases his wound. Elsa lightly brushes her lips against his, "I promise I will."

For the next two hours Elsa keeps her hand just above his injury. She shifts her body and repositions her hand. She does not drink when offered water nor speak. Even Anna cannot get her to take a few minutes break. She stays by his side. A guard brings a small pail of water and sets it next to Sam. The ripples in the water holds her attention, until even they become calm. A flash of light radiates from the blood on her dress. It reminds her of his snow covered mountain.

Elsa reaches for a sponge and dips it into the water, but is not able to squeeze the excess out. Dropping the sponge back into the water, she rest her hand on his chest. She emits a low soft moan. Her eyes focus on his face and she watches him breathe.

A guard place a horse's blanket next to Sam. Anna kneels and soaks the sponge in the water and squeezes out the excess. Anna delicately cleans the partial dry blood from Sam's arm.

Gerda kneels next to her with another pail of water and a sponge. She lightly dabs Sam's face and cleans his hand. Between them, they wash most of his blood from his face and neck.

Elsa tries very hard not to move her hand from his injury, but maintain the small space between her hand and his forehead. Her other hand covers her nose to hold in a sniffle, but her tear falls onto his face and mixes with his blood. The sight causes more tears to fall after the first. Suddenly, she sits up removing her hand from his head. With a whimpering deep breath, she stands.

Anna stands next her. "What is wrong?"

Elsa flips her braided hair over her shoulder and transform herself into the regal Queen that she is. "He thanked me for my efforts and said he needs to sleep. He is not sure how long he will sleep, but if I have an urgent need he could wake up early. I promised him there would be no urgency of any nature. He is to take his time to heal properly."

Elsa steps towards the door with purposeful movement. "Captain, please have several of your guards carry him into the castle." She turns slightly towards Gerda, "Please find a safe room he can sleep undisturbed."

Captain Larsen studies Sam for a moment, before stepping outside of the stables. "Sergeant, I need eight carries and four to help lift Sam onto their shoulders."

Gerda whispers to Kai. He answers, "That room has not been used for some time, but the irony of life coming full circle for him." He glances back at Sam, "It will be done." He walks towards the castle.

Gerda steps next to Captain Larsen as she touches his sleeve, "Take him through the servant's door and into the first room on the right. Kai will be waiting." Larsen nods to her. A guard kneels touching Sam's arm and he immediately falls back, holding his frost covered hand.

Larsen calls over his shoulder, "Sergeant, get two more in here. You," pointing to a guard, "help him out of here." He points to another guard, "Go over there and get those two horse blankets. You eight, stand to either side of him. We will use the blankets to cover his body as you carry him into the castle."

Four soldiers stand on each side of Sam's body.

"Don't touch him, but we need to roll him over and cover him with the blankets."

Two guards kneel and cover their hands with one of the blankets. Elsa kneels and holds his head in a line with his spine as they move him. They roll Sam onto his side as another push as much of the blankets under him. They carefully roll him back and two guards on the other side of him keep Sam's momentum moving to roll him onto his other side. Elsa maintains his head's position. After a few minutes they have his body completely covered except for a small opening at the top of his head. Larsen helps Elsa to her feet and helps the guards lift Sam onto their shoulders.

The left front guard calls out. "On my command, Attention." Except for their arms used to hold Sam, the guards bring their feet together and their free arm to their side.

The right rear guard calls, "Right ready." The left rear guard calls, "Left ready." The left front guard nods to their Captain. Larsen approaches Elsa. "Majesty, if you will wait here I'll get a guard to bring your coat, while we take him across the yard."

Queen Elsa holds her head up and crosses her hands in front standing in her regal posture. "No Captain, I will walk in front of your guards and we will cross the yard together." Larsen points to the blood on her dress, "No Captain, I will not hide his blood. It is a part of me now." She looks at the eight guards then turns back. "If they are ready, let us proceed."

With a slight smile for his Queen and a nod, he points an open hand to the gate. "Open the gate for our Queen."

Queen Elsa steps in front of the guards and slowly walks towards the gate.

The left front guard commands, "In place step March."

As she steps through the gate, the next command is sounded. "Forward . . . March."

Eight boots strike the ground in unison. After a few steps, "half step March."

The sound of the boots on the stable floor diminishes. "Forward March."

She turns her attention forward and walks with purpose, but her mind struggles to sort the many images of a young Sam and S5. The senseless death and destruction from a lost boy turned into a weapon.

The guards standing outside of the stables form a corridor leading to the castle's servant's door. As she approaches each bow and maintains the bow until she passes them.

Several staff members gasp upon seeing the blood on the Queen's dress. She ignores them and leads the procession down the hall. She stands next to Kai and watches the guards maneuver Sam's body into the room.

They carefully place him onto the makeshift bed on the floor. They start to remove the blanket, but Elsa commands them. "Leave him as he is. No one touches his body."

They all bow their heads and exit the room.

Elsa kneels next to his bed and unwraps his body from the blankets. She cups his face and lightly sweeps her finger across the layer of ice over his wound. A thin layer of ice covers most of his body. She leans close to his ear, "it is not the best, but I hope you will be comfortable here while you heal."

Behind her, Gerda says, "Ok you two, Larsen, Anna, out." A scuffle of shoes sound across the floor. "If there is any news, I will let everyone know. We need to give our Queen her time with him." The door closes.

Elsa lays her head on his chest with her arm across his body and watches for his breath. She positions her ear until she hears his heart beating very slowly. "I am sorry for being there. You said if our energies are not in sync, it may cause a static charge. I think that is what happened. If I was not there," a tear rolls down her nose and drops onto his chest, "You would not be in this condition. I am so sorry."

Sometime later she startles the guard standing outside of the room as she steps out. With a moment of familiarity she asks, "Lieutenant, where is the Captain?"

"He went back to the barracks an hour ago. Do you wish for me to get him?"

"Larsen stationed you here?"

"Yes, your Majesty, the Captain said to tell you, I'm here just in case."

She nods to him. "Very good then. I do not believe you will be needed tonight. In his current state he is not going anywhere, but I yield to the Captain's judgment." She comments as she walks down the hall, "Good night Lieutenant Niles."

"Good night, Majesty," Niles steps back to his position next to the door.

Lieutenant Niles returns to his post adjusting his uniform. "Thank you Smith, I have forgotten what it is like to have an all-night shift. I'm glad the Captain broke the night into two shifts. Thanks for giving me a chance to eat, but I'm fine now. I'll be ok until the Captain comes by in the morning."

Private Smith nods to Niles and walks around the corner.

Two hours later Niles hears a scratching sound down the hall. He looks in both directions as he searches for any clues of someone hiding nearby and listens closely. After a few minutes of silence the Clock tower strikes four o'clock. He takes a deep breath and walks to end of the hall leading to the inner castle. He peeks around the corner and nods to the next guard at his station. Soon the shift will end for him and the other guards on duty. It had been many years since the last time he did a night shift. The last few hours will be the toughest as his mind wonders what caused the scratching sound that seems to be moving. Unfortunately, he did not have much to eat before the shift and found very little to eat during his break. He anticipates the morning breakfast.

Since Captain Larsen took over the Royal Guards, the quality of the breakfast was the first thing he changed and those coming off night duty are given the better cuts of meat instead of the leftovers after the day crew had eaten. He walks down to the kitchen end of the hall and nods to the first kitchen staff members to arrive.

"Lieutenant, what are you doing here so early?" the staffer asks.

"I'm making sure Samuel Ryan stays in his room and does not wander away." With a nod, he walks back down the hall and steps into his post position when the door creaks. Moving quickly away from the door, he draws his sword waiting for an attacker or Sam to rush him. He glances down both ends of the hall, but does not see any movement. His eyes dart around looking for an attacker, but only hears is his heart pounding in his ears. He hopes his tiredness is the only thing playing tricks on him. He stays motionless for a few minutes and even looks at a flame in the lamp to see if there is a breeze coming down the hall. A slight embarrassment consumes his thoughts for being rattled so easily. He sheathes his sword and takes a deep breath.

The staffer in the kitchen makes a little noise as she moves the plates around.

He stands by the door. This time the door moves and not just a little bit. Hesitant to draw his sword, he knows the door was latched all night, but considers the relief guard may have gone into the room. He draws his sword and holds it down to his side. His other hand slowly pushes the door open slightly. The hall light barely illuminates into the room and the end of the makeshift bed on the floor, but he cannot determine if Sam is in it or not. He could light a candle and step into the room for just a few seconds to see that all is ok. The Captain's orders said, no one was to enter the room under any circumstances, but for safety reasons, a quick look would be needed to determine if the door opened on its own.

He places his foot against the bottom of the door and searches deeper into the room. After a moment, he pushes the door further open, but it stops against something behind it. Most of the bed is exposed to the hall light, but he is still not able to determine if Sam is lying on it or not. He takes a step back when suddenly his sword freezes with his hand. Something cold clamps onto the back of his neck. He turns his head just enough to see two green globes glowing next to the door. His head slowly turns back just in time to see the floor rushing up to his face.

Captain Larsen walks through the kitchen, adjusting his uniform, "Good Morning Helga, have you seen the Lieutenant this morning?"

She hands him a cup of warm beverage. "He checked in an hour ago, but I have not seen him since."

Larsen sips the beverage waiting for its warmth to chase away the cold as he stares at the hall leading to Sam's room. He takes another sip. His other hand rest on the hilt of his sword and he comments, "An hour huh."

Larsen stands at the entrance to the hall and expects to see Lieutenant Niles at his post. He takes another sip from his cup and waits for Niles to return any second, but he waits. The bottom of the cup appears sooner than expected. He sets the cup on the table next to the door. His hand grips the hilt of his sword as he slowly walks down the hall and stops in front of Sam's door. There are no signs of a struggle nor anything out of its place. The previous night he placed a small piece of paper wedged between the door and frame so even if it is opened slightly the paper would fall to the floor. He glances at the door lock, then the floor. The piece of paper is missing. He walks quickly to the end of the hall and motions the guard at the next post to come over. The guard signals the guard in the next room that he will be away from his station for two minutes, and then walks over to Larsen.

"Have you seen Niles in the last hour?"

Standing at attention the guard answers, "No sir, I saw him at five this morning."

Larsen looks towards Sam's room, "Did he seem to be under duress?"

"No sir."

"Ok, go back to your post." He rushes back to Sam's room and grabs the door handle, which is extremely cold. He draws his sword and holds it against the door frame as he turns the handle. The door does not move. He pushes harder and the door moves just enough for him to see a guard's body against the door. He steps back as the door closes and calls out, "GUARD GET OVER HERE."

From around the corner the guard runs to him.

"Get the sergeant."

The guard runs through the kitchen and out the door. Larsen runs to the second guard post and directs him to check on the other guards on the residency floor. He moves back to Sam's room just as three other guards in different stages of putting on their uniforms come running down the hall.

"Help me push the door open." He points to the last guard. "Get a light." Three of them pushes the door open far enough for a guard to slip into the room. They pass the light through the door. He waves it around the room.

"Captain, no one is in here except for Lieutenant Niles." He grabs Niles by the wrist and pulls him away from the door. Two guards sit the lieutenant onto a chair and Larsen tries to waken him.

Niles raises his head for a moment and speaks one word, "Sam." His head falls forward and his slumps in the chair.

"Put him on the floor," Larsen says. He looks around the room, then stares at the door for a moment. "The door is the only way out of this room. How did he get out and place Niles against it from the inside?"

A guard burst into the room, "Captain, I checked the guards on the residential floor. They are all asleep."

Larsen draws his sword. "Follow me upstairs. If you find Sam do not engage. Alert others. We will have to take him alive, but above all else, protect our Queen. Move out." He trots out the room and down the hall and takes the stairs two steps at a time. By the time they reach the residential floor, ten royal guards are with him as he leads them straight for the Queen's room.

A side door opens. A yawning Anna steps out into the hall. "Since when do we have a military parade in the hall at 5:30 in the morning?"

Larsen grabs her arm and moves her to her room, "Princess Anna, Samuel Ryan is not in his room. I need you to stay in your room until we can find him." He opens her door, but she breaks free and runs down the hall. He gives chase. "Stop her," but it is too late as she enters the Queen's room.

In a dream, Elsa and a handsome stranger dance across the Great Hall's floor. With each spin and dip the people of Arendelle cheer. Even Anna and Kristoff cheer for her. When the music ends her people crowd around her. They give her congratulations and best wishes. She searches and sees the stranger at the far edge of the crowd. She waves for him to come closer, but he blows her a kiss and moves towards the door. She pushes her way through the crowd and calls to him. Just as he opens the door, he turns to her. A pair of crystal blue eyes glow, then Anna steps in front of her making a sound.

 _Elsa, Elsa wake up. Sam is gone._

Elsa runs and laughs as she stumbles and rolls down a small hill. There is such peace and joy and happiness on the snow-capped mountain. Free from all care she gets up and makes large and small snowmen and snow-women. Out of nowhere someone calls her name. "Elsa."

The snow people look around. One throws a snowball hitting her head. She falls to the ground and giggles as she rolls onto her back. A young boy stands over her and offers his hand. She takes his hand and he helps her up.

"Who are you?" she asks.

The little boy bows. "Have you forgotten so soon? I am your protector. You can be here only if I'm here."

 _Elsa, wake up._

Elsa looks around then she turns back to the boy. "Did you hear that? Someone is calling my name."

The little boy smiles. "Yes, I do believe your sister is calling you."

"Anna? Why is she calling me?"

 _Sam is gone._

"I believe you have your answer." He grabs her hand. "Majesty, I am impressed," sweeping his hand across the mountain, "you were able to create this after one visit." He holds his hand up in front of her. "It's time for you to wake up, I need you." The young boy snaps his fingers.

Elsa slowly opens her eyes. Her sister moves towards her. "Anna what are you doing?" Suddenly the warm and secure feeling leaves her. Her eyes follow the blue mist past the end of her bed. Next to her clothing bureau, two blue eyes stare at her. The feeling in the room changes to dark and cold. The blue eyes fade away to reveal green. The floating green eyes transform into a face that appears familiar.

 _What did Anna say, Sam is gone?_

The details fill in the face creating depth in the shadows. She recognizes the face. It even has the scar over its left eye.

 _Sam what are you doing here, you should be in your room._

She does not hear a reply nor does she feel anything from him. Elsa sits up staring at him, not afraid. He stares into her eyes. She glances down to see her night blouse partially opened and quickly pulls her covers up to her chin. His eyes never wavered from her eyes.

Anna says, "Sam is missing."

She points to the corner. "He is there."

Anna peers into the shadows. "What is he doing?"

"He's just sitting there, watching me," she replies.

 _Why are you not asleep?_ She turns her head slightly towards Anna. _How did you get in here? What do you want?_

He slowly stands. She hears Anna speaking, but it sounds as though she is speaking very slowly. Sam gradually rotates his head towards Anna as his green eyes change to a darker shade.

"The Captain is outside of your door. Shall I call him in?" Anna asks.

 _Darker green, he said he would be focusing on a target. Is he focusing on Anna? I wish I could see what you are seeing?_ Her perspective suddenly changes and she views herself sitting on the bed, still holding the covers up to her chin. From the corner of her view Anna moves to the center and the movement stops. Her perspective snaps back to her view from the bed. Sam eyes flash to a dark green.

 _He's targeting her. He's about to attack._

Elsa tosses the covers out of the way as she jumps out of the bed not bothering to put on her robe or slippers. She runs around the end of the bed and places her hand firmly into Sam's chest stopping his movement towards Anna. Sam lowers his head to stare into her eyes. For a moment she stares up at him.

"No!"

He starts to side step her, but she moves to stay in front of him. "NO!"

From behind her Anna says, "Elsa, what are you doing? He does not need to see your unmentionables."

His eyes gradually change to a light green as he continues to focus on her.

She replies, "I would rather have him see my unmentionables than take the few seconds to put on my robe while he attacks you."

"What? Why?" Anna asks and steps back.

"As I said in the stables, I understand what he has been doing all these years and what he is doing now."

His head rotates towards the movement behind her. Sam's eyes change to the dark green as he leans against her hand.

Elsa commands, "STOP! Anna is not a threat." He does not relent and she places both hands against his chest. "Anna, I strongly recommend you back away towards the door. I have the feeling if he decides to charge I will not be able to stop him. Get out of the door and do not let anyone in."

Anna grasps the door handle. "What about you? I will not leave you in here with that monster."

"You will, if it saves your life," she groans. Her heart beats increases as she pushes against him. Her arms and back strain against the increasing force against them. She hopes Anna is listening and not devising a debate. If he chooses, he could push her to the side and attack Anna and everyone before she could get to her feet again.

"Anna, please go," Elsa groans.

The pressure in her arms slackens and she looks up. He stares intently at her. His eye color changes to a blue. She stands straight and leans her head against her hands. A warm sensation drifts over her. Moving her hands apart, her face rest against his chest. For a moment she hears his heart beating slowly. Her hands slide under his arms and around his chest. She recognizes the familiar energy of the blue halo he has surrounded her as he did previously. His body moves as his arms move. Well, if he is going to swat her out of the way she will hold on for Anna's dear life and closes her eyes.

She waits for the impact. He stops moving. In her mind she hears, _I will protect you_. His hands apply a light pressure on her shoulders and slides down her back. Another light pressure pulls her closer to him. She looks up. With his eyes mostly closed she still sees the blue peeking through his eyelashes.

"Anna, he is not a monster. He is doing what he promised. He is fulfilling his mission." His eyes open slightly more and she whispers, "You are protecting me."

With a barely audible voice he replies, "Yes."

Peace with no worries or demands, Elsa does not wish to let go. The comfort reminds her of a feeling from long ago. With a deep breath, she lets out a long sigh. She turns her head and gradually opens her eyes.

Anna leans against the door frame and holds the door partially open. She whispers to someone outside of the door.

She feels herself smiling at Anna and asks, "What are you doing in here?"

Anna crosses her arms and replies, "Waiting for you to come back to reality. Did you enjoy yourself?"

Elsa squeezes her arms tighter around Sam. "I do not recall ever feeling as good as I do now. Why have you not left already?"

Anna huffs, "I wanted to see you could control him. I thought maybe you fell asleep when the blue mist surrounded you."

Elsa wishes to go back to the snow covered mountain, but Anna standing by the door and patiently, brings her back to a sense of responsibility. She leans her head back looking at Sam. His eyes are still focused on her. She whispers to him. "Can you hear me?" he slowly nods. "Do you understand what I am saying?"

He nods. "Yes."

She turns her head towards the door. "Do you know who is standing by the door?"

Sam slowly rotates his head towards the door and whispers, "no."

She looks up at him again, "what is your priority?"

"To . . . protect . . . you."

"Do you have any other priorities?"

"To protect . . . your . . . family . . . and . . . those . . . you deem safe."

She gazes directly into his eyes searching for any response. As much as she enjoys the feeling she is having with him, she cannot hold a prisoner in her room. "Sam, listen to me carefully. The one standing by the door is my sister Anna. Do you understand?"

He slowly nods. "Yes, Anna . . . is your sister. She is number two and I will protect her."

Elsa lowers her hand and motions towards Anna. "Well, come here, he will not hurt you."

Anna glances through the opening in the door. With her hands to her side she focuses on her sister. "Are you sure he will not attack me?"

"You heard what he said. He will protect you." She waves for Anna to come to her.

Hesitantly, Anna takes a step to the side. With a smile she boldly walks up to them. Sam slowly turns his head and watches Anna.

Elsa grabs Anna's hand and pulls her close. She places Anna's hand on Sam's arm.

He stares at her hand for a moment, then looks at Anna. "I will protect you."

"And who will protect us from you?"

"Anna! He may not understand completely, but he has protected us all our lives. Until his healing process is complete, we need to be careful as to what we say. The wrong word or action may set him to attack someone." Elsa holds Anna's hand and with a light squeeze she asks, "Okay?"

Anna looks down and with a smile on her face, she leans in to hug her sister. "Okay, I will give him a chance, but if he attacks either of us, he has to leave."

Elsa kisses Anna's cheek. "We will be fine now that I have an insight into his being." She steps back feeling his hands follow her arms until he lets go of her. She holds up her hand. "I need you to step into the next room." Sam does not move and continues to stare at her. "Did you hear what I said?"

"Yes, if I am in the other room, I cannot protect you. I will stay here."

With a smile Anna snickers, "now what are you going to do? At this point I do not think you can make him do anything he does not want to do."

Elsa glares at Anna for a moment, before searching the room. The light passing through the balcony gives her an idea. She moves to the balcony doors and holds her hand out to Sam, "I need you to stand here but you need to face the door. I will go behind a screen to put on more appropriate clothing. Do you understand?"

He slowly walks towards her and reaches his hand out to her. He stands next to her and says, "I am to stand here while you go behind the screen and put clothes on."

Anna chuckles.

"Close enough." Elsa walks around her bed and steps behind the screen. Anna with her fist resting on her waist stands between him and her sister. Sam faces the door and partially closes his eyes. A blue haze reflects in the glass door. Elsa takes several minutes to slip into her day dress.

"Anna, are you in there," comes a familiar voice from behind the door. Anna runs out of the Queen's bedroom.

Elsa steps out from behind the screen and adjusts her dress. Sam is not by the balcony door. She hears Anna in the next room, but walks towards the open balcony door expecting to see Sam. "Are you out here?" Not seeing him, she moves towards the other room and calls out, "Anna is Sam out there?"

From the outer room Anna squeaks in pain. She hears Kristoff. "Let go of her."

The distinct sound of flesh on flesh resonates in the room as furniture slides across the floor. She runs to the door as a low growl sounds and Anna screams. "Kristoff, no."

She looks in the direction of the growl that grows into an eerie howl. Sam grips below Kristoff's hand holding a knife and his other hand is around Kristoff's throat. With a loud growl Sam slams Kristoff into the entrance door lifting his feet off the floor. The knife falls and Kristoff's face turns a deep red.

Anna pulls on Sam's arm yelling, "Let go. You are killing him."

A little girl's voice speaks in Elsa's head, _Cold on the neck._

Elsa pushes Anna out of the way and slaps her frost cover hand onto the back of Sam's neck. Not releasing his grip Kristoff slows in his struggle, she speaks to Sam, **ánaaí, bí** **dooda** **doo yá'áshǫ́ǫ da.** **tʼáá shǫǫdí** **ánaaí,** **yeiyíʼaah bi- níłchʼi to** **hinílá** **.** (Brother, he not intended to harm. Please brother, give his spirit to live).

Sam lets go and Kristoff slumps to the floor against the door. He takes a step back and Elsa maintains the cold on his neck.

"Majesty, are you and the Princess ok? We heard something hit the door," asks Captain Larsen. The door handle rattles. "Majesty?"

Elsa continues to pull Sam away from them. Her ice moves down his spine. "You and Kristoff get out of here." Anna struggles to pull the semi conscience Kristoff away from the door.

Larsen and several guards push the door open enough to get into the room. Two guards lift Kristoff's arms over their shoulders and walk him and Anna out of the room. Larsen stands by the door with his sword and a dagger in hand. He watches Queen Elsa with her frost cover hand on the back of Sam's neck.

Elsa walks Sam towards the far wall and stops. Sam falls to his knees. With a little push he falls face forward to the floor. Elsa maintains her hand on his neck. The ice rapidly expands to cover his back and the rest of his body. Sitting up, she places her hand over his heart and places her other hand over her heart.

"Majesty?" Larsen asks.

She turns to him. "This is what he needed. Just as he fell forward, there was no anger. He was afraid. I heard a little boy ask why he was alone." She swallows hard. "How is Kristoff?"

"He is getting his wind back, but he will be alright. What about you?"

She stands and immediately shifts into her regal posture and crosses her hands in front. "I am doing better. Please escort Anna and Kristoff out of the castle for their protection. Do not tell me where they will be. Anna will have to understand he is vulnerable right now. I promised to keep him safe until his healing process is complete. Tell Kai to come to the door, but do not enter. Station two guards at each end of the hall. No one and I repeat no one is to come anywhere near the door after I talk to Kai."

Larsen places his dagger in his belt. "Yes Majesty, it will be done." He walks out the door and closes it.

Elsa kneels next to the block of ice encasing Sam and places both of her hands on the ice. "What am I going to do with you?"

A half hour later, a knock sounds on the door. Elsa opens it.

Kai nods to her. "Majesty, sounds like you had trouble with Sam this morning. How may I assist you?"

Stepping aside, she motions behind her. "As you can see he is quite subdued. I expect he will be this way for several days."

"Four days," Kai says.

She glances at Kai for a moment. "Why four days?"

Kai raises his brows with slightly wide eyes, "I don't know for sure if it will be four days, but you repaired his physical injury. He will awaken when it is time for him."

She grabs his hand and glares at him, "You do know, how?"

"Your Majesty," he points to Sam, "please ask him when he awakens. You two have a lot to talk about." She lets go of his hand. "Majesty, why did you call for me?"

"Four days?"

Kai nods.

"Very well, please clear my appointments for the next four days. Place a small table in front of the door. My meals and any work that needs my attention will be left on the table. Knock twice on the door then leave. I do not wish for him to see you as a threat to me."

"As you wish, it will be done," he replies. "Anything else, ma'am?"

She looks at Sam, "Four days?"

Kai steps out of the door closing it. "Four days."

The morning of the fourth day Elsa wakes to the sudden movement of her bed. Her eyes search the darkness and ears listen for any movement in the room. She even holds her breath, trying to listen for any sound. Not hearing any movement she rolls onto her side facing the balcony. With no moon, a morning star peeks through the open balcony door. She closes her eyes and starts to nod off when the bed moves again. She lights a candle on the night table beside her bed. Holding up the candle, she searches the floor and does not see anything. She moves to the other side of the bed.

Small puddles of water in the shape of footprints glisten on the floor. The footprints lead towards the partially open sitting room door. She swings her feet onto the floor and moves to the end of the bed. Pieces of ice lay scattered on the floor. An outer door opens. Setting the candle on her night stand, she slips into her robe and slippers. "Well, you're out on time. It is day four as Kai said."

She picks up a candle and quickly walks into the next room. The hallway door is still closed. A light breeze brushes against her robe. The wet footprints lead to the open balcony door. She steps through the door. In the corner of the balcony, on his knees Sam rest his arms and head on the rail. She steps towards him. "Are you okay?" She waits a moment. "Sam, can you hear me?"

Sam turns his head and rests it on the rail as he watches her. He points in the direction of the morning star. "What do you call that star?"

Elsa sets the candle on the table and looks into the sky. "At this moment I do not know."

"It is called Venus. The planet is about the size of earth, but because it is closer to the sun than we are, it does not sustain life." Sam rolls as head onto the other side. "How long have I been in the ice?"

She moves towards him. "You were completely encased in the ice at slightly more than three days. I encased the wound on your head with my ice for several hours." She touches his shoulder, but he does not move. "How do you feel?"

His head rolls back towards her, which causes him to sit on the deck. "My equilibrium is a little off, but I am feeling very little pain." He touches the previously injured area on his forehead and looks up at her. "You did a very good job of healing the damaged caused by Aurora. I compliment you for encasing my body in your ice without freezing me solid."

She sits next to him and reaches up to touch his forehead. "What is the last thing you remember?"

"Seeing You."

Her hand slides down his face and traces the bone structure of his jaw. "What about me?" she asks, watching his eyes.

For a moment a tingling sensation lingers where she touches his face. A sensation, that entranced him a long time ago, reminds him of the first time he allowed his feelings to be expressed to a young woman. "I'm not sure since I do have a vivid imagination, but I saw you talking on my snow mountain."

Her eye movement stops for a second. She glances down, then looks back at him. In his previous life of interrogating prisoners, the stopped motion was a clue to a truth they did not want revealed. Was she trying to hide something? He waits for her response.

After a moment she asks, "Who was I talking to on your mountain?" Her eye movement between his eyes continues.

"You were talking to S5. She was my mentor."

"Was?"

"She is long dead." He looks away from her as moisture builds at the corner of his eyes. "She was killed by those who use people for their own ambitions."

He wipes away the tear as his body turns from her. "My apologies, I don't know why I said that."

Elsa places her hand on his shoulder and gently pulls him back to her as more moisture runs down his face. "Please do not turn from me. I want to help you anyway I can."

He remembers hearing those words spoken to him years ago. Back then he fell in love with a young woman who spoke those words. If just for a moment he could go back and talk to her and change the choices he made, maybe he would be with her now. A flood of memories washes over his mind as the rising tide washes over the shore line pushing away the top layer to expose the sand beneath it. He closes his eyes and a vivid image of his companion, his friend, and his lover stands before him.

" _You have to let it go. We knew this could happen and we enjoyed the time we had together. It's ok. You come home when you are ready. We will be waiting for you."_ Her image fades.

A soft, cool hand touches his face. With a blurry vision, he blinks the moisture out. He sees a very beautiful smile and concerning eyes watching him. With a half-smile he comments, "Maybe I'm not quite healed as I thought. Aurora kicked open a memory I thought was well secured."

His arms wrap around her. She wraps her arms around him and pulls him closer. Resting his head on her shoulder, he whispers, "Whatever happens from this day forward, I pray we will always be friends. I know we cannot be anything more. You are the Queen and I'm a commoner."

"If things were different would you consider us more than friends?" With no response she asks, "Will you make a promise to me and do not say if it is in your capabilities because I know it is?"

He whispers, "I make no promise before considering the details."

"Fair enough, promise me when it is just you and I, you will call me Elsa. When you need a hug or to express your frustrations, you will consider me. I know you get frustrated and ride or walk into the hills. When you do, I wonder if that is the last time I will see you."

A pounding on the door turns their heads towards the Queen's outer room.

"Your Majesty, are you awake?" asks Kai.

"Queen Elsa, please open the door," calls Captain Larsen. After a few seconds more pounding comes from the door.

"I better open the door before they take it off the hinges." He holds his arm out helping her to her feet. She brushes a leaf off her robe before stepping into her room.

"Elsa." She stops halfway in the door and looks back. "I promise."

She glances down with a smile and continues into the room.

He struggles to get to his feet and leans against the rail. As the last few stars twinkle out from the morning light, Elsa reassures Kai and Larsen that she is ok. He bows his head, before glancing over his shoulder. "Mom, you said there will be one who will save me from myself . . . is she the one?"

 **End of chapter**


	47. Chapter 46 Anna's Proof

**Title: Chapter 46: Anna's Proof**

 **3 year 4 months until correction**

Sam watches her hold a piece of potato on her fork as she reads the daily reports. Her focus on the report might fool others, but he internally counts. When he reaches three hundred and she is on the same page he asks, "Is there something troubling you on that page of the report?"

"No, just a list of supplies used yesterday and a list of supplies needed for the castle and the guards," Elsa replies without looking from the report.

Gerda walks in from the serving room and rest her arm on his shoulder. She watches Elsa for a moment. "Is that the same page she was reading when I brought in your meal?"

With a slight smile, "I do believe it is. What do you think happened yesterday that would have our Queen so entranced and no one else would have heard about it?"

"Ok," she places the report on the table. "My mind is a little distracted since Anna and Kristoff have not come back after I sent a message that all is well here."

"They will come back when they are ready." He reaches across the table and touches her hand. "Do you wish for me to scan the area?"

Elsa starts to answer, but stops. Gerda comments as she grabs his arm, "I'll twist his arm if you don't eat some of your meal."

Elsa shakes her head and eats the potato on her fork. "I hope the damage is not beyond repair with Kristoff."

He studies her mannerism and memorizes her body position then looks at Gerda, "You better let go. Kai is at the door."

Just as the door opens she lets go of his arm and Kai walks in to the room.

Kai walks to Elsa. "The runner has returned, but there is no reply. Shall I prepare another message?"

Elsa slumps back into her chair and places her napkin beside her plate. She props her head on her closed fist as she looks towards the balcony. "No. Until they can resolve their issues, I am not going to push them. Maybe they need more time to think."

"They must have had enough time to think, because they are on the road at the edge of the wall and are traveling this way." Elsa turns back and stares at his eyes.

"At current speed they will be here in about twenty minutes." As the other stare at him he focuses on Elsa. "I surmised you wanted to know so I looked for them." He leans close to her. "I know I'm a contributing factor for their delay, so I'm asking. Do you think a little nudge will get Kristoff to ask Anna to marry him?"

Gerda elbows his arm. "Now that's a great ideal. You push. He walks away. Anna doesn't forgive you. Our Queen banishes you for disrupting her family and making her sister sad." She glares down at him, "Is that your plan?"

"Melodrama is not your best suit." He slowly smiles. "Ye of little faith, sometimes you have to take a risk for a reward. For a bigger reward you need to take a bigger risk and if that fails have a plan-B. This is the exact reason governments wanted me on their side for negotiations. I will not do anything drastic, that's plan-B. For plan-A, I will reason with him."

He stares at Elsa for a moment. His left brow rises. "Do you approve?"

"As long as there are no knives involved and you do not choke him into unconsciousness, I will consider a diplomatic solution." She replies as he her right brow rises.

"We are not talking about a situation where both of us will win. One must lose or he will always doubt himself if he really won her hand or not." He glances at Gerda then to Elsa, neither appeared to understand.

Kai comments, "He was defending her." Both of them look at Kai.

"Exactly, he tried to move Anna out of the way. I saw him as a threat towards her and pushed a little harder than I planned."

"Harder than you planned," Gerda glares at him then her eyes widen. "I hate to see you do it on purpose or with force." Her hand slaps the back of his forehead.

He wrinkles his nose at her. "I'm not going to defend my actions in the state I was in at the time." He shakes his head. "Kristoff on the other hand, when he stood up he had a natural reaction to grab for the knife. He just didn't realize how over matched he was until he woke up. I don't wish for him to be afraid of me. Everything I have seen of him says he is an honorable man deserving of a happy life, even when he walked away from Hans after leaving Anna here during the storm." A cold hand slides across his hand.

Elsa asks, "What is your plan?"

He doesn't move his hand, but lightly rolls his thumb across her fingertips as he gazes at her. "Please understand, you must have plausible deniability to honestly say that you did not know the plan just in case."

"Just in case it fails," Kai comments.

He glances at Kai, "Great rewards require great risk." He looks back to Elsa, "Your Majesty, all I ask is, if they appear to be going their separate ways, do not stop me from intervening."

"If they have decided to go their separate ways as you say, you will not interfere, but allow me to talk to the both of them. It has been over a year, maybe it is time for them to move on to other people." Elsa replies.

He continues to gaze at her. The corner of his lips curls to form a smile. "That's a great idea. Maybe they need to see others to show their love for each other, so where will I be?"

She pulls her hand back. "You will not be seen when I meet them. There is no sense in scaring him off. Would you agree?"

Sam nods. "I agree."

"Good, I should have enough time to change into more appropriate clothing to meet with my future brother-in-law," She states as she stands.

Kai and Gerda move to one side as he assists his Queen with her chair. Elsa walks out of the room with Gerda close behind her. Once the door closes Kai asks, "What are you going to do now that Elsa has forbidden you from interfering?"

"Did she?"

Kai turns his head with a slight squint at him.

"You were correct. Kristoff was defending his love and I made him look weak in front of her, so he needs to regain his confidence again."

"In front of her?" Kai asks.

Sam smiles and walks towards the door. Over his shoulder he comments, "Great rewards require great risk."

Several minutes later, in the outer room of the Royal Guard's main building, Sam stands with his feet shoulder width apart, hands clasped behind his back, and his shoulders rolled back. Much had not changed in the layout of the Guard's sleeping quarters and kitchen at the far end of the building, but the front entrance area had changed. He still remembers the event when Queen Ingrid followed him into the building instead of waiting a few seconds. He had never seen a female turn that shade of red so quickly upon seeing two naked men wrestling on the floor for a loaf of bread. She was out the door before he could call the room to attention. Needless to say the King agreed with his assessment of an outer reception area before inspecting the barracks. He peeks over his shoulder.

Captain Larsen looks past him. "If I was an assassin you would be dead."

Sam chides back. "If you were an assassin, you would be lying on the ground bleeding to death after falling through the closed door."

Larsen walks around him. "Maybe, but it took me three steps to get from my office to be next to you." He shakes his head. "Tsk, tsk, you're slowing down old man."

"Give me a little time. I feel my vitality is improving with each passing moment."

"You think letting your hair grow longer and coloring it white is going to increase your vitality?" Larsen asks with a smirk.

"How much is in the pot?

Larsen snickers. "Three hundred and twenty three, you're not going to back out are you?"

"Keep laughing, I'm upping the ante. I'll clean the barracks, bottom to top, and reduce the time to thirty minutes." With a partial grin Sam walks to the door. He hesitates holding the door open, "One thing Captain, unless Queen Elsa gives the order, no one is to interfere."

The voices of the guards follow him down the steps.

"He's crazy, dropping the time, but here is the rest of my money."

"I'm in it just to see him clean the barracks."

"That horse of his must have knocked him senseless."

"Here is mine."

"Mine too."

With a growing grin he walks back to the castle foyer.

As he enters the foyer Elsa comments. "Have you been gathering a crowd to welcome the Princess back?"

Sam looks up with wide eyes. His Queen wears an elegant forest green dress with white lace around the collar and sleeves. For those few moments he could not turn his eyes away from her. He watches her walk towards him as his energy changes to calm and peace. He should look away, but it's as though she is drawing him towards her. He doesn't want to look away. She is very intoxicating. The contrast of her dress amplifies the beauty in her face framed with her platinum hair. It reminds him when he first saw her on her coronation day. The confusion that day finally becomes clear. Years ago, he had tried to imagine what a particularly feisty, blonde, three year old girl would look like as Queen. Now he knows and wonders if her parents would have been proud of what their daughter has accomplished so far.

She stops next him with her hands crossed in front in her normal regal posture. She asks, "Do you like what you see?"

With a slow nodding of his head, he answers, "yes"

"Your sister is almost at the steps." Kai comments as he passes them.

Sam blinks as he looks away and steps to one side.

As she steps in front of him, she angles her head towards him. "It is ok to look, but do not stare." She continues towards the door.

His eyes fixates on her. For a brief moment his mind sees the two of them rolling in the snow.

Kai stands slightly behind him and comments, "If that was not an open invitation, I don't know what is."

Perhaps the warm breeze entering through the castle doors, is making his face warm and the air stuffy. Beyond the door the shadow of the wall creeps towards the steps. A beam of sunlight aluminates the entrance way and Queen Elsa. Another wave of warmth sweeps across his face. Why do his eyes not look away? His body begins to respond to the vision he sees. Queen Elsa glances back at him as she exits the door. Did she smile at him?

Kai slaps his shoulder and points towards the door. "Looks like you're up."

Hiding behind the door and listening, what he does not hear is not encouraging. Anna sits on the wheel mounted sleigh with her arms crossed. She glares at Kristoff as he scratches Sven's ear and speaks to Queen Elsa.

Kai stands next to the door. "It does not look good."

"No, it does not."

"So what are you going to do about it?"

Kristoff provides him an opportunity by walking to the back of the sleigh. Sam steps out from behind the door and answers, "I am going to do this."

Sam walks past Queen Elsa and stops long enough to comment, "If you truly wish for these two to get together, play along. If I fail, I will take full responsibility." He continues down the steps before she could answer.

In less than a minute, Anna's anger leaves her with her shoulders slump and her hands resting in her lap. Even her green dress with the brightly yellow flowers has lost the edge of brightness with her somber expression.

Sam glances at Anna and she gives him the 'it's your fault and I'm going to enjoy getting revenge against you' stare. With a quick grin at her, he walks to Kristoff, "Hey buddy, good to see the two of you back. Were you wearing a not so woodsy suit of clothes when the two of you left?" He receives silence. "Hope you had time to reflect on what happened two weeks ago."

Sven sniffs at him and snorts.

Sam rubs behind Sven's ear. A few seconds pass with no response. "I came out to apologize to you. I never intended on hurting you. If I was trying to kill you, we would not be having this conversation. Please understand I was not fully conscious of what I was doing. You came into the room before our Queen Elsa could designate you as a friend. I reacted on my primary instructions."

He walks around Sven and nods to Anna, "Did she tell you I was about to target her before her sister stopped me."

Kristoff glances up at Anna and back at him. "No, she did not."

"And why do you think she did not tell you?"

Kristoff looks down sheepishly. "Because she knows I would have come after you."

He places his hand on Kristoff's shoulder. "Do you remember, I held you off the floor by your throat with one hand and squeezed your other hand with the knife? I didn't let go until you dropped the knife." He glances up at Anna and continues, "I do believe she pried that knife out of your hand. A few more seconds, again we would not be having this conversation."

Kristoff looks up at her with a slight smile. "Really?"

Sam leans close to him. "Of course she did. Did you ask her?"

Kristoff looks at him. "Ask her what?"

Sam walks around him and moves towards the end of the sleigh. "I understand you two have been going together for a little more than a year. Several weeks ago I mentioned it and both of you became very uncomfortable."

Sam continues moving to Anna's side of the sleigh and looks over at Kristoff. "Maybe talking about going with someone for a year without actually committing to anything is a normal part of this culture, but where I come from, each member of the party is free to pursue other avenues or to be pursued."

He slowly walks towards Anna.

Breathing through his mouth, Kristoff watches him.

"Let me put it in words you should understand." He stares up at Anna. "Did you ask her to marry you?" Anna gives no indication of answering, but her lack of a smile is enough for him to ask her. "Did he ask you?"

Anna looks towards Kristoff. After a few seconds she slowly shakes her head as she looks down. A breeze swooshes over the wall and stirs up the dust. Anna covers her face.

He moves next to her. "I didn't think so." He grabs Anna's hands and holds them together with one hand. He reaches around her waist and holds her wrist together. Reaching under her legs as he lifts her out of the sleigh.

For a moments Anna does nothing. "What are you doing?" She struggles to free her hands and commands, "Put me down."

Sam tightens his hold on her and walks towards the steps. "I will as soon as we are standing next to our Queen so she can bless our marriage."

Anna stops struggling and asks with a slightly higher pitch in her voice, "What? When did you ask me?"

He stops and turns so she could see Kristoff, "When did he ask you?"

She watches Kristoff move around the sleigh with a steely focus on them.

"Well, when did he ask?"

Anna turns her head away. Sam continues walking towards the castle steps and is met by the cold stare of Elsa's blue eyes as she stands with her hands on her waist and her feet slightly apart. When he started his actions he knew he would have to travel far down this path of logic. He had hoped Elsa would understand, but her expression says he may have gone too far. There is no sense in turning back now.

He grins at Anna. "You need someone to take care of you. I think we can produce five or six children."

Her eyes widen as she speaks, "but I do not love you." She struggles harder stiffening her body straight and strains to look past him. "Kristoff, I love you, not him."

Anna's straight body creates an imbalance causing Sam to stagger until he can shift her body back in line with his center of balance. "After some time you will grow to love me."

She relaxes her body and he nearly drops her. She turns her head towards her sister. "I thought you and Elsa were –"

Sam interrupts as he regains control of Anna, "I like your sister a lot, but she is the Queen. I'm just a commoner. A Queen and a commoner do not go together. She can give me a title similar to the one she gave Kristoff, but I don't know if that would be legal or not."

A vice-grip of a hand grabs his arm and spins him around. He commands or more like barks. "Put her down."

Sam stares at Kristoff for a few seconds. "Why?"

Without a flinch, Kristoff answers, "Because I love her."

"Too bad, you had your chance. Now she is mine." He pivots quickly causing Anna's boots to strike Kristoff's face. "All I have to do is kneel down. Hold her hand and our Queen blesses the marriage."

Anna struggles to get free and calls out, "Kristoff, I love you."

Kristoff's strong hand turns him enough for a fist to impact the side of his head. Sam staggers and rotates his body to cushion Anna against him as his body hits the ground. She lands on his chest, driving the air out of his lungs. He rolls Anna off of him and slowly rolls onto his hands and knees. The side of his face heats up from the blood collecting in the impact area. His face draws tight from the swelling.

 _Wow, he hits hard._

 _Good, I told you to wait._ Elsa replies in his thoughts.

 _Until he asks, we are not done. Your part will be next_. Sam winks at Elsa frowning at him.

He looks over to Kristoff helping Anna to her feet.

"Are you ok? Did he hurt you?" Kristoff asks holding her arms.

Anna adjusts her dress. "My dress is a little dirty and my head hit his shoulder as we fell, but I am fine." Kristoff places his arm around her shoulder and walks her towards the steps.

Elsa narrows her eyes and she points her finger at him. Sam slightly shakes his head as he holds up his hand, and whispers, "Not yet."

Sam gets to his feet quickly and pushes Anna out of the way. He grabs Kristoff's shoulder and prepares to be hit in the face again. Kristoff grabs his collar, pulling him close to his face to speak, "Without your magic I can take you down."

A glimmer of a smile forms on his face as he replies, "Deal, no rules." A cloud moves and the sun begins to dip behind the castle's wall.

Instantly, Sam sweeps Kristoff's feet out from under him and he swivels to throw Kristoff across his body, but Kristoff holds tight to his shirt and they both roll onto the ground. He tries to push away, but Kristoff's vise grip hands prevents him from extending his arms. He continues to push knowing for a moment this has become a test of strength.

Anna steps towards them, but Elsa pulls her out of the way. "No, they have to fight. I will bless the winner with your hand in marriage."

"Did you hear that? The winner gets Anna's hand with our Queens blessing. Guess who will not get the blessing?" He grabs Kristoff's shirt and pulls as he tilts his head down driving Kristoff's face into his head. Kristoff loosens his grip. Sam roll's onto his knees and he rubs the top of his head.

Anna replies to Elsa in a shaky voice, "My hand . . . but I love Kristoff"

Kristoff grunts holding his forehead. "Haw, she doesn't want you."

Elsa comments, "Kristoff challenged Sam not to use his powers and he agreed."

It takes a few seconds, but Anna appears to understand. She grins at Kristoff. "Kick his butt all over the yard."

Sam winks at Elsa hoping she understands his actions. With a hint of a smile she barely points away from him.

Kristoff lands the ball of his foot into his chest. Sam falls back over his heels. A loud cheer rings in his ears. He holds his chest and he looks around. The guards have gather as a few taunt him. Most of the other guards encourage Kristoff to get up.

Kristoff holds his forehead as he gets to his feet and staggers towards Anna.

Sam spots a couple of guards holding practice swords. Rolling to his feet he snatches one of the swords and flings it at Kristoff's feet. The sword catches under his heel and Kristoff stumbles to the ground. Sam charges him. As he reaches for the back of Kristoff's collar, a bull reindeer scoops him up with his antlers and slams him to the ground. With several snorts Sven pins him to the ground. Despite his strength, even without his special abilities, he is no match against a determined reindeer.

Anna says excitedly, "Hurry, take my hand."

Kristoff stumbles up the steps and takes Anna's hand.

He yells, "Queen Elsa, the deal is for me to kneel and hold Anna's hand as you bless our marriage." He pretends to struggle against the reindeer, but instead scratches behind Sven's ear. He watches Elsa play her part as she glances at him and motions Kristoff to kneel

"I said I would bless the one who is on his knee and holding Anna's hand." She motions with her hand for Kristoff to hurry as she speaks, "Now ask her."

Kristoff groans bending down to one knee almost falling over as Elsa and Anna steady him. He holds Anna's hand and says, "Anna, I know we have been going together for a year, but I did not wish to push you until you were ready."

"Ask," Elsa commands.

"Anna, will you marry me?"

"YES, yes, yes," she replies wrapping her arms around his neck and plants her lips against his.

Elsa places her hands on both of them and states, "I bless this marriage that no one will get between them." She glares at Sam as he nods to her.

Sam shakes his fist at them, "Kristoff, I'm going to get you for this. She was supposed to be my bride."

Elsa encourages the couple to move. When they finally get inside the castle, he pulls a carrot out of his pocket. Sven immediately backs up staring at the carrot. Sam gives it to him and Sven gleefully munches. Rolling to his feet he dusts off his pants and shirt. A salty taste is followed immediately with a stinging sensation at the corner of his mouth. He walks towards the steps.

Captain Larsen announces, "four minutes left." A loud groan echoes across the yard as the guards sulk away from the area.

Sam steps on the bottom step and looks up at a glare that he had not seem Elsa use or at least that he does not remember. At the top of the steps she stands with her hands on her waist and her feet slightly apart. He slowly moves up the steps until he is almost to her eye level but one step down. He doesn't wish for anyone to assume he is arrogant to think he is equal to her. With her demeanor, he doesn't want her to think he is equal to her.

Elsa steps towards him and reverts to her regal posture with her hands crossed in front. In a calm voice she speaks loud enough that others could hear, "You will not seek revenge against Kristoff, nor do any other activity physically or psychologically against either of them. Do you understand?"

With a slight smile he glances past her. "I can see them just inside of the door."

She steps to the side blocking his view and speaks louder, "Is there any part of what I just said you do not understand?"

His eyes move back and forth searching her eyes. Sam searches for a twinkle that would tell him her comments are for their benefit, but he does not see it. Her actions are meant for him. Will she understand the sacrifice he committed to right a wrong that should not have happened.

"I understand perfectly." He bows his head. "Master Kristoff is part of your family. He will be treated with respect and honor due him once he becomes Prince Kristoff."

Elsa continues to glare at him.

"Obviously you have more to say to me. With your permission I will sit here to rest." Not waiting for a response he sits and rest his head on the top step with his eyes closed as he holds the right side of his head. After some time he hears ice cracking. A near frozen cloth lands on his face. He folds the cloth and applies it to the swelling. The ice eases the pain as he takes a deep breath and sighs. The second breath brings in a tantalizing fragrant that gives him a moment of confusion. The fragrant seems familiar, but he does not remember the name of it. He opens his eyes to a smiling sneer as Elsa stares down at him. Above her the first star twinkles.

She waves her hand at him. "It is time to wake up," and she snaps her fingers.

Sam blinks several times to clear his head and sits up.

Captain Larsen walks over and drops a jingling leather bag at his feet. He removes his coat and folds it several times before placing it on the top step. He offers his hand and Elsa sits on his coat.

A long minute passes before Larsen speaks, "If you don't need me, I will be consoling several guards who will not be going into Arendelle for the next two weeks."

Sam turns to the sound of a chuckle behind him. Elsa replaces her glare with a slight smile. At least for the moment he does not think she will order bodily harm done to him. He tries to smile and flinches as a bolt of pain shoots through the cut at the corner of his lip.

Elsa gently pulls on his shoulder. "Lean back. Let me look at it." He rests his head on the top step. She turns his head and lightly pushes on his swollen cheek. Turning his head the other way, she leans close to inspect the cut on his lip.

He tries not to breathe on her and inhales. He recognizes the fragrant from the kerchief. "What fragrance are you wearing?"

She looks into his eyes. "You do not know?" He rolls his head from side to side. "It is a blend of tropical fruit and a hint of coconut perfume."

"It smells nice." He smiles and grimaces again.

"Do not move. I will fix it." She places her hand on the side of his face and presses her finger on the cut. The pain quickly subsides as a cold sensation takes over the area. The cold and her perfume helps him to relax to the point that he nods off.

Sam hears a male and female voices in his head. _Is he still breathing? I think he is. I see eye movement._

Sam barely opens his eyes. Elsa smiles at him and speaks with a tranquil voice, "Hi, did you have a nice nap?"

He stares at her and flexes his eyes wide for a fraction of a moment. Both Elsa and Larsen lean back quickly.

Larsen asks, "Did you see the blue line go across his eyes?"

Elsa touches Sam's arm. "Are you ok?"

He looks at Larsen and back to her. "How long was I out?"

"Just a few minutes," she answers. "It was a little disturbing to see your body go completely limp."

He sits up searching the area for threats and breathes deeply several times. "Why am I sitting here?"

"You had a cut lip and a large bruise sitting on your face," Elsa answers.

He runs his tongue around his lips and presses firmly on his face. "I don't feel the cut or the bruise."

"I healed it for you."

His head snaps around to her. He searches her eyes. "How did you repair me?"

Her brows slowly rise. "I created a layer of ice on your cut and bruise. It took a minute or two for your skin to heal itself."

His eyes dart around the courtyard as he stands. Everything looks familiar. He should know what it is and where he is, but for the moments he cannot access the part of his brain that has the information. He turns to the female. "Are you S5?"

Elsa's eyes widen and she steps onto the top step. "No, I am not. I am the Queen of Arendelle."

Sam shifts his focus and scans the castle. "Arendelle? This castle is the Arendelle castle."

She answers, "Yes,"

He scans her clothing, noting the intricate designs in her dress. "You are . . . Queen Elsa of Arendelle." His vision shifts to see the energy waves surrounding her body.

"Yes, I am Queen Elsa," she states as she reaches up to touch his face. He hears the crackling of an energy build up, but before he can move, the static discharges from her hand into his cheek. His vision blurs before it clears. Elsa grimaces in pain as she jerks her hand from the shock.

He scans her arm as she holds it in front of her. "Your muscles are in contraction." He offers his hand. "Since you healed me, with your permission, I can remove the energy that is causing your arm pain or you can wait several hours for it to dissipate."

Elsa breathes a little faster. She looks at her arm and slowly holds it out to him. He blinks and gently supports her hand, placing his thumb in the middle of her palm. Applying slight pressure he turns her hand and massages her palm and fingers. The energy moves out of the tissue and the color in her hand changes from pink to an ash-white. "Is your hand hurting more?"

She stares into his eyes for a moment. "No, it feels a lot better, but my arm tingles."

"I'll take care of that." He holds her hand and slides his other hand along the underside of her arm to hold her elbow and lets her arm rest on top of his arm. With the extra physical contact he detects the energy radiating through her arm. He positions her hand to grab his upper arm. "If it begins to hurt, squeeze. It will take a little longer to drain the energy."

"Why is there energy in my arm?"

"Look around, everything that is alive, uses or transforms energy." He cups his hand on top of her hand. "What do you feel in your hand?"

She stares at his hand for a moment. "I feel the warmth in your hand."

"What about your arm here?" He taps the back of her elbow.

She sighs, "I only feel the tingle as before."

"Every species I have ever encountered uses electrical energy in their bodies." He looks at her. "As your body and mine use the energy," he focuses on her arm again. "If you apply an out of sync energy, the two will disrupt each other. The greater the out of sync they are, sparks will fly as you can attest. In this case, it is my energy that is disrupting the energy in your arm."

Sam stares at the energy swirling around her arm and notices the pattern. He moves his hand away from her arm and the energy swirls move chaotically. Elsa winces in pain. He places his hand to massage her arm. The swirls return to the calming pattern. "Interesting!"

With a slightly higher pitch she asks, "What is interesting?"

"Your energy is not behaving as I would have expected."

"Oh?"

"This may take a little longer." He glances at her eyes. "So may I ask you several questions?"

Raising her brows and tilting her head slightly, she replies, "You can, but I do not promise I will answer them."

With a slight nod and a glimmer of a smile, he asks, "Fair enough, with the position you hold, I have done the same thing. I hope you will answer my question since I seem to have gaps in my memory, but are we in any type of relationship?"

A snicker comes from behind him. Larsen turns from them coughing and in a weak voice says, "Something got caught in my throat. I think it's out now."

Elsa glares at Larsen, but smiles at him. "Do you remember seeing me looking down at you by the steps?"

"Yes."

"What do you remember before that?"

His eyes dart back and forth as he searches, but they focus on the castle. Pointing his thumb over his shoulder, he answers, "I remember. . . I remember Aurora's rear hooves coming at my face. I assume she knocked me down, but then . . ." He cups her hand resting his arm on her arm. For a moment, he stares at the steps, "how did I get to there?"

Elsa turns his face towards her, "Your horse kicked your head . . . four weeks ago."

He snaps his head around as he lowers his brows. He searches her face for deceit. "Four weeks," his eyes focus on a misplaced stone on the ground as his mind searches for the missing data. He looks at her again. "Was it that severe that I was frozen for four weeks?"

She slowly shakes her head. "You woke up in less than four hours."

"So what have I been doing in the last four weeks?"

Larsen replies, "A few minutes ago you were fighting with Kristoff."

"Why would I fight him? He seems to be a nice gentleman with Princess Anna." Between Elsa and Larsen, they retell the last several minutes. After they finished Sam searches the sky. How is it, these two know what has happened, but he does not? "I believe there is something wrong."

"I will help you to get through this." She takes his hand.

He stares at her hand. "I don't understand why you are doing this."

 _Because I care for you._

"How can you speak to me in my mind? Only S5 and –"

Anna interrupts by giving him a hug from behind. "I heard what you said. You did this for me."

He touches her hand. "I did it for the both of you." She lets go of him and he turns around.

Anna slips her arms around his chest. Kristoff stands next to Anna.

Sam hugs her and holds out his hand. Kristoff shakes it. He nods to him. "My apologies for my actions. I meant no harm, but you needed to make a decision, so I pushed."

Kristoff nods. "I understand why you did it and I am thankful, but the next time you think I need to do something don't do it this way again."

He rubs the side of his face. "Agree."

Anna steps back and slips her arms around Kristoff. "Good, now that we are friends again. You can help with the preparations."

"Then I will start now." Sam motions Captain Larsen over who hands him the leather bag. He hands it to Anna. "The guards have donated a collection for your wedding." Shaking the bag to the sound of coins he continues, "This should get you started with your wedding plans."

Anna opens the bag and gasps, "How much is in here?"

"One thousand, two hundred and fifty-four," Larsen answers.

Anna hugs Sam and kisses his cheek. "Thank you for your help."

"It is my pleasure Princess and soon to be Prince Kristoff."

Anna and Kristoff, hand in hand, walk back into the castle. Sam closes his eyes for a moment. Queen Elsa clears her throat. He turns his head towards her and with a big smile states, "I guess I'm up next." He squints his eyes at her. "What else do you know about me?"

With a raised right brow and a glint of a smile Elsa walks towards the castle. Sam steps in line behind her at a distance as if she is wearing her cape and follows.

A soft clapping sounds behind them. They turn. A slightly shorter, thin woman walks towards them. "Well now, there he is." She clasps her hands behind her back and walks at a pace that causes her ankle length dress to sway back and forth.

He watches the familiarity of her movement and it brings back memories as she gets closer.

She stares at him and comments, "It's been many years since I last saw Admiral Ryan defend the rights of others, even at the cost of his pain."

"I think I know you."

She stops and brings her feet together with her hands to her side. "Maybe this will help. All hail King Agnarr." She turns her head and calling out, "You boys better not get Samuel in trouble with the King or I'll plant my foot in your backside." She shakes her fist as though she is threatening one of the boys.

"Hello Brigit, you're definitely not the runt anymore." He walks towards her.

Brigit places her hands on her waist and lifts up her chin. "You're not as tall as I remember, but the long white hair does make you distinguished."

He slips his arms through her arms lifting her up. Giving her a peck on her cheek, he holds her in a gentle hug and whispers, "I miss you and the rest of the gang."

She puts her arms around his neck and rests her forehead on him, "You still have very large shoulders."

"I will agree with that statement," Elsa comments and walks up to them. "Are you going to introduce your friend to me?"

He eases Brigit onto her feet. She steps back and curtsies.

He answers, "Majesty, this is Brigit. She was always at the back of the pack of kids. Every time your father rode through the town, she would call the kids to attention and bow to the King."

"I do recall mother telling me sometimes Father would ride through Arendelle hoping to see the young lady who gave him encouragement when she saw him."

"You two are making me blush, but I'll take the compliments anytime I can."

Elsa touches his arm. "Well, are you going to tell me how you met her and it sounds like you two ran the streets together?"

listen

Sam smirks as he places his hand over her hand. "Run the streets, I hope your definition and my definition are different, because we did not run the streets." He rolls his eyes up, "I recall, we ran the bridge, ran the wharf, ran through the town square, and occasionally ran into the hills, north of here."

With a grin Elsa shakes her head. "I bet you had fun, did you not?"

He stares at her and for a slight moment a twinkle sparkles in her eyes. She moves and a swirling motion draws his attention to her broach. Different shades of blue fold into themselves. Green appears as an undulating wave that rolls and flashes red.

An uneasiness focuses his mind. He replies, "Yes." The muscles in his cheeks relax, "Yes, I had fun with them."

Sam lowers his arm to break contact with her hand and scans the sky. The last few minutes of sunlight prepare to jump off the hills. He crosses his hands behind his back and he stands straight. He looks to Brigit, "How far is it to your house?"

Brigit glances to Elsa then back to him, "Are you ok?" He nods. "I live four streets across the square."

He glances at the gate. "If you run you will get home before it gets too dark."

Brigit grabs his arm. "I'm too old to run the way we did as children. I'll walk back."

Elsa touches his other arm. "Walk Brigit to her home?" He smiles at her. His eyes drop down to her broach. Blackness from his peripheral vision consumes all that he sees except for the broach on her collar, even the surrounding sounds go quiet. The broach color changes to a light tan. He blinks and feels a little light headed.

Elsa holds her hand over the broach. "What has your attention?"

Sam closes his eyes for a few seconds. The injured spot on his head begins to throb. He replies with a half-smile, "My apologies your Majesty. I don't know why your broach is such a distraction, but?" He looks away, not wanting to see her face.

"What is it?" Elsa asks.

"I'm not sure where I'm supposed to go after sunset." Brigit and Elsa glance at each other then they stare at him. He continues, "I don't remember where I lay my head down at night."

Elsa tugs on his sleeve, "Take Brigit home and come right back here. I will be waiting for you in the foyer. When I see you, I will come out and take you to your room. Does my good soldier understand?"

"Take Brigit home and return here. You will show me to my room. I understand." He takes a step back and bows to Elsa. He holds out his arm to Brigit. She curtsies to Queen Elsa. Her hand slides into the crux of his arm. They walk towards the gate in silence. He shortens his steps to match Brigit's walk. Larsen follows them to the gate.

Halfway across the bridge Brigit comments, "So how long have you been making eyes for our Queen?"

He stops with his brows down. "Making eyes?"

"Oh yes, when you look at her, your facial expression is like a happy puppy bouncing to its master," she speaks with a slight giggle.

"A bouncing happy puppy?" he asks as he continues across the bridge.

"Ah, come on, you're not going to tell me you don't have feelings for her, are you?" She giggles again.

He rolls his shoulders back, "So what if I do, I can't do anything about it as long as she is a Queen."

"What about you? Can't she give you a title or something like that?"

"She could, but unless the people of Arendelle are willing to accept me by her side, I will not put her through the turmoil that will surely come with it. Her life is hard enough without me making it harder. She deserves better." His head drops as he looks over the water.

"Like that Prince from the Southern Isles, that went quite well. Maybe the next Prince will bring a small army with him to be more persuasive."

"When the right one comes along, she will choose them."

Brigit elbows him. "And what happens to you if she does?"

"I could work in the stables or where ever I'm needed."

"Where ever you're needed? What if the new Prince convinces her to send you away?"

He glances down at her then looks at the water again. "If she tells me to leave, it will be for her best and I'll leave."

She stops and he continues for a few steps past the bridge before stopping. Brigit walks up to him. "You are a terrible liar." He snaps his head around to her. She points her finger at his face. "Did you even hear the words you spoke? I saw the last part of the fight. Kristoff better know you let him win. He gained favor with the Princess as you gain favor with our Queen."

Sam glances at her with some confusion.

"Don't look at me like that. I saw the connection growing between the two of you. It was like magic when you touched her hand, her face brightened up. When you massaged her hand and her arm, she studied you intently. She definitely wasn't trying to get away from you. That Captain stayed behind you the whole time. She could have given him a look and you would be dead now."

She stops at the square's platform. "On this stage how many times did you tell a story about a far off land and its strange people? How many times did you start your story with fewer children and by the end, this stage was filled with children and quite a few adults?"

He looks away. Everything she said was true, but he's not in charge any more. He has to let her make the decision.

Brigit stands in front of him with her hands on her waist as though she was about to chastise him. "What is wrong with you? Virtually all the children like you. Other than the snooty wives of the councilmen and that pompous bishop, I have not heard any adults say a disrespectful word about you. If anything they ask, when will you visit them?"

With the fading light, he can just see her pointing her finger at him as she continues, "I will give you my thoughts. If Queen Elsa accepts marriage from some fancy pant Prince and things go bad, the people of Arendelle will blame you, because you didn't do anything when you had the chance. Will you at least tell me you like her?"

He grabs her hand and holds it over his heart. "As long as my heart beats I will care for her and do everything in my ability to protect her. If making her happy means I need to leave, that I will do." He bends down and kisses the back of her hand. "I appreciate your efforts, but the fact remains. She is the Queen and I'm just a commoner."

They continue their walk up the street in silence. She stops at an alley and points to the stairs. "This is where I live."

He looks at the stairs. For a moment he searches further up the street. "I thought you lived in a house?"

"We did, but since Kristbjørn was lost at sea last winter, I couldn't maintain the house by myself. Mister Gostislav rents the small upstairs apartment to me and the kids."

The dim light from the street lamps cast eerie shadows in the darkness. He scans the area. "It seems you have a neighbor watching you from across the street in the upper room over the lawyer's office."

He barely sees Brigit smile, "It must be Ms. Hulda. Tomorrow she will be in Mister Gostislav shop and when I come in to work, she will make some scandalous comment about me being out after dark with a handsome gentleman. She will ask Mr. Gostislav why he rents his apartment to such a wanton woman."

"Maybe I should talk to her. She must be an understanding woman."

Brigit grabs his arm, "Sam, have you forgotten? Councilman Jensen is looking for any excuse to have you put in jail or banished from Arendelle. Just trying to talk to her and she will say you assaulted her. Let the old biddy look, we are not doing anything." She starts up the stairs. Two steps up, she turns back, "The kids haven't seen you in a month. If you have some time they would love to see you."

"Evidently things have happened in the last thirty days, I need to clarify. Maybe mid-afternoon I could come by. Maybe Kristbjørn will go fishing with us." He didn't need a lot of light to see the shocked expression on Brigit's face.

She brings her face close to his face. "What is wrong with you? Sam, what has happened to you? I just told you earlier, he was lost at sea when his fishing boat did not return." She steps off the stairs and reaches up to touch his face. "What else do you not remember?"

"I don't know. This is all new to me."

She takes his hand, "Let me take you back to the castle."

He does not move. "No, I can see in the dark. I'll make my way back safely. I don't want you injured on account of me. There is no reason to give Miss Snoop up there any more reasons to fuel the fire." He bows to her. "I'll wait until you are inside then I'll leave."

She curtsies to him and walks up the stairs. She glances back and enters the apartment.

He does not move for a moment and quickly scans the upper room. Two children greet her. He looks over his shoulder and performs an about-face. Raising his arm to point at the face peeking through the window, he bows. As he stands he yells. "Good evening Ms. Hulda."

A light breeze walks with him up the street. As he approaches the bridge and looks towards the castle, the warm air whispers in his ear.

 **End of Chapter**


	48. Chapter 47 Dragon Returns

**Title: Chapter 47: Dragon Returns.**

 **3 year 4 months until correction**

Sam remembers the city that never slept. In the city you could always find someplace to go. The city had its ups and downs, but it always prospered until the new political party came to town and to the nation. After they took over, the street lights in New York City were turned off on a rotating basis unless the company paid a usage tax to have power to their building at night. Most of the nightlife supported the government employees. The city had airships that patrolled the dark zones. If you were caught in the zones, you were shot like the rat they thought you were. Few ventured into the darkness after the university massacre.

He remembers seeing smoke rise to the north as they flew over Central Park. The pilot said there had been a large protest against his arrival several days earlier. Three hundred students and several faculty members died fighting the riot police, at least, that was the official report. Other students burned university buildings in protest of the killings.

He remembers reading the riot report. It said there were over two thousand casualties with another thousand captured. It was the start of many colleges and universities burning to the ground. Those same students and faculty members who propelled the government into power were the first to be declared enemies of the state. His new assignment to the partially built Central Park police fortress was to extract any and all information from those captured. He knew their fate, even when they said they supported the government. Most of those students were innocent. The government sent a clear message to the people.

Sam does not remember stopping nor for how long, but he suppresses the memories of his past. A flash overhead attracts his attention and gaze at the stars in the cloudless sky. Temptation pulls at his eyes to scan the sky for any man-made artificial objects, but since he crashed here, he has not detected any satellites. He walks along the street. Arendelle is nothing like the New York City before or after the new management. There is no night life here. The few lights in homes will go out within the hour. A warm breeze from the south entices him. He inhales as much of the ocean air as he can. As he passes the town square his eyes scan the empty sea. The water tide brushing the shoreline beacons him to come. He wishes to get higher to inhale the surrounding area.

Relenting to the temptation he climbs onto the top of the gazebo. His arm slides between the flagpole and Arendelle's flag. Between the two wall-towers, the ocean salutes him with its foaming white hand. Tiny droplets of moisture floating on the breeze brings a salty taste to his lips. The peacefulness of Arendelle sleeping calms his internal noise. One by one the remaining lights wink out. As it had done so many previous nights, Arendelle blends into the surrounding scenery. Overhead a meteor burns for less than a second and a minute later a second meteor burns across the sky a little longer than the first. Maybe they came from the same piece of rock that sent them towards the sun. Perhaps there will be more to follow those two.

A flag on the mask of a ship anchored in the harbor snaps in the breeze. A light appears along the castle wall. The light lasts as long as it takes the guard to move to the next turret.

Sometime later, a light moves past the cliffs along the ocean horizon. He wonders if a passenger or sailor looking in his direction will see the beauty of Arendelle. If a guard doesn't walk along the wall with a torch, will they think it is just another featureless coast line? He watches the ocean light drop below the horizon. It moves back above. Slowly it moves along the horizon, and disappears behind the cliffs. Yes, this is a typical night for Arendelle.

Several wolves howl in the hills behind him. A faint outline of his shadow appears at his feet. The flag taps his shoulder and seems to point to the quarter moon rising as it scoops up the stars. It will scoop many stars as it moves across the sky.

This is an even numbered year since his crash here. He searches around the moon. Maybe it is still too far out to be seen even by him. In another week, he will see if it taunts him again. He runs down the top of the gazebo and jumps to the ground. A rat scavenging food left by the day's vendor's runs towards the wharf, but the ice cold hand of death freezes it. Sam's boot sends it into the fjord. He searches for its friends, but they are the smarter ones and stay hidden.

He walks to the bridge and glances back at the homes. Mostly shadows, but the outline of the rooftop gives some depth to the darkness. He continues to the crest of the bridge. A splash causes him to peek over the edge. The moon's reflection distorts with the ripple of waves. He searches for the fish that made the splash. The breeze calms to disappear. The dark water flattens. An image of the heavens and stars replaces the sinister dark water. Another meteor flashes across the sky, but disappears when he looks up. All is calm and peaceful. A plopping sound draws his attention and he searches at the water just as the tail fin of a fish submerges. His eyes follow a ripple towards the bridge footing. As it passes the moon's reflection, a green object winks at him. The ripple distorts the green for a moment to display a red color. He stares at the green object and moves several meters past the bridge crest. He runs back across the crest several meters to the other side. The object stayed in the exact position in relationship to the moon's reflection. If the object was fixed in the water, it should have moved closer than farther away from the moon's reflection. The water calms itself and he spots it where he expected it to be hiding.

Sam slowly tilts his head towards the moon. The object winks at him again. The object's trajectory will cross the bottom half of a full moon in the next week. His fist slams into the stone siding of the bridge. His teeth clench together as he stares at it. The object taunts him as it had done since he crashed near Arendelle. It tempts him to come after it, to show who is in control. It laughs at him in his weaken state. It dares him to prove it wrong. He slowly closes his eyes and opens them to a vision with a dark green halo. He nods to himself and answers it, "I see you. You are early. You can't catch me by surprise. One day I will see your destruction. No more to wreak havoc on my life and those I loved. I will capture you and cage you in the box you came from. I stand here to defend those who do not see you."

The green dragon opens its mouth to eject the red fire of death. Sam waves his hand over the fjord creating a tower of water. He taunts back, "Come beast, I will quench your fire. I will close your gates so you will not capture any one. I will be your last meal to spew out across time."

The green dragon closes its mouth and continues to follow the moon. "I will be watching you." His green eyes track the green object across the sky.

Halgeir points to the bridge. "Don't you see it? Just above the right side. It's two green circles."

Magnus moves his head from side to side. He moves to the other side of the guard. "I don't see anything. Are you sure your mind is not playing tricks on you? With no breeze and smooth water, maybe you see a light in someone's home."

"May be, I'll ask if any of the others saw anything tonight. If they didn't see it, I'm just tired."

"Don't let the Captain hear you saying that. He'll restrict you to the barracks before your next posting."

With a snort Halgeir takes the torch and walks along the wall. The area around Magnus fades to dark except for the moonlight. He stares at the bridge for a moment longer. A green orb appears in the darkness. A second orb appears. They are exactly where Halgeir had said it was. He glances away for a few seconds. Two green orbs float above the right side of the bridge. He calls out, "Halgeir, Halgeir, I see your green monster. Get over here."

Halgier runs back, "You saw it, where?"

As they had appeared one orb disappears. The second orb disappears a second later. Magnus searches for them. "They are gone, but it was about two meters above the right side of the bridge, just as you said."

After several minutes of searching the dark. Halgeir throws his torch as far as he can. It lands a quarter of the way up the bridge. They squint searching the bridge.

"It looks like someone is standing there."

"Yes, it does. Who would stand out there by themselves? It looks like they are staring at the moon."

Magnus glances Halgier, "We were supposed to keep a lookout for a fellow. What was his name?"

"Ryan."

"Do you think that's him out there?"

"It could be," Halgeir answers. "I'll waken the Captain to see if he wants us to go out there and bring him inside the walls."

Several knocks sound against the door. A voice calls as the door slowly opens, "Captain Larsen, are you awake?" The door creaks open further. "Captain, we have an event at the gates."

Larsen groans as he rolls onto his back. Swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, he sits up. "What event?"

A small candle rises to reveal Halgeir in the doorway. "There appears to be someone standing in the middle of the bridge."

"Please do not tell me that is the only reason you woke me up. What time is it?" Larsen grumbles.

"It is a little before four o'clock. If it is a person on the bridge, they have glowing green eyes."

"Green eyes, it is probably Samuel Ryan's green eyed monster. Let him through the gates." He falls back onto the bed and after a few seconds he asks, "Anything else, private?"

"He didn't move."

"Did you open the gates?"

"No sir."

"How do you know he didn't move?"

"I threw a lit torch at him. It fell well short, but he did look in our direction."

Larsen sits up again. "He looked at you. Is that all he did?"

"Yes sir, he's just standing there and staring at the moon."

"The moon?" Larsen runs his fingers through his hair and shakes his head. On the mantel above the fireplace, enough light from the candle reveals the long hand is on the ten and the short hand is on the four. He shakes his head again. As he grabs his trousers off the chair, he says, "Okay, wake up the sergeant and tell him I'm going out the gate to get Samuel."

"Yes, sir," Halgeir leaves the candle on the table outside of the door and runs to the other end of the barracks.

"So much for sleeping in late." He slips his feet into his boots and stands adjusting his boots and trousers. The buttons on his shirt fight against passing through the button hole. Finally, all the buttons cooperate and he slips his arms into the uniform jacket. Securing his sword to his belt, he walks out the door and marches to the gate.

A couple of minutes later the guards come to attention as he approaches them. "Is he still standing on the bridge?"

"Yes sir. He has not moved. He just stares at the moon." The guard replies, looking through the bridge sight peep hole.

"Has anyone called out to him?" Not receiving a reply he steps on the sight stoop and looks out. He can barely see someone standing near the center of the bridge. "Is that where he has been the entire time?"

"Yes sir," answers Magnus as the sergeant and Halgeir trot up to them.

"Orders Sir?" the sergeant asks.

"You and I and these two will go out there and speak to Samuel, if it is him. Hopefully he will be in a talkative mood." He turns to the two privates, "Hands on swords only. Do not move them unless your life is in imminent threat of death. If you feel threatened it's probably already too late. You two will carry the torches." He frowns at Magnus and Halgeir. "Under no circumstances will you throw the torch at him, understand."

"Yes sir," Magnus and Halgeir answer in unison.

"Let's go see what universe Samuel is in right now." Larsen comments.

A guard opens the gate and the four men walk through. The gate creaks closed behind them as they march towards Sam. A quarter of the way over the bridge the tower clock strikes four o'clock. Larsen stops and raises his arms out from his side. The three men stop behind him. They wait for the fourth bong to stop echoing. Sam gradually turns his head towards them. Green orbs replace Sam's eyes. He recalls they are not the defensive green or the, 'I am about to attack' dark green color. This shade of green Samuel has not defined. With one hand he unlatches his sword belt and it fall to the bridge deck. He continues to hold his hands out to his sides. He peeks over his shoulder and says, "No sudden moves. I will talk to him."

"Captain, I'll go with you."

"No, sergeant, if any of us make a wrong move, we will be dead before a warning could be sounded. If he attacks it just means I die a few seconds before you do. Stand here for as long as you can or I come back."

Larsen takes a deep breath to calm himself. He slowly walks forward. His boots echo against the stones. As he gets closer Sam fixes his eyes on him. Larsen waves his hand. Not getting a recognizable response he asks, "Sam, are you alright? Queen Elsa was expecting you back several hours ago."

He stops a couple of meters from him and lowers his arms. "I'm not armed. I left my sword back there." He watches for any response. Other than his eyes moving he appears frozen in place. "Sam, do you know who I am?"

After a few seconds he replies, "You are Captain Larsen of the Castle Guards. Hum . . . why are you here?"

"I'm asking you the same question. Why are you out here on the bridge in the dark?"

Sam gradually turns his head towards the sea and angles his head up at the sky. "I'm watching for the green dragon and its red fire."

Larsen searches the area and looks over the bridge rail into the water. "I do not believe in the dragons of story books. With the low light and a flickering torch, men have reported seeing something that could appear to be a dragon in the water." He does not wish to dismiss the obvious before telling Sam he was seeing things. "Do you see the dragon now?"

Sam raises his hand pointing to the western cliffs. "It flew over there."

"Flew? You saw it flying like a bird?" He searches the cliff trying to think of a large bird that could be mistaken for a dragon. "I'll send a patrol up there. Can you describe what the dragon looks like?"

"They will not find it." Sam slowly lowers his arm.

Larsen recalls seeing a sea eagle many years ago. "Why would they not find it?"

"It flew over the horizon."

He glances at the western cliffs. "Maybe it is gone for good."

"No, it will be back."

He leans over the rail and sees nothing but the black water. "How do you know?"

Sam slowly turns his head away from him and points to the eastern cliffs. "It follows the moon."

"So the moon will be back tonight and the dragon will follow it." Sam nods his head twice. Larsen peeks over his shoulder at the other three. "Why don't you come with me to the castle? I'm sure our Queen will be filled with joy to see you. She is concerned, you did not come back as you said you would."

Sam rotates his head from side to side twice and continues to watch the eastern sky.

"Great, do you know what she will do to you if you continue to act this way?" He didn't think Sam would answer, but he knew their Queen well enough that she cannot continue to face his uncontrollability. "You have to come back with us before Queen Elsa banishes you from Arendelle. Please, come back with me."

Sam does not respond except to stare at the sky.

He turns and looks back at his guards. "I will not pretend to know what is going on with you. Maybe the poison has done more damage than you know." He glances up at him. "If you have to leave, leave now and don't come back. Do not hurt my Queen."

Sam turns his green eyed gaze to him.

Instinctually, Larsen reaches for his sword that is not at his side. "No one will attack you. I'll try to keep the staff away until you decide to move." His boots pivot on the bridge and crunches the sand. He walks back to the three guards and attaches his sword to his belt.

"Well?" the sergeant asks.

"Post a guard on either side of him and out of his arm length. When the staff starts to arrive, have a guard escort them past him. There are to be no conversations about him. If he is forced to leave, let it be because of his actions and not by a mistake we made."

"Are you going to let him stay there?"

"If you have a death wish, by all means, go over there and force him to leave." The sergeant takes a step towards Sam when the Larsen grabs his arm. "Once he has disposed of you, he may see the rest of us as a threat and attack." He lets go of his arm. "What will the Queen say when she wakes up this morning to find all of her guards have been slaughtered. What will the people say? By the time the military gets here, Arendelle would not exist."

The sergeant fidgets with his sword. "He is only one man."

He grabs the sergeant's arm again and whispers into his ear. "Ask the families of the sixty-five guards who lost their lives due to the arrogance of one individual twenty-two years ago?"

The sergeant snaps his head around to Larsen and barely emits an auditable sound. "That was him?"

"It was reported his eyes changed color. For the time being, leave him alone." He lets go of the sergeant and straightens his uniform. "Gentlemen, you have your orders. I guess I should wake up Kai and be there when he notifies our Queen, Samuel is out here."

Larsen walks through the gate towards the castle. A light flashes in the sky and the trailing flame of a meteor passes over head. He shakes his head and glances over his shoulder towards the gate. "Sam, you are down to your last few chances to remain here. I hate to see you go. Perhaps the sun will bring something new."

He knocks on the service's door and greets the guard. Inside the room he nods to the night staffer preparing for the day staff.

The staffer asks, "You're up very early Captain. What's the news at the gate?"

He glances at the guard standing by the door as he picks up a cup. With a smile he holds it out to her. She fills his cup with the morning beverage. "How was our Queen last night?"

"She was still up when I got here before midnight. She came in here and asked me for a cup of warm milk, stood at the door, and watched the gates." She sets the beverage pot down and leans close to whisper. "Our Queen had puffy red eyes and she was holding a handkerchief. She thanked me and left."

He takes a sip from the cup and nods to her. "Thank you my dear. This hits the spot. What time does Kai get up in the morning?"

"Not for another hour." She returns to her duties.

Larsen sits on a stool near the fireplace. The flames jump from one piece of wood to the next. With a snap, crackle and pop, a tiny burst of color shoots up from the flames. Red chases the green until they disappear into a puff of smoke. "Is that what you saw, Samuel?"

"I know you can hear me." The guard glances back at the gate. He steps closer. "You may be able to fool the Captain and the sergeant, and you may be able to fool Queen Elsa, you do not fool me."

Sam slowly rotates his head away from the guard.

The guard takes two steps towards him. "I believe this is all a show."

"Psst, Magnus, what are you doing? Leave him alone."

Magnus takes another step closer. "When our Queen finds out you are fooling her, she will throw you into the water?"

"LOOK OUT."

Magnus struggles to breathe with Sam's hand around his neck. Sam pulls him close to his face as his hand tightens. "Throw in water is a good idea."

Sam rapidly extends his arm over the bridge rail, sending Magnus several meters into the water close to the castle shoreline.

Another guard holds his sword pointing at Sam. The gates open. The sergeant runs out and forces the guard to lower his sword. "What the hell are you doing? Who gave you the order to draw your sword?"

The guard points to Sam. "He threw Magnus into the water."

The sergeant looks over the rail. More guards pass through the gate. "Anyone who draws their sword will be placed in the stockade for thirty days. You three, get down there and fish him out of the water. You run to the Captain in the castle and report what has happened.

After several minutes, scuffling shoes enters the kitchen area. "What are you doing here," Kai asks as he buttons the top of his shirt.

Larsen blows the steam out of his cup. "A guard saw two green orbs floating over the bridge and thought I might enjoy seeing it."

Kai's forehead wrinkles and his lips pull back to a thin line as he slips his jacket on. He moves to the counter and picks up a cup.

Larsen motions to the door. "Sam's out there."

Kai looks into his cup and sets it onto the table. As he walks out the door to the courtyard, he asks, "Why is he out here?"

Larsen does not answer, but sips his beverage.

A minute later Kai walks back in, "Where is he?"

He sets his cup on the table and stands as he adjusts his uniform. "He is on the bridge at the mid span. Before you ask, I did ask him to come into the castle, but he was not in a very talkative mood."

Kai glares at him and starts to speak.

Larsen holds up his hand. "Again, before you ask, Sam is watching for a dragon. He thinks as long as he is watching for it, it will not come back or something like that."

The door bursts open. "Captain, Private Magnus got too close to him and was thrown into the fjord."

"Where is everyone else?"

"After we fished Magnus out of the water, they are staying out of his way."

Kai shakes his head, "I'll assume Sam did the throwing." With a nod from Larsen, Kai walks quickly down the main corridor.

Larsen steps past the guard and casually walks towards the gates. Another meteor streaks over head towards the early dawn. He walks up to a shivering Private Magnus. "What did you say to him?"

Magnus and two guards jump to attention. "I was just trying to get him to talk."

"How close were you to him?"

"Three meters, maybe more, I was out of his arm reach, but I blinked. The next thing I know. I'm flying through the air and into the water."

"What did you say to him right before he grabbed you?"

Magnus looks down dripping water on his boots. He replies in a low voice, "I said maybe the Queen should throw him into the water for disappointing her." He speaks a little louder. "I have never seen anyone move as fast as he did and those green eyes. It was like there was nothing behind them, no soul."

"You're lucky that's all he did. Go change into a dry uniform and report to the sergeant."

"Yes sir," Magnus replies and marches towards the barracks.

Larsen commands, "You two with me." They walk through the gates and stop where the sergeant and the others stand. "Any other incidents?"

The sergeant answers, "No sir, after he dunked the private, he doesn't seem to be interested in us or the staff crossing over to work. He just stands there watching the eastern sky."

"Kai was up early this morning, so I suspect our Queen will be coming out here soon. Let's make sure everyone gives her the proper respect."

The sergeant looks towards the gate at the sound of someone tapping on the stones. "Too late sir, she is here now."

Larsen half turns as Queen Elsa walks past them. He quickly moves to get in step on her left side. Her hair hangs loose over her shoulders covered with an oversized gray wool shirt. Her black boots covering the legs of her black trousers, click on the stones. With no dress to hold up, she marches as a soldier with purpose.

She asks, "How long has he been standing there?"

Larsen answers, "He was spotted a half hour after three. Before that we do not know."

"Why did he throw your guard into the fjord?" Elsa asks without slowing her stride.

"The private commented something about you should throw him into the fjord." With enough light from the morning, peaking over the eastern sky, he catches a glimmer of a slight smile from her.

"Have you tried to talk to him?"

"I did as soon as I got out here at four. I'm not sure exactly what he was talking about, but he said he was watching the dragon."

She stops and turns towards him as she grabs his arm. "A Green dragon?"

His head pulls back by her unexpected response. "Yes ma'am, he said the dragon flew over the western cliffs. I thought maybe he just saw a large bird. I told him I would send a patrol to look up there. He said they would not find it because it follows the moon."

Lowering her brow she asks, "Moon?"

"Yes, he turned to the eastern cliffs and said it will be back. It will not come near as long as he is watching for it."

She sighs and continues across the bridge. Larsen stays in step with her. Sam stares at the eastern sky, but does not acknowledge their presence.

Larsen holds out his hand as he steps in front of his Queen. "Let me, just in case his arm has another muscle spasm. I don't think I could hold the other guards back and help you out of the water at the same time."

She moves his hand out of the way and approaches Sam. "It will be okay. Despite the state he is in, he will not hurt me."

Sam purposefully turns his head towards Larsen. She steps into his line of sight. Sam's brow wrinkles down. She waves her hand in front of his face. With a shaky voice she says, "He does not see me."

His head moves slightly and appears to be looking at her. His green eyes swirl back to his normal Hazel color. "He does not see me as though he is looking through me." She reaches up with her hand. "You poor thing."

As her hand cups the side of his face, arcs of energy shoot from her thumb and finger striking his face. A loud crack echoes across the fjord. The arc throws Sam across the bridge and his back slides along the bridge rail. For a few seconds the crack continues to echo across the fjord.

Larsen looks back at his guards and motions for them not to move. He steps closer to Elsa, but hesitates to touch her unless he receives the same shock that Sam did. "Your Majesty, are you hurt?"

"I cannot feel it," she replies holding her hand.

Sam grabs the top of the handrail and pulls himself to a sitting position. He rubs the side of his face. "What the hell happened? Did I get struck by lightning?"

Elsa kneels next to him holding her arm. He half smiles and stares at her hand. His eyes see his energy battling her energy in her arm. "It hurts, doesn't it?"

She tries to smile as she massages her arm, but the tight facial muscles says her arm is losing the battle.

He holds out his hand. "Let me remove my energy from your arm."

She lays her hand on his hand. He places his other hand near her elbow and moves it over her arm and hand. His hand crosses her fingers and tiny sparks leap from her fingertips to his finger. Her hand twitches.

 _You have caused her pain as you have caused others pain. Why do you continue to haunt me? I can't reach you as you cannot reach me. I need to leave until you are out of range. She will understand._

He repeats his hand gliding across her arm several times with her hand twitching less each time. The final time no more sparks leap between their fingers.

"The numbness should dissipate very shortly."

Larsen moves next to her and assist her to her feet. "Are you injured, Majesty? I will send for the doctor."

She shakes her head as she opens and closes her hand. "There is no need Captain. Samuel has removed the energy. I can feel the life returning to my hand."

Sam struggles to his feet. The back of his torn shirt hangs to his side. A slight red color covers the area of the rail where his back slid against the stones. A burning sensation covers his back. He faces the wall and spreads his fingers over the red stain. White sparkles jump from the red to his hand.

Elsa steps behind him and inhales a sharp breath. "Sam, you are injured."

He glances over his shoulder at her. "It's just a scratch." He returns his focus to the wall and waves his hand over the water.

Larsen moves next to Elsa and peeks around her. "Are you joking? You took the hide off your back."

A large ball of brown water floats up and over the bridge. Sam points to the blood. The water presses against the blood and freezes solid. His hands make a circling motion over the ice and it breaks free of the bridge removing his blood. The ice floats past the rail and liquefies as it rains into the fjord. He winces and falls against the rail.

Larsen and Elsa grab his arms, but they are not able to lift him to his feet. After a few seconds he pushes against the rail and stands. He turns to them. "I can walk."

Elsa clenches her jaw and holds her previously injured hand. "You are not planning to run away are you?"

He narrows his eyes slightly at her. _How do you know what I was going to do?_

He stands tall. "No."

"If you can walk, walk one meter behind me." She marches towards the gate.

Larsen points his open hand towards their Queen.

Sam falls in line and takes longer strides until he is one meter behind her.

Larsen follows them and commands the guards as he passes them, "everyone back to your duties."

 _What am I doing? They can't stop me. She logically guessed at my actions._

He looks towards the East at the yellow and orange sky. The dragon is not there, it will be back. Its presence continues to call him. He will be prepared for the next encounter.

A chill passes through his body. She peeks over her shoulder for a moment. "Are you still with me or do I need to slay your dragon?"

 **End of Chapter**


	49. Chapter 48 Friends

**Title: Chapter 48: Friends**

 **3 year, 4 months until correction**

Sam follows Queen Elsa into the castle and down the hallway to her study. She steps into the room and lets him enter, but stops Captain Larsen. "I can take it from here. If you must post a guard by the door, no one is to enter."

Larsen nods and positions himself outside of the door as she closes it.

A memory flashes into Sam's mind. Queen Iduna invited him to meet the King and made the point he could leave if he does not follow their commands. A moment of depression sits on his shoulders as he sees how the room has changed. The large desk, a little less shiny with a few more nicks and dings, still dominates the room by the window. The small table with four chairs has been replaced with a long table and two chairs. The maps on the wall have been replaced with well-worn books on shelves. The morning glow reflecting off the castle walls illuminates the room.

He starts to speak, but Elsa points her finger at him. "Not one word, I will heal your back. We will discuss you later." She removes her papers from the table and places them on her desk. She motions with her hand over the table. "Take your shirt off. Lay face down on the table with your head towards the door." He starts to speak, but she cuts him off. "Not a word."

Sam unbuttons his shirt and peals it off his back. He folds it in a way that the bloody part of the shirt is on top and places it on the chair. He sits on the edge of the table and rolls onto his side then lies face down. The table is just long enough for his height, but short enough for his feet to hang over the edge. Elsa moves the two chairs against the wall.

"Captain Larsen assessed your back correctly. It looks like the top layer of skin was rolled back to this side." She taps his side. "The left side of your pants have a red stain forming about the size of my hand." Can you feel this?" She pokes her two fingers into his bottom.

"Yes."

"When I turn away, pull your trousers down to that spot." Elsa turns towards the wall.

Sam loosens the draw string in his trousers and slides them down to the point she had indicated. "Okay," he says as he places his hands under his face.

She turns around and stares at him for a moment. "Turn your head the other way." He faces away from her. "How much ice is needed to start the healing process without putting you into a dormant state?"

"Half the thickness of your first finger should do. Make sure all areas are covered, but do not go more than a centimeter past the edge with the ice."

"What about the rolled up skin on this side?" She drags her fingernail across the healthy skin.

His side tightens as he emits a sound.

"I apologize. I did not mean to cause you more pain."

"It's okay. When I lose focus, I can become ticklish."

"Ticklish? Now that is interesting."

He starts to turn his head towards her. She smiles at him. Not the 'I am happy to see you', but more of the 'I have another secret about you' smile. "You did hear me say when I lose focus as in pain I maybe ticklish?"

"I heard you." She thumps his side. "The rolled skin?"

He rolls his head away from her. "Remove it."

"With what?"

"A small sharp knife will works. If you don't have one I'm sure Larsen has one on him or he knows where to get one."

"Wait," he raises his head and rubs his hands together to form a small sharp knife made of ice. He holds it behind his neck, "Take this and don't let it melt."

Her hand slides across the back of his hand as she takes the knife. For a few seconds he does not move, but allows her touch to radiate up his arm. A tremor in his shoulder sends a shiver across his neck. The corners of his lips gradually curl.

"Are you okay?"

"I am fine." His hands repositions and he rest his cheek against them. His breathing slows to be consistent with no sudden movements.

Elsa tugs on the rolled up skin on the back of his shoulder. The ice easily cuts through the skin. She cuts slowly. After a few minutes she cuts along his lower back.

Sam hesitates to speak. He knows she would not do anything to hurt him, but the lapse in his memory and circumstances may be creating more stress on her. He feels her tension through her touch on his side. He is causing it, but how do you ask for help from the one person you are causing to be in pain. "Elsa?"

"Quiet, I am not finished," she rebuffs.

He does not move. The image of the temporal gate occupies his mind with distractions. He does not hear her speaking to him. A sharp pain jabs at his side. He turns his head towards her.

"There you are." With a smile she kneels next to him. "Your eyes changed to a dull green. What were you thinking?"

"Right after you told me to be quiet, I started thinking about the green dragon and you poked me my side."

She leans her head in close to his face. "I told you to be quiet thirty minutes ago. Your back is covered with the ice as you specified. Were you thinking about the dragon the whole time?"

He looks down, then back at her. "I remember looking up at it like I did last night, then you poked me." He searches her face and locks his eyes onto her eyes. "I find it disturbing I don't remember. On the bridge I saw Larsen. I did not see you until you touched me. I do not recall loosing so much time. I know I'm having memory lapses." He forces a smile. "I guess Pabbie did not fix my memory issues."

A shadow moves under the door. Another shadow from the other side of the door, crosses the path of the first. For a moment the two shadows merge as one. They separate. One moves to the right of the door and the other moves past the door. "I see the Captain has placed another guard by the door."

"It is for your safety."

"Mine or theirs?"

Elsa places her arm on his shoulder and runs her fingers through his hair. "Does it matter as long as you heal? How long does the ice need to be on your back?"

"Several hours, no more than eight at most."

Sam forces another smile and asks, "Is private Magnus okay? I heard the other guards say I threw him into the fjord. I don't remember doing it."

He looks into her eyes. "If I don't recall my actions, I'm a danger to you and the others." His forehead wrinkles as he tries to hold back an emotion. He rapidly breathes through his mouth. "Elsa . . . I need help controlling this until the dragon is out of range."

Elsa leans her face against his arm, "How long until it is out of range?" Her hand rests on the back of his neck and generates a slight cold.

His neck relaxes as he stares at the floor. "I saw it last night. In two days it will cross the face of the moon. Four days after the crossing, it will be out of range."

His breathing slows as the chill on his neck calms him. The pain in his back disappears. It becomes harder to focus. His body has stopped responding to his command to move. He tries to smile, but does not know if he did. His eyes want to close as he fights a losing battle. He has enough energy to say, "Elsa?"

She moves her head next to his and whispers, "I am here."

With his eyes almost closed he barely whispers, "Thank you."

He surrenders. His eyes close as he takes a deep breath and sighs. Something soft and moist touches his cheek and he hears, "You are welcome, my Prince. I will be nearby when you wake up."

His mind sleeps, but his audio nerves continue to transmit to his brain. He hears movement followed by the door opening.

Elsa stands. "Good, exactly what I need. Help me to lay it across his back."

"I have seen Kristoff pull a frozen animal out of the water, but to see his back frozen with the rest of him a normal color, seems a little eerie." Anna giggles, "Ah, his butt crack is showing."

They cover his back with his boots and head exposed.

Anna pulls his long white hair out from under the blanket. She spreads it out to make it appear to be snowing in the crocus flower design on the blanket. "If it grow much longer, it will as long your hair." She grins at her sister. "I bet I can style his hair like your hair and when you two walk together, other than his height and clothing, from behind no one would be able to tell you two apart."

With her right brow raised higher than her left, Elsa stares at her sister. "He is two and a half times larger than I am. Think they notice that?"

"Well maybe, I have never seen him with a style other than straight, so can I style it for him?"

Elsa runs her fingers through his hair. "Even though he is asleep, he can hear you. Hopefully he will not remember when he awakens."

"How long will he sleep?"

"Six days, I want to make sure the dragon does not affect him when he wakes up."

"What dragon?"

"I am not sure." She ruffles his hair. "When he wakes up, I hope he will tell me."

They move towards the door. Anna comments, "I suspect you will be spending most of your time in here. At least you can get your work done in private." The door closes and the lock clicks.

Queen Elsa reschedules her meetings that Anna did not feel comfortable conducting by herself like the Council meeting. Even after this amount of time, she hesitates to take charge. "Father, I wish you were here. You did not seem to have a problem with them."

By the end of day three, she signs her name to the last report and closes the ink well. A knock sounds and the door opens.

"Majesty, break time for your meal," Gerda says carrying the tray. She sets it on the corner of the desk. "Will you be working late tonight?"

"No, I am caught up through today." She places the report on top of the stack of papers. "You have good timing. I am starved."

"Don't say that too loud." Gerda points to Sam. "You know he can still hear you? I'm sure he will be upset to know you have not been eating properly."

"A little sacrifice to finish all the reports is good for me, at least until I fall behind again. I wonder how father did it."

Gerda sets a glass of wine, the butter dish, and two rolls on a small plate in front of her. "Queen Iduna relied on King Agnarr to run her Queendom. She ran the castle. Your Father gave her brief reports." She sets a bowl of stew in front of her and holds out a rolled dinner towel. "Your Father had three trusted advisors and your Mother had myself, Kai, and Helga before she left Arendelle with her husband."

Elsa places the towel in her lap. "I noticed you did not mention the Council." She scoops a spoon full of soup and sips a taste.

"That was your Grandfather's mistake." Gerda slips her fingers through Sam's hair. "He should have hung Peter Jensen with the others and confiscated the Malt Jens fortune. Instead of offering an olive branch to him. Then you would not be suffering his mistake." She runs both of her hands through Sam's hair and lets gravity to pull it through her fingers.

"That is a little harsh. Arendelle is not that big compared to other kingdoms."

Gerda runs her fingers through his hair again. "What does he put in his hair? It's so soft like a newborn wolf puppy. And no I'm not being harsh. I put the blame for your mother and father's death on the Jens family. The youngest son is causing you trouble in the meetings."

"And how would you know?" Elsa soaks a piece of bread in the soup.

"Sam may have trouble fitting into this world, but he is not wrong." She pats his head. "He stays back and waits for you to ask for his help." She walks to the door and looks back. "Don't wait too long. Give him a little task to prove himself to you. I will be back in thirty minutes to pick up the bowl." The door closes behind her.

Elsa finishes the soup and butter the remaining piece of bread. How can I trust you with a little task when you create distractions? I wish I could trust you. Even Anna seems to be holding back. At least she has Kristoff. They appear to be doing better.

She picks up her glass of wine and sits in a chair next to the table. She runs her fingers through his hair. "She is right. It feels softer than usual." She sniffs his hair. "It smells cold."

The glass empties as she swallows the last of the wine. Her fingers slide along his neck. They stop on the four specific points on the face and neck. Should I see what his mind is doing? Are you awake? She presses three of the four of her fingers. Press the fourth finger and she will see, but what if he does not want me to see into his mind. Are you on your snowcapped mountain waiting for me? Are you fighting the dragon? Her fingers slide off his neck.

Setting her glass on her desk, she slides her chair around to face him. Leaning close to his face, she cannot determine if he is breathing. Her lips parted as she exhales a cold fog into his face. A minuscule amount of the fog changes direction and passes into his nose. At least he is breathing that gives her some comfort, he is alive.

She rests her cheek on his face and whispers, "How do you feel? I hope you are resting comfortably. Anna was right. When I tell everyone I am checking on you, no one knocks on the door or interrupts me, except Gerda when she brings me the evening meal. I have caught up reading the reports and finish issuing instructions. Too bad you are not awake. We could go riding into the hills."

She taps his chin. "And you could tell me what the dragon is and why it affects you so much. Of course Anna comes in here, not so much to talk to me, but I think she likes the feel of your hair, so do not blame me if she styles your hair." Her fingers glide through his hair. "It is soft to touch. I noticed it is cold, so what is your secret to keep it so very soft.

She cuddles his face. "I know you do not want to come to the council meetings. I wish you would go in there with me. Even Anna is starting to show signs of their stress. Every time I think we will discuss my proposals, Jensen wants to rehash old topics and time runs out. They leave and I feel frustrated. The past few meetings, my head hurt. I wish I had your courage. I wish Papa was here to tell me how to control the council. She pushes his hair behind his ear. "Gerda will be here soon. I think I will go to bed early tonight, so I will give you your good night kiss now."

Hesitantly, she returns the chair back to the wall and departs the room.

The following morning, Elsa walks down the hall to her study room. As she approaches the door, a shadow moves in the corner. Stepping back her palm aims towards the corner.

A cloaked figure steps out of the shadows. She pulls her hood back and curtsies. "Majesty, I apologize from frightening you."

Her blond hair as golden as the sun slips off her shoulders. She appears familiar, but different. "Did I see the other night," Elsa asks.

She nods. "Yes Majesty, I am Brigit."

"Brigit. It must have been the evening, but I thought you had darker hair." It was not that dark, but why do you look different.

"Majesty, are you okay?" she motions to the door.

Elsa enters her study. "I must apologize to you. Sam is still asleep."

"I know he is."

She turns to Brigit. "He had an incident the following morning he took you home."

Brigit closes the door. "I know."

She is acting peculiar. How does she know? "I do not know when he will awaken."

"Tomorrow."

"What about tomorrow?"

"Samuel will awaken tomorrow."

"How do you know?"

Brigit lifts the blanket. "His injury was healed two days ago." She places the blanket back over his back and tucks it under his shoulders. With a slight grin, she glances at her. "If one was to apply a cold sensation to the back of his neck at the right temperature, he would fall asleep."

Elsa moves behind her desk and holds her hands gradually getting colder behind her back. Who is this person who knows Sam's secrets and why is she here now. "Again, I ask you, how do you know?"

Brigit slips her fingers through his hair. "Did you notice in this state his hair is actually cold?" She chuckles. "Of course you would not notice the cold as compared to your hands." She stands in front of the desk. "I did come here to confront you. I'm here for him. I don't know if he has told you about his Green Dragon that pass near every two years. I usually feel his anxieties as it passes, but this year I did not feel anything from him, so I'm here." She walks back and kneels at the end of the table.

Leaning close to Sam, a lock of Brigit's hair glows as it falls on his white hair. She lightly strokes his face, Sam moans. "How much do you know about the dragon?"

Elsa stares at Brigit. Why has he not mentioned her and why did she show up the other night. What is your relationship to her? Brigit's eyes target directly at her. Can you hear me as he does? Are you friend or foe?

"Majesty, please do not be rude. I asked you a question. We have a common interest in Samuel, but for different reasons."

"And what is your reason?" Elsa demands.

"Okay, let's go down that road. When the dragon passes near. My husband and I would allow him to sleep on the floor in our house. I covered him with a blanket as you have done here. You use the cold from your hands to help him to sleep. I created a barrier around his mind, until the effects of the dragon wears off. When I share my energy with him, as you have seen, my hair glows. I am able to calm his mind." She tucks her hair back. Small sparks flash as her hair separates from his hair.

Brigit stands and grasps her hands behind her back. "This would have been the sixth time. I would have been here for him. When he did not show up at my home, I went looking for him. I knew he worked in the stables, but it did not occur to me that you had an interest in him." She taps Sam's face. "And you will have to explain to my children, why you have not visited them."

Elsa walks to the end of the table and runs her fingers through his hair. She is right. His hair is cold. "I know he does a lot with Arendelle's children. He seems to be happier with them. As for your question, I only know the Green Dragon exists for him."

"No Majesty, it is as real as you and I are. In due time, he will tell you how the Green Dragon spewed him out of its mouth and caused him to land north of Arendelle." Brigit moves to the door. "I see Samuel is in your good hands." She opens the door and pulls the hood over her head. "Majesty, in case you do not know, he likes you." The door closes.

A few minutes later, Anna knocks as she enters. "Who was that going down the hall? I do not recognize her."

Elsa answers as she continues to watch the door. "Her name is Brigit. I met her the other night. Sam knows her."

Anna stands at the end of the table and runs both of her hands through Sam's hair. "Brigit is a pretty name. There must have been something wrong with her."

"What do you mean?"

"She hid her face under her cloak. It sounded like she had been crying." Anna begins to braid his hair.

"Crying? She did not seem to be upset. As she left, she made the comment that Sam likes me."

Anna snorts, "Everyone knows that despite what he says."

Elsa opens the door. "Then why would she be upset?" She runs down the hall and out onto the steps. She searches the courtyard, but does not see Brigit. She starts down the steps.

"Majesty, may I assist you?"

She turns to the guard standing at the top of the steps. "I need to talk to the young woman wearing the maroon cloak."

The guard looks around the yard. "I did not see a maroon cloak. Can you describe her?"

"She would have come down the steps a few minutes ago."

The guard moves his head to the left, then to the right. He glances back at her and continues searching. "Majesty, I was at my post by the door fifteen minutes before you came out here. I did not see anyone. I will check with the gate guards. Perhaps they saw her pass through the gates before I came on duty. I will check." He marches towards the gate.

I know it has not been fifteen minutes since she left. She could not have run out the gates with no one seeing her. Elsa looks at the castle doors. Is she still inside? She recalls the events in her study before Anna came in. Anna saw her. A sharp pain stabs behind her right eye. The image of Brigit's hair glowing flashes into her mind. Her touch caused Sam to moan. He has never done that when I touched him while he is asleep. Did she hurt him? Frost forms around her hands. Stop, why would I think that, but she knows more about his secrets than I do. Is that why he never mentioned her?

A screech sounds above her. As she looks up a large bird cast its shadow onto her. Its wings spans the sun as though hovering. Not a beat of its wings, but it drifts over the fjord. Elsa holds her hand up to block the sun. The white tail of the bird twitches one way and then the other as a rudder on a large ship keeps it on course. The white tail keeps the sea eagle over the thermal waves. Another screech sounds as another large bird passes above the castle wall. It carries a fish in its talons to a tree across the fjord. It screeches again. The first bird flutters its wings and maneuvers towards the second bird. Gracefully, it drifts down towards the trees.

Are they paired together?

A third screech sounds and the first eagle beats its wings to gain altitude. The third smaller bird gives chase after the first. Has one of them violated the territory of the other? Is the first bird the intruder? The second bird takes flight without its fish. It gives chase after the other two. The larger bird leads the two smaller birds over the fjord and dives below the walls. Several screeches sound. The two smaller birds race upwards. The lead turns to the pursuer with its talons ready to grab. They collide and lock into the dance of death. Screeching at each other, they both fall and before dropping below the wall, they separate. One flies towards the sea. The other screeches and flies towards the tree where it landed with its fish. The larger female bird passes low overhead and screeches. It appears to look directly at her and screeches again as if to say he fought for me.

"You do not see that too often. I guess the two males fought for the female. I wonder if she had a choice in the matter." Captain Larsen says as he approaches her. "We did not see any woman in a maroon cloak."

Elsa continues to watch the female eagle land on a branch near the male. "I hear you. If I want him, I need to fight for him."

"Majesty?" Captain Larsen asks, "Are you feeling alright?"

She stands in her regal pose. "I feel fine. Why do you ask?"

"You were pacing in a circle, then watched the Eagles fight."

"I was? Did either of you see the young woman in a maroon cloak?"

Captain Larsen and the guard glance at each other. "We just told you we did not see her."

"Thank you Captain. I have my answers." She turns and walks up the steps.

Anna meets her at the door. "There you are. I thought you were coming right back?"

She looks at Anna. "I have been gone only a few minutes."

"Try twenty minutes." Anna takes her sister's arm. "Are you feeling alright? Your eyes appear glazed." She pulls on her arm. "You did not stare at the sun did you? Momma said you will go blind if you stare at the sun." She pulls harder. "I want to show you something. If you do not like it, please do not tell Sam."

Elsa allows Anna to pull her towards her study.

On day six, Sam awakens and pushes up on the table to arch his back. He draws his knees under him and bows his back, as the blanket slides off. He stands and stares at the purple and green material with a single yellow flower on the blanket, before picking it up by the corners. His hand slides across the soft material. Two distinct fragrance rise to his nose. The dominant fragrant smells of him, like he has been asleep longer than he thought. The second fragrant, probably the stronger fragrant until they laid the blanket on him, has a sweet fragrance of a local flower, but he does not remember where he had seen the flower.

A knock sounds from the door. It slowly opens. Gerda sticks her head past the door. "I thought I heard you wake up. How do you feel?" She asks with a smile.

He folds the blanket. "I feel good for lying here six days instead of the eight hours." He hands her the blanket. "I'm sure this needs to be washed."

She drapes the blanket over her arm and sniffs it, "It doesn't smell as bad as the first blanket you used when you were frozen in a block of ice."

His left brow rises as he stares at her. "One, I was not completely frozen. Two, why six days?"

Gerda opens the door. "Don't blame her. She did what she had to do to protect her people." She motions with her arm for him to follow.

He trails behind her, out the room. "Eight hours were sufficient. Who is she to decide how long I sleep?"

Gerda does not answer until she starts up the stairs. She pivots on the second step and points her finger at him. "Really, now you answer my questions truthfully. Do you control that green dragon or does it control you?"

"Neither."

"Does the dragon influence your behavior?"

He hesitates to respond, but answers, "Some."

"A lie, it influences your behavior a lot. Think back to when you saw it recently," she rebuffs him.

He tilts his head down slightly as his eyes focus on the blanket. For a few seconds he doesn't move, then he looks at her. "You are correct. It takes control when it is at its closest point to me." He glances away. "This time has been the hardest for me. It took control too easily. I threw that guard into the water and I didn't see her walk up to me." He shakes his head with a sigh. "Our Queen made the correct decision. With the uncertainty, I would have done the same thing."

Gerda places her hand on his shoulder and glances at his hair. She smiles. "After you wash up, go tell her she did the right thing." She walks up the stairs and comments over her shoulder. "Before you come down you may wish to change your hair style. That style looks better on Elsa than on you."

He stops and closes his eyes as he feels his hair in a braid.

Halfway up the stairs Gerda says, "You have about another minute before the guards walk through here. You probably don't want to stand there too long."

Taking three steps at a time, he meets her on the resident floor and follows her down the hall. She opens the door to the room next to the Queen's room. He stands in the hall.

She calls to him. "Why are you waiting?"

"I thought you were taking me to my room."

"This is your room."

He moves to the doorway and points down the hall. "Is that the Queen's room?" Gerda nods to him. "If I am currently erratic in my actions, why would she want me next to her?"

"I guess you will have to ask her the next time you see her." She looks in the water vase. "Come on in and wash up. They have already started eating. They're waiting for you."

Gerda walks back to the door and pulls him into the room. "You have clean clothes on the bed." She moves to the door. "Sam, I want you to know. Your incident of throwing the guard into the fjord did not go unnoticed by a member of the council. He has persuaded three other council members and several individual citizens to petition our Queen to banish you from Arendelle. She has been fighting for you."

He looks at the clothes on the bed and replies, "Interesting."

The door closes. He walks towards the bed and catches a glimpse of his hair style in the mirror over the bureau. Turning his head to either side, he remembers Elsa saying Anna like to touch his hair. Before he could stop himself, he blurts out, "Anna, How could you?"

A snicker sounds outside of the door. He quickly un-styles his hair and pours water into a basin. After washing his body with the small cup of soft soap he sniffs his shoulder. A soft musk fragrant arises from his skin. "I hope she likes the smell of this."

He slips his arms into the gray, long-sleeve shirt and sits on the bed to slide into the black trousers with the black mid-calf boots. In front of the mirror, he notes his white hair clashes with the darker clothes. For a moment he considers cutting his hair, but his appearance differs from his past.

His head moves from side to side. "Maybe it's time for me to let it go. The hair stays, but not with the curls." He creates a slight chill in his fingers and runs them threw his hair. After a few seconds his hair is straight. He nods to the face in the mirror. "Will she like it? Will she forgive me?"

Before exiting the room, he places his hands on the bureau and bows his head with his eyes closed. "Cat, I can't let others suffer for my mistakes. It has been too long since I last heard your council. I promised her parents to protect her, but I have gotten too close." A knock comes from the door. He looks up in the mirror towards the door. "Enter."

Kai enters the room. "You appear halfway human once you clean up. Let's go. They are waiting for you."

Pushing away from the bureau, he lowers his head and walks out of the room. He catches up with Kai, as they start down the stair. He asks, "May I ask you a question?"

Kai wrinkles his forehead. "You can ask anything."

Sam stops and grabs his arm.

Kai stares at his hand.

"I need an honest answer, not the politically correct stuff you feed the royals. If it is beyond your capabilities, be man enough to tell me." It is the first time in all of the years that he remember, Kai shows uncertainty. He lets go of his arm. "I apologize, I truly need an honest answer. Have I caused Queen Elsa more harm than I have helped?"

Kai starts down the stairs slowly. "You ask a sensible question. I have known our Queen as long as you have. About a year after King Agnarr banished you from the castle, he had an honest moment. He told me he made a mistake in sending you away. When Princess Elsa began showing her powers, Queen Iduna begged him to let you come back and teach her, but I'm sure you already know the castle walls can hear. A certain councilman received word the King was considering to contact you. Agnarr had a private meeting and it was made clear in no uncertain terms that if you can back, the councilman would fight him at every decision. The King had two little girls to look after their well-being."

"I understand."

"I don't think you completely understand. King Agnarr's councilman had a son. The son is the same councilman who is pressuring Queen Elsa to banish you. To answer your question I cannot say for sure. It's about fifty-fifty on the good and bad you do. If you leave, the councilman wins and you break our Queen's heart. You stay, you better do more good than bad or the councilman wins and you break our Queen's heart."

"You have answered honestly. If everything is weighed evenly, I have a one in four chance of getting it right."

They continue down the hall and stop at the dining room door, but Kai does not open it. "Whether that number increases or decreases will depend on how you conduct yourself in here." Kai glances back at him, "My advice, you should go to a council meeting. You don't have to say anything, just sit there. Almost immediately you will know who the adversary is."

Kai opens the door and announces him, "Majesty, Samuel Ryan is available."

Sam walks into the room and stops at the end of the table. He bows and examines the table. Only three place settings with three plates are set in front of the three guests. He whispers to Kai, "Where do I sit?"

Elsa provides the answer by pointing to the chair to her immediate right with an open palm. He bows again and strides along the side of the table to the last chair. He pulls the chair out. "Thank you Majesty, I am honored you invited me." He notices the slight rise in her right brow as he sits with his back straight and his hands folded in his lap. Everyone stares at him in silence.

Gerda enters the room and bumps into him as she places the food plate and cup in front of him. She sets his utensils next to his plate.

He leans towards her and asks, "I know I have been away a long time, but I don't remember so many forks next to the plate. Which one do I use?"

She glares at him as a chuckle escapes her lips. "Really, you're a big boy. I think you can figure it out." She walks back to the service room.

Kristoff smirks at him with a smile. The other plates have all three forks on them.

He purposefully looks closer at the three forks next to his plate. "Well, they look different from each other so they must have their specialty." He takes a deep breath and picks up the outside fork. A foot taps his boot and he puts the fork back.

"I suspect this fork is used for what I'm not having." He picks up the second fork and a foot taps on his boot then he puts the fork back. "I guess the plate is the main meal and that fork would be for a salad or something else that I'm not having."

He picks up the fork next to his plate. Not receiving a foot tap he eats the meat and vegetables. Halfway through the meal he notes Anna sitting back in her chair with her arms crossed and smiling at him. Kristoff stares intently at him. Elsa also watches him. He sets his fork on the plate and he looks down at his shirt. There does not appear to be a stain. He reaches for the napkin and wipes his mouth.

With the slightest nod Elsa smiles at him.

Sam glances at the others and picks up his fork. Several minutes later, he wipes up the plate with the bread and finishes his drink. The three continue to watch him. He examines his shirt again for a stain. Finding none, he shifts his weight to lean towards Elsa and whispers, "Your Majesty, are we waiting for something?"

Elsa frowns at him. "We were being polite by waiting for you."

He sits up straight in his chair and notes the arrangement of the utensils on the other's plates. He sets his utensil on his plate to match everyone's plate. The silence begins to disturb him. They continue to watch him.

He looks down at his hands in his lap. _Are they waiting for me to say something or see if I will lose control? What has happened to them? Have I changed too much? WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR?_

Gerda enters the room and picks up the plates. She moves around the table and bumps his arm with her elbow as she picks up his plate, "So what have you been talking?"

He replies, "The sound of silence."

"A Quiet subject, you will need to tell me how it ends." She collects the rest of the meal and he watches her walk back to the service room.

Anna nods her head twice towards Elsa. She stares at him.

He glimpses Anna and Kristoff watching him. "Okay, obviously something is going on and I'm totally in the dark." He turns towards Elsa, "Your Majesty," he immediately notices Elsa drops her brows as she pulls her lips tight, but he continues. "I'm getting the impression, what I'm missing directly involves you."

"Yes, it involves me and you." She leans towards him. "I can work with you losing your memory and the strange way you act, but it is a little thing that bothers me." She leans back in her chair and lowers her head.

"Majesty, I don't understand."

She leans forward quickly. "You are doing it now."

She throws her napkin onto the table rattling her cup. She pushes her chair back and walks quickly past him. At the end of the table, she stops with her head down and she leans against a chair.

He watches her and shakes his head. "I don't understand. I'm sorry. I don't understand."

Anna whispers, "Sam, she wants you to call her by her name, not the title."

For a moment his eyes dart back and forth as though he searches. His body turns towards her as he calls to her, "Elsa?"

She moves her head but does not look over her shoulder.

He continues, "Is that what you want me to do?"

She doesn't move.

Pushing his chair away from the table he walks towards her and stands an arm length from her side. Without moving she looks up at him. Her eyes glisten with excess moisture. He searches and struggles for words to speak.

 _I am causing your tears._

He holds his breath and stands motionless. His eyes lock onto her eyes. His mouth opens to speak, but nothing comes out. With an exhale he forces the words out. "Elsa, I do not understand when I should or should not use your title or call you, Majesty. I feel . . . I feel we have had this discussion before now."

She turns more towards him as a moisture trail runs down her cheek. "Yes, we have. Look around the room."

He searches the room.

"Who do you see here?"

"I see Princess Anna, Master Kristoff, and you."

"Who else?"

He searches the room again. Anna points at him. "Myself, makes four."

"I will say this one more time and hopefully it will be the last time. When you see just us and no one else, call me by my name. Use my name when you are with just Anna and Kristoff or with them individually, as long as no one is within hearing. If you have doubts use my title. Do you understand?" She turns completely towards him.

With a half-smile he nods. "Now that you mention it, I do recall you saying those identical words." He glances at the floor, then back at her. "May I clarify my actions?"

His heart begins to race. His instinct is to stand at attention and clutch his fist to his sides, but sensing very little emotions from her he is down to one chance. Failure at this moment means no future with her.

She dabs the corners of her eyes with her sleeve. "Clarify your actions."

"The truth?"

With a nod and a slow blink, she answers, "Yes."

"The original truth did not go as planned. I promised King Agnarr and Queen Iduna I would protect and keep their two little girls safe until such time as they found others to protect them. I promised to fight behind the scenes preventing any harm to come to the ruler." He looks towards Kristoff. "I know he will protect Princess Anna with all of his being. Most of the people in Arendelle like the both of them, so I do not see any significant problems for either one of them."

He looks back at her and sees the hurt in her eyes. A pain stabs his heart. He stares at the floor and drops his defenses. "My intent was to protect you and scrutinize all of the suitors who are sure to visit you. While my intent is true and honorable, my heart has chosen a different path. I should have cut my hair to my former appearance. I do not believe in coincidences. Doors are opened and we are given the chance to walk through. Most of the time fear grips our mind and prevents us from stepping through. Fear of the unknown is a powerful weapon. Sometimes stepping into the unknown is far better than what we already know." He clamps down on his emotions and looks at her. His hand slowly reaches out to her as he steps closer.

Her eyes blink and a tear rolls down her cheek. She stares at his hand.

"I cannot guarantee what tomorrow will bring, but I know what I know now. If you tell me to leave, I will leave, never to come back. My mind will understand the logic in the decision, but my heart will break."

She lifts her head quickly with slightly wider eyes searching his eyes.

"I know there is a suitor out there who will capture your heart and you or he will ask me to leave. Again, my mind will understand. My heart will break. If I do nothing the probability of either one of those scenarios happening is almost certain." He takes a step closer still holding out his hand. "I will step through the door but . . . but I need your help."

Her voice quivers. "My help, what do you want me to do?"

"I ask for your mercy and have patience with me. Please do not banish me from Arendelle. I know my actions have caused more stress for you. My mind has trouble remembering. There are things that I should know, but I can't remember." With a slight smile, "I guess the old toad did not fix me as well as he implied."

Elsa chuckles, "I do not think Grand Pabbie is a toad."

"And he didn't attack you when his family first saw you either, but I still need your help."

She slides her hand across his fingers and rest her hand in his hand. "I thought you could do anything."

He lightly closes his hand around her hand. "If I was in my environment, it would mostly be a correct statement, but I'm not. I'm in yours. I need you to help me to travel through your world. I will not promise I will retain the information after one lesson. That is where your patience will be needed. I cannot promise I will not have an event or events like the past two months. I will promise, if you give me a little flexibility in those moments where your safety is an issue and let me protect you, I promise to follow you and act on your commands when I understand them. Over time, I will understand with clarity. Again, your patience will be needed until I do."

Sam lifts her hand and places it over his heart. Elsa steps closer to him. He continues, "My heart can be a little emotional at times."

She encourages him with a smile, "go on."

"A truth, my heart wishes to sweep you up in my arms and carry you to a place where we have no worries." He lets out a sigh, "My brain says that can never happen. Even if I could prove to you that I am an Admiral of a fleet of warships, Arendelle's laws and the monarchy laws prevent us from being together."

She wrinkles her brow, "How do you know Arendelle laws say we cannot be together."

He stares at nothing for a moment. "Governance Law of Arendelle, book seven, page sixteen, gives specific conditions for the ruling monarch to enter into a marriage."

"I know what it says," she interrupts. "I have read it many times since putting on the crown. My question is how do YOU know that is what it says?"

"I believe it was right after the thaw, I convinced the keeper of the books to let me read it."

She leans back inclining her head. "That old man let you read it?"

"Well, after I helped him back to his cubby hole, he fell asleep in his chair. I did not wish for him to fall out of his chair and injure himself, so I stayed around until he woke up." He shrugs his shoulder. "I entertained myself by reading."

"And you happened to pick book seven to read?"

He nods and looks up, "And most of the others, the two I didn't read had the ruins symbols."

A glint of a smile forms across her lips that changes into a grin. "What happened that he needed your help to get back to his cubby hole?"

"I can't help if he doesn't know his alcohol limit."

"You got that old man drunk to get into his office," Anna laughs.

With a straight face he looks at Anna and replies, "oh no, he got drunk all by himself. I only had three drinks." Elsa pinches his side, and he fights not to laugh, but gives in with a big smile as he gazes at her. He takes hold of both of her hands and places them on his heart. "If there was any other way, I would drop to my knees right now and ask you. Don't even consider advocating your throne. Arendelle needs you and I will be happy to follow you, even if it means," he swallows hard, "to be just out of arms reach."

He feels her heart beating in her hands, but more importantly he feels her presence.

Kristoff breaks the mood. "What happens when the green dragon returns?"

Sam continues to gaze at Elsa and asks, "The truth?"

She nods.

He grins and closes his eyes for a few seconds, but answers, "This will be a little harder to explain." He lets go of her hands and steps back. "Since I crashed here the dragon comes by every other year. This year has been the worst year for me." He looks at the floor. "I can only speculate that this year the dragon made its closest approach to me."

"Do you know when it is approaching," Kristoff asks.

"Yes, it's like when you get hungry. When the hunger hits, you know it's time to eat, but you may not know the exact time you will eat. Sometimes you can ignore it. Sometimes the longer you wait the harder it becomes to wait and the least little thing will remind you of your hunger." He observes Elsa and takes her hand. "When I was walking back, I should have kept going, but I wanted to see how Arendelle appears when it falls asleep. The breeze stopped and the fjord surface became smooth like glass. I watched the stars and a few meteors flew overhead. A fish disturbed the water and that's when I saw the dragon. I didn't want to look up, but it opened its mouth and I saw the fire in its heart."

Kristoff comments, "There is no such thing as flying dragons around here."

"And the rest of the world claims there are no trolls. Yet you know differently. I never imagined I would meet anyone who controls ice and yet here she is."

Elsa glances at her hand. Her smile blossoms with a pink hue on her cheeks.

"The dragon I see is not like the flying creatures drawn in a book." He looks at Anna's hair with the ribbons. "My dragon is called a Temporal Ribbon. If you take one of Anna's ribbons, hold one end in your hand. Take the other end and move it up and down. You will see a wave traveling down the ribbon from one hand to the next. If you could keep a wave going through the ribbon and bring the two ends together you create an undulating circle. In the center will be a red glow. Through the red, you will see other worlds."

"Is that how you landed here?" Anna asks.

"As a matter of fact, that is exactly how I got here. The Green Dragon spewed me out of its mouth and I crash landed here." He stares at Elsa by focusing deep into her eyes.

 _Do you see I'm telling you the truth? I do not wish to intentionally hide anything from you, but will you understand I'm not from anywhere near here. Could you love an erratic monster?_

"Yes I can and you are not a monster," Elsa replies.

His left brow jumps up. "You heard me?"

With a sneering smile, her other hand pinches his cheek. "You are holding my hand. You tell me." She frees her hands and stands in her regal pose. "If you meant what you said be here tomorrow to have breakfast with my family. I will give you a few notes on how to conduct yourself in a royal meeting. You will observe only. Will you be here tomorrow?"

"Will it be just you and me?"

"No, Anna will be there."

"Do you need me to hold your hand?" Anna snickers.

"Will you be my good little soldier?" Elsa whispers.

"That's not fair?"

"I am the Queen. I do not have to be fair," Elsa answers with a smile.

He squints his eyes at her. "Your mother said the same thing to me many times." And with a nod, "Okay, I'll be here for breakfast and I'll keep my mouth shut during the whole meeting."

Elsa steps up to him as her arms slip around his waist and she rests her head against his chest.

Sam wraps his arms around her shoulder and kisses the top of her head. "This feels nice."

She whispers, "Thank you."

 **End of Chapter**


	50. Chapter 49 Rules of Royal

**Title: Chapter 49: Royal Rules**

 **3 year 4 months until correction**

Sam lies on top of his bed and his eyes snap open to a dark room. The clock on the fireplace mantle makes the only sound in the quiet room. He stares into the dark and locates the tick-tock sound. In his room on his ship the red numbers of the current time are displayed on the wall. "It is too bad timepiece technology will not be available for another century and a half. If that is the alarm clock, how is anyone supposed to get across the room to turn it off if it's too dark to see it?"

A light tapping followed by a muffled voice sounds from the wall behind his headboard. "Put it on the night table next to your bed."

He rolls to the side of the bed and smacks his head against the corner of the table. Losing balance his momentum pushes him onto the floor. He holds his head.

The sweet voice from the wall calls to him. "What was that? Are you hurt?"

"My head had an altercation with the table. I've been injured in a room that will turn into a death trap if anything else is brought in here." A giggle sounds from the wall. "Since you're awake how do you see in the dark?" As soon as he spoke the words, he knew it was a mistake.

"I have a lit candle next to my bed." Elsa replies with another giggle.

He blinks his eyes to see a blue tint around everything. A box of matches next to a candle sit on the bedside table. He scans the room. A glow radiates from around the curtains covering the balcony door. The new day approaches. The rest of the room is as sparse as it had been the previous night. His room appears large with only his bed, the bedside table, and a small table with two chairs near the fireplace. It's nothing like the Admiral's quarters on his ship the Aurora. Touch a switch and a wall panel opens for his uniforms and the occasional leisure clothes. Across the divided room would have been his office and eating area which he seldom used. He remembers LadyCat getting up early to sit in his office as she reviewed and changed the scheduled training flights. He does not move from the stone floor and closes his eyes.

Her calm voice asks, "Are you ok? You feel sad."

"I have too many thoughts in my head. Pabbie should have blocked some of those. Are you normally awake at this time of morning?" He detects a noticeable hesitation.

"I also have many thoughts running through my mind. The council meeting is tomorrow. The next few weeks will be stressful, but I will get through it." Her voice changes to a happier pitch. "There are clothes hanging on the back of your door. Change into them and I'll meet you downstairs by the kitchen."

"Unless you are ready to leave now, may I wait for you by your door?"

"I would like that."

Sam crawls over to the wall separating the two bedrooms. His desire wants to reach her, but not invade her privacy. He sits on his heels and lightly touches the wall. His hand begins to glow. His energy seeps through the wall. It pushes a little further and detects the other side. Suddenly the spot gets cold. He moves his hand and the cold spot follows his hand. His other hand touches the wall and in a few seconds another cold spot mirrors his hand. He stretches his hands out as far as he can separate them, but the cold spots stop short to half his forearm. He slides his hands back to the cold spots and touches his face to the wall. Finding another cold spot he places his forehead against it. The sensation of his energy merging feels like a cool blanket. His body thirsts for her energy. A knock sounds on the door in the next bedroom. The cold spots withdraw quickly and disappear. He pushes on the wall to stand and moves to his door. The light in the room has increased enough for him to see the clothes on the door. The green shirt and dark green trouser fit comfortably. The bedroom door in the next room opens and closes. The slight tapping of the shoes, walking across the floor echoes in the hall.

Sam slips on his shoes and exits his room. The guard at the end of the hall watches him as he stops in front of the Queen's door. Several minutes pass and he hears silence in the room. He glances at the door and glances at the guard with his hand on the hilt of his sword. He grins at the guard and presses his palm on the door. A cold spot draws his attention as the door opens. He steps back. Elsa steps into the hall and he admires her blue dress minus the snowflake train. She closes the door and he holds out his arm.

Her hand slides into the crux of his arm and he waits for her to take the first step, but instead she adjusts the top of the dress and smooths out a wrinkle. She stops.

He stares at the movement of her hands when they stop. A rush of warmth fills his face. He realizes where her hands have stopped and looks up.

With her right brow sharply up, she stares back at him with a glint of a smile. "If you do not focus you will fall." She adjusts her dress to remove the one last wrinkle. Her hands slides along the dress one last time. She holds his arm and steps. He moves to stay at her side. As they step down the stairs, she asks, "How long were you going to wait by the door before you placed your hand on it?"

With a smile he peeks at her. "It was a debate as to how long I planned on waiting. To alleviate my waiting from this moment forward I will check every time." He turns his head towards her, "with your permission of course."

Elsa nods to him. "Permission granted."

As they reach the bottom of the stairs, he comments, "You look beautiful today."

"Thank you."

"I noticed you didn't bounce coming down the stairs. It was more like you glided down."

Now she smiles, "Years of practice, I noticed you did not bounce either."

"When I carried a weapon on my person, bouncing would throw my targeting off, so it's a left over from that."

"Interesting!"

They continue into the kitchen. The staff greets and nods to their Queen. Elsa converses with the staff. A different energy draws Sam to the door, but does not open it.

He reaches for the handle and stops. He wills his body to move closer, but it refuses. His eyes scan the door. The exterior appears to be cold not from the weather, but from it. He recognizes the familiar change of colors. "I know you are out there. You should be gone by now. LEAVE ME ALONE?" He clutches his hands. "I will find you." He presses his fists against the door. Ice crystals form on the door around his fist. A sheen of ice coats his hands.

A cold spot forms in the middle of his back. Another around his upper arm.

"I WILL DESTROY YOU," he yells.

A light flashes in his mind to bring him back to the now. He snaps his head around and a beautiful face with her brows drawn together looks up at him.

Elsa whispers, "Are you okay?"

He forces a smile, "I am now."

"I do not believe you." She moves her hand over his heart and slides her other hand on his back just under his left shoulder blade.

Removing his fist from the door the ice melts. His hands relax and the ice drips onto the floor. He stares at the door for a moment. His head gradually turns towards her. Past her the staff crowds in the hall with Kai standing in front of them. His heart races as his breathing becomes labored.

He looks into her eyes. _You would be doing me a favor by ending the pain_.

She barely moves her head from side to side as moisture builds in the corner of her eyes.

He asks, "Are they preparing you a cup of tea?" She nods. "Would they be inconvenienced to prepare me a cup of tea with a little honey?"

"Kai, another cup of tea with honey," she commands. Her hand slides from his heart to his arm.

"Yes, Majesty," Kai answers.

He whispers, "If you wish, I can show you the Green Dragon."

"Bring the tea to us in the courtyard."

He opens the door and peeks at the sky. They walk a short distance. A slight saltiness sweeps over him with the gust of the wind. It is sending him a greeting. The dark blue sky gives way to the orange and yellow of the rising sun. The moon sits slightly above the western mountains. He scans to the east of it and he finds the dragon. Upper level clouds moving from the east will soon obscure the dragon.

"Do you see it?" Elsa stands next to him.

"Yes, we don't have much time." He points to the western mountains. "You see the moon?"

"Yes."

"Scan about a quarter of the way towards the east. There are four stars. Three form a shallow spoon and the fourth is to the left and above of the three stars. See them?"

"I think I do."

"Hold your finger out, pointing to the right and have the fourth star touch the top of your finger. Slowly pull your finger to your left and a black spot should appear at the end of your finger. Do you see it?"

She moves her finger several times. "I must be looking at the wrong star. I'm not seeing it."

He turns to her. "If you will permit me, I can help you to find it."

"Yes please."

Sam steps behind her. "In order for me to guide you, I have to get very close. I promise I'm not accosting you."

With a slight chuckle, "That I am sure."

He lowers his head to her level. He reaches around her shoulders and lightly touches his right fingertips to the side of her face and neck. "I need to see what you are seeing. You almost looked at it. Slowly roll your eyes up until I say stop. Okay, stop. Now roll to your left, stop. That's it."

"I can barely see it. Is that the dragon?"

He whispers into her ear, "Do you want to see it up close?"

"Yes, I do."

"I have to touch the other side of your face. As the dragon gets bigger you may feel dizzy. Hold on to me. I will not let you fall." The fingertips of his left hand lightly touch the left side of her face. He stands to align his head directly above her head and closes his eyes. Gradually his fingertips move until his thumb touches the top of her neck just below her skull. She barely rocks and he drops his elbow locking her against him.

The tiny dark spot begins to expand. A distinctive green color forms in the undulating mass.

Elsa pushes back into him and grabs his trouser legs as she gasps.

"Look at the mass only. I know it's tempting to look around. We will do that later. For now we need to get closer to it." The mass leaps at them.

She flinches and pulls on his trouser as she tries to back away.

"I've got you. As long as you are with me, I will protect you."

Her breathing slows as does her heart rate. She takes several deep breaths.

"You are doing fine," he encourages.

She speaks to him. _It is green and it looks exactly like a ribbon. So this is your dragon, where is its fire._

 _Keep watching near the middle. It will show its fiery breath. See the red spot._

 _Yes, I see it._

 _In just a moment it will disappear. As the dragon undulates, it is also slowly rolling. You will see it._ Several minutes pass. The dragon rolls, opening its fiery mouth as he said it would.

 _Does it spew the fire out?_

 _Not in the same sense as you see a fire. The green dragon is a temporal gateway. Go into the red area and come out the other side mostly in the same area of space but in a different timeline._

She asks. _Why did you focus on it? Does it have power over you?_

 _I don't know if I fully understand it myself to adequately explain it to you. My powers come from a specific star. It's too far for me to see from here, but there is a developing technology that will allow you to see it. I surmise the gate gets its power from the same star as I do, so there is a conflict between us. It wants me to pass through it again to absorb some of my energy._

 _You said it wants. Is it alive?_

 _It is alive as the water in the fjord is alive. The water itself is not alive, but is influenced by external forces and is as alive as the sea creature swimming in it. If it was alive with a conscience to think or with instinct, it would have come after me a long time ago. It responds to forces against it. That is why it takes two years to complete its trip around the sun and the outer planets._

 _Will it always travel along the same path?_

 _Until something forces it to take a different path._ He hears metal sliding against metal.

 _What is the timeline you mentioned?_

 _That is a lot harder to explain. Now would not be the best time. We need to plant our feet onto the ground._

A slight sensation of falling concludes with a sudden stop. He opens his eyes and the pointy end of two swords points at his face. He detects two more behind him.

Elsa inhales. "What are you doing? Get those away from us. Sam, I order you to keep your hands on me. Do not lift your hands." She looks behind him and yells, "Who is in charge here?"

"I am," says the night lieutenant.

"If you and your men wish to see the sun rise tomorrow, I order you to put your swords back in their scabbards. If on the other hand, you have a death wish, I will drop to the ground and cover my head so your blood does not splash onto my face. Choose?"

Sam closes his eyes. The surge of energy surrounds his muscles as they charge for an explosion of movement. He begins to take deep breaths as his body tenses.

Elsa yells at the guards, "Choose, I cannot hold him back for much longer."

Four swords return to their scabbards. Elsa turns around wrapping her arms around his chest, "keep your eyes close and calm down. That is it. Release your energy."

He lowers his arms around her shoulders. "I did not hear any boots walking away."

"Lieutenant, why are your guards still here?"

"My apology Majesty, the way you two were standing, it looked like he was accosting you, again, my apologies." The lieutenant bows to her and motions for the other guards to move away as he walks back in the direction he came.

"You can open your eyes now."

He gradually opens them and scans the area. He looks down at her. "At least they were paying attention. A little slow for my preference, but they did respond." Her right brow rises as a smile forms. His brows drop as he thinks of another Queen, who made the same expression when she thought she had something on him. "When your mother made a similar smile everyone ran for cover. Unfortunately, it was directed at me too many times. Should I run?"

Her smile gets wider as her arms squeezes tighter around him. "What is in your pocket?"

He hopes she has not detected his excitement. "I don't have anything in my pocket."

"Really," she presses her chin into his chest and slowly moves her waist to one side than to the other.

 _Oh crap she knows._

She bares her teeth in her smile.

"Okay, you win, but there is nothing in my pocket except me." She continues to slowly slide her waist against him. He drops his hand to her waist forcing her to stop moving. "I said you win. If you don't stop, we will both be embarrassed."

Elsa stops moving and rests her head against his chest. "I did not know you liked me so much, so what triggers it?"

"Alright, I'll confess a truth. Years ago while I conducted business for precious jewels, I inadvertently rescued a blond female from a slave trader."

"What? How do you inadvertently rescue someone?"

"I cut his hand off after he pushed me twice so she thought I was rescuing her. I took her on my ship and promised to drop her at any port she wished, but it could not disrupt my schedule to meet the other jewel sellers." He shrugs his shoulders. "Well, she never picked a port. I was happy with our arrangement. She had valuable tactical information that helped in my cause. At a port, while I waited for the seller to show up, we were attacked. After I defused several of the attackers, one got in a lucky shot that knocked me down. I was about to be seriously injured when she stepped between me and them. She held them back and they were giving way to her. I got up and helped her to finish the task. We heard more on the way. She took my hand and led us out of the building through a secret passage. I didn't meet the seller. We made it back to my ship without any further disruptions. I sailed for the next port. She wanted to talk about the missed opportunity with the seller, and well," his face suddenly becomes warm as she smiles at him. He narrows his eyes. "Stop that, do you want to know or not?"

"Yes, I want to know, please continue." Elsa continues to smile as her waist moves to one side.

"If you continue I'll walk away." As much as he wants her to stop, he doesn't want her to leave just yet.

"I am sorry, but I have not had this much fun in tormenting anyone in, I do not know when, but because I like you I will stop for now. There is no guarantee I will not do it again." She teases. "So you missed the seller and well?"

"Well, we got too close. I gave into the temptation. After some time I told her that my God considered us to be husband and wife."

"What did she say?"

"She asked if I was sure. Before I could answer she said let's make sure and we did. We have a sixteen year old young lady who coincidentally overnight, her hair color changed to the same color as your hair."

"Do you miss them?" he slowly nods his head. "Where are they now?"

His emotional excitement drains and he answers, "They are long dead."

"I am so sorry. I did not mean to bring up those memories."

"Don't worry about it. That chapter has been long closed." He hugs her a little tighter. "I'm still writing the current chapter."

"Does it have a happy ending?"

"You could stick around with me to see if it does end with a happy ending."

"I would like that."

He turns his head and rests his cheek on the top of her head. The nagging thought returns. Since landing in Arendelle he always kept his distance just in case someone from his past appeared. It would minimize the collateral damage if they did.

Sam whispers, "The truth is, she and I had nothing. Pirates raided her village and took slaves before they burned it. She had nowhere to go. I was lost. I had no home port. I wasn't looking for pretty sparkly things to trade. I searched for the crystal Tytrianium." He snickers, "you think you have powers now, imagine your powers amplified by a factor of ten. Instead of freezing Arendelle you would have frozen most of Europe."

"And that is funny?"

"No, it would not be funny if you triggered another ice age. She and I had nothing and we were drawn together." He looks down at her and moves a strain of hair from her face. "You have everything. I crashed here by mistake with the full intentions of leaving and yet I'm still here. What is my motivation for staying?"

She looks up at him. "You are staring at me with a smile and nothing, but you in your pocket. What more do you need to stay?"

"You're right. I would be a fool to leave."

"Who is the fool?" Anna asks from behind them.

They take a step back as each slide their hands along the others arms until their hands pass. Elsa folds her hands in front to stand in her regal pose. Sam clasps his hands behind his back and looks to the eastern sky. "I think we will have a bright day today."

"Yes, I agree," Elsa replies.

Anna hooks her arms around Elsa and his arms. "I don't have to read either of your minds to know you two were enjoying each other's company, so who is the fool?"

He looks at Elsa for a moment longer. He glances at Anna. "I'm the fool."

"Why," Anna asks.

"Currently there are no possibilities for your sister and me to be together. If it can't be done legally, Elsa has a whole lot more to lose than I do. It would not be fair to her."

"I would not tell anyone. I know Kristoff would not say anything."

"As careful as we may be, it would take one mistake and Queen Elsa's rein would be over." He glances at her. "There are far more people in Arendelle who needs her than for me to be selfish."

Elsa slowly turns her head towards him as her right brow rises and a smile forms. Pulling on Anna's arm, she walks around in front of him. "Let us get inside before he makes me cry. You may have given up, but I have not exhausted my resources. Breakfast should be served in a few minutes. Do not be late." Anna lets go of his arm and walks in step with her sister.

In the dining room, Sam slides the Queen's chair out and offers his hand. Elsa takes his hand and sits. He quickly moves to assists Anna to her chair. He moves around the table to the second chair from the Queen's right.

Elsa taps the table to her immediate right. "Until further notice and we do not have a guest, you will sit here. If I have guests, you probably will not be in the room."

He sits in the chair to her immediate right. The server room door opens and two kitchen staffers bring in the breakfast. They serve Queen Elsa first and Anna second.

As the server places the third plate in front of him, Anna comments, "Kristoff said he had to check on the ice and had breakfast before he left. That is why I went outside and caught the two of you."

"You did not catch us doing anything. We were admiring the few remaining stars before the sunrise." Elsa replies. Sam studies the herbs in the scrambled eggs as he picks at it with his fork.

Anna snickers, "Not from where I stood, it looked like you were admiring each other more than the stars."

"Actually, I showed Elsa the green dragon that spewed me on to your lands. She saw it as I see it. We looked at the stars. She defended me from the guards who were about to run me through with their swords. They thought I was attacking her. You showed up." Sam comments as he continues to pick at the eggs and smoked fish.

Gerda barks at him from the server's door as he takes the first bite, "Samuel, what are you doing?" He looks up at her as he holds the second bite on his fork. "If you are going to sit at the big table with royalty, you will observe the rules. Like you don't pick up your fork and eat until the host starts."

He looks at Elsa and says, "I guess that is you." She nods to him with a smile. He sets the fork down and leans towards her as he glances at her plate then back to her. She does not move and he asks, "Well?"

Elsa leans toward him, resting her chin on her fist, with her elbow on the table. Gerda steps close to him and pops him in the forehead with the back of the spoon. "She can lean towards you, but you do not lean towards her."

"At this rate my meal will get cold. Who thought of this stupid rule?" he asks, rubbing his forehead.

Elsa touches his arm, "I can feel your frustrations. Ladies, we need to teach him the things he needs to know to conduct himself properly in manner with other monarchs, government officials, and their designated representatives." She squeezes his arm and generates a light frost. His eyes watch her hands and slowly roll up to see her. "Admiral Ryan, I need you to listen to me."

She stares into his eyes. A faint blue tint radiates from everything.

 _Is this for the mission?_

"That is correct. To fulfill your mission you need to conduct yourself in a manner everyone will think you are a part of them. You need to collect information and report it back to me."

 _Are the other two providing information only or will they be part of the team?"_

She answers, "This is a solo mission. You can ask for additional information from them. Do not get them involved."

 _I will report all data directly to you._

"Correct."

 _Do you authorize me to act independently for your safety?_

"If it is an imminent threat, you are authorized. Other conditions, you will speak with me first, understand?" He nods to her.

"Were you reading his mind?" Anna asks.

"Not just reading, but communicating with him," Gerda snickers.

"Can you hear his thoughts?" Anna asks with wide eyes.

Gerda smiles and barely nods.

"Why can I not hear his thoughts? Can you use your magic so I can hear Kristoff's thoughts?"

Sam looks in Anna's direction, "He is not like me and you are not like them."

"What?" Anna leans back in her chair.

Elsa grabs Anna's hand. "His statement is true. I will tell you why we can later. For right now, we need to teach him what he needs." She looks back at Anna. "This will take some time. If you have other things to take care of, now would be the time, but if I call for you please be available. You have much to teach him as we do." She glances up at Gerda, "You are first."

For three hours, Elsa, Anna, and Gerda recite proper greetings, speaking, royal etiquette, and the title ranking includes who sits where, according to their titles. They show him the seals and current rulers of the surrounding kingdoms. Gerda shows him the proper methods of setting a table based on the purpose of the meal and the type of meal served. She shows him which side of the guest to serve the drinks, meals and dessert to the royalty. Anna shows him the game of chess, fencing, and teaches him several phrases in French, German, and Spanish. Elsa focuses on the essentials to ruling Arendelle. She takes him to the council chambers. As she walks around the table, she speaks the name of the councilman who sits in the chair she places her hand. She stops at the chair at the end of the table with its back to the door.

She asks, "Do you understand?" He nods his head. "Why does your expression say you do not understand?"

His eyes close for a moment. He opens them. Everything in the room has a blue tint. He looks at the individual chairs mark for the councilmen and the chair at the end of the table. The blue tint disappears as he partially smiles and says, "Two issues, one, if I'm to sit here than I request no one enter through this door during the meeting. I would hate to accidently injure someone sneaking up on me."

"When your eyes are blue can you see behind you?"

"See no, sense them, yes, do you wish for me to sense what's behind me when I sit with my back to the door?"

"Yes."

"I will do as you ask. Second issue, you mentioned a councilman's name of Jensen. He is the son of Jens?"

"Yes." She moves towards him.

"Then we may have a problem. How many brothers did he have and what happened to his father?"

Elsa stops next to him and lowers her brows. "I am not aware he had brothers. I think his father died before my parents. Will this be a problem?"

"If he does not recognize me, there will be no problem. If he does, there could be a fight. I had shorter hair and appeared older when I last saw him."

She grasps his hand. "Why will there be a fight?"

He places her hand over his heart and lightly strokes her cheek with the back of his other hand. "I do not wish to create hardship for you or anyone else by mistake."

He looks past her for a moment. His eyes gazes into her beautiful blue eyes. He sees innocence in her eyes like a child entranced in a story eagerly waiting for the next part. She is not a child any more. She needs all of the information if she is to rule wisely. The corner of his lips curls up.

She glances at his smile.

Long ago, they were beautiful brown eyes that stared back at him. The feeling in his heart reminds him of the young, brown eyed woman who gave him comfort. His arms take the cue from his heart and slowly wrap themselves around her. His cheek presses against her head and he whispers, "If I'm right this will be the greatest challenge to your crown. Ask Gerda and Kai if Jensen is the son of the councilman Jens during the early part of your father's reign."

She whispers, "Why don't you tell me?"

"If I'm wrong, it is one less prejudice thought you need to be concerned."

She leans her head against his chest. "One day you will have confidence in me to answer my questions directly."

"Most humans learn to crawl before they can walk. One day you will get your wish." He tilts her head back and kisses her forehead.

"Hopefully, it will be sooner than later. Go back to the dining room and wait for me. I'll find Gerda or Kai and ask them." Her hand slides across his chest and down his arm as she steps around him and departs the room.

He observes the room and notes the walls, the tables, and the shelves to either side of the door. The high window to his left allows the evening sun to mark the end of the day. Behind the Queens chair hangs a street map of Arendelle. The rectangle table in the center with twelve chairs dominates more than half of the room, but she only listed six councilmen. With her chair and his chair, who sat in the other four chairs? It didn't matter to him. He has been taught what he needs to associate with the royals who will be coming soon. He walks back to an empty dining room. With a cleared table he sits in the chair to the Queen's right. Clasping his hands and resting them in his lap, he leans his head back against the chair.

A blue tint radiates from everything in the room as his eyes close. His mind scans the first floor and watches everyone performing their duties. He scans the upper floors. In the library Kristoff has returned and Anna appears to be whispering to him. She moves to his lap. Now they are doing more than whispering to each other. He scans past them and out into the courtyard. Everyone displays a golden halo that surrounds their bodies. His scan pushes past the castle walls and into Arendelle. The area is brightly lit with everyone's halos. Some have a dimmer halo and a few do not have a halo. He focuses on one particular halo-less person and concentrates on their location. He recognizes the building where Brigit lives.

The room door creaks. He concentrates his scan to the person entering the room. They do not have a halo. They stand across the table from him. He opens his eyes.

Gerda smiles at him and he asks, "Why do you not have a halo around you?"

She stops for a moment and her smile disappears. "What are you talking about?"

"I have been scanning the area, all the way to the other side of Arendelle. I don't know why I haven't noticed it, but I see golden halos around most people. A few are dimmer, but you and others do not radiate the golden energy, so why do you not have a halo?"

Gerda walks around the table and sits in the chair next to him. She grasps his hand with both of her hands. He turns his body towards her. She hesitates. "What do you feel?" He looks at her hand. "No, no, close your eyes and tell me what you feel."

He stares at her for a second, but closes his eyes. "I feel your heart pulse, calluses, and a scratch on the middle finger of your left hand."

She replies, "Yes, given enough time I'm sure you will feel all the physical ailments in my hands." Her chair moves. "Don't open your eyes just yet. I need to get into a more comfortable position before we proceed. This may take a little time, but you will get your answer." She releases his hand and her chair slides on the floor. The chair slides again and she hold his hand again. "Now tell me what do you feel in my hands?"

He detects a lower temperature and her calluses are gone. He tightly closes his eyes and sees with his mind. After a few seconds another reminder from his past allows him to sees it. With a grin he says, "You have a blue halo."

A second blue halo appears to move out from behind the first. He turns his head towards Arendelle and counts one hundred and sixty-two bodies with the blue halos. "I see many with blue halo, why?"

"There is only one logical explanation. What is it?" answers a soft voice.

The voice comes from the side and not in front of him. His focus draws back to the room and sees a blue halo in front of him and one to his right. His mind closes with a flinch of his head as he opens his eyes. Gerda stands on the other side of the table. A smile begins to escape from his lips as he turns his head. Despite her slightly colder hands, he can feel her warmth radiating through his arm and into his chest. He does not try to stop it, but allows her energy to consume him. He looks into her eyes and sees comfort. He brings her hand to his face. With the smooth and soft textual of her hand, he takes a deep breath inhaling a flower's fragrant. He kisses the top of her fingers and slowly nibbles to the back of her hand.

A thump smacks the table with a loud pop. "What are you two doing? Get your mouth OFF MY SISTER'S HAND," Anna shouts from the end of the table.

He lowers her hand to her lap without breaking eye contact.

"And you are concerned Kristoff and I will do something inappropriate," Anna chides.

"I had no plans to do anything, but it would be fun to see where it would lead," he says. Elsa grins and nods in agreement.

"Aw, I'll remind you of this moment when you question me about meeting Kristoff in the library." Anna walks to her chair. Kristoff grins as he follows her. They sit in their respective seats and Anna grabs Kristoff's hand.

Gerda comments, "Okay little girls, don't let the room heat up. If you have the urge to go beyond holding of hands, go to your rooms and wash up. You boys can take a dip in the fjord to cool off."

With a slight giggle Elsa pushes his hand away. "She is correct. We have more pressing tasks to take care of first."

He places his hands in his lap and bows his head. His eyes close. His nose flares and he inhales. His lips part and expel cold air creating a light frost on his hands and the edge of the table.

"Sam, I was only joking about the room heating up," Gerda says.

Elsa touches his shoulder as she leans towards him. "What is wrong?"

His eyes open and he glances at everyone. He turns his head to Elsa. "I am under control. Let us proceed."

"I did as you requested. Henrik Jensen is the son of Maltz Jens, who was a councilman for my father. Neither Kai nor Gerda will tell me if he had brothers." Her body slightly leans towards him. "Do you know?"

Sam moves his legs and positions his feet to either side of her boots. "With your statement of Maltz being the father to Henrik, yes I do know. Henrik's older brothers, Peter and Otto, have played a significant role with three generations of your family, to include Weselton. Peter was the councilman during the last year of your grandfather's reign and during the first year of your father's reign. This is what I was told when I first arrived in Arendelle. There was or is a family feud between your family and the Jens family with the building of the castle." Sam tells Elsa of Peter's role in trying to over through the monarch. "Upon banishment, Peter traveled to Weselton. Maltz Jens developed health issues and could not travel nor could Peter come here." His chin presses against his chest as he looks down.

After several seconds Elsa touches his arm and asks, "Sam, what is wrong?"

He looks at her with a half-smile and sighs. "As Queen you need to know this. Your grandfather and grandmother boarded a ship. The ship was reported lost at sea. It was also reported there were two survivors, the ship's captain and his first mate. The ship and the crew belonged to the Jens family."

Anna inhales and covers her mouth as she holds her breath. Kristoff wraps his arm around her.

He continues, "Now what I'm about to say is my personal experience right after I encountered your mother on the road several kilometers north of here."

Anna moves around the table and sits in a chair next to Elsa. She wraps her arm around Elsa's arm and lays her head on her shoulder. Kristoff stands behind Anna. Kai walks into the room and Gerda grabs his arm as she whispers to him. All stare at him.

Elsa glances at them, before she focuses on him. "I guess this is not going to be good."

Sam takes a deep breath and exhales a cold mist across his lips. He leans to her. "Elsa, I did not know your mother was the Queen at the time. All I knew is she and I met the previous fall in the town square when eight men tried to kidnap her."

Anna's eyes widened. "Kidnap." She turns to her sister maintaining her pose, but Elsa's breathing increases.

Sam shakes his head and looks away, but her pull draws his eyes back. They track directly to Elsa's blue eyes, "I will not hold back. Afterwards, I will do whatever you tell me to do." He leans back into his chair and glances at all of them as he continues, "In the square I saw eight men acting suspiciously. I was able to touch one and extract their purpose for being in Arendelle. I passed through an alley and saw them across the street."

He stops and stares at his right hand as it open and closes. "One held a knife to your mother's throat and dragged her into the alley. I hid in a doorway. As he passed, I removed the knife." His hand clenches tight. "He did not get up from the ground. Others were coming. I pulled your mother into the doorway and we hid behind a distortion field. One got close and my hand froze."

His right hand creates a layer of frost that changes into a thick layer of ice. "I punched him. He did not get up from where his body stopped across the alley. Two more were at the other end of the alley charging in our direction." He drops his hand to his side for a second and brings it up with three hand length spikes between his fingers. "I threw three spikes. Two struck the closest attacker in the throat and chest. I missed the fourth attacker running."

He drops his hand again and brings up two ice spikes. "The spike hit him through his heart and into the back of his head. Several royal guards entered the alley with swords pointed at me. Your mother stopped them and she let me go, but for some reason, I noted a guard standing around the corner. Six months later I would encounter that guard who ordered several guards to chase a group of wolves around a bend in the road."

He grabs Elsa's hands and turns them up. A layer of frost moves from his hand and wraps around her hands. "That was the day all of this started. His hands sweep the ice from her hands. "Your mother was attacked by a red wolf and not just the coat was red. It was the largest wolf ever seen in this area and it had fiery red eyes. That day the red wolf and his friends attacked me while I foraged for food. The guards stopped your mother's coach near a bend on the trail. Three guards were sent to retrieve me. By the time we got back to the coach, the red wolf almost got into the coach. Your mother was seriously injured. I tried to get into the coach to help her, but the guard and Captain Thorsen stopped me. At the time I did not understand why. The events of the following day made that clear."

Sam observes Elsa's reaction and her breathing. A noticeable pulsing shows on her neck as he continues. "I influenced the Captain to move as fast as the coach would allow. The guard that chased the wolves must have recognized me from the previous fall and volunteered to ride back to the castle ahead of the coach. The Captain told him to report to the King and get a doctor. I rode in the coach." He holds up both hands as they begin to glow white. "I stuck my hand into her wound and sealed the blood vessel. It was a forty-five minute trip back to the castle. Needless to say strange things happen when I use my powers to heal."

He glances away. "The coach arrives at the castle, but no doctor. Captain Thorsen helps your mother out of the coach. Your father sees me stepping out and charges towards me with a sword. Thorsen explained what happened, but your father appeared to be confused. I took the sword from him and pointed it at his nose. Someone pulled a bow string tight. I gave the sword back thinking the arrow was for me. Later in the day, I had the run in with Otto, Jens' second son. The following day the King and Queen were moved to the throne room. I entered about the time Kai and Gerda were forced into the room. There were four guards who worked for Otto in the room. When I left they did not get up. His henchmen killed Captain Thorsen and a sergeant. I met sixty-five of them on the courtyard."

The raw emotion of the memory causes his breathing to labor. "When it was done, I was the last one standing. They did not get up. Your mother saw the true me. She even cut my side to see the color of the monster's blood. I left immediately. A few days later she found me near the troll's hot spring."

He frowns at Kristoff. "I accused Pabbie that he knew how the red wolf controlled the other wolves. He never did answer." He glances at Anna and Elsa. "Your mother found me and apologized. We talked and she convinced me to come back with her. I was here for three and three-quarter years before your father told me to leave."

Anna touches his hand. "Why did Papa tell you to leave?"

With a half-smile he answers as his eyes trail back to the most beautiful blue eyes he has ever seen. "Because I asked, when did you take my heart?"

With a quick breath Elsa grabs his hand. "When you saved me."

Anna turns to Elsa. "I don't understand. Why did Papa ask him to leave?"

Elsa presses her lips tight into a grin. "When he saved my life from the accident, we became connected. I could hear his thoughts."

Her grin fades as she bows her head and places her hand on top of her sister's hand. She looks at Anna with moist eyes. "Papa told him to leave. Years later I thought I was hearing voices." A tear runs down her cheek as she gazes at him. "But he never left me."

Sam leans his head back against the chair. "Is it hot in here?" Beads of sweat form on his face and hands. His lips part to breathe as his eyelids slowly droop before they close.

Anna asks, "What is wrong with him?"

Kai says, "Elsa, you have to help him. He told you what needs to be done."

"I've never done this by myself. He was always awake to guide me through this."

Gerda encourages, "My dear, this is why he taught you. He knew it would happen. He knew he had the greatest chance with you doing it."

Anna asks, "Do what? Elsa, what do you have to do?"

"I need to do for him what he tried to do for me long ago. I will go in and save him."

A chair slides and shoes scuffle across the floor. Small hands lift and place his hands in his lap. The same small hands position his head in line with his backbone and tilts his head back. A blast of cold air freezes his sweat. The same small hands wipes the frozen sweat off his face. Those small hands cup the sides of his face. Fingertips move to four specific points on his face and neck. With a surge of energy he opens his eyes just long enough to see Elsa staring down at him, but her eyes glow a snow white. He takes a deep breath and slowly lets out a white mist that freezes the front of his shirt.

 **End of Chapter**


	51. Chapter 50 Sam Times Three

**Title: Chapter 50: Sam Times Three**

 **3 year 4 months until correction**

Elsa opens her eyes. The snow covered mountain looms in front of her. A valley clothed in a white blanket of snow drops off to her right. She searches the valley for the oasis of green and the running water, but all is white. Last time, there was a section of the valley not covered in the snow. Why is it different now? Holding her hand up to block the sun, she searches for anything in the cloudless blue sky. Everything is white, even the cool air smells sterile. A flash from the west draws her attention. The horizon does not appear as white. In the distance several flashes of lightning strike the ground. Now the horizon has a thin gray line. A warm breeze flows in from the west and brings tiny particles of ash. A muffled voice sounds in the east. A tiny black speck waves to her. A young boy's voice calls to her and she waves back. She glances at her blue dress and looks at the boy getting closer. Her hand sweeps across her dress. It changes to white trousers and a loose fitting long sleeve white shirt. Her hand sweeps again and her blue shoes change to white boots.

"This is better for a young boy." She walks towards him, but the snow gets deeper with each step. After some time a glance back reveals she has made little progress and she stops for a moment to calm her breathing. "What did he say? To get to another location think about it."

The young boy, who always wanted to play, appears a couple of meters in front of her. "I was wondering if you had forgotten how to move around in here. Weren't you wearing a blue dress?"

Elsa considers why there is such a contrasting difference between this young Sam and the older Sam she is trying to save. She smiles at him. "I did."

"I like the blue dress."

She glances at his pants and ponders if her Sam also likes her blue dress? "I see you do like it, but I did not wish to distract you."

He points behind her, "No more than that."

The gray has expanded along the horizon. Dark gray clouds move towards them. Lightning strikes the ground sending plums of dark material into the sky.

Elsa asks, "Do you know, why that is happening?"

Sam stands next to her. "In the past when a memory block opened there would be a change in here. Most of the time the snow melted in an area and green grass and other vegetation would bloom. Those were the good memories he felt. Sometimes a red block would open and he would be in pain." Sam steps closer and holds her hand. "I have never seen that before." He leans his face against her arm. "Do you know what it is?"

"No, I do not."

Sam steps even closer to her as he holds on to her arm and partially hides his face. A low rumble follows a bright flash of light. The gray expands where the lightning strikes the ground.

"Do you think it is another memory block opening?"

"If it is, it's a very bad memory." A shiver passes through his body.

Elsa lightly squeezes his hand hoping to give him comfort that she will protect him, but from what. "You have no idea why this is happening or who may be causing it?"

"No, the rock told me not to go over there."

She looks at him. "What rock?"

Pointing to the sky Sam answers, "He calls them trolls."

"Do you know which troll?"

He slowly shakes his head. "I only see their backs never their face."

"Hmm." She waves her hand in a circle. The snow in front of them swirls and forms the back view of a troll. "Does this look like the troll?"

"No, he had longer hair and a grass cape that when down to the ground."

"Aw." There is only one troll who fits that description. Her hand moves in a circle again and the snow transforms into the troll with long hair and a full length grass cape. "Is this him?"

His arms tightens around her arm. "Yes, that's it."

She swirls her hand and the snow troll rotates around to face them. The young Sam moves to place her directly between him and the troll. His body physically shakes. She kneels in front of him. He keeps his head down. "Why are you afraid of it?"

"It said if I ever looked upon its face," pointing to the sky, "he would die."

"It is just snow. He cannot hurt you."

"Are you sure?" Sam looks into her eyes.

She notes this young boy has the same expression her Sam does before he loses control. Through her hands she feels his heart beating fast.

"What if you are wrong? He will die and so will I." He struggles to break free of her grip.

Elsa holds onto his arms, but one slipping out as he turns away from her. She grabs his ankle tripping him. He falls face down into the snow as she lunges at him and holds him down with her body. "Sam stop, I will show you the snow troll will not hurt you."

"No," comes a muffled cry from underneath her. He stops moving.

She feels his heart racing. As she rolls up to a sitting position she pulls him up in front of her so he is facing the snow troll. He moves and her legs wraps around his waist. She pins one of his arms under his chin and rolls his body to pin his other in the snow. She pulls his head back and whispers in his ear, "please look, I will show you the snow troll cannot hurt you and I will make it disappear."

"No, make it disappear." Sam struggles. His foot catches in the snow and he pushes. He rolls enough to get his right arm out of the snow.

She tries to turn him back. He swings his hand over his head. His closed fist hits behind her right eye. A numbing shock shoots through her body and she relaxes. He rolls away from her and runs. With a throbbing headache Elsa lies in the snow. She does not feel the right side of her face. A sensation of floating over takes the pain.

Her vision focuses on the adult Sam sitting in front of her. In her peripheral vision the dining room appears, but a sensation of swaying causes her to feel faint and her legs grow weak. Sam places his hands around her waist as he lifts her up. He turns her enough to sit her in his lap. His hands fall to his side. A tear rolls out from the corner of his eye. She maintains her finger contact on his face and neck as her head touches against his head. She whispers. "Hold on. I will protect you." Her vision changes to snow white.

Elsa watches a mostly blue sky. The western sky boils with gray clouds. The lightning appears closer. A slight tingling sensation returns to the side of her face. She sits up and searches for the young Sam. The snow troll has several footprints stomped on it. The footprints lead west. She crawls to her feet, but a wobbliness in her legs causes her to fall to her knees. Creating an ice pole she stands. In the distance the young Sam walks towards the western gray area. Closing her eyes for a second they open and she stands next to him. He looks at her, but his eyes have a grayish tint to them.

She touches his arm. "Sam, are you ok?"

"I don't feel well. Can we go home?" His movements are noticeably slower.

Kneeling she turns him towards her. "Are you hurting?" He nods. "Can you show me where you hurt?" He points past her. She glances at the gray area taking up more of the sky. "You are hurting over there?"

He cups her face. "No mom, he is hurting."

His comment disrupts her thoughts. While she hopes one day to have a child, hearing him speak the words sound strange. It takes her a moment to see Sam isn't focused on her. "Who are you looking at?"

Young Sam smiles and wraps his arms around her neck. "I'm looking at you mommy. Are you ok?"

She wraps her arms around his little body. "I am not sure."

Elsa watches the clouds drift behind him. After a few second a small patch of the clouds begins to rotate and a small funnel drops down. Several minutes later, lightning strikes from the funnel to the ground. Sam's body flinches. A second later she hears the thunder and Sam's body flinches again.

"You feel the lightning strike and thunder?"

He wraps his arms tighter and whispers, "yes."

"So you feel all the lightning strikes?"

"Yes."

"I am so sorry. I forget you feel everything he does." She watches the clouds as she leans against his head and combs his hair with her fingers. "Samuel, why were you going towards the gray area?"

A length of time passes, before he answers, "That is where his next memory block is to be removed."

"Does it always lightning before a memory block is opened?"

His arms tighten around her. "No, this is the first with the lightning." A shiver passes through his body and he barely whispers, "Usually they just open up."

"What happens when they open?"

"If it's a green one, a fountain like the ones in your castle shoots different shades of green light into the sky. Some of it falls to the ground, but most of it stays in the sky. The green valley is the result of a memory block opening. The same thing happens if it is a red memory. He feels the pain from those, but they don't last as long as the green memories."

"Do you know if the one in the gray area is a red or green?"

"I don't know. I never know when they open except when I see the fountain."

She leans her head back to look at him. "So how do you know there is one in there?"

Young Sam giggles. "Because he knows."

Red, green, fountains, memory blocks, and a troll that looks like Pabbie, what is going on here? Confusion stirs her thoughts. "I do not understand. He knows there is a memory block in there. A troll told you he would die if you looked at him. Is the troll causing the lightning?"

He nods.

"Then why were you going there?"

"It is the only way I can get you to go in there. Your Sam needs you to open it for him."

She holds him at arm's length. "Now I am really confused. He knows there is a memory in there being protected by a troll's lightning. How did the troll get in here?"

Young Sam points up. "He let him in."

"What? Why?" Elsa searches the expanding gray area. "When did my Sam let him in?"

Young Sam looks at the gray area and then looks up at her. "I think it was several weeks after landing here. The troll showed him the Sariphan ship. That's when I first saw the troll in here and it came back not long ago when he was healing in the ice."

She points to the gray clouds, "Is that why Sam collapsed in the dining room?"

He nods.

She looks at the snow and tries to make sense of what is happening. Her Sam did not tell her what to do or train her for this circumstance, but the gray area gives her a visual indication of his mind compared to his physical actions. She takes a deep breath to calm her frustrations. "When I get back he has a lot of explaining to do."

Movement in the clouds catches her attention. Three funnel clouds form. "What happens if I get struck by the lightning?"

"You will go back to your world."

"And if you get struck?" she asks, staring at the clouds.

"I feel the pain he feels, but I have no place to go but here."

The funnel clouds reach down to their peaks and she counts, "One . . . two . . . three . . . four," the tip of the funnel clouds glow white and a second later each expels a lightning bolt expanding the gray area. The funnels rise up and calmness returns to the clouds. She closes her hands on nothing and looks back. Young Sam is gone.

Elsa stands and searches, but does not find him. Her heart begins to beat faster. She needs to get higher and spots the hill she arrived on. Her eyes close for a second and opens to a view from the top of the hill. Everything is white except for the gray area in the west, which has expanded far from the horizon. Even from this distant she can see the clouds rotating and a funnel drops below the clouds. A speck moves beneath the funnel. Lightning strikes.

The ground shakes violently throwing her off her feet. After a few seconds it stops. The wind brings the cry of a child. "Oh no, it did not."

Rolling to her feet, she takes several steps and closes her eyes. Her eyes open as she trips and falls over the young Sam curled up into a ball. She crawls over and rolls him over into her lap. Wisps of smoke rise from his body. Her hand searches his chest for a heartbeat, but to her relief, he breathes.

A soft moan comes from his lips. His dark gray eyes partially open and he slides his hand on top of hers. "Momma, can we go now? I don't feel well."

A shadow passes overhead. The clouds move well to the east of her. Sam groans as he moves. She brushes his hair out of his face. "Do not move my son. I will take care of you."

He slowly opens his eyes and struggles to turn his head to look up at her. The gray in his eyes changes to a lighter color. "Momma?"

"I am right here son."

A slight smile forms on his lips. "Momma, we are in danger. We have to move."

"Move where?" she asks, staring into his eyes.

"We have to go west." He tries to roll over, but falls back into her lap. A strong wind begins to blow the snow in a circular motion around them.

A bright spot forms in his eyes. A funnel tip appears directly overhead. Static arcs jump across the inside of the funnel and collects together to form a bright ball. Elsa pulls Sam as close as possible to her. Touching the ground beyond her feet, she arcs her hand over her head and back to the ground past him. She covers him with her body and closes her eyes. The half sphere of ice covers them as the lightning strikes. It travels along the outside of the ice into the ground. Snaps and crackles from the arc echo in the sphere. Strands of her hair reach out to the ice, but does not make contact. Inside the ice glows white for a second. Her hair falls back to their positions as the tingling to her body subsides. She looks around. Light radiates from the east as darkness covers from the west. She taps the ice. Tiny fractures cascade throughout the ice. She pushes on it and it puffs into snow. Movement from the west catches her focus.

"What are you doing in here?"

The troll continues moving towards her. "He brought me in here. Why are you interfering with my lightning?"

The troll had the appearance of Pabbie, but her instincts say it is not the Pabbie she knows. "Sam allows me to come in here. If Sam brought you in here, why do you scare him?"

The troll stops a couple of meters from her. It looks at the pile of snow and points to it. "He knows why. Ask him."

Elsa stands with her hands balled into fists. "I am asking you. Why did he allow you to do this?"

"Do you know what is back there?" Pabbie points towards the dark clouds.

He moves his right hand in a circular motion. The breeze increases picking up the snow. The clouds form a funnel over her head. Her hand expels an icy blast freezing the troll's hand and the bottom half of its body. It spins its other hand rapidly and the wind blows harder. She freezes his other hand and arcs the ice up toward the funnel. A deafening snap sounds as the lightning strikes the top of the ice and travels down the arc into the troll. A second later a pile of smoldering rocks remains where the troll stood. The wind dies down.

Sam runs to her and wraps his arm around her. He tilts his head up with his gray eyes. "You defeated the monster." He points towards the west. "We have to open the memory before he comes back."

Elsa wraps her arm around his shoulders. Holding him tight her eyes close. A second later, her eyes open and she stands in front of a rectangular object protruding up from the ground. It pulsates between the colors green, red, and gray. Behind them a small sliver of light shines from the eastern sky. The clouds above them do not appear as dark as before.

Sam taps her arm rapidly as he points to the object. The troll Pabbie stands on top of it.

She pushes Sam behind her. "I froze you once and I will do it again."

The troll spins both hands hastily. The wind swirls the snow blinding her. Sam collapses face down in the snow. As quickly as it started the wind stops. The troll looks past them and slides off the object. It walks a wide arc around them. She holds her hands up ready to attack if he makes a sudden move. The troll walks towards the form of a person in the distance. The troll stops and turns to face her. A person with a hooded cape appears next to the troll. He pushes the hood back to reveal a young man with dark hair and slightly taller than herself.

She glances down and points to a vaguely gray young Sam. "Are you . . ."

The young man interrupts, "Yes, I am an older version of him. I am him as he is I and we are him."

"Wait, there were too many 'him' in your statements," she shakes her head.

The man smiles as he kneels and scoops up snow. He forms the snow into a ball. He points to the young boy on the ground. "You know Samuel. He is seven years old."

The snowball leaps up from his hand and creates a white cloud. An image forms on the cloud. The image shows a young Samuel being strapped down to a table. Several adults wear white coats, white caps, and a rectangular shaped blue mask cover part of their face. A female holds his head as a male straps his head to the table. A male straps his legs together while another male straps his right arm to the table. The young Samuel fights a losing battle as they immobilize his left arm. She does not hear the screams, but his expressions and tears running down little Samuel's face tells her he is in pain.

The young man speaks, "They will begin injecting him with chemicals and a special ingredient from a star."

Another female steps into the image next to Samuel's arm. His eyes widen as his body thrashes. The new female points to Sam and the others drape their arms across him to hold him still. The new female holds a small blue cylinder with a needle on one end. She pushes the needle into Sam's arm and moves her thumb towards the cylinder. The blue in the cylinder starts to disappear when blue lines appear on Sam's arm as though an invisible hand is drawing them. The blue lines move from the needle and up his arm.

Elsa covers her mouth to hold her gasp. The blue lines move into his shoulder and into his neck. The adults move away from the table. Little Sam's body shivers for a moment. He stops. The image fades.

A tear escapes the corner of her eyes. She glares at the older Samuel. "Why are you showing me this?"

"You wanted to know who he is. He is showing you. Look again."

An image forms on the white cloud. A slightly taller young Sam stands motionless as two more blue cylinders push the blue into both of his arms. A bluish tint colors his skin. His face has no emotions. Sam's gaze locks onto her eyes. She feels the sensation as though he is staring at her.

"This is Sam after his ninth injection. As you have surmised his emotions have been suppressed. At this point we are a willing slave to any instructions given to us. We will be introduced to other children who have been injected with different chemical combinations."

She looks down at young Sam by her feet and wipes her tears. "Who would do this to him and why?"

"So they could create me," he replies and bows to her. "I am Samuel Christopher Ryan, age seventeen. This was my mission." He points to the white cloud.

She looks up and a different image appears. A strange collection of buildings tower over the people wearing different clothing. Everyone appears to be moving at a normal pace. The image changes. Smoke rises in the distance. People run towards her. The image changes again. People run past. A fireball shoots out from the side of a building. People lie in the street as more run towards her. The image slowly changes again. She recognizes the reflection in the gray window. A wheeled, black rectangular object speeds past the image of the taller Samuel. The image rotates to follow the black object. A fireball appears to shoot from behind her and explodes under the object causing it to rise into the air. The image shatters like broken glass.

Samuel seventeen explains, "That was my first assassination. It is recorded in the local press, seventeen people died. The press does not mention the three passengers in the black car, the black rectangle vehicle you saw. A government minister and his wife along with the driver were killed. The irony is the wife was my primary target and the minister was the secondary target."

"What about those others who were killed?" she asks, trying to maintain her composure.

"They were the unfortunate. Acceptable collateral damage was needed to hide the true targets. Those who investigated the attack assumed the targets just happen to be in the wrong spot. If the attack was against just the black object, everyone in the vicinity would have been questioned, but with three separate attacks, they would search for specific assassins and not a child." He points to the young Samuel. "He will join a team of other young assassins who survived their first assassination mission."

The cloud shows images of children running, but they carried oddly shaped black sticks she has never seen before. They drop to the ground and one blonde child crawls across the ground and peeks around a small boulder. The blonde child holds up three fingers, points to the right and motions forward. Three children crawl up to the blonde child. They glance in her direction. They crawl forward and disappear behind the boulder. The blonde child holds up one finger and points to the left. Another child crawls past her. They also glance back in her direction and disappear past the boulder.

Sam comments, "Please watch the blonde child."

The child glances back with a smile and looks directly at her eyes. She takes off her hat.

Elsa points at the image, "That is a girl. She is their leader?"

"Yes, she has three different shades of blonde hair. Does she appear familiar?"

Elsa studies the girl. She is familiar. The image continues with the girl waving back. She disappears past the boulder. Elsa points to the older Sam, "These images are through your eyes." He nods once. The images stop. She watches him.

With his head down, he stares at the ground. "You have seen him kill. On this mission one of the other children made a mistake. Those black sticks are long range weapons. I had a sharpshooter's rifle. From behind the boulder I provided cover for my team as they retreated. The girl's name was Krystal. Once the mission was compromised, she called for a retreat. I never knew the name of the child who blew the mission. He got hurt. Krystal tried to help him escape, but the adversaries were closing in on them. My job was to prevent anything from slowing the team. She knew what I had to do. If I could not create a path for their escape, no one is to be captured alive. Just as she looked in my direction, I fired the shot that eliminated her excess baggage. She escaped only because I killed twenty-seven of those chasing her. After we were picked up, she did not say a word to me on the way back to the base." He tilts his head up at the cloud, "This is what it cost me for saving her life."

The image shows a field and several trees. A shower of rain sweeps across the field as the image focuses on three men in uniform walking towards him. The image moves like he is searching for something and moves towards the trees. He falls to the ground and rolls facing up. A man in similar uniform stands over him with a brown stick. A hand from the side reaches down and pulls him up. The images change rapidly. Several fist come at him, then the ground, then the brown stick, then a boot. He is lifted up as blood drips onto the grass. A uniformed man holds his head up and repeatedly punches his face. Between each punch the man laughs. He falls to the ground and closes his eyes. When he opens them again he is lying under a tree. Four men stand over him. One jumps closer to the tree and they laugh. Another man stabs a sword near where the man jumped. As the men point and laugh at him the image blurs and disappears.

Tears stream down her face. She falls to the ground and curls the young Sam in her arms. "That is what will happen to him?"

"It has already happened." He points up. "It is well into his past. That sword in the image, they dragged me to the tree. The man jumped on my leg lying across the tree root. The sword was stabbed into the bone break. I could not stand the pain any longer and passed out. I was told they reported I had run away so no one looked for me. But Krystal found me."

He smiles and wipes a tear from his face. "She had the most beautiful blue eyes and that's when I realized I could see the stars above. There was no light where we were. A shadow stood above me and she also had glowing blue eyes. They removed the sword and healed my leg with ice. She told me to go to sleep and I will see her soon. The next thing I remembered I woke in my bed at the base. All the adults acted like nothing happened, but I never saw those four men again."

Her emotions choke her breathing as tears run down both of her cheeks.

"I wanted to meet them. I wanted to kill them in a way that would cause the most excruciating pain possible, but I never did find them. The wound did not heal completely so there is a scar to remind me. If you ever see him rubbing his leg just above his left knee, it's reminding him of what happened. When I finally left the base, I had a death count of four hundred and three humans."

Samuel seventeen walks over to her and kneels. Reaching into his cloak, he pulls out a small cloth and hands it to her. She takes it and dabs the corner of her eyes. He stares at young Sam. "He calls you mom."

He smiles with moist eyes. "You look just like S5. She is the only mother we have ever known." He shakes his head slightly, "Please don't hold it against him. The next two years the chemicals will have a harsh effect on him. The chemicals force him to grow up. He lost his childhood. The Sam you know out there, will become playful, almost childish at times."

He lightly brushes the young Sam's face. "As this young boy will obey you," he points up, "The Sam you know will also obey you if you give him reason, but if it's urgent. Command him. He will follow your orders. Right now, he sees you as his commanding officer, but you have created a stir in him, he has not felt in many years."

"I know he likes me. Young Samuel has stated that. I have seen evidence that he does."

"There is a big difference between 'love and like'. If he loves you, why does he not say it with the compassion you desire?"

"How do you know what I desire?"

"By the fact you are in here and you are willing to protect him." He points to the young Sam. "You are the only one here who is not an original part of his memories. He allows you to come and go from here. Pabbie, young Sam, and I are nothing more than his memories. We cannot leave here as you can. So why are you here if you do not desire something," he points up, "from him?"

"I know there is something holding him back that prevents him from opening up to me. I wish to know what it is."

Samuel stands. "He hesitates out of fear for you."

"What fear?"

He walks a short distance before replying over his shoulder, "I don't know specifics. I'm not sure of the data I see, but if you encounter an older Sam in here, I suspect he will know."

"Another Sam, I thought all of you were the same?"

He turns and points to the young Sam, "I know everything he will feel and face in his next ten years, because I lived it. Past my seventeenth year, I can only access the data. I can't feel the pain and the joy he felt from my point to where he is now."

Samuel holds his hands together and opens them, creating a book. "Compare us to a book." He flips through the pages and stops. "The young Sam you see is located in chapter seven."

More pages flip and stop. "I'm located in chapter seventeen. The elder Samuel is located at chapter fifty four. We lived, felt, and thrived from the beginning of the book to our chapter. Everything past our chapter is just words to us. There is a big difference between living life and reading about someone else's life. After our chapter, all we do is read."

The book disappears, he stares at young Sam. "If he were to wake up, he would not know me, but have a familiarity of a lost thought."

She strokes young Sam's face. "If you are not able to help me, how do I help him?"

"You have been helping him. By your desire to be here, you have been given an opportunity that only one other has ever been allowed."

It did not occur to her that someone else could have been in here first. She narrows her eyes at him. "Who else has been in here?"

"His wife, LadyCat."

"He has a wife?"

"Did have. She died many years ago. I believe that is the biggest obstacle you have to overcome. His actions and lack of action at the end contributed to her death. Since she is after my chapter in his life, I can only analyze his words. He misses her deeply. The only people, he has ever allowed to get close to him, were those who could understand his pain. You have suffered a similar faith with your parents and the years without your sister. You both know what it is to have and to lose it. The logic makes sense the two of you would be drawn together."

He gazes at her with a grin. "Do you love him?"

Without hesitation she answers, "Yes."

"Do you love him enough to do whatever it takes to get him to let her go?"

She quickly looks away and glances at the memory object. _No one has ever asked that question before. I would have given up everything to get Anna back. Now that she is in my life, will I give her up to keep him?_

"I see, there is something that is more precious than him."

She snaps, "Anna is my sister and I just got her back."

Samuel stares at the rectangle for a moment. "I see he likes her too. You do know when he finds out, he will back away from you and your sister. He will take the choice away from you. It's a tough situation. It would be a shame if you had to choose."

"Why do I have to choose?" She cuddles young Sam closer.

"You do not. Do nothing and let him struggle. If he can overcome it, he will. If he does not he will leave. Are you ready for him to leave or better yet, tell him to leave?"

She cups young Sam's face and he lightly sighs. "I do not want him to leave. We have some difficulties communicating. Sometimes we do not hear each other. I wonder if he really knows what I have gone through just to get where I am today. He does act selfishly. The next minute he gives to others, especially to the children. When I ask him to be a part of my life, he finds excuses not to be." She studies Samuel seventeen's expression. "What is holding him back? What is in his past that prevents him from committing to me?"

"He is afraid of making another mistake that could cost your life."

"How long has it been since that mistake?"

He gazes at a distant object. "It is well past my time and long before your time. I know he suffered greatly and he wanted to die. There must be a self-preservation somewhere in here. Every time he gets close to ending it," he looks to her, "You seem to show up. You are different from S5 and yet the two of you are the same."

His gaze drops to young Sam. "S5 gave me and will give him the strength to live. She said I will build a bridge between her world and mine. I need to sacrifice all to save our world." He looks at her. "Do you know what she was talking about?"

Elsa slowly shakes her head, "No, I do not."

He holds out his hand. "May I touch your hand?"

She glances at him, before gradually extending her arm and placing her hand into his hand. A tingling sensation builds in her hand. It begins to glow. She pulls her hand away and holds it close to her body.

He nods his head, "You are already a part of his life, more than you know." He looks away for a moment and glances back at her. "Maybe that is what she was referring."

"Referring to what?"

"Your energy and my energy are the same." He points to young Sam, "As his energy will be the same as S5."

With most of the tingling gone, she examines her hand and tries to understand what this older Sam has said. She slides her hand along young Sam's arm. "S5 and this Sam will have the same energy."

She points to the older Sam, "This boy is the younger version of you," she tilts her head up and points up, "and you are a younger version of my Sam." For a moment she stares at the boiling clouds above them. With a half-smile she eyes him. "He and I have the same energy so S5 and I have the same energy. If he and I get together, will that be the bridge between her world and his world?"

Samuel seventeen stands motionless and says nothing for an extended time. He answers, "Even he does not know, but I did find something that may be a clue since he or Pabbie did not put it in here." He points past her. "Your answer may be that way. There is a golden sword lying on a rectangle memory block similar to this one. We cannot get close to it. You, being from the outside, may be able to get to it."

"Why would a sword be in here?"

"I don't recognize it and I see no data about it. It lies on a very large rectangle. Whoever put it in here has something to hide." He looks at young Sam. "He can get you close."

"Why do you not go with me?"

"Because as soon as you open that," pointing to the rectangle, "An older version of me will appear if needed. This is the end of my chapter."

The young Sam moves and his color changes back to normal. "I thought you said," Pabbie and the older Sam vanishes. She searches for them, but a soft moan brings her attention back to young Sam. She sits him up against her. "How are you feeling young man?"

Blinking his eyes he studies her. "I'm not a man. I'm a boy."

She peeks over her shoulder. Still not seeing the older Sam, she wiggles young Sam's nose and comments, "You soon will be and I'm sure you will be a handsome young man. Let see if we can get this memory out of the box."

Samuel nods to her and rolls to his feet. He holds out his arm to help her up.

With his assistance she gets to her feet. "How did the other blocks open?"

"They just open, but this one does not have snow on it. All the ones I saw would shoot the snow way up in the sky. If this opens there will be no snow." He lifts her arm up. "I know you can do it."

"You mean cover it with snow?" He nods. "If it has snow it will open?" He nods again. "Okay, I will try."

She holds the palms of her hands towards the block and shoots an ice blast that covers it with snow. After a few seconds, it begins to glow and the snow solidifies into ice. A few more seconds the ice emits cracking sounds. Light shines through the cracks. A beam of light shatters the ice, creating a snow fall. The light beam punches a hole through the gray clouds. In all directions the gray clouds give way to the blue sky. Young Sam runs around the rectangle as he jumps and laughs. The beam of light changes to multiple colors with sparkles of white shooting up through it.

Sam runs to her and wraps his arms around her waist as he grins at her. "See, you released his memory. Now he knows."

"Knows what?"

He shrugs his shoulders, "I don't know. He just knows."

"How long will this continue?"

"I don't know. This is the first one of these I have seen."

He lets go of her and runs to the other side of the object. A sweep of her hand creates an ice bench and she sits. The shower of colors eliminate the gray clouds. After some time the shower of color appears to diminish which allows her to observe Sam on the other side. The rectangle box shrinks in height. The shower stops and green vegetation blooms where the box was located. Sam runs across the green and sits panting next to her. She searches the blue warm sky. A flash draws her attention to the thin gray line on the western horizon. "Is that where the next memory block is located?"

He points to the vegetation. "If it is like this one, I don't want to go?" He lifts her arm and slides next to her as he stares at the western horizon.

His body shudders against her as she studies the gray line. _What is out there that is frightening him? He was afraid to come to this block. Is it getting progressively worse each time?_

He pulls his legs under himself pushing closer to her. His shudders continue. She covers his eyes and pushes his head onto her lap, but he still watches the west. She needs to distract him. She waves her hand over the arm of the bench and changes it into a fluffy snow pillow. "Lay your head over here."

He lies across her lap and places his head on the snow pillow, but he still looks to the west. She lifts his head and twists it towards herself. He looks up and smiles as he closes his eyes. She brushes his hair out of his face. Her finger slowly traces the outline of his ear and his facial bone structure.

 _Why would they hurt you? What about you made them afraid? Is it because you killed that child? Or were you supposed to kill Krystal as well? What type of kingdom would use their children for such acts? Did the parents of the other children know what was happening at the base?_

Her hand applies a slight pressure as it moves along his back. His body relaxes and the shudders diminish. She applies more pressure with her finger tips and lightly scratches his back. He smiles and bows his back up to her fingers. _So he likes to get his back scratched. Interesting._

He whispers, "That feels good."

She continues to massage his back. A flash attracts her attention to the west. "If there is a specific location that contains an object and I think about it, will I suddenly be there?"

He looks up at her and pushes himself up onto his knees. "Yes and I will go to protect you." He wraps his arms around her neck.

Her arms wrapped around his body she thinks about a golden sword.

A few seconds later her eyes behold a large gold object in front of her. The amber light from it oscillates creating the effect of the object has a fluid inside of it. An amber beam of light shines out from the object for a few seconds before it fades. Another beam shoots out in a different direction and it also fades after a few seconds. She sets Sam down and he hides behind her. Darkness meets her eyes from all directions. Her movement into the light causes the fluid motion inside of the box to quiver. Moving out of the light, the fluid returns to its previous oscillation.

Elsa walks around the object and stays out of the light. Young Sam stays to her outside, keeping her between him and the object. The object appears not to have any corners. It is too tall to see the top. Is it a square and shaped like the other memory blocks or is it a cylinder. The fluid changes its oscillations and the light forms a corner. After passing the third light corner, she stops where she thinks her original starting point was. Her shadow appears on the snow covered ground. She holds her hand up to block the light shining from the top of the object. Young Sam bumps into her as he stares into the darkness behind them. The light on them moves up to shine into the dark where he stares. Sam distorts his face and grabs hold of her as he buries his face into her side. His body shudders.

"What is wrong?"

"Momma, I'm afraid. It doesn't feel right." He turns his head towards the gold object.

She kneels. "What do you feel?"

"I feel like I'm going to get sick. The noise hurts my ears," he answers.

She observes the box, but does not hear any sound coming from it. She places her hand on the side of his face and loud oscillating whistle pierces her mind. "I hear it too."

She removes her hand from his face and the whistling stops. The whistling has not stopped for him. She turns him towards the dark. "Think about where we were in the light. I will meet you there." He nods. The color in his face drains to a gray and he collapses.

In the distant a large shadow moves towards her. The young Sam disappears. Her heart beats faster and her breath become shallow. The light from the object slowly fades. As the light flashes out an object sparkles above the box as it rotates. The shadow begins to take shape as it gets closer. Elsa faces the box. With both hands, she points to the ground. As her hands rise an ice stair case forms from her feet to the top of the box. She peeks over her shoulder. The shadow transforms into a tall man running towards her. She runs up the stairs.

Near the center of the object a golden sword floats. The man has disappeared. She steps onto the box. An icy snowflake forms under her foot as it had done when she ran across the fjord. With a smile she walks over to the sword. Its rotation slows and she grabs it. The sword vibrates and stops. The designs on the handle and the blade seem familiar if she has seen it recently. It has very little weight and highly polished, but the two symbols on opposite side from each other appear very familiar. Her hand slides along the blade and it vibrates variable tones. Her hand slides faster. The pitch of the tone increases as it varies faster. The blade slips out of her hand and hits her shoe creating the same sound young Sam heard. She holds the sword tighter and the vibration stops. "Is this what he was hearing?"

"Yes, it is," a male's voice answers from the direction of the stairs.

She holds the sword to attack and moves to the stairs.

"Halt, please do not remove the sword from this memory block. This has to be the last one to open."

At the bottom of the stairs a uniformed male stares up at her. She asks, "Why does this have to be the last to open?"

"If it opens before I'm ready, you will lose him forever."

He does not appear younger than her Sam, but appears old like the Sam she knew as a child. A multiple color green tint glistens across his arms and face.

"I'm not here to harm you, but if you continue with your actions, any chance you may have of being with him will disappear. I know, you and he has a desire for each other, but his honor code prevents him from letting go. You are on the correct path to overcoming his objections. This sword will be the last. Open this memory block before you can build the bridge between his world and your world, and it will never be built. He will become lost again." He steps to one side of the stairs and holds out his hand towards the dark. "If you do not care for him, take the sword into the dark and all that I have said will come to past."

 _Is this the choice the previous Sam said I would have to make? What if I choose wrong?_

"That's the problem with not being able to see the results of your choice until after the consequences have passed." He watches her.

Raising her brows, she asks, "You can read my mind?"

With a grin and his left brow rises, he shakes his head, "No, I'm very good at reading the human body language. I guessed at the rest of it. What does your gut reaction tell you?"

Elsa gazes at him, before she answers, "You may be correct." She holds the sword over the center of the block and releases it. It hovers and gradually rotates. She walks down the stairs and recognizes an older Sam in form fitting uniform. Wrinkles caress the corners of his Hazel eyes. Short gray hair touches ears, but he still has the muscular chest. He smiles the way her Sam smiles and stands with his hands clasped behind his back as her Sam does. His eyes watch her. As she reaches the bottom she asks, "What chapter in his life are you?"

The older Sam nods to her. "Thank you for leaving the sword. You and he will appreciate your efforts here." He bows to her. "I'm not sure which chapter I'm in, but I am many years past the seventeen year old version you saw last time. I am Admiral Ryan, commanding officer of the warship Aurora and Fleet Admiral of a thousand warships. My closest friends call me Sam or Samuel. In my time period we have been at war for three years. I have seen thousands die and have destroyed millions of inhabitants from many worlds."

His hand sweeps into the darkness and an area reveals images.

She assumes the images are through his eyes as he walks through a hallway that is neither wood nor stone. Several people pass him. Strange humans of different shapes and different color skin speak to him. They wear the same style of uniforms. The image changes to a large area and a flying something lands in front of him. A side door opens and a person in a different uniform walks towards him. The person takes off their hat to reveal a blonde female. She hugs him and the images change. The images show him on an elevated platform with others on a lower level sitting and standing in front of tables with many lights. Above them, in the center a smaller black image displays a star field. Many white lines move across the star. Where the lines touch a star, the star changes to a larger white star and then disappears. Two wide white lines streak up from the bottom and hit a white spot to change it orange. It disappears. More of the white spots change to orange and disappear. The image shakes and changes to black.

A few seconds later a new image appears. He walks down the center of a large room with many people and the strange humans standing. He sits and the other sit. To his right the blonde female stands on a raised platform. She is very beautiful in her blue uniform. Behind her smaller image with symbols and dots and lines move along the wall. His eyes are fixated on the female. She appears to be giving a presentation to the others. The image changes with him on the platform and a tall, dark hair person bouncing past him and hugs the female. When the person turns around, Elsa recognizes her facial features to Sam. The images disappear.

"Humans are not the only intelligent creatures in the universe. Those who look similar to humans were not human, and yet we were allies. You saw the command bridge. Those white lines were arrows of death. Every orange spot was a warship exploding. Some ships had a few hundred personnel while others had several thousand."

"How many were on your ship?"

"Three to six thousand, depending on the specific mission."

"And the blonde female?"

"She is my wife, LadyCat. She commands eight fighter squadrons and leads them into combat."

"Women in combat, I guess in war all must fight."

"Would you?"

Elsa stares up at him and ponders his question before answering. "If it would save my family and the people of Arendelle, yes, I would."

He nods.

"Who was the dark hair woman?"

He takes a noticeable deep breath and sighs. "She is my sixteen year old baby girl. Very intelligent, she will make an impact where ever she goes or at least she would have, had they lived. It seems they will died thirteen months from my time." He looks down and to the right. After a moment he continues, "I always had a suspicion the Lords and Nobles of Sariphan were cowards. The records say they found a way to change all of the battles in their favor. They attacked their friends."

A movement at the edge of the light draws her attention. She walks and kneels next to young Sam lying in the snow. She runs her fingers through his hair. "May I ask you a personal question?" With no response she glances back at the older Sam.

With a hint of a smile, he answers, "Yes, you may."

"You are the third Sam I have met in here. Why is he showing me himself at different stages in his life?"

He snickers, "You are mistaken. He is not showing you these things. You are extracting the information from him. Is it your desire to know who he is?"

She snaps her head around to him. "I am creating this?"

"The best I can interpret, you have asked him a series of questions and based upon what he knows about you, he presents images that have meaning to you. Evidently, snow must have a great meaning to you and young Sam." His left brow rises.

She points to him and a smile blossoms, "I have seen my Sam do that and it is his left brow."

"Three different versions you have met in here. You have already met us through him out there." He looks down for a couple of seconds then back to her. "He has given you clues to his different personalities. Seven years old, Sam is his playful side. Seventeen year old Sam is the serious 'take care of business now', his action side. I am mostly the planning side. Once a plan of action has been completed, Samuel seventeen implements the action. Those moments where there is no need for a plan or action, do not be surprised if the seven year old does not jump up to play."

"Will there be any others?"

"While there are others who have small roles in his life, there is one major character who you have met briefly. With the loss of our companion, he took it very hard. He's the one who stares at nature and watches children play. He's the one who will allow you to touch him, but he will back away from you. He does not wish to get hurt again so there will be times that he will appear to be uncaring. I assure you he does care. In those rare moments, if you are watching, you will see him stand-alone against others, against all odds, even against death itself. As quickly as he shows up, he will disappear as one of his other personalities take over." He stares at her for a moment. "I have a question and advice for you. I know the seventeen asked if you would you sacrifice everything for him. My question is how important is it that he be a part of your life, now and into the future?"

She considers his question. "I may be given more time with Anna and Kristoff, but I do not wish to miss any more time than is necessary to be with her. It is not just a physical relationship I desire with him. When I am near him the pain of the world fades. He creates peace and happiness in me that I wish would never go away. I believe he cares for me, but is having a hard time expressing himself. I knew he lost his wife, but do I dare interfere with his memories of her?"

Sam looks away, then nods. "You are in a tough situation. I will say what I said to my crew and those who were close to me. In a time of war we are all expendable. The overall mission must take precedence and if anyone gets separated from the others, do the best you can and we will try to get you, but it could be a long wait. Did I have anxiety every time Ladycat went on a mission? A mission I sent her on, absolutely. Were there times I thought I lost her, yes? Did I disobey my commanding officer's orders to return without her, yes? I had a loyal crew who did what was necessary to give me the time to rescue her. When Fleet Command wanted to prosecute several of my crew members because they helped me, I fought for them and beat them with their own legal system. When two judges said in time of war personal rights are suspended for the overall effort of the war. I made one statement. 'Aurora, target my location and prepare to fire all weapons. Any ships that interfere, destroy them.'"

With raised brows she says, "He is here, so they must have backed down."

"Well, let's just say it rattle so many governments they thought I would be best utilized at the war front instead of scaring the home front. The two judges were removed for the same reason they wanted me removed." He looks up at the dark sky. "When the war fell apart a year later," He glances at her, "It allowed him to come here, so what does this have to do with you?"

She shrugs her shoulders.

"Do you believe Anna and Kristoff will do everything they can for you?"

"I think they would?"

"You are the government. You need to know for sure. If you are wrong and they remove you from power, they will remove Anna and Kristoff as a threat to them. When my wife was reported missing, my crew had no doubts I would do everything possible, including giving my life to save her. They protected me in my moments of needs. I gave them the order to stall as long as they could, but when it was time to leave, they were to leave." He steps in front of her with his hands on his waist. "Do you believe Anna will protect you in your moments of needs?"

She stands and shifts her weight to stand in her regal pose with her hands in front, she answers with confidence, "Yes she would."

"Then this is my advice to you. Talk to Anna and make sure she knows exactly what you're doing and why. Tell her, you are seeking her counsel and will listen, but in the end, you will make the final decision and ask for her support of that decision, then whatever happens, happens. You could even give her permission to step in, if she felt you were not considering all of the facts, but you have to make the final decision and you have to take responsibility of the consequences. Will you promise me that?"

"Yes, I can," she answers boldly.

"Okay, one final advice, you are on the right path. Everything you have seen and heard in here will help you to eliminate every one of his arguments." He points his thumb over his shoulder, "His last argument will fall when he is forced to answer to that sword."

Tilting her head slightly, she asks, "Why do you not tell me about that sword?"

"That sword comes after my chapter in his life. If by chance you happen to meet the Sam version just before he arrives in Arendelle, he would be able to answer your question."

"Is he here?"

"I don't know. I only know what has occurred from the beginning to my chapter," he answers. "My dear, I can see the frustration in your eyes. I wish I could help you, but I'm just his memory." He closes the distance between them and grabs her arms. "You need closure. The three you met in here suffered to make the Samuel you know, who he is. The peace you say you feel from him out there and the Sam in here are one in the same. Give him peace so he can rest. You have your answers. It's time for you to go back."

She looks down at his hands squeezing her arms. Her feet leave the ground. Multiple colors pass under her feet. A strong wind blows through her hair preventing her from looking up. She does not feel the sensation of flying. The white ground rises up to meet her feet. Her eyes close as she waits for the impact.

After a few seconds a young boy's voice calls, "Momma? Momma, where did you go?"

Her eyes open and the young Sam runs towards her. She barely gets her arms up when he jumps into them and he wraps his arms around her neck. She drops to her knees.

 _How can I give you peace knowing what you must endure? Why did I have to dig? Why did I not let it go? He never would have told me what I have seen here. Is that who the fourth one is, honor, courage, and sacrifice._ She smiles to herself. _That is exactly what he has done all his life. With honor, courage, and sacrifice, he survived to help others. It all makes sense._

A friendly voice pulls her thoughts to this little boy. "Momma, I thought I lost you." He lifts his head and cups her face. "It will hurt if I lose you. Please don't leave again."

With a tough smile to hold back her tears she pulls his head against her neck. "No, I will not leave you, no matter what happens."

"I love you, momma."

The tears overflow her eyelids, "I love you too Samuel and I will do whatever is necessary to keep you with me." He hugs her a little tighter.

"Are you ok?" he asks.

"I am now."

"Momma, look, another memory block has opened." She looks in the direction he points. "Let's go see it up close and count how many different color sparkles it has." He pushes back and stands on his feet as he pulls her hand. "Come on, think us there."

Elsa holds on to his hand as she gets to her feet. She closes her eyes for a second and opens them. They are very close to the memory block. It is just like the water that sprays up in the fountain at the castle. A blur of colors, with individual streaks of sparkling colors shoot up into the sky. The sparkles rain down around the block as Sam runs through it. He stops and holds his mouth open to catch the sparkles. With a wave of her hand, a snow chair forms as she sits and watches Sam play. As he had said the snow melts and green blossoms next to the block. Sam finally slows down and sits next to her feet. She watches his shoulders move as he breathes. Her heart aches knowing what this precious young boy has to go through to become the man she knows. All she sees are his memories. Every chapter in his life he had to endure great pain, but the last Sam had said there was another who suffered the most. She doesn't understand how it could be worst for what this seven year old will face. She glances down to see young Sam watching her.

"Why are you crying?" Sam asks as he lays his head in her lap.

She lifts him into her lap. He can rest his head on her shoulder. She brushes his brown hair out of his face. "I am crying because I love you Samuel. I want you to know there will be trying times in your life and one day when you are grown up, I will not be there, but you will have memories of me. So do not forget me no matter what happens."

With a smile he wipes a tear from her cheek. "As long as I live I will never forget you, Momma. Will you always remember me?"

"I sure will." Suddenly all of her energy drains out. Her eyelids and body begins to feel heavy. She takes a deep breath and yawns. "Why do I feel sleepy all the sudden." She yawns again.

He yawns as his eyes slowly close. "Because you're about to leave," his body gradually relaxes.

She pulls him tight to her and kisses his forehead. "I love you Samuel Ryan. Please remember I am here for you." Her eyes close as everything fades.

 **End of Chapter**


	52. Chapter 51 They Reconnect

**Title: Chapter 51: They Reconnect**

 **3 years 4 months until correction**

Samuel's sensory receptors reset and receive new data pulses from his body. His mind registers weight across the back of his shoulders, on his left arm, against his chest and across his legs. As more receptors become active he feels the weight moving in a slight rhythmic pattern. Minuscule movement of air brushes against his left cheek. Other than the weight on him, which is generating less heat, something warm covers his arms with his hands clasped together. His nasal receptors receive a pleasant fragrance. The cool, fresh air drawn into his lungs wakes other receptors, causing him to breathe deeply. A familiarity in the air opens his blood vessels rushing the oxygenated blood to all parts of his body, but he detects an anomaly in his heart pulses. The extra pulses appear to be echoes of his heart beat. The rest of his receptors become active. He hears the extra pulses coming from close proximity to him. A rhythmic breathing identical to his breathing moves air across his cheek. He takes another deep breath and stretches his chest and upper back.

Sam slowly opens his eyes as a hair tickles his nose. Across the dining table Anna munches a bite of her sandwich and smiles at him. An empty plate of crumbs sits in front of a grinning Kristoff. Sam squints his eyes at both of them. A soft moan reverberates against his chest. He glances down at the wool blanket and turns his head to see the most angelic face he has ever remembered. He does not remember allowing her to sit on his lap, but she appears peaceful. He does not wish to awaken her, but the blood flow into his lower legs have noticeably decreased. Despite the pleasure of her company, the blood circulation needs to be re-established. His right hand slides up her arm to her small shoulder as compared to his. He touches her cheek and feels the contrasting differences in the smoothness and softness of her face as compared to his weathered skin. His finger pushes her hair from her face. Only the tips of his fingers drift across her cheek and one lightly slides down the ridge of her nose. He brushes the tip of his finger around the edges of her lips. Movement catches his eyes and he looks across the table. Anna has the 'cat ate the canary smile' as she grins at him. He pulls the edge of the blanket up to block her view. With a light touch of his lips against hers, he whispers, "It's time to wake up, my love."

"What did he say," Anna asks. "What did he say?"

"I didn't hear anything," Kristoff answers.

Elsa arches her back and stretches her arms over her head. She drops one arm across his shoulder and runs her fingers through his hair. Her other hand rest on his chest as she nuzzles closer and her lips move against his neck. As the tip of her tongue teases its way up to his ear lobe, a charge of energy fires into every cell in his body. Collectively his body tenses. She exhales her cold breath across his neck and his body relaxes. She lightly kisses his neck.

Sam whispers, "You're not playing fair."

"As Queen I do not have to play fair. After what I saw in your mind, I will need every advantage I can get to stay ahead of you." She nibbles his neck.

He replies in less of a whisper. "If this is your way of not playing fair, I can overlook it." His arms hug her closer to him. "I like what you are doing."

"I hear whispering," Kristoff states.

"Shh, I cannot hear them," Anna says.

Elsa rolls her head and lowers his hand holding the blanket. "How long have they been there?"

"They were there when I woke up several minutes ago."

She pushes his hand up to block their view. Her right brow rises as the corners of her lips curl up. Her finger brushes his brows, then lightly traces his nose. "I do not want an audience." Her finger traces the edges of his lips. He pulls them tight. She wrinkles her nose at him. "What should we do?"

He rubs the tickle sensation from his lips and answers. "You're the Queen. Tell her and Sven's owner they need to leave the room."

"I heard that," Kristoff comments.

"Shh," Anna says.

She puckers her lips for a kiss and releases them. "She is my sister. I do not want to hurt her feelings."

His brows draw together. "You want him to leave and let your sister watch?"

"I do not want either of them watching us, but I want you and Anna to work together supporting me. I want her to see you as I see you." She lays her head on his chest and looks up at him as she traces his jaw line. "I think I know what mother tried to tell me."

Elsa taps her fingers over his heart. "You are a good person in here. Your intentions are noble." She looks up at him as her fingers intertwine in his hair and she wiggles his head. "But in here, you have many painful memories and that is just the ones I saw. I suspect there are many more memories possibly more painful. I know you are proud and capable of relying on yourself. I also know you like to watch nature and it is during those moments you are the most vulnerable. It is during those times I wish to be there watching over you while you relax. Until you become comfortable around me and are willing to talk to me, I would like you and Anna to spend some time together. She does have insights about me that would help you to know me."

He peeks over the blanket. "Do you think Kristoff might have something to say about this?"

She tilts her head and squints at him. "To use a phrase I have heard you speak, 'until he gets off the fence, he does not have a say about it.'"

"I definitely heard that," Kristoff comments.

"Shh, if you want to have a say in this, meet me in the library this afternoon," Anna says.

Kristoff whispers, "Why did you announce the library? I thought that was supposed to be a secret."

Anna whispers, "Because he already knows we meet in there. If he knows, my sister also knows. Besides, if we get it out in the open we do not have to hide."

Several minutes of silence pass. Elsa lowers his hand holding the blanket. Anna wrinkles her nose and waves at her sister. She looks up at him. "What are you thinking?"

He glances at Anna and whispers, "You mean the two of us together?"

She smiles. "What part of you and Anna do you not understand? In social gatherings, you will talk to her. Ask her how her day is going."

"What am I supposed to do with the data?" She lays her head on his shoulder and closes her eyes. He studies her and feels he has missed what she was trying to say.

Movement across the table draws his attention. Anna mouths the words, 'tell her yes.' He narrows his eyes and she mouths the words again, 'tell her yes'.

He drops the blanket and lightly brushes the tips of his fingers across her cheek. "Is it important to you, Anna and I become friends?"

She answers with a quiet moan as she nods.

A strand of her hair tweaks his nose. He wrinkles his nose to subdue the urge to sneeze. "Then that is what I will do. Do I need to schedule an appointment with her or just when I encounter her?"

She taps his chest twice with two fingers.

"When I encounter her, I will."

Elsa's abdomen gurgles and she places her hand over the source of the noise as she giggles.

He whispers to her, "You're hungry. Maybe Anna could get us a sandwich while we freshen up." She opens her eyes and smiles as she exhales a cool breeze across his neck. After a few seconds he says, "You will have to get off my lap if we are to eat."

Elsa puckers her lips and blows him a kiss as her arm moves from around his neck. She pushes on his chest to sit up. Her arm collapses and she falls back on his chest with a thump. Her face rolls against his chest and she giggles as she repositions her hand.

Sam helps her to sit up.

Her eyes widen. Her hand grips where she tries to push up. Her right brow rises up as she smirks at him. "And what is this in my hand?"

She does not let go and her lips draw tight as if she is trying not to allow anything inappropriate to escape those beautiful soft lips.

He draws his lips tight. _Why do you have to do this now and in front of your sister? Why not while we are alone?_

She inhales a surprise with a chirp and tries to suppress a smile.

 _I guess I should find out if I am a friend or foe to you._ He stares directly into her eyes. _Your smile is not helping._

"You are a very gorgeous woman sitting on my lap. Despite what you may think of me, I am a healthy male with a beating heart."

With a snort she says, "I can tell. Thank my lucky stars, you are." Her hand gives him two quick squeezes. She moves her hand to his leg.

"What does that mean?" Anna asks.

"I'll explain it to you in the library," Kristoff answers.

Sam slides his hand under her hand and helps her to her feet. The sensation of stinging needles prick his legs and feet, so he waits for the blood to reconnect to his lower limbs. Meticulously and slowly he folds the blanket and places it on the next chair. Elsa holds her hand out to him. He stares at her hand for a moment. Looking up at her, he takes her hand and allows her to help him out of the chair. With a nod, he says, "Thank you."

Sam releases her hand, but Elsa holds on. He observes the size differences between their hands. Her small hand clings onto his larger hand. Her muscles in her forearm and hand move as she tightens her grip. His fingers seem to move on their own as they slowly close around her hand. His finger detects her heart beat in her wrist. Like the petals of a flower, they have an intricate design. Delicate and beautiful with the softness of silk and yet they are easily bruised with too much pressure. He continues to stare as her hand disappears inside of his hand.

A whisper penetrates his thoughts. "Samuel."

 _Who is that? Who are you that you can speak to me in such a manner? Your hand is so soft. I don't want to let go. What time is it? Where am I?_

The whisper speaks again, "Samuel, look up."

His eyes gradually roll up and sees a beautiful face with blue eyes. "Are you speaking to me?"

Elsa gives him a reassuring smile, "Yes, I did."

He returns a smile and glances down. As quickly as he lets go of her hand, he steps back and locks his arms to his side as he cups his fist. "My apology, I do not know why I was holding your hand."

She responds, "It is okay."

"Good, I'm glad you are not offended. You have very nice hands. I like holding them."

"I like it when you hold them." Elsa slides her hand around his arm.

"Is this something we could do more often?"

A utensil clangs against a plate, then clinks against a glass.

From behind him a female's voice asks, "Wait. Did he ask to hold your hand?"

Elsa looks past him and motions Anna to stop talking. She steps to the side and motions him towards the head of the table. He does not move, but watches her. She places her hand in the small of his back and pushes him. He continues to watch her as they move around the Majesties chair.

Elsa watches him and with a glance, she motions for Anna and Kristoff to stand. "You know, you just showed up here one day and I believe we have not been properly introduced." She motions to her sister. "Anna, please introduces us and use proper titles."

Anna's brows push together and her eyes narrow. Her lips part, but she emits no sounds as she observes her sister. Elsa rolls her hand and motions towards him.

"Okay," Anna leans towards him and asks, "What is your title?"

He nods to her as he brings his feet together and rolls his shoulders back. Standing tall with his arms locked to his side, Sam replies, "Fleet Admiral Samuel Christopher Ryan, Commanding Officer of the United Star Ship Aurora."

Anna and Kristoff, with their mouths partially opened, stare at him. "Okay."

Anna bumps her sister's arm. "And you thought you had a long title." She stands between them and turns slightly to her sister. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, I wish to introduce you to Fleet Admiral Samuel Christopher Ryan, Commanding Officer of the United Star Ship Aurora."

Sam blinks several times and turns his head towards Elsa. "Queen?"

He steps back and kneels on one knee as he places his right fist over his heart and bows his head. "Your Majesty, I was not informed of your stature. My humble apologies for my error and I assure you that I will never make this mistake again."

Elsa's hand bumps Anna as she motions for him to stand.

Anna says, "Admiral Ryan, please stand. Our Queen is a loving and forgiving Queen. She understands circumstances happen."

He stands at attention.

Anna shifts on the balls of her feet. "Fleet Admiral Samuel Christopher Ryan, I wish to introduce you to Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

Elsa holds out her hand to him.

Sam steps back and kneels on one knee as he places his right fist over his heart. With his other hand, he gently holds and lightly kisses the back of her hand. "Your Majesty, I am humbled and honored for allowing me this audience. I am your servant to command. If it is within my capabilities, it will be done. How may I honor you?"

"Is he serious?" Anna asks.

"I believe he is. After what I saw, I understand his pain and what he is going through." Elsa lifts his chin. "You can honor me by standing, Admiral Ryan."

He stands at attention with his hands to his side and feet together.

Elsa motions to Anna as she looks up at him. "Let us continue the introductions. Admiral Ryan, this is my sister, Princess Anna of Arendelle."

With a grin Anna holds out her hand.

Sam bows and kisses the back of her hand. "I am doubly honored to meet my Queen's beautiful sister."

She motions past Anna. "Behind Princess Anna is Master Kristoff, Arendelle's Ice Harvester and Deliverer, I am hoping to add a title to his name in the near future."

Elsa turns to Sam and sternness replaces her smile. "Unfortunately, I am not fond of titles in an informal setting. When it is just the four of us," She touches Kristoff's shoulder, Anna's shoulder, and her chest. "Please call me, Elsa. Is there a name that I may call you without your title?" She places her hand over his heart.

He watched her hand touch the others and stares at it resting on his chest. His heart calms and the pain lessens. "My friends . . . my friends call me, Samuel or Sam."

She slightly angles her head. A twinkle flashes in her eyes. "Do you consider me your friend?"

With raised brows a smile explodes onto his face. "I certainly hope so."

"Me too," she replies. Elsa moves along the side of the table and glances back. "Follow me Sam."

Sam stares at her hand.

Elsa sees his hesitation and glimpses an expression she saw in his mind, not of fear, but of not knowing. Is this what the older Sam meant? The one who gives her peace in his mind is the one she sees in him now. "It is ok."

He looks at her with a slight grin.

She grabs his hand. "You do not have to hold my hand, but I will hold your hand. When I let go, you let go."

"Okay," A grin blossoms across his face. "You know you have a soft hand?"

"I have been told that once or twice." She watches him compare her hand to his hand.

He measures the length and size of her fingers to his. They walk down the hall and without looking up, he nudges her more to the center as they pass a hall table. He begins to lightly trace the back of her hand.

A soothing and tingling sensation travels up her arm. She pulls her hand away. "Sam."

His left hand folds into a fist and slides behind his back. His grin changes into a slight smile. He stands tall and his shoulders roll back. "Yes, Elsa."

They stop at the end of the hall. For the moment, no one occupies the lower room. "I have changed my mind. I need you to walk me to my study room. Afterwards, you need to inform Gerda to bring my light lunch to the study. If you are hungry, tell her to fix you a light meal as well."

He stares at her without changing his facial expression.

As she is about to question him, his smile disappears. "Do you understand?"

"Yes, with a question."

Elsa catches the transition of his expressions, and then she recognizes the expression of the older Sam from his mind. She shifts her posture to the Queen. "Ask your question."

"Do you wish for me to have a meal with you or should I stand guard by the door and prevent others from disturbing your meal?"

"I have questions for you, so I need you to be sitting at the table across from me. Whether you eat or not, is up to you, but I will enjoy your company."

Motioning towards the study, he says, "Then that is what I will do."

They walk down the short hall to her study. He follows her into the room, but stands by the opened door. Glancing around the room, his focus stops at the desk. She watches his eyes. A faint blue line sweeps across his eyes.

He nods to her. "I will be back." The door closes.

Elsa sits at the table with her hands in her lap. Her eyes close. A thought speaks to her. _Think about the snow. Think about the snow._ Nothing happens, but she notices a change in her body. A heavy weight presses against her from all sides. It tightens around her. The darkness swallows the light. Her lungs struggle to intake air. Her heart races. Pain squeezes her head. Sound of shoes race across the stone floor. A door slams open.

A tingle grabs her arms and it spreads throughout her body.

A voice calls to her, but it does not sound familiar. _"Elsa, stop. Elsa, stop what you are doing and listen to my voice."_

That is a strong voice. Why is he calling my name?

" _What is wrong with her?"_

That is a nice voice. Who is she talking to?

A table moves. A chair squeaks. More shoes run across the stone floor.

" _Elsa, you have to stop. Turn around."_

There is that strong voice. Does he know me?

" _Oh Lord, what happened to her?"_

An older voice, she sounds concerned like a mother, but who is she concerned about? Did I have a mother? If I did, I hope she is concerned for me.

" _We found her like this_. _What is wrong with her?"_ Says the young voice.

Three gray shadows move towards her. A very hot sensation touches her face. Get it off of me. It is burning. Help me.

" _Is she having a seizure? Her eyes are gray. Did you do this to her?"_ Asks the older voice.

Another man's voice answers. " _She is trying to reach out to you Sam. She did it before."_

" _I don't remember her doing this. Kai, please explain."_ Asks the strong voice

Kai must be the second man's voice. I think I know him. Is Sam the strong voice?

Cold presses against her neck. Kai says, _"It was after the accident in the courtyard, after you thawed out of the ice, Elsa wanted to talk to you, but her mother would not allow it. She reached for you. You said she did it with her mind. Her eyes were the same gray color they are now."_

The shadow's large hand reaches out to her. She steps back. The hand withdraws back into the gray area. At the last moment it reveals a snowflake on the back of the hand.

That is my snowflake. Where did you get it?

The hand moves out of the gray and motions for her to follow.

"NO," Elsa mumbles.

" _She said NO. Why is she saying NO?_ " the young voice asks.

" _She is afraid. I almost reached her, but she backed away,"_ answers the strong voice. _"She saw the snowflake on the back of my hand and recognized it."_

" _Well go get her,"_ demands the older voice.

" _She is fighting me and she is strong, but time is running out,"_ says the strong voice.

The young voice asks, _"What do you mean time is running out?"_ The voice asks with a higher pitch and faster, _"What does that mean?"_

" _Your sister is in a dark area. If I can't get her to come back, her mind will be lost."_

My mind, how can my mind be lost, it is right here. Wait, wait, I have a sister? The sweet young voice is my sister.

" _Yes, Elsa, Anna is your sister. Go to her."_

Anna, I have to find you. She charges into the dark.

" _Elsa, Elsa, you are going in the wrong direction. Come back. Go to your ice castle. Elsa, go to your ice castle. Yes, that is the way. Go to your ice castle."_

Wow, I feel like I am floating. This feels great. That is snow down there. There are blues, browns, and greens down there. Hey, that is an ice castle.

"Anna, she needs you." Sam says as he lifts Elsa into his arms.

Gerda commands, "Take her to her room."

Anna runs out the door held open by Kai. Sam carries Elsa down the hall

Gerda presses her palm into his back. C _an you hear me?_

 _Yes._

 _What did you do to our Queen?_

 _I'm not aware I have done anything to her. She did this all on her own. Very stupid._ Sam answers.

Anna holds the door open to the royal suite.

Sam enters. "Anna sit on the lounger and I will sit Elsa in front of you."

"No," Gerda interrupts. "Sit in the center of the bed with pillows supporting your back. He will lay her against you."

Anna hesitates and looks up at him.

"Do as she says."

Anna races into the Queen's bedroom, kicks off her shoes, and flicks the top covers back. She sits back against the headboard.

He lays Elsa against her. "Slide your arms under her arms and hold onto her wrist. Try to keep her in front of you. If you can't, roll her onto her side and stay as physically close to her as you can."

Elsa giggles with a smile.

Anna asks, "Why did she laugh and why the smile?"

He kneels next to the bed and touches the four specific points on Elsa's neck and face. After a moment he answers, "She has let her inner child out to play. She is riding on Marshmallow's shoulder." He looks at Anna. "She wishes you were there with her."

Anna tries to smile through her concerns and presses her cheek against Elsa. "I wish I could be there for her.

Gerda tucks a few more pillows behind Anna's back and neck. She slaps his arm. "What are you waiting for? Send her in."

Sam reaches around Anna and touches the four specific points on her neck and face. Anna starts to move her head.

Gerda says, "Don't move my dear. Say hello to your sister for me and most importantly, have fun."

Sam closes his eyes.

A layer of snow covers the ground. Overhead gray clouds slow their movement. In the distance, a beam of light pierces through the cloud. The sunlight illuminates a young child playing with her snowman.

Sam's eyes catch movement several meter slightly up hill. "I'm glad you decided to join us."

"How did I get here? Where are we?" Anna asks as the snow crunches under hear shoes.

He grabs her hand and pulls her to him. "You do not recognize this place?"

"No, I do not. Should I?" She looks at her surroundings. Her focus stops on him. "I do not remember you being so much taller."

"Our heights has not changed. You are standing lower than I."

Anna searches the ground. "I did not step into a hole. Are you standing on a rock? Wait. What –" The snow crunches under her shoe as she turns around. She stares at his boots. "I like the color scheme of your boots, how are they not touching the snow? I know I walked over here, but my foot prints have disappeared.

A snap, crackle, and a louder snap sounds followed by the rustle of a tree branch falling to the snow covered ground with a thump.

With wide eyes Anna stares and points to the forest. "That was not there a moment ago."

"Hold onto my arm."

Grabbing his arm Anna rises above the snow.

"Elsa is still creating her safe place."

"Safe place, creating?"

He points. "Look over there."

A small hill starts to rise and then rapidly shoots up to form a mountain. The surrounding hills transform and connect to form the mountain range. The distant mountains form with a forest at the lower levels.

"I have seen this before." Anna squeezes his arm. "That is the north mountain, but I do not see Elsa's ice castle."

"Keep watching," Sam encourages.

On the mountain's north face, a thin blue line grows in height and width. Angles and peaks and archways give the blue ice its shape. Finally the ice transitions from blue to purple tint as a yellowish orange glow rises from the east to reveal a snow covered landscape.

Anna giggles as she pats his arm. "That is Elsa ice castle."

"Yes, it is. She has done a wonderful job. I knew she could do it." He steps back and turns Anna to face south.

"Aw, there is Arendelle surrounded in green."

A short distance away, a blonde hair little girl in a blue dress giggles and rolls in the snow."

"Is that Elsa? I have always wanted to do that with her."

"Why do you not?"

"I'm too old to play like that."

"Really, I think I can help you with this."

She looks up at him. "Why are you grinning? Why are you getting taller?"

"I'm not. You're getting shorter. Do this." Sam taps his chest with both hands.

Anna taps her chest. Her eyes widen as she pulls her collar of her dress open. "Where did they go? What did you do to me?"

He sits in the snow and leans back on his arms. "You are the same person. I encouraged your inner child to come out to play."

"Play?"

"Anna." A young Elsa calls from the shoulder of Marshmallow walking towards them. "Anna, stay there I will come to you."

"Keep watching her and don't blink," He says.

A young Anna steps next to him and holds onto his shirt. In less than a blink, Marshmallow stands in front of them and Elsa slides down his arm with a thump into the snow. She runs to Anna and hugs her.

"I am glad you are here. We can finally roll down the hill together and play in the snow." Anna hugs her big sister, but does not let go of his shirt. Elsa's smile fades. "What is wrong? Did the stable boy hurt you?"

Anna looks back at him. "Stable boy?"

"I will give a detail explanation later. At her present age, she only knows me as the stable boy." A cold sweeps across his back and he detects a presence behind him. "Anna, your sister has not experienced the event at the great hall. It has not happened yet." He gives her a light push. "Go play with her and have fun."

Elsa glares at him.

"Show her your magic. Anna will love to see it."

Instantly, young Elsa's smile returns. She grabs Anna's hand and pulls, "Come on, we can roll down the hill."

Sam watches Anna and Elsa roll down the hill laughing.

Marshmallow walks down the hill as he says in his deep voice, "I will watch over them. My Queen wishes to speak to you."

A weight presses on his hand as a cold hand grabs the back of his neck. His hand snaps around and grabs an ankle, throwing her off balance. Her weight shifts enough for him to grab her hand off his neck and add momentum to her falling body. She lands face first into the snow several meters down the hill.

She does not move.

"The cold hand on my neck does not work in here." He tosses a snowball that lands on the back of her head.

"I know you are not hurt. Which Elsa are you?"

Brushing the snow from her face and hair, she sits up and sends him an angry glare. "How did you get in here?"

"The door was open, so I walked in."

"You were not invited. Leave."

He stands and glances down the hill. Young Elsa and young Anna continue to laugh and play. His eyes focus on her with the blue tint. "I recognize you. I hear the same sounds I heard long ago," he points towards the young Elsa, "when she was alone and afraid."

"I'm not afraid. You need to leave." This Elsa stands and ice drips from her hands. Her dark blue dress contrast against the white snow, even her exposed skin has an unhealthy, pasty appearance. The falling ice forms into two swords. She lifts them with the blades pointing at his chest.

"You cannot hurt me in here." He sweeps his hand towards the ice castle. "I know you did not create that. You are Elsa's fear and at the moment the dominant one here. Where are the others?" He scans the area.

"There are no others. I am the only one here. LEAVE." Fearful Elsa steps towards him.

"What about the child Elsa playing with Anna? You are not alone, so where are the others?" He walks towards her.

She lunges at him and the ice swords melt against him. The hilt of the swords drop from her hands. She swings her fist wildly.

He steps back and catches her fist flying pass his face. Grabbing her other hand, he wraps his arms around her and falls back into the snow. "I know you are afraid, but I need to find the other Elsa's, before it is too late."

She slams her head into his chin.

He wraps his legs around her waist and squeezes her closer to him. "Elsa STOP. I'm here to help you."

Her body falls limp. A tear rolls down the ridge of her nose and freezes in the snow. She whispers, "No you are not. You are just like the others. No one listens to me."

He loosens his grip.

She does not move, but whimpers, "I warned them something bad could happen, but they pushed me out of the way and now, they are gone."

"Gone where?"

She covers her face and more tear shaped ice falls into the snow.

He sits her up to lean against him and brushes her hair back. "I know you feel alone. I can help you and them. Please tell me where they are?"

She stares up at him and after a moment a smile begins to form. "I know why she likes you. You make her feel safe. I wish I could make her feel safe."

"But you can. By standing up to her and telling her why. It will make her hesitate which will give her time to evaluate your words."

"I don't know if I can." She lowers her head.

"Do you know what I am afraid of?"

She shakes her head.

He kisses her forehead. "I am afraid I would lose you. I have to protect you even if it means I have to let the monster out."

"You are not a monster Samuel Ryan. You are a good person."

"So are you. Will you help me find the others?"

"They will know I lead you to them." She cuddles into his arm.

"Will they be upset at you?"

She barely nods.

"Which one made the decision to seek out my mind?" She tightens her grip around his arm. "If I had to guess, was it Pride who convinced the others?" She nods and taps his arm with two fingers.

"Pride and one other?" Again she barely nods. Did Elsa's emotions separate into individuals? Are they working separately?

"Jealousy?" Her hand slides back and forth on his arm. "You know this will take time to run through the list of emotions."

She lightly scratches the letter 'E' on his arm. "Envy?" Her hand taps and squeezes his arm.

"So Pride and Envy lead a revolt." Several tears run down his arm. He whispers into her ear. "I know you are afraid, but I need you to be courageous."

"But they will hurt you."

"Perhaps, they will and I will know this was not meant to be. Elsa may live a long life as Queen if she does not encounter Hans of the Southern Isle."

"What about you?"

"I will travel and seek my fortunes for the future."

She sits up. "You would leave me?"

He flicks the tip of her nose. "I would be leaving all of you."

She glances away. Her lips part to take in more air as her chest rises and falls. She clenches her hands to stop them from shaking. Her brows drop as they push together and a frown covers her face. "You cannot leave me."

"Why not? You allowed them to throw you out. If they do not want me, I'm not sticking around."

Her frown dissolves into hurt. Her head lowers.

He taps her shoulder. "If I am to stay, I think you need to convince the others. Sometimes when I'm afraid, I calculate the worst and hope for the best."

"Risk big for a big reward."

"At least one of you heard me." He grins.

She lunges and pushes him onto his back. "Oh, you. If I can convince them will you stay?"

"It will definitely improve the odds."

Kneeling next to him and holding his hand, she closes her eyes. In less than a blink, a dark blue with shades of purple of the ice castle towers above them. They stand.

As she reaches for the door, he stops her. "I don't remember your castle being so dark. It is as though the window curtains are drawn close. Where was Elsa physically located when she tried to reach me?"

She points to the balcony above them.

He steps back trying to see anything that would give him a clue as to what went wrong. Taking another step back, he stretches his neck and rise onto his toes. Another step back. Something does not seem right with the balcony. A little further back, his foot slips off the edge of the cliff. A hand grabs hold of his arm. Her face strains and her body tenses to keep him from falling. A spike of ice forms in his free hand and he drives it into the ground. Together with this Elsa he pulls himself up. She wraps her arms around his body and buries her face into his chest.

Looking over the edge, he says, "There was an ice bridge here. What happened to it?"

Wiping her tears on his shirt, she looks up at him. "I don't know what I would do if you fell."

"You did the right thing. It took a lot of courage to save me. You could have fallen with me." His arms wrap around her. "I knew you could do it."

She steps back and punches his arm. "You scared me."

Rubbing the spot, he says, "It was not my intentions of falling, but I did see what I was looking for." He points to the balcony. "The last time I was here. There was a door, but now, it appears there never was one." Glancing at the cliff's edge, "just like it appears there never was a staircase of ice leading to the other side."

He grabs her arms. "Elsa, I know you are afraid, but it was the courageous part of you who brought me here. I need you to be courageous and tell me what happened the moment she tried to reach me."

Her eyes move back and forth as though searching his face. "I tried to tell them to wait. Pride and Envy stepped away from us and everything grew dark. The others pushed me and the young Elsa out the doors. After we crossed the stairs, Anger destroyed the stairs and said not to come back without you. I have never seen Anger so mad."

"Who else is in there?"

"Love, but if she is not careful, Lust will show up. Sadness, Joy, Doubt and Trust were fighting to stop Pride and Envy."

"Interesting, Love and Lust, Joy and Sadness, Trust and Doubt, they have opposites. You are Fear and Courage, so the counter to Pride is?"

"Humble."

"And Envy?"

"Generosity."

Considering the information he has, something still does not seem right. "Was it dark when you entered the castle?"

"No. It was bright and cheery. Envy wished you were here so she could show you her safe place. Pride said, let us make him see this castle. Envy and Pride held hands and called out to you. The castle grew dark like the sun was setting. A furious wind blew and a dark cloud circled the room and formed into you at the foot of the stairs."

"Me? Did I say anything?"

"You pointed to Pride and Envy and said 'you are endangering both of us. Stop before it is too late'. You disappeared, but the dark cloud began to fill the castle. That is when Anger, Joy, and Trust pushed me and young Elsa out the door. We watched the castle shake and grow dark. I took young Elsa as far away from this as I could." She wraps her arm around his arm. "I felt your presence and waited for you to come."

"So I was here. An image flashed in my mind while I was in the kitchen. It felt so real. I could not take a chance so I ran back to the study room and found Elsa unconscious."

"But you are here now. Can you make her stop?"

He looks at her and lifts her chin. "That is a risk I cannot take, but you can."

She buries her face into his arm. "I can't do it alone."

He lifts her chin. "You will not be alone. I will be there with you."

"But I thought you said –"

"I can't do it for you, but you can reason with the others. When all of you agree, this will end."

"What do I say?"

"Say what you would normally say and be yourself."

"Myself?" She steps away from him and turns to the doors. After a moment, her shoulders roll back as she stands tall. "We can do this." She glances over her shoulder. A blue flash sparkles in her eye. "Samuel will you please help me?"

"Where you go I will follow."

Elsa pushes open the doors. A plume of dark air rushes past her. She reaches her hand back and Sam grips it.

"Where are the others?"

"I don't see them.

"Elsa, you must bring the chaos under control. Control your thoughts and the air will clear."

She lets go of his hand. Rotating one hand around the other, a ball of light shoots up into the air. The room clears most of the dark air. The remaining dark air balls around someone at the foot of the stairs. One by one Sam assist the others to their feet. Calmness and Joy follow him to the next Elsa.

Trust looks up and smiles at him. "I knew you would save us."

"Actually, I'm not doing it. Your sister is doing it." They stare at the one shining a light on the remaining dark air.

"Courage? We were right to send her out," Joy says.

"She needs your help. Together, all of you can control the chaos."

Three of the four places their hands on Courage and the light brightens. The dark air changes to gray and they see two individual instead of one.

The fourth stands next to him. "Why are you not helping them?"

"I would rather put my hands on you." One hand slides behind his neck and pulls his head down as her lips brush against his lips. Her other hand grips his royal scepter.

A hesitant moment passes, before he pushes her away. "Okay Lust, get over there and help your sisters."

Her hand slides across his scepter and she blows him a kiss. Lust joins her sister and the light brightens even more.

The dark air dissipates to reveal Pride and Envy. A bright light flashes between them as they separate. They look at their hands and then at each other. They look towards their sisters. Courage lowers her hands. Humility and Generosity run to their sisters for a group hug.

Humility says, "This is not what we intended. I wanted to see if I could reach him."

Generosity says, "He was here and the darkness followed. I don't know what happened."

"I know," Sam states as he walks to the door. "You reached out to me unprepared for the shock factor if our energies were not synchronized. This is a hard lesson to learn." He turns to them. "Why didn't you just ask?"

"We did," Courage answers. "You give confusing replies or we do not understand your answers." The others nod in agreement.

"Sometimes you make me so angry," Anger states.

"And I feel you have doubts about me," Trust says.

"I have my moments of sadness, but when you are near, I feel happy," Joy says and the others nod.

"I want you to teach me those things you do, so I can give back for all the times you helped us," Generosity says.

"I am not weak if I have the knowledge, but I do try and make mistakes as you have seen." Humility looks away from him.

"We try to reach you out there." She points to the doors. "But you push us away, and I wonder if you are about to leave us."

He looks at each face of Elsa's emotions. "I see I have –" Behind them, he spots Love with her head down. An ice tear falls from the tip of her nose. He walks around the others. Taking Love's hands, he places them over his heart. She looks up with streaks of ice trails running down her face. "I see I have to do a better job at communicating with you. Only then can we have the courage to speak to each other without fear.

The other gather around him. "That is all we ask." They smile and step closer to touch him.

"Love, I am holding your hands and yet someone has their hand between my legs. Do you know whose hand it belongs?"

Love kisses the tip of his nose. "My hands is here."

He glances and does not see the others. The doors open. Young Elsa and Young Anna run in. At about the meter point from him, she launches herself. Her feet land squarely into his abdomen and he falls onto his back. She sits on his chest and pats his face. Anna jumps over his feet and lands on his abdomen as she hugs Elsa.

Anna says, "You are right. He is big compared to us. Wait until I get out and tell her what you did."

"What did I do?"

"You allowed Elsa to hold your royal scepter and you seemed to enjoy it." Anna smirks.

The Elsa he knows helps him out. "Okay, I know two little girls who have had a very long day playing. It is time for you to take a nap. Look over there." Two beds similar to the beds Anna and Elsa slept in when they shared a room. Young Anna and Elsa jump into the same beds and cozy together.

Sam watches his Queen tuck the covers around them. She turns to him. "What are you looking at?"

With a slight nod, he answers, "You have the instincts to be a mother."

She points her finger at him. "It is time for you to leave."

He holds her hand. "What happened to you in here?"

"I underestimated your abilities. I still have a lot to learn."

"I have a century of experiences. I will share them with you, but under no circumstances are you to try that again. I have to be with you."

She jerks her hand free. "Time to go." A flick of her fingers sprays ice on his face.

Sam's eyes gradually open and the sensation of falling stops with his head striking the side table. Sam rolls onto his side and holds his head.

Gerda kneels next to him. "What's in there? Did you find Elsa?"

He opens one eye to look at her. "Other than the scrape on my head, I'm doing fine?"

"That's not what I asked. I know you will be okay. What happened to Elsa? Is Anna still in there?" She helps him to sit up.

"Elsa is doing better. The little child version of Anna and Elsa were taking a nap, when Queen Elsa pushed me out."

"Pushed you out, she can do that?" She moves his hand. "You did peel back a chunk of skin."

"Evidently, our Queen has been watching me while I was not looking, but that will change effective immediately. I knew this day would arrive. I didn't think it would be this soon."

Anna drapes her arm across her sister and says, "Again." Elsa giggles, "Okay."

"Nap? Sounds like the same two little girls who got up to play after their mother put them down for a nap." Gerda pulls his head back. "How long before Anna gets out and they wake up?"

"Not long, as soon as they break physical contact, their minds will need to rest and they will sleep for several hours." He rolls to his feet and helps Gerda up. "In the meantime, I need to contact Pabbie. If she can do this on her own, I need to be prepared."

He walks towards the door.

Gerda follows him. "Prepared for what?"

He watches Elsa barely move with each breath, then he smiles to Gerda. "Have you ever told someone they were not ready to do something and behind your back they did it anyway only to get hurt or seriously hurt?"

"How serious?"

"She could literally lose her mind. You thought the great freeze was bad. If I can't stop her and she disrupts the normal weather pattern, summer would not visit Arendelle for several years if not for several decades. I don't know, if it would be a permanent change."

Gerda grabs his arm. "Could she really cause a new ice age."

With a grin he squeezes her cheek. "You asked how serious and I told you. We have to cross many streams, before it gets that bad."

Gerda stares at her two girls sleeping peacefully. Anna rolls to her side of the bed.

"See the contact has been broken. In their minds, they will fall asleep. When they wake up they will be here." He walks out the royal suite. "Now I have to find the old toad."

Elsa wakes up with a yawn and a long stretch. She rolls onto her side. The cover on the other side of the bed moves. She reaches over and pushes on the lump under the covers. "Sam, did you sneak into my bed while I was asleep? Gerda is going to tan your hide if she catches you in here."

A small hand reaches out and pulls the covers down. Strawberry-blonde hair covers the pillow.

"Anna, what are you doing in my bed?" Elsa flings her cover off and slides off the bed. She glances down. "Why am I wearing my day clothes? Did I fall asleep?"

The clock on the mantel strikes the bell three times.

Anna sits up and stretches. She says through her yawn, "There is a lot of light for three in the morning." She stretches again and falls back onto the bed with her eyes closed.

Elsa searches her mind for her last clear thoughts. Sam was with her and they walked to her study room. She remembers Sam leaving the room. Her thoughts are slow to come to her. "Anna why did you come to my room?"

"I do not know. Maybe you called me." Anna answers and rolls onto her side.

"Anna, wake up. I was in my study with Sam. I do not remember coming up here." Elsa says as she stares at the clock.

Anna opens her eyes and watches her sister. "The last thing I remember you were on the floor asleep and Sam leaning over you."

"Why was he leaning over me and why was I on the floor?"

"Perhaps it has something to do with the way he was touching you."

"Touching me?" She sits on the edge of the bed. "How was he touching me? Give me every detail." She taps Anna's head. "Wake up."

"Leave me alone. This is the best sleep I have ever had in forever."

"ANNA."

Anna sits up on her elbows. "Alright. You do not have to yell."

"It is important. Please show me how Sam touched me," Elsa growls.

"He touched your face like this." She touches three of the four specific points on her neck and face.

"Then what?"

"He touched the same spots on my face. The next thing I know, I am standing in the snow and see you playing, but we looked different like when you created the snow in the great hall." She sits and bounces next to her as she grabs her hand. "We had so much fun in your snow, and in your ice castle."

"Ice castle? Was Sam there?"

"Yes."

Elsa slips off the bed. She walks towards the balcony. Her head moves from side to side. She turns around and marches towards the front room.

"Elsa? What is wrong?"

She turns back to Anna. Her hands shake as many strange thoughts flash in her mind. "Something is not right."

The door opens and Gerda walks in. "I thought I heard you two talking. Is anything wrong Majesty?"

She snaps at her. "Where is Sam?"

"He rode into the hills yesterday afternoon."

"Yesterday? You mean we have been asleep twenty four hours? Why do I not remember?" Elsa paces and tries to remember.

Anna snickers, "Twenty-four hours, no wonder I feel so rested."

Gerda tries to console her. "Majesty, he said once the dream ended, you would sleep for many hours."

Elsa turns with clenched fists. "When will he be back?"

"He didn't say when. He had to contact an old toad."

"Old toad," Anna snickers again.

Elsa faces the north wall. If she could see through it, she would see the valley of stones. Her eyes close. "Samuel, where are you? Come back." Her body tenses.

Images from above the castle enters her mind. _How did I get here?_ Arendelle slides past. The images move past the outer wall. _Samuel is this what you see?_ The ground images move faster as they fly through the forest. _Samuel?_ A blur of brown and green race underneath her. The movement stops as if she hit a wall. The image focuses on Samuel and Pabbie staring at her.

Ghostly voices speak to her. Elsa, are you hurt? Wake up. Elsa stop what you are doing.

Pabbie points to her. "You mean like that?"

"Exactly," Sam replies.

"Then you better stop her before it is too late." Pabbie transforms into a boulder.

Sam walks towards her. "Elsa, you are not going to like this, but I have to do it." A white light flashes from his palm.

A sharp pain stabs into her mind. She opens her eyes. Her aching body lies on her bedroom floor with Anna and Gerda kneeling next to her.

Anna's shaking hand brushes her hair from her face. Anna's eyes glisten with moisture.

"Majesty can you sit up?" Gerda encourages her.

"What happened?" Elsa rubs the back of her head.

"You were staring at the wall and your eyes turned blue," Gerda answers.

"You called Sam's name, then fell back onto the floor." Anna strokes her hair. "You have a knot on the back of your head."

"Did you see him?" Gerda stares into her eyes.

Elsa stares back. "Yes, I did. He opened his hand and a flash of light struck me." She glimpses a tear sliding down Anna's face. She grabs Gerda's arms. "Why would he do that?"

Gerda's head gradually moves from side to side. "I suspect he is on his way back here and you can ask him. In the meantime, let's get you into your bed, so you can rest until he gets here."

Anna and Gerda help her to her feet and then over to the bed. She lies back.

"I'm going to see if the herbalist has anything for the knot on your head." Gerda marches to the door. "Anna, it is your job to make sure your sister does not fall asleep. Keep her awake." The door closes behind her.

Returning from the herbalist, Gerda carefully carries two cups of tea up the steps in front of the castle door. Guards at the main gates yell and run to get out of the way. Aurora charges through the main gates and stops at the foot of the steps. Sam slides off her back and the momentum carries him up the steps. He grabs one cup of tea and guzzles it down as he enters the castle.

"That is not your tea. It is for Queen Elsa. She bumped her head." Gerda runs behind him.

"I know. She reached out to me again and fell. I saw the whole thing." He takes the stairs two steps at a time.

Gerda follows, trying to keep up with him. "Sam, calm down. It was an accident."

From below the stairs, Elsa calls to him. "Samuel, is that you?" She steps out into the lower room from the side hallway.

Sam jumps over the rail and lands on his feet with a loud thud in front of his Queen. Anna jumps back from his sudden appearance and squeaks a high pitched chirp.

Elsa grabs his shirt. "What is wrong with you for scaring Anna? You almost scared—" Before she can complete her statement, her feet leave the floor and her back slams into the wall as the air expels out of her lungs.

Sam forces his knee between her legs and uses his body to pin her to the wall. He grips her wrist with one hand above her head. His other hand holds her face so his dark green eyes can stare into her eyes. "Are you afraid?"

Elsa tries to move, but he presses his body harder against her. She struggles to breathe.

Anna grabs his hair and pulls with all of her might. "Let go of my sister." His head does not move.

Gerda runs out the front doors. Kai runs over and tries to pry Sam's arm back. Anna kicks at his legs. He does not move.

Elsa's mind struggles to make sense of his actions. She has never seen this side of him. Has he finally lost his mind? Even in his anger, he has never done anything like this. What is he trying to prove?

His eyes narrow. The color in his face transitions from brown to blue to gray. Frost rises out from under his shirt and up his neck. A thin layer of ice covers his face. Frost moves up his arms to his hands. His ice creeps onto her hands and arms. Her heart races.

His lips move. She does not hear his words, but knows what he said. Her hands refuse to move and her body slows with the loss of sensation. Her heart beats faster and nothing responds as it should. Is this what Anna felt, before she froze on the fjord?

Sam blows a fog of cold air through her hair and it freezes. "You think the cold does not bother you. Let me test that theory."

Her body tense as thousands of tiny needle sensations pierce her flesh. It is the coldest she has ever felt. Ice slides across the floor and pushes Anna and Kai away from them. The ice moves along the wall and touches her sides. Sam's exposed flesh changes to a solid blueish-gray. Out of the corner of her eyes, her arms appear an ocean blue and are getting darker. Her body has abandoned her. It does not move. The ice presses against her back. A shiver rolls through her neck and her facial muscles. Her teeth chatter, but he holds her in place. His ice grabs her body like tiny fingers. The tingling, changes to stinging needles.

Did you smile? Is this what mother said? Do not look into the eyes of the monster. Did they see the same thing in me? Am I their monster? She glances past him. Anna reaches for her but Kai holds her back. _No Anna, stay away. I cannot protect you, let along myself._

His ice like a hand reaching out of the wall grips her head and slides around her neck. His ice pulls her body and legs against the wall. His breath smells of cold ice that burns her nose. It becomes harder to breathe.

Kai pulls Anna towards the kitchen. She cries to her. "ELSA."

His crystal green eyes stare at her, not at her, but through her. Are you seeing my soul? Do you see anything good in me? Have I become your enemy? If your logic say I must die. I beg you. Please. Please do not do it in front of Anna. Wait a few minutes. If I am still alive, I beg for mercy that you will make it quick.

"What did you say?" he speaks through his teeth.

 _You are hurting me. Please stop._ Elsa pleads with her thoughts.

"Use your words that my ear may hear."

Her mouth barely moves to speak. "I know you are upset. Please do not do this in front of Anna."

"Are you afraid," he growls in a whisper.

"Yes, I am afraid."

Multiple colors of metallic green flashes across his face. "Say so all can hear you." His grip loosens on her face.

She says louder for the others to hear. "YES, I AM AFRAID."

Gerda returns with Captain Larsen and four guards with their swords out and ready to charge.

His face moves away from her. The ice withdraws and relieves the pressure against her neck and back. The fingers of ice pulls her hair, before finally releasing it. Her arms begin to sting as the blue fades. The ice pops and crackles. He pulls her arms from the wall and steps back. Holding her arms, he lowers her to the floor. "Why were you afraid?"

Her arms hang to her side, but they feel as if they were still over her head. The ice collects under her boots. She feels every centimeter of her body wakening up. With everyone in the room, she cannot fall to the floor. As painful as it is, she forces her body to stand in the Queen's regal pose.

The gray continues to cover his exposed flesh. He growls louder. "Why were you afraid?"

She glares up at him. "I was afraid of losing Anna. I did not want her to see me die like this."

"You were not close enough."

"Leave her alone." Anna charges at him.

"ANNA NO." She tries to step, but it is too late. Anna grabs Sam's arm and screams. She backs up with parts of her hands frozen.

"SAM," Elsa screams as she lunges at him. _She is innocent. You knew this could happen. Attack me you green eyed monster and feel my claws._ An erupting slap of her hand against his face echoes in the room. She runs to Anna and covers her hands with her own glowing hands.

After a moment, Anna wiggles her finger and says, "Elsa, you are bleeding?"

She looks at her right hands with traces of crimson red. "I'm not bleeding." She turns her hand up and they sparkle with flashes of tiny lights in the bright red liquid.

Anna rubs her hands together. "They do not hurt. I think it scared me more than it hurt." She hugs her sister. "I was surprised by the cold. I thought he was going to kill you."

Elsa stares at her hands.

Anna motions towards Sam. "Is it his blood?"

His blood is on my hands. I caused him to bleed. Why did I strike him? If he wanted me dead, I would not be standing here. She glances at Anna. You would be Queen. An emotional rush forces the tears out of her eyes.

She rubs her hands together and looks at them again. "Is this what he means to have another's blood on his hands?" She steps towards him. He has not moved. She steps a wide arc around him and holds up her hands towards him. "Sam, I did not mean to hurt you, but you hurt me and scared Anna."

A gravelly voice replies, "Nor did I mean to hurt you or scare Anna, but I had to get your attention. You wanted my capabilities. Pride pushed you to take a chance. I did not want you to suffer the pain I went through for so many years. I prostituted myself to that dictator of a government because of my pride. The realization literally ran over me, when I detected twelve small bodies in the back of the government truck." His voice wavers. "Two days earlier, I had seen those same twelve small children playing. I had to leave." His body does not move.

Frost forms on her hands as she edges around him. A dark, thick red drips onto his shirt. "You were hurting me. I was afraid."

His head gradually turns to her as his eyes open. His crystal green changes to the normal Hazel color. The gray in his arms fade to the flesh color. "Now you know, how I felt yesterday and today when you reached out to me." He looks at the floor. "I thought I lost you again."

"What did you say?" Her glare softens.

"If I had hesitated a few seconds longer, Queen Anna would have to lock you away for Arendelle's safety. Your ice castle and the snow covered mountain would be your home or you and I would travel north, never to return." Sam turns his head more and two thick red drops fall onto his shirt.

A gasp escapes her lips, before her hands could cover them. Elsa backs into the wall. From his ear across to his chin, as if from sharp knives, three evenly spaced cuts expose his teeth and bones. She glances at her hands. _I am a monster as is he._

Anna rushes towards her. "What is it?"

She stops her sister and forcibly moves Anna towards Gerda. "You do not want that memory. I have to accept what I have done to him."

Captain Larsen motions for the guards to lower their swords.

With tears running down her cheeks, Gerda pulls Anna towards the kitchen. "Please come with me and I will explain. They have issues they need to resolve. At this moment, we can do nothing for them."

Kai ushers everyone out of the room.

"It seems you have learned the lesson sooner than I did." Sam turns to her.

"I am a pitiful Queen for striking you. I could not control it. I had to strike back."

"Why? Your anger has shown you what you can do, if you are not in control. I expected you would do something and did not stop you. You had to see. Perhaps next time, it will be Anna's face."

"Anna?" Moisture in her eyes overflows as a vision of her hand slicing Anna's face grips her heart. "No, no, I would not hurt Anna."

His boot stomps the floor and creates an echo ringing in her ears as she looks up at him. "But you did on your coronation day by revealing your powers in the ballroom and striking Anna's heart with your ice. You have to know what can happen. You must be in control at all times." A shower of ice flows from his hand. An ice version of her throne rises from the floor. He motions to the throne and offers his hand. "Please sit.

She reaches for his hand and walks around the ice and sits. After making a few adjustments she says, "You made changes. This feels just as comfortable as my throne with cushions."

He holds onto the arm rest and moans as he eases himself down to his knees. His head turns the wound side of his face towards her. "You did this. Now fix it."

She hesitantly touches a piece of his skin barely holding onto his lip. A rush of nausea fills her chest as the saliva loads her cheeks. She jerks her hand back.

Gerda offers her a cup of tea. "Drink this quickly, it will calm you."

She grabs the cup and guzzles it down. The heat from the tea burns inside of her chest, but it calms her nausea.

Gerda takes the cup. "I will make sure you are left alone to talk. I don't like it when my children hurt each other."

She watches Gerda go around the corner, but her words stung. She looks at his eyes staring at her. "I did not mean to do it. I was angry."

"Great power comes with great responsibilities. I know there may be times when I cannot be with you. One slip and you could die from an assassin's arrow." He grabs her hand and places it over his heart. "What do you feel?"

She looks at his gentle hands. Minutes ago, those hands gripped her arms like the shackles in the prison cells. They were rough and unyielding. Securely they held her to the wall. Try as hard as she did, she could not break free. Now they do not trap her hands, but hold them with the gentleness he had done before. The gentleness she desires to hold and make her feel secure. Would he grip my hand if I pulled them away? No, he would not. He would let me go if I asked, but I have his blood on my hands. I injured his face out of anger and fear. His words come to her mind. 'I will obey your command except in your safety.' She stares into the most beautiful Hazel eyes.

"I feel the warmth in your hands and your heart beating."

"Do you think my heart does not suffer when I see you act recklessly? I underestimated you. I will teach you everything you need to survive with your powers, but you have to trust me. You will have to prove you are ready to take the next step."

"But I am ready now."

His finger points to the injured side of his face as he says, "Really."

She lifts her hand to the wound.

"Elsa?"

Her hand moves back.

"You have more than enough knowledge to heal me. I will stop talking until you say you are done. Are you ready?"

"I think so."

"Do not think so. Know for sure."

A layer of frost forms on the top of her glowing hand. The ice leaves her hand and covers his wound. After a moment the underlying layers of flesh begin to merge together. She looks into his eyes. "Did you mean what you said about teaching me?"

His eyes blink and a thin blue line sweeps across his eyes.

"I hope that is your way of saying yes. I cannot hear your thoughts. I know you will not talk, but I hope it does not prevent you from listening. Please hear me out. I am truly, truly sorry for hurting you. You seem to do many things effortlessly. I thought I was prepared so I tried. I thought I was performing a swan dive into the fjord, and instead my body landed flat on the water. I understand if you had not saved me I would have drowned. I see how foolish I was." She leans close to his face. "You make life frustrating for me. Despite everything Father taught me, he did not prepare me for you. Every time I think I understand you, you lose part of your memory and I have to learn your mannerisms all over again. I know your mission is to save your family and I will do everything I can to help make it happen, but I cannot watch you and my Queendom at the same time."

His chin quivers and blood seeps out from the edge of her ice. She continues to express her likes and desires.

An hour later, she rest her hand in her lap. "I am sorry. My hand is tired, but there are three lines that will not heal." Her cold hand touches his face.

"Stop." He holds her hand over his heart. His fingers trace the three scars that match where her nails cut. "Leave it."

"But others will see it. How will you explain it?"

He moves his lower jaw from side to side. "Does it offend you?"

She shakes her head.

"Good. Let it be a reminder to the both of us for crossing the line when neither of us were ready."

She glances down.

He lifts her chin. "This has been a very stressful day for the both of us." He holds his hands next to her shoulders. "I don't know about you, but I need a hug."

Her smile blossoms as she wraps her arms around his neck. His arms slip around her.

He whispers, "Elsa, I must speak a truth. Approximately a year after S5 showed me that I could make ice, I became arrogant and reckless, instead of sticking with the scripted training. I thought S5 would not see and I used ice to change the training field in my favor. The result injured several personnel, including two of my team members. S5 met me at the field exit. I justified my actions with the ice and said the injured were collateral damage."

A cold drop splashes onto Elsa's shoulder.

"Later that evening, after lights out, she dragged me out of my room with her frozen hand around my throat. She did not let go until we were at the training field. An ice collar had formed around my neck. She walked a short distance from me. I asked her, why she was doing this to me. She showed both of her frozen hands pointed at me. Her facial color, almost blended with her white uniform. Then her eyes change to green."

She asked, "Who will the enemy attack first, the one spraying the troops with many arrows that they can see or one arrow being shot from an unknown location?"

"Before I could answer, an ice sword grew out of her hand and sliced through a wooden pole holding a sign. The sword impacted against my ice collard. She said the training ends at sunrise. Her sword transformed into a bow with an arrow pointed at me. She screamed 'run' and pulled back the arrow. Just as I stepped into the training field, the arrow flew past my shoulder. It did not cut deep, but the shock factor that she shot at me was enough for me to run fast."

Another cold drop splashes onto Elsa's shoulder.

"I stopped long enough to feel her ice covering my aching shoulder. I could not get it to stop expanding. My shoulder was freezing. With the one arrow, she crippled me. I was no match for her, even before this started. Every time I stopped for a breath, an arrow would land near me. If I hesitated to move, an arrow would scrape my body and it started to freeze. I could not outrun her, or out track her, nor could I see her. I look back now and can see her ice was a bright light in the dark. She saw me the whole time."

His sigh wavers and he squeezes Elsa closer.

"I could not go any further, and stood my ground. I formed a crude ice sword. Directly in front of me tree trunks froze, then the bushes, and then the ground froze. It stopped at my feet. Branches broke and a bush shatter into snow when she stepped through. Her clothes were as white as snow. Her face was a pale blue, but her eyes were not eyes, but were crystal green orbs. I had never seen her like that. I was afraid. I lifted my sword and barely saw her move as her sword shatter mine. Every time her sword touched me, a surge of pain exploded into my body. I lost control my ice and my body failed to respond. I was so cold."

She said, "If you are still in the field when the sun rises, I will kill you myself." And she walked away.

"She never lied to me, so I knew she would. I limped and fell, but I made it to my room as the first sunlight peaked in. No one checked on me. Over the three days, I was able to replace her ice with my own. I slept. The following two months, she didn't say anything to me. She laughed and talked to my team members, but when I came around, she would leave. It hurt so much. I had failed her. I cried myself to sleep that night. I wanted to die. The following days, not even my team would talk to me. They had us on a strict schedule, but I never received mine. When I asked questions, they all replied the same, ask S5. The few times I tried she would not acknowledge me. I stayed in my room during the day reading team reports, battle plans, field personnel, and mission goals. I ate my one meal a day in the dining room. I sat at a table by the window by myself.

"One day, I discovered I could requisition supplies. No one bothered me when I walked to the training field at sunset. I carried a backpack with supplies and my assassin's long range weapon. I knew they were watching. I read books, practiced the assassin's skills, and on clear nights I watched the stars, but my stare always focused on the one star I could not see. One night I heard strange music. It's as though the star was calling me. I was at peace. I slept a restful sleep. About an hour before sunrise my mind heard a noise that did not belong and all night creatures became quite. I opened my eyes and a blue tint, covered everything, then I saw them. Twenty members from two teams move through the forest as though they were tracking. They had to be tracking me. The odds were too large for me to overcome all of them."

Elsa asks, "So what did you do?"

"We were trained with the same tactics. Everything I knew they knew. Then it clicked. If I stayed within the planned tactics, I would be defeated quickly. So I decided to do the opposite."

"You did not play by the rules, so what happened?"

"By then, I had learned to increase my throwing accuracy. I attacked the strongest group. I saw a hand make the motion to move. They were distracted. I fired three shots. Three leaders fell. In that moment of hesitation. I fired ten shots. Two leaders and four other fell. With each shot I learned I did not have to wait for the results. As soon as I pulled the trigger, I acquired another target. Three took off running and fell immediately. They were down to eight. And this is when they forgot their training. We had been trained, when a mission falls apart or you feel you cannot complete the mission, return to the extraction zone for pickup. They were heading to the entry gate."

"I suspect you were ahead of them and waited for them to come to you."

"A good logical tactic, but in this case it would have taken too long. By shifting my sight spectrum just enough without revealing the color change in my eyes, I could make out their silhouettes in the forest and behind the bushes. I took my time. Eight shots and eight bodies fell. One had a rope on their belt. I collected their bodies in a clearing and use the rope to tie them together, but something did not seem right. Earlier in the morning I counted twenty. Now there were nineteen bodies. Evidently, one was pretending to have been shot.

"I had only three shots left. The sun would be peeking over the horizon in a matter of minutes. If I was them, the sun would at my back. I took a chance and scan the area with my blue vision. Did not see anyone. I ran, not to the entry point, but to the side of the field. A shot passed above my head. My eyes shift spectrum and my mind scanned without me thinking about it. The person ducked behind a tree. I stood out in the open so they could see me and they did. I took the suppressor off my weapon, so they would hear the weapon fire two shots to either side of the tree they were hiding behind. They ran and I shot my last ammo. They fell.

"I heard several people talking near the entrance. I crawled under the fence and shouldered my weapon as I marched back to my room. Along the way, S5 and a man I had never seen stood along a path leading to the command building. As I passed her, I said, 'Twenty needs to be recovered.'

"I dropped off my weapon at the weapon's storage and went to breakfast. I sat alone at a table near the window. A commotion outside cause my other team members to look out the window. A medical team and security force wheel out the twenty on carts. My team begged me for details. S5 tapped on the table behind them. We stood at attention. She said if they had completed their meals, they needed to leave. The others departed. She sat at my table with her breakfast. Out the window, the base commander had a heated conversation with the man I saw earlier. They screamed at each other for quite a while."

"Could you hear what they were saying?" Elsa asks.

"They were talking about the mission of the base. The man wanted to send some of the team members on a field exercise with the military. The commander objected. S5 and I talked. The one thing she said that stuck in my mind and became a primary principle I used all my life."

She said, "Rules are in place for a reason, but in battle, they will cause you to die. The rules are the result of the last war. Your actions tell me, you have learned to adapt to the situation. Continue to do that and you will survive long after the other team members have been killed."

"Her words sounded strange back then, but after her death three days later, I began to understand what she meant."

"Why are you telling this now?"

"My arrogance said I could do what she did. She proved me wrong. It hurt and when she refused to talk to me, it was the worst pain I had ever felt. I wanted to die. Because of the pain, I became more focused. For several months prior, she said I need to push forward, faster, and harder. Her death revealed the reality of the human race. They killed my mother and the only the friend I had there, Krystal. I was so angry. The monster came out. Everyone died. Every building burned and I walked through the forest.

"On the other side, a man in a blue suit, but not military, waited for me on the side of the road. I had seen him with S5 a few times on the base. Earlier that day the guards refused to let him in. The guards told him the base was off-limits due to an exercise about to start to test the base's defense. He said something was not right and contacted S5. She arrived moments before they were to execute me. The man in the blue suit claimed to be my uncle. Years later, I only had one name and when people asked what my last name was I took his name, Ryan.

"S5 taught me about my abilities, and how to attack and to defend. Uncle Ryan taught me how to associate with humans without wanting to kill them. So anything you like about me, you can thank S5 or Ryan. I should have died so many times, but I escaped because I did not act the way everyone expected me to act. The norms, the protocols, and royalty, I will leave that up to you.

From the hall leading to the kitchen, they hear. "They are hugging."

"Shh, let's give them a few more minutes before barging in."

Elsa waves towards Gerda and then turns her head to snuggle into his neck. "Thank you for telling this."

A memory of comfort calms their hearts.

 **End of Chapter.**


	53. Chapter 52 The Council

**Title: Chapter 52: The Council**

 **3 years 3 months until correction**

A crispness in the air with yellow sunlight reflecting off the castle walls flows through the open balcony door. Cups and plates clang together as the cooks set up the tables for the guards. A sea eagle screeches its greeting to the fishermen preparing to depart on their fishing trips. The eagle screeches again as if it is telling the fishermen to hurry and follow it to a school of fish outside of the mouth of the fjord.

Sam inhales the tantalizing fragrance of warm bread, which his belly rumbles it's approval. But in due time, first things are first. He stands in front of the mirror with his hands behind his back. The tailor performed his magic on his uniform. The forest green jacket with dark blue buttons contrasts his long white hair. If he doesn't make any sudden moves or lifts his arms over his head, the thread holding the jacket together may not break. Elsa wanted the jacket to have shoulder boards with tassels, but he convinced her, the title Admiral, is in name only while he is in Arendelle, so no shoulder boards. He glances at his dark gray trousers and black boots. An excellent uniform for this time period, but he still desires the blue Admiral's uniform from his ship.

A knock on the door draws his attention back to his new duties. "Enter."

"Good, you are wearing the new clothes. They appear a little tight." says the voice that makes him smile.

"If I don't move my arms, the jacket should hold together."

He watches her in the mirror. She wears an outfit similar to her coronation dress, but with a darker shade for green sleeves and minus the cape and gloves. He marvels as she walks up behind him and pulls his jacket sleeves down as LadyCat did for him, before an important meeting. An emotion touches his eyes. He smiles and turns his head away from the mirror.

"The pants are definitely tight." Her hands float across his bottom. She glances at him in the mirror. "Why are you smiling?"

"If you think the back of my pants are tight, I better not turn around. You will be able to tell if I'm circumcised or not."

She steps back and asks, "Increase four or eight centimeters?"

"Eight."

Elsa swirls her hand and flicks her sparkling magic on his pants.

"Aww, that tickles, but thank you."

She swirls her hand again.

His jacket loosens around his chest and arms. He crosses his arms and tests the jacket for any binding. He lifts each knee testing the trouser. The constrictions have been removed. He turns around to face her and slides his hands onto her shoulders.

"Thank you. Please do not ever be offended or think I would be offended, if you tell me what the appropriate attire, I should be wearing for whatever event. In the past, I have met other heads of states, but LadyCat insisted she approves of my choice or she would make me change until I learned." His eyes focus on his sleeve contrasted against her dress then he looks upon her eyes. "With each new contact my choice of clothing was not always proper. Would you help me until I learn, what is appropriate?"

Her arms slide around his body as she lays her head against his chest. "It would be my honor to assist you." He moves his long white hair back over his shoulder. She giggles, "I could ask Anna to help you with your hair."

"No thank you, I like the way it is. What would people say if you and I walked into a room wearing French braids?"

"They would say how gorgeous I am and laugh at you," she snickers.

"If I am with you they would never take their eyes off of you so they would never see me," he replies with a smile. "So how are you feeling?"

"I feel fine. My headaches have stopped as you said they would."

"Good."

"You can move your fingers from my neck and face. I learned my lesson and will not my try to reach you without your consent."

His fingers located on the four specific points on her face and neck, slide to her shoulder. "Nothing personal, I have to make sure. I know you have been testing your abilities and I encourage it, but you took a leap."

"You do not trust me?"

"I trust you. Pride and Envy gave me a scare. I do not wish to every feel that way again."

She squeezes him a little tighter. "They also have learned their lesson." She sighs and then peeks up at him. "Would you do one small thing for me?"

"If it is within my capabilities, I will gladly do it."

She reaches behind herself and pulls out a red sash. "It belonged to my father. I think he liked you despite what happened between the two of you."

He nods. "I would be honored to wear it, but I do not recall wearing one so?"

She steps back and hands him one end of the sash. "Hold this." She wraps the sash around his waist and loops the ends together. With a little tug she slides the ends to hang down on his right side. One last adjustment, she steps back and eyes his uniform. "If it gets loose, I can adjust it." She glances up. "What?"

He steps in front of her and places both her hands to his chest. "Your mother and father would be proud of you and what you have accomplished. May you reign for as long as you desire."

"Stop, before I have to redo the shading under my eyes. Are you ready?"

"Whether I'm ready or not, let's do it." He offers her his arm. With a smile as she takes his arm. Now, he knows he made the correct choice and escorts her to the dining room.

Opening the door to let her pass, he walks two meters behind her until she reaches the head of the table. He pulls the royal chair away from the table. She nods to him and takes her seat. He moves to the left chair, but Kristoff gets to it first and pulls it out for Princess Anna. Sam sits to the Queens immediate right.

Everyone lays their napkins in their laps. He does the same. Elsa speaks to Kristoff and Anna joins in. While they are occupied he clasps his hands together and closes his eyes to give thanks for another chance to be with her. His eyes open. The three stare at him. His hands slide into his lap. "You didn't have to stop for me."

The servant's door opens and the kitchen staff sets the breakfast plates in front of each of them. He thanks the server then observes the others. They stare at him again.

He turns to Elsa. "Unless I'm confused again." Anna's frown distracts him from completing his comment. "What did I or did I not do?"

Elsa pats his arm. "We were waiting for the drinks."

"Then why were all of you looking at me?"

Anna answers, "We do not do anything until the Queen does it first."

He rolls his eyes up and leans back in his chair. "I remember now. Your father did the same thing." He leans towards Elsa. "And I will tell you as I told him. I will thank anyone who does anything for me, no matter their position in life. If royalty is too snooty to be appreciative for what others do for them, it will not stop me from thanking them. If I have offended you this will be my last meal with you." He sits back.

Wide eyed Anna asks, "You really said that to Papa?"

"Oh, absolutely, and your mother could barely contain herself from laughing," answers Kai walking into the room.

"What did he do?" Anna asks.

"I wasn't invited to official dinners after that." He leans closer to Elsa. "So in the future, you will have to tell me if it's an official dinner and I will not do anything until you have done it first."

She smiles at him, and whispers, "Okay."

From the corner of his eye, he watches Elsa select a utensil and selects the same utensil next to his plate. He does not speak as no one speaks to him. He finishes his meal long before the others and patiently waits for them. In a crowded room his silence gives him the chance to listen to other conversations. As an assassin, his silence kept him alive and helped him to identify his targets, but there are no targets here.

"What are you smiling about?"

He glances up and all three stare at him. He looks down at his plate and answers, "I'm sorry. I did not hear anything that pertained to my interest, so I was not listening. Please do not take offense. I don't speak because I don't have anything to contribute."

Elsa rolls her head towards Anna. "You asked and he answered as I expected he would."

"That is not funny." Anna wrinkles her nose at him.

Elsa comments, "I needed to know what he would do with the events going on without him. He finished before we did and this meal was thirty minutes. How do you think he is going to react to a three hour meeting?"

Kristoff chimes in, "The same way."

Elsa turns towards him. "Is Kristoff correct?"

He nods. "I will be in my stealth mode. The question is how will the council respond to my presence?"

Elsa touches his arm. "You will be alright. At the meeting, observe protocol. Do not argue and listen not just to what is said but who says it."

He turns to her. "I know I will be alright. Will you be alright when they challenge you for allowing me to be in there? As long as no one threatens you I will stay seated. I will note who says what. I will report to you my observations. Don't ask my opinion, if you're not ready to hear the truth."

"My father trained me for this." She pushes her chair back and stands. "If you be so kind as to escort me back to my room so I can freshen up, we will proceed to the meeting." He moves to her right side and she takes his arm.

Thirty minutes later Samuel stands outside of the Queen's room. An energetic Anna bounces up to him, "You look handsome." She adjusts her father's sash around his waist. "We appreciate you wearing this. I am sure Papa would approve." She smiles up at him, "Are you ready to meet the council?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "I'm about as ready as I can be." He stares at the door for a few seconds before opening it. Elsa steps into the hall clutching a leather bound book. He reaches behind her and closes her door. Anna stands to her left. He moves to their right and holds out his hand.

Elsa looks at his hand then up at him. "What?"

"I have seen you and Anna walk down the stairs side by side and neither of you hold the handrails. Are you in your official capacity as Queen at this moment?" he asks.

She narrows her eyes at him and answers, "Yes."

He glimpses the book in her hand and motions with his hand for her to give him the book. He detects her hesitation. "You agreed my concern is for your safety. No matter how many times the two of you had walked down or ran down the stairs, it takes just once to trip and Arendelle will be without a monarch. Give me the book and I'll walk two meters behind you or I walk two meters in front of you and can slow your fall."

Without a word she points to the stairs and he moves to stand two meters in front of them. He glances back, "when you're ready, Majesty."

Elsa nods to him and he steps down the stairs at a slower pace than he is a custom, but he maintains the two meters in front of them. At the bottom he steps to the side to allow them to pass and follows them to the meeting room door where Kai is waiting. Sam steps pass and stands in front of the door. He asks Kai, "How much time until our Queen enters?"

"Three minutes."

He turns his head towards the door. "What are they doing now?"

"Finishing their pastry and tea."

He looks to Elsa. "You feed them and they give you a hard time." Anna nods. "Then I have three minutes to get their attention."

Elsa starts to reply, but she and Anna both flinches from the loud noise of Sam's knuckles strike against the door once. He steps through the door and closes it before anyone could stop him. Three councilmen talk over each other. Ignoring their complaints, He walks past them to stand next to the Queen's chair. All give their opinion of how rude he is, but he notes the one councilman not speaking and observes him. The one taps the table with his ring and the others sit. Two councilmen still complain about his presents as he notes all of their seating arrangements.

The hall door opens and Kai announces Queen Elsa and Princess Anna. Four of the six stand immediately. When Elsa steps past the end of the table with Anna following, the fifth councilman stands. By the time she reaches her chair the last councilman stands. Sam pulls the Queen's chair from the table and offers his hand to her. She accepts his hand, but does not have a smile as she sits. He adjusts her chair towards the table. Anna walks past him and he offers his hand to assist her to her seat. He hesitates just a second, staring at the councilman at the last seat of the Queen's left. He glances up at Kai, who nods with a slight smile. As Kai departs the room, Sam marches to the end of the table and takes his seat with his back to the door.

"Majesty, we have not approved a deviation to allow anybody else to sit in this meeting."

"Councilman Valdemar, what specifically is your objection?" Elsa asks. Valdemar sits second to the Queen's right.

"Majesty, he is neither a member of the royal family, nor is he a councilman."

Elsa points at Sam. "Councilman Snorre, You are correct. He is neither a member of my family nor a member of the council. Please explain to Admiral Ryan why he is not wanted here."

"Queen Elsa, Even an Admiral needs prior approval before being in here."

"Councilman Jensen, how many times did you bring a guest in here without prior approval?" Admiral Ryan asks as he stares at the councilman sitting in the fourth seat to the Queen's left.

"Admiral you promised," Elsa states with a firm voice.

He motions with his hand as he speaks, "Queen Elsa, despite the Admiral's rudeness, I will answer his question." With a sneer of a smile Jensen turns to face Sam. "Admiral, I follow the council's protocols. The guests I bring in here have been approved to be here, unlike you."

Sam retorts. "How do you justify those guests, when you brought them in here they were not approved, but you insist there be a vote prior to doing any council business. If anything you purposefully put our Queen in a compromised position. What type of person would do that to their Queen?"

Elsa commands, "Admiral!"

He stands and bows. "Majesty, I apologies for my rudeness." He grins at Jensen. "I have learned the type of person who would compromise our Queen." He steps out of the room.

With his hand on his waist Kai ask, "What did you do to get yourself thrown out?"

"I needed to identify the ring leader." Turning his head towards Kai, "I had to make sure, so I asked what type of person would purposefully compromise the Queen."

"No, you didn't," asks Gerda. "Queen Elsa must be very upset after your promise to her."

"She asked me not to argue and to listen to what is spoken and who says it. I said I would stay seated as long as no one threatens her. I know the three troublemakers and the ring leader. By putting our Queen in a compromised position of either accepting Jensen's guest or look mean if she refuses them. Either way Jensen wins." Holding his hand up before either could speak, he continues. "I have negotiated with many who lied, cheated, and delayed to give owners an advantage. This is not the first social dance, but I'll wait. Ask Anna when she comes out." He walks down the hall. "I'll be in my room when Elsa gets out."

With his hands clasped behind his back and his feet shoulder width apart, Sam stands by the balcony door observing the outside world. At least the wall does not take up the majority of his view. The masts of two ships barely sway outside of the harbor. Their flags flutter with a momentary breeze. A large brown bird drops below the wall and a few seconds later the bird flapping its wing to rise up as it carries a fish. In the distance white clouds gather. They appear to stretch up into the atmosphere. Currently, he is not able to determine if storm will pass to the south or over Arendelle.

He takes a deep breath and a cool breeze tantalizes his nose. A small hand grasps the inside of his arm as her other hand slides up his chest. She taps her finger across his lips. He turns his head. Instead of an angry or frowning face, a smile and blue eyes meet his eyes.

She whispers, "Why did you leave?" She parts her lips and blows a cool breath into his face.

"I accomplished my task. Jensen is the thorn in your side. He has two lieutenants, Valdemar and Snorre, to create the distractions. Unless the other three are there for appearances, they can be easily persuaded by their voting records." He places her hand over his heart. "So tell me what happened after I left?"

"You did not see?"

With a slight shake of his head, "No."

"You made a big impression on them. Arne acted like he was praying under his breath. Karl never made eye contact with anyone, even when he was asked a question. Leif smiled at me every time I looked at him. Valdemar demanded an immediate vote to ban everyone from the council meeting, except for those present and Snorre seconded it."

A grin forms on his face.

She hesitates. "You already know what happen."

His left brow moves up. "I would guess Jensen opposed the vote."

She grins back at him. "Before he could say anything, I called for a vote. Everyone waited for Jensen. Once he voted no, the result was eight to zero. We actually finished the first hours' agenda in thirty minutes. We started the second hour until it was time for a break. We may even finish early."

"I don't think I was that big of a distraction, so don't count on it." He repositions himself and wraps his arms around her waist.

"I can get you back in the room if you promise not to say a word." She straightens his shirt collar. "Do you promise?"

"Okay, I promise not to say a word while the meeting is going on. So how are you going to get the votes?"

"Leave that to me." She rests her head against his chest. "Sam, when I said not a word I meant plural of words also."

He kisses her forehead. "I understood what you meant, but it was smart of you to clarify. Since I will not be able to reply at any comments sent my way, may I have a drink and bread in there?"

"Of course you can, I will let the staff know to bring it in for you."

He kisses her forehead again. "Thank you. I suspect it's time to return."

She leans her head against his chest. "This is the most relax I have been after the first hour since I do not know when." He holds her until she is ready.

Several minutes later, they stand in front of the meeting room. "Where is Anna?"

"She probably did not wait for us and is inside," Elsa answers.

"You look nice. Are you ready?" Her smile is all he needed. His knuckles strikes the door once and he steps into the room. Queen Elsa follows him in as he steps to the side. The door closes behind them and he escorts the Queen to her chair. He nods to Princess Anna and takes his seat at the other end of the table. He locks his eyes on each councilman who glance back at him. Jensen does not look back.

Valdemar voices the protest, "Queen Elsa, this is highly irregular having him in here after the disturbance he created earlier."

She holds up her hand to quite Valdemar. "Admiral Ryan, has promised me that he will not say a word or plural words, but if any of you wish to direct a question to him, he is free to answer."

Councilman Leif speaks up, "I call for a vote to allow Admiral Ryan to sit in this meeting provided he does not say a word or words."

Anna quickly comments, "I second the motion."

Elsa says before they could protest, "A call for a vote has been seconded. All in favor raise your hand and say Aye." A chorus of five 'aye's then a few seconds later Jensen raises his hand and speaks an 'aye'. "Nays?" Valdemar and Snorre vote Nay. "Six yes and two no's. Admiral Ryan?" He nods once to her. "Admiral Ryan, you are allowed to be in here, provided you do not speak any word or words, do you understand?" With a slight smile he nods once again.

He sits back and listens to the bickering. The usual arguments about where to distribute the resources, what to repair or replace, future expansion carried the meeting. He does note a distinctive pattern developing and glances at the Arendelle street map on the wall. He waits until Jensen speaks and slides his chair back as it makes a dull droning sound. Ignoring them, he moves to the map and studies the map symbols and lines. Six districts make up Arendelle. Each is marked with a letter A, J, L, K, S, or V. To either side of the streets are marked with three letters, but he notes the letters 'JEN' next to many streets including the wharf area.

Gerda enters the room with a small tray.

Just as Jensen begins to speak, he taps the map creating a base sound. When Jensen stops speaking, he moves to the castle area and studies the symbols. As Jensen speaks, he taps the map again and the base sound echoes.

Jensen asks, "Majesty does he have to do that now?" Sam ignores him.

With a grin Gerda taps his arm, "What are you doing?" He replies by pointing to his eyes then to the map. She leans closer, "You're studying the map?" He grins. "You're also disturbing the meeting." She grabs his arm and leads him back to his seat.

Sam sits. Gerda places a small plate with bread and a small bowl of butter in front of him. Eight faces stare at him. With raised brows, he raises his palms up. The others rotate their bodies to face their Queen. Jensen begins to speak and Sam slides his chair to the table, creating the dull droning sound.

Jensen clenches his fists and hits the table as he speaks with a slightly higher pitch. "Why are you doing that?"

He narrows his eyes at him for a few seconds and glances to Elsa as he shrugs his shoulders.

She stares at him for a moment before addressing Jensen. "He does not understand. Clarify with specifics."

Jensen glares at him, "you slide your chair out to create that rumbling noise. You tapped on the map, then you make that noise again with your chair. Is that plain enough for you?"

He watches Elsa. With a slight smile she asks, "Moving your chair makes noise, do not do it. Tapping on the map makes noise, do not do it. Do you understand?" He glances at Jensen then back to Elsa. With a grin as he nods his head to agree. "Okay, now that is resolved, please continue."

Jensen begins to speak. He stares down at the table. After a few minutes Gerda sets a cup down. As she turns, her hand slaps the back of his head. His forehead smacks the table with sufficient force to rattle the plates and cups. The thud reverberates through the table and into the floor, creating a solid loud thud. He slowly sits back into the chair holding his forehead. Three glares, two shakes their heads, one smiles, one grins as she looks down and one rolls her eyes at him. He points to Gerda. Anna tries to cover her smile.

Gerda shakes her head. "And you wonder why Councilman Jensen doesn't like you. He's trying to conduct business and you interrupt him with all of your noise. Shame on you, Samuel." She walks past Jensen and touches his bare hand. "Ignore him, he has no knowledge as how a distinguish gentleman conducts themselves in a proper manner like yourself, please continue." She walks out the room.

Everyone moves back to their places. Jensen makes a slight snort and flicks his nose up as he faces the group. He begins his comments again.

Sam rubs his forehead then observes his hand. His hands stops close to his nose. He sneezes with a loud achoo. He holds his nose as he glances up. Everyone stares at him again.

Anna fights the losing battle to keep from laughing as she covers her mouth and looks at the wall behind the Queen's chair.

Elsa stares at him without a smile. "Admiral, are you having a problem?"

He shakes his head, "No, Majesty, I received an unwanted assistance for a close-up view of the table. In the process I inhaled particles into my nose, but I'm doing okay now. Thank you for asking." He waves to her.

Valdemar stands and speaks to the group. Sam takes the piece of bread and taps the plate rattling the knife. Valdemar continues speaking. Sam uses the knife to try to cut a piece of bread. He tries to saw the bread, but crushes it. He moves his head down to the plate's level and studies the bread. The plate rotates and squeals against the table. He rotates the plate the other way and it squeals at a higher pitch. Snatching the bread from the plate, he sinks his teeth into it and bumps the table twice as he tries to tear it.

Anna, Leif, and Arne appear to be more focused on him than what Valdemar is saying. He glances back up the table. With Anna on the verge of laughter, he stops long enough to wave his pinky finger at her then continues to fight the bread with a growl. After a few more seconds he tears off the bread and he drops the rest onto the plate. With a smile as he chews, he looks around the room. The smile disappears. He taps his throat.

Arne points to Sam. "Is he ok?"

Everyone looks at him. Samuel slides his chair back knocking it over with a thud. Clenching his clenched fist above his belly button, he slams himself on top of the table forcing the air out. A piece of bread flies across the table and lands on Jensen's papers. As he pushes off the table, it pins Jensen to his chair. He runs to Jensen's chair and scans his papers as he retrieves the bread piece.

Jensen slides his chair back and throws down his napkin. "Enough of this foolery. Majesty, if you are not going to control him, let's reschedule this meeting for a time when he is not here."

Snorre speaks up, "I second the motion. Let's vote."

The corners of his lips curl up as he angles his face towards Snorre. He grasps his hands behind his back. Jensen sits and uses his kerchief to sweep the crumbs of bread onto the floor. Sam continues to grin exposing his teeth.

Snorre lowers his brows. "Why are you doing that?"

His head turns to Snorre's glance at Jensen. "Councilman Snorre, I will gladly answer your question since YOU asked. Councilman Jensen brought his nephew to this meeting unannounced thirties-seven days ago and you, Councilman Snorre demanded an immediate vote to allow Councilman Jensen's nephew to stay for the meeting. An obvious break from meeting protocols which placed our Queen in a compromised position if she said no. By saying yes, Councilman Jensen elevates his standing with his nephew at our Queen's expense."

He kneels next to Jensen's chair and places his arm on the table. He rests his head in his hand and stares at Jensen. "But you did not accept the small victory, did you? How many times did you tell your nephew to sit and make no noise? How many times did he disrupt this meeting and you said nothing."

Leaning closer to the Jensen's face, he continues, "What did you say to our beloved Queen when she protested your nephew's noise and asked to reschedule the meeting?" Jensen stares straight ahead without flinching. "The cat got your tongue?" Sam glances at the others. "Does anyone remember what he said about his nephew?"

Elsa answers. "He is just a child. Do not pick on him. He needs to see how adults treat each other."

Sam leans closer and whispers into Jensen's ear. "Why would you deprive me of the option to see how the members of this council treat my beloved Queen?" Jensen continues to stare ahead.

He stands and nods to Elsa. "Majesty, since the cat has taken Councilman Jensen's tongue, the proper thing to do is have the vote. To prevent these types of situations from disrupting future council meetings and be fair to all parties involved, someone could propose barring Admiral Ryan from these meetings as long as no one brings any guest who has not been approved at the previous meeting." He looks down at Jensen. "Meaning the approval is valid for the next meeting only."

Councilman Leif speaks, "I present the proposal exactly as Admiral Ryan has stated."

Anna says, "I second the motion. All in favor say Aye with a raised hand." Five hands rise up and five ayes answer Anna's calls. "Those against say Nay and raise your hand."

Jensen slams his hand on the table creating a loud thud as he comments, "There is no need to vote you already passed the proposal."

"I protest this vote. The proposal was not properly stated by a member of the council," Snorre interrupts.

"A legal technicality easily ignored when it benefits the one who chooses to ignore it. Isn't that correct Mister Jensen?" He narrows his eyes. "Do you have an older brother? What is his name?" He pauses for a few seconds tapping his forehead.

"Peter, Isn't Peter the name of your older brother, Jensen? Did he ignore a legal technicality? Is he still in Weselton?" Sam walks to the end of the table and spins on his heels as he points to Snorre and Valdermar, "Was it a legal technicality when," he searches to his left as he taps his head, "What were their names? I recall Otto, Ulf, and who was that third person? His name escapes me, but I will remember." He slowly turns his head towards Jensen glaring back at him. The color in Jensen's face changes to an ash white. The service door opens.

"My apologies Majesty, I only heard Samuel speaking and thought the meeting had ended. Shall I come back in a few minutes?" the female staffer asks.

"No, that is okay. This is a good time to stop for lunch." Elsa answers as she stands. "Let us meet back here in one hour." She motions to the staffer. "Please send my lunch to my room."

Everyone except Jensen stands as Queen Elsa walks towards the door. In passing she says, "Samuel be in your room in five minutes." She walks out the room.

As the door latch closes, Sam takes large steps towards Jensen. Others gasp and back away as he lifts Jensen out of his chair. He holds Jensen off the floor by his shirt. "Is this how you show respect for the royal family? You are a disgrace to your father just as Peter and Otto are." He slams him onto the table. "Now you look at Princess Anna and apologize to her for disrespecting her."

Wide eyes Jensen turns his head to Princess Anna and speaks, "Princess, please forgive me. I meant no disrespect. My apologies for the way my comments, disrespected you."

"Apology accepted. Samuel, please let him up."

Sam lifts Jensen off the table and sets him onto his feet. He straightens his shirt and sleeves. "See, it is okay to disagree, just be respectful and others may be more accommodating."

Anna runs to him and grabs his arm. She escorts him out of the room with the door closing behind them. "You did not have to do that. Elsa is not going to like what you did."

He places his hand on top of her hand. "Is that normal for the meeting?"

"Which part, your distractions, challenging Jensen by physically being close to him, or lifting him off the floor and slamming him onto the table?" She answers with a grin.

"Everything, but that?"

"Yes, it does get a little noisy when an argument breaks out."

He glances at her. "Who does the arguing?"

"Usually, Elsa and Jensen"

He shakes his head. "That's what I thought. Do you have much to say in the meetings?"

"Rarely, I am there to support my sister. A few times she would hold my hand under the table when it became very stressful for her. If the meeting runs long, we would go to her room. I would listen to her and then after a while she would feel better, but since Kristoff is here, she would tell me to spend time with him. She would go to her room and hide until the evening meal. I have to choose between my sister and Kristoff." She leans her head against his arm.

They stop at the bottom of the stairs. "You shouldn't have to choose." He peeks over his shoulder. "It looks like mom is waiting for me."

Anna glances past him. Elsa stands at the top of the stairs. He pats her hand. "Let me see what I can do and look who has good timing." He nods to Kristoff and he walks up the stairs.

As he gets to the top step, Elsa says, "Follow me."

He steps in behind her and follows. After the short walk, she enters her room and he stops at the doorway.

Half way across the room, she stops and slightly turns her head in his direction. "I did not hear you enter my room. What part of 'follow me' do you not understand?"

He takes two steps into the room.

With a flick of her wrist a cold breeze shoots past him. He barely steps out of the way as the door slams shut. He points to the door and comments, "Wow, that's very good."

A flurry of blond hair slams into his chest as Elsa wraps her arms around his waist. Her slight movement and the noise she makes into his chest sound like she is crying.

His arms wrap around her shoulders. "Please don't be upset."

A red face with tears in the corners of her eyes look up at him. "I am not crying. I struggled so hard not to laugh in the meeting and Anna did not help when she laughed. For once I was not the target of the verbal assault." She leans back. "I wanted to ask Jensen what it feels like to be overwhelmed."

"How do you feel?"

Elsa lays her head against his chest and whispers, "I feel wonderful. This is the best I have ever felt coming out of a meeting."

"Why do you let them get to you? You're the Queen. Put your frozen shoe between their gluteus maximus. They will back off." He states in an encouraging manner.

She leans back and chuckles, "I am not putting my shoe between any one's bottoms."

"Then let me do it, I'll make it a memorable experience for him and his friends."

"As much as I would like for you to do that, I still have to work with them when you are not there. I have no doubt Jensen and his friends will regroup and push harder. If I change my mind, I promise to let you know." She rests her head against his chest and closes her eyes.

He lightly strokes her hair as she sighs. His fingers trail down the side of her neck and continues to trace her spine. Her breathing shifts to her parted lips. She takes a deep breath. Her whole body shivers.

The door opens and Anna announces her presence, "I thought you two would be together. Place their lunch over there." The staffer places the tray on the table and exits the room.

She smiles up at him and whispers, "No one has ever done that to me?"

Anna asks. "Done what?"

Elsa blows him a kiss and moves to the table. He pulls her chair out and assists her to her seat. He moves the other chair and holds his hand out to Anna. She takes his hand and sits, but does not let go.

Anna stares at him. "What did you do to her?"

He clamps his hand around her hand. Touching the back of her neck, he generates a miniscule charge in his fingers and follows her spine to her lower back. Anna partially closes her eyes as she exhales her quivering breath. The corners of her lips begin to curl up as she leaps out of her chair. As she moves to the lounge her body shivers. Spinning on her heels, she points her finger at him as she sits. "Do not ever do that to me again."

"As you wish," he nods to her. "I'm going to my room for a few minutes. I'll be back."

As he reaches for the door, Anna asks, "Can you teach Kristoff to do that?"

He hesitates. "Not exactly the same way, but I know of a technique that creates similar results. It takes a little longer and will need more attention on Kristoff's part."

The door closes behind him. Sam walks down the hall. Before he gets to the end he hears a voice, _where are you going?_

He searches the hall and looks around the corner. As he takes a step he hears the voice again, _did you not hear my question?_

"I heard the question. I was going to my room via the meeting room, but since you have disrupted my timing I'll go to my room." He returns back up the hall.

Anna steps out of Elsa's room as he passes and comments with a snicker, "I am glad she cannot see me through the walls."

He responds, "Until I teach her how I do it." He continues to the next door and enters his sparse room. The door clicks closed and he leans against it. "I better get to him before he gets to us."

Sam does not see his lunch. He lies on the floor and stares at the ceiling. His hands rest on his chest. His lungs draw in several deep breaths. His eyes gradually closes with each breath. His mind projects out into the meeting room. Jensen and Snorre stand in front of the Arendelle map. Jensen places his finger on a square near the center of the town and then points to a smaller square towards the eastern edge of the town. They both laugh.

 _The best defense is to keep them on the defensive. I bet he will offer that small square in place of the town square at the same price. A shrewd salesman will increase the price for the town square and offer the smaller square at a smaller price. I bet he will say he is breaking even or losing money in the deal. If I can keep him off balance, maybe he will reveal his plan for the square near the center._

Suddenly, a cold wave slides up his left arm. He takes a deep breath as his eyes open.

Sitting in a chair next to him, Elsa smiles down at him as she bites into a fruit. Her foot slides across his arm. "Where did you go?"

He watches her foot move up his arm and into his hand. "Since I did not go to the meeting room." He becomes distracted watching the tip of her tongue glide across her lips.

Elsa puckers her lips as she consumes the fruit. With a slight smile she asks, "Yes?"

"Um, what was I saying?" his eyes fixate on her lips.

"You said you did not go to the meeting room."

He spots the sparkle in her eyes. _Under different circumstances I would take you on the floor right now._

Her brows shoot up as her eyes widen. Her smile changes into a grin as her eyes glance at his trousers. Her foot presses on the bulge. "You would, would you?"

"What if Anna comes in here and sees what you are doing?"

She moves her foot to her shoe. "My foot would be moved before she could get her head into the room." She glances at his bulge, "You on the other hand would have to explain why you are in that condition with me sitting here eating the fruit."

He takes a deep breath and sighs. "That would be difficult to explain, even if I told her exactly what you did."

She tilts her head at him, "Me, I did not do anything, but sit here and eat." She looks directly into his eyes. "Who do you think Anna will believe?"

He sits up leaning back on his hands. "You, of course, she loves you and she will do her best to protect you, but that is not why you came in here." He tilts his head towards her. "To answer your question, I saw Jensen and Snorre standing near the Arendelle map. They pointed to a square west of the town square and pointed to a smaller square at the eastern edge. They laughed. What do you think they were laughing about?"

She takes a bite of the fruit and feeds the other half to him. "Hmm." Elsa takes another piece of fruit and feeds it to him. She swallows her piece. "He mentioned he was selling a small building on the east side, but that will not do for what I need." She feeds him another piece. "Why do you think he was laughing?"

He looks at the door for a moment. His eyes squint at her. "With no real evidence I believe he will have an excuse not to sell you the larger building or price it too high for you to purchase. He may offer the smaller building at the price you will accept. His family is rich for a reason."

She offers another piece of fruit, but not close enough for him to take it. "Can you determine his plan before he offers?"

He grins as he leans towards her and takes the fruit from her hand. "Allow me some discretion I'll get details."

"No more interruptions, allow the meeting to proceed and you will have your discretion."

"I agree." He rolls onto his knees next to her and stares at the last piece of fruit. She holds the tip of the fruit against her pucker lips and slowly pushes it in. Half of her finger follows the fruit past her lips. She creates negative pressure with her cheeks and slowly pulls her finger out.

"Ohh, lucky fruit," he replies at her exhibition.

She turns her head and blows a sweet breath into his face. A knock sounds against the door and he comments, "Saved by the door."

"There will not always be a door to save you," she smiles.

Gerda enters the room with Anna commenting behind her. "See, now our Queen is following him into his room. What do you think they were doing in here by themselves?"

Gerda grins and takes the fruit bowl from Elsa and holds a bowl of water. Elsa rinses her hands. She holds her hands over the bowl. Gerda stares at Anna. "What did you do with the towel I handed you?"

Her eyes roll up. "Sheesh, when I did not find my sister in her room, I must have laid it on the table in HER room."

He pulls the bottom of his shirt out of his trousers and offers it to her. Elsa dries her hands on his shirt. She touches his side. Her eyes widen as she partially lifts his shirt. He did not need to know what she was thinking and speaks, "It is the first wound I received in combat. I thought I was going to die from it." He draws his lips tight, "At the time I wanted to die."

Anna moves behind Elsa and places her hand over her mouth as she gasps at Sam's scar. Gerda reaches between them pushing his shirt down.

"If you think that is bad that was the entrance wound," He shakes his head, "You don't want to see the exit wound."

Anna asks, "I thought you could heal your body with your ice?"

"I can. At the time I didn't know how, so my body healed naturally. Unfortunately, the ice heals my body the way it was just prior to the injury. That is why my ice has not removed the scar."

"Then why is your hair white?" Anna asks.

"If I keep it short, it will be brown. I don't know the exact reason it changes to white when it gets long, but I speculate my energy is causing it to be white." He stares into her beautiful blue eyes. "I suspect it is the same reason someone else in this room has blonde hair."

She beams at him. With her finger she traces his jaw line, down his neck, and to his heart. "Are you ready to go back into the meeting without distractions?"

His muscles quiver under his shirt. "Is that what you want?" She blows her breath on his face and winks. "I will take that as a yes and I will not speak unless a question is directed at me."

Anna snickers, "Does that include other disruptive noises?"

A light tug pulls on his hair. The gentle combing of fingers through it causes his left brow to gradually rise. Elsa steps closer. He fights the urge to look past her eyes. Anna leans against his back as she slides her hands down the back of his arms. He continues to stare into Elsa's blue eyes. Her smile turns into a grin. He swallows hard, "You two would have been killers for any boy who was able to get past your father."

"You are not talking about the last piece of fruit are you?" Elsa grins.

Anna moves her head past his arm. "What fruit?"

He takes the opportunity to step from between them. He needs the momentary break to clear his head from the battle his body was losing. He glances back and forth between them. "Your mother didn't play fair either, but of course not as bad as you two have been."

Anna steps towards him. "Ah, we did not mean to frighten you. Let us make it up to you," she says as she reaches for him.

"That's ok," he moves towards the door. "I have a map to review, before the meeting."

Gerda whispers as she passes him, "As big as you are and you're afraid of two little girls, Coward!"

He grasps the door handle and whispers back, "In due time I will stand my ground."

Anna emits another snicker as she comments, "When will that be?"

He glances over his shoulder. "What do you think Kristoff would say about your actions here?"

"You would tell him?"

"If he asks the right question, I will not withhold the answer." He opens the door and steps through. "Hey buddy, Anna has an urgent need for you in the library." He quickly closes the door and steps rapidly down the hall. The door opens behind him.

Anna narrows her eyes at him and asks, "Where is he? I do not see him."

"He is heading to the library. Why don't you meet him there?" He opens the meeting room door and steps inside, but doesn't close it swift enough. Anna jabs his side as she runs past. The door clicks closed. Jensen, Snorre, and Valdemar stand in front of the Arendelle map. They rotate their collective noses up at him and sit in their respective chairs. He steps to the map and briefly studies the symbols and the locations of the two squares he saw Jensen pointing to earlier.

"Well, well, the stable boy thinks he can read a map."

"I bet he can't even read." Two of the three laugh.

Sam notes the one voice he does not hear. Continuing to study the map he replies to the one, "Cat still has your tongue, Jensen?" A chair slides across the floor just as the door opens. Five more chairs move as they stand. He turns around and nods to Queen Elsa as she walks past him towards her chair. He moves quickly past the others and assists Elsa in her chair. As the others take their seat he closes the door and takes his seat with his back to the door. His hands rest in his lap. He notes Valdemar staring at him.

Elsa shuffles the papers in front of her. "Are we ready to begin?"

The door flies open. Two shoes stomp into the room. The door closes with a slam. "My apologies for being late, I was momentarily distracted on a wild-goose chase." As she passes, his hair flies up with a pop as her hand slaps the back of his head. Valdemar grins. The others turn at the sound and snicker at him.

Jensen does not move, but comments, "Can we please start without any further distractions?"

Elsa raises her brows and he combs his hair back into place. He opens his hands towards her then to Anna. She shakes her head. Anna wrinkles her nose and narrows her eyes at him. He settles back in his chair and interlaces his fingers together and rests his hands on the table. The left side of his lips curls up as he stares at the back of Jensen's head.

Half an hour later Jensen pushes his chair back and stands as he points to Sam. "Majesty, if he is going to stay here for the rest of the meeting, will you move him where I can see him. After this morning I am getting an eerie feeling from him."

Sam doesn't change his expression, but looks to Elsa. With her index finger, she waves him to her. His chair slides back, causing a squealing sound and a vibration through the table. He stands. Continuing to stare at Jensen he slides his chair, which creates the same squealing sound, back to the table. He walks to the other end as Jensen stares at him from across the table. Stopping behind the Queen's chair, he grasps the chair's back. He closes his eyes to reach out to her.

 _You are such a troublemaker. They're not going to let you in here again, but thanks for keeping them off guard._

Elsa comments, "If this is satisfactory, can we continue without the distractions?"

 _You are learning. Many jabs are just as effective as one solid hit. You are doing quite well my Queen._ His left brow rises. He shifts his eyes to each person as they speak.

Two and a half hours later, Elsa speaks, "Gentleman, this has been a very productive meeting. Are there any follow up questions or comments?"

Snorre starts to comment.

Sam narrows his eyes at him.

Snorre sits in silence.

Elsa says, "Then this meeting is adjourned."

Sam takes a step back and assists his Queen out of her chair. She gathers her papers and he holds out his arms. She stares up at him and slowly places her papers in his care. Stuffing the papers under his arm, he offers his other arm. With a smile she places her hand in the crux of his arm and he leads her past the others then stops by the map. He asks, "Majesty, may I ask a question?"

"Yes."

"The letters on the white blocks are the initials of the owner of the buildings?"

"Yes."

"I see blocks with multiple initials. Does that indicate the individual buildings are owned by different people?"

"Yes, it does."

"The initials 'J' belongs to Councilman Jensen."

"Yes."

Sam peeks over his shoulder at Jensen. "He owns many buildings in Arendelle including the homes of many citizens." He sets the papers on the table and points to the square just west of the town square. "This square only has his initials. If he were to sell this property, it appears he would be able to get a very good price as compare to say . . . ," he slides his finger across the map to the eastern edge of Arendelle and points to a smaller square, "this property."

Elsa displays a neutral expression.

"Unless, there is something about this property that makes it almost worthless." He slides his finger back to the square in the center of town. "But if this square is really worthless, someone could be overpaying for it."

"Worthless, that is prime property. Other than the town square itself and the two other blocks around the square, it is worth top price," Jensen huffs.

"Who lives there now?"

"No one."

"What business is there?"

"None."

"Is it a warehouse?" Sam taps his head as he closes his eyes for a moment. "Of course not, you could get more money renting it out to live people than to inanimate objects." He points back to the map. "Unless something of great value is stored there." He looks to Elsa. "I thought the monarch or Arendelle owns the warehouses?"

"Arendelle does?" she replies.

He turns to Jensen. "You say they are no businesses or people renting there. Queen Elsa could ask for the names of the business or renter to determine when the last person actually rented there."

Jensen's jaw tenses along with his fist and glares at him.

"To be in compliance with Arendelle's laws that it is not a warehouse, when was the last time you receive rent payment on that property?"

Jensen snarls, "I do not answer to you."

"But you answer to me. Answer his question," without emotions Queen Elsa replies.

Jensen looks at the floor then takes a breath. "I will have to get back to you with the answer. I will go to my office and bring it back quickly."

"There is no hurry. Bring it with you to this property." She taps the eastern square on the map. "At nine o'clock tomorrow, rain . . . or shine."

Sam picks up Elsa's papers and escorts her out the room. To one side of the door, he flicks her dress and turns her to face the exiting councilmen. Each of them bow to her then proceed down the hall.

Anna is the last out of the room. With her infectious smile she leans close to her sister as she stares up at him. "You need to have him standing behind you during these meetings. His expressions alone kept them from wasting time over nonsense. Even Karl and Arne gave their opinions without asking Jensen for permission."

They walked down the hall. Elsa smiles a happy smile and replies, "It was rather nice to go through the agenda without having to rehash everything several times." She leans her head against his shoulder. "I wish you could be in there all the time, but that is not going to happen until your circumstance changes." She watches him. "You could walk me to and from these meetings."

He glances at her and quickly turns his head away as he whispers, "Aw, those eyes have stabbed me again. I can't take it anymore."

His eyes look up. "Then you need to take one for the team."

His eyes shift left. "Yes, one for the team. I love her blue eyes."

They focus center. "Yes, they are such beautiful blue eyes."

Sam looks up right, then center, back right then left. "Why have you stopped talking?" His eyes dart from side to side. He whispers from the right side of his mouth. "They are looking at you. Give her our answer."

His eyes blink and his head turns to Elsa with wide eyes. "Cat used her eyes to get her way many times. If it is your desire, I will escort you to and from the meeting room, I will gladly escort you."

Anna asks, "What in the name of a frozen icicle was that all about?"

Elsa answers before he does, "You were hearing his four personalities respond."

"What?"

With a big grin Elsa walks down the hall. "All four like me?"

 **End Scene**


	54. Chapter 53 The Hunt

**Title: Chapter 53: The Hunt**

 **3 year 3 months until correction**

The tower clock begins to strike the bell eleven times. The blue glow from Sam's eyes fades. The stable's side door opens and two hooded individuals dressed in all black attire enter. They press themselves against the wall. A female's voice comments, "I do not see him."

A small flame on a candle flickers to life in the side room. The two sneak their way as quiet as possible into the room. The shorter of the two dark figures peeks around the corner. A small hand pulls the hood back to reveal the strawberry blonde Princess. She places her hands on her waist as she searches the room. "I did not hear him go out the door. Who lit the candle?"

The second figure pulls back his hood as he steps past her. "Someone was here a short while ago. There is an ember in the fireplace," Kristoff comments.

A cold breeze blows down the back of Anna's shirt. Her hand covers the cold spot as she spins around. Like a coiled snake striking, Anna's fist thumps his chest. "I knew it was you."

A tall figure with a maroon cloak steps out of the dark corner. Sam pulls his hood back as he rubs the spot on his chest. With a smile, he nods to her. "Please forgive me. Elsa says we should get comfortable with each other. If we can laugh, without hurt feelings, this venture will succeed."

"Could you have picked a less dangerous event to get comfortable with us?" Kristoff asks as he looks in the pot hanging over the embers in the small fireplace. "And why so late?"

"Because we must maintain the Queen's plausible deniability of any actions we do tonight."

"You do not think she already knows through you?" Anna asks.

He shakes his head. "Once she falls asleep I can disable her ability to hear my thoughts."

Kristoff turns his head towards him, "Really, so you can't keep any secrets from her while she is awake?"

"The first time it happened, it was very unnerving, but it relieved the burden of remembering what was revealed and what was not. If you truly love someone, don't keep secrets, no matter the consequences. It is best to reveal them under circumstances you can control. It builds trust." He glances at the ceiling in the direction of the Queen's bedroom. "She doesn't need any surprises. If we do get together, she needs to be fully aware of who and what I am."

Anna taps on his chest and asks, "And what are you that my sister needs to know?"

For a moment his eyes search the floor. With a grin, his left brow rises. "Let me show you."

He removes his gloves and motions them to move closer to him. "Both of you take off your gloves and face each other."

They hesitate, but they remove their gloves and face each other. Their smiles are a little more than nervousness for each other. "Kristoff, take both of her hands and hold them close to your chest."

They step closer to each other. Sam notes while they look into the other's eyes, they are not staring at each other. They feed the hunger they have for each other. He begins to have second thoughts if they should be on this mission. Should Anna get hurt, whatever relationship beyond his current status with his Queen would cease to exist with his banishment. With the slight movement of his head a sparkle flashes in Anna's eyes. No doubt if he was not there, their lips would be satisfying their hunger for each other. His mind glances towards his Queen. _To gain the reward one must risk something._

Sam refocuses. They both stare at him. "Please forgive me. I was momentarily lost in thoughts. Okay, I will touch the sides of your neck. It will feel cold for a few seconds, then you will feel a little light headed. The sensation will go away. If you feel like you are floating, hold onto each other. I will make a mental connection to the both of you and for the next several hours you will be sensing each other. Meaning, despite the dark you will know where the other is and I will see what you see."

Lightly touching the back of their necks a blue glow of energy flows from his hands. They close their eyes and take a quick breath. A cold fog escapes from their lips. Anna leans her head against Kristoff's chest as he rests his cheek on top of her head. They open their eyes with the same bluish tint as his eyes. Sam steps back.

Anna looks up at Kristoff and moves her hand to his face. "Your eyes are blue."

He responds, "So are yours."

Sam sweeps his right hand past their faces and the glow disappears. "Are you two ready?" They step back from each other wearing smiles. He holds up his gloves. "Put your Gloves on. Since the clouds are not cooperating as I had hoped, we will be moving under partial moon light. So as you move from one location to the next, keep your hands close to your body and your hood over your head. Do not expose any part of your skin. It will be like holding up a lantern for anyone to see. Stay in the shadows."

He touches both of them. "You two stay together. You are responsible for each other. If I tell you to run, Kristoff, I will hold you personally responsible for Anna's safety. Go to a safe location and make your way back to the castle at a later time."

Hoping they understand what they are about to do, he commands, "Do not try to save me. I will create the distraction that will allow you time to get out, understand?"

They both nod, still smiling.

Sam moves to the door. "Hoods on." He pulls his hood over his head. Anna and Kristoff move to the door as they pull their hoods over their heads. With a flick of his finger, the candle winks out.

They slip out the door and move quickly to the wall. The shadow from the wall hides them as they make their way to the main gates. Sam pulls his hood back and motions to the guard who opens the gate. They pass through and make their way down to the shore next to the bridge. His hand waves over the water. The dark color water freezes into a circular disk and rises several centimeter above the surrounding water. Stepping on the frozen dark water, he assist his partners onto the ice. Moving his hand like a fish swimming, the dark ice moves along the edge of each bridge footing. A splash and plopping sounds move several meters from the other side of the bridge. They reach the wharf. For several seconds they wait. The ice rises and they step onto the pier. A passing cloud blocks the moonlight, creating an almost completely dark Arendelle.

He reaches back and touches his partners. _You are hearing me in your mind. Stay close. We have a chance to reach our target._

They walk the outer perimeter of the town square. A blue tint creates an outline of the buildings. The cloud releases the moonlight as they hide next to the target building. Grouped together, he whispers, "Look at the bridge."

Anna replies, "There is someone moving."

"They're hiding behind the rail of the bridge. We would have been discovered," Kristoff says.

Anna clenches Kristoff's hand. "Luck is on our side. They did not see us."

"Or was it luck?" Kristoff asks, but they both stare at him.

Sam smiles at them. "To hide, use whatever is available to conceal your movement and the timing must be perfect." He glances at the door. "If they are smart enough to have someone there, will they be smart enough to have someone stationed inside. You two constantly search the area and minimize your movement. I will see what you see."

Anna watches the bridge and Kristoff watches the wharf. He stops for a moment and sees what their eyes observe. They have a complete one hundred and eighty degree coverage, so they will receive a few seconds notice of an intruder. His hand presses against the door as his mind reaches through the door. He does not detect any one, but continues to scan for the usual tricks to indicate if someone has entered the building. Confident the building is empty, he inserts a small piece of metal into the door's lock and wiggles it with his finger. With a slight click the door opens a few centimeters. He searches for anything that may have fallen onto the floor by the movement of the door. The owner should have someone check the door during the night, at least that is what he would do. He scans the outside and does not detect any one. "Inside quickly."

With all three inside of the building, he inserts the piece of metal into the lock and it clicks. His hood slides back as his eyes shift the light spectrum.

"Is it safe?" Anna asks.

"As long as you stay away from the windows, we will be alright. You can pull back your cloak."

"Whoa," Anna comments rotating her hands in front of her face.

"Why green?" Kristoff says as he looks around.

"It allows for the greatest definition of objects without bright spots or dark voids to trip over. If I add the red color you would not see anything except shadows and whatever the moonlight hits." Sam continues to search the room for its purpose.

"So what are we looking for?" Anna asks. "Other than those two desks over there, it appears to be an abandoned building."

Anna follows Kristoff as he walks to a corner. He comments, "This looks like dirt. Someone has been digging here."

"I'm adding a little red color to your vision. Tell me what you see."

"Whoa, look at that. The floor is sparkling." Anna says as she moves like she is trying not to step on the floor.

Kristoff grabs her. "It's okay. Whatever it is, it is leaving a trail to the door."

"Look up."

They tilt their heads up. A hand print sparkles on the ceiling. "What is it?" Anna asks.

Kristoff answers, "I have seen something similar on Grand Pabbie. It sparkled in the sunlight. He said it was gold dust."

"And you are correct. Several foot prints tracked the gold to the desk. I do not see a ladder. They may have moved the desk to get up there. So who feels like going upstairs to see what they are hiding."

"The desk?" Kristoff asks, pointing to the closest desk.

"If I was doing this operation the desk would be set in a specific location. If it had been moved when I came back."

"An intruder," Anna states.

He removes his cloak and hands it to her. With a grin he bumps Kristoff's shoulder. "A strong boy like you should have no problem lifting me up. Hold my leg."

Kristoff bends his knees. Sam places his foot against his upper thigh and stands. He holds onto a ceiling beam and scans the upper room. His vision detects an outline cut into the ceiling. He pushes on the cutout panel and two shims fall to the floor as the hinged door opens into the upper room. He pulls himself up onto the second floor.

"What do you see?" Anna asks stretching her neck to see into the opening.

He sticks his head and an arm through the hole. "Put the two shims in your pocket and your cloaks on the desk."

They slip out of their cloaks. Kristoff places them on the desk while Anna stares up at him.

Sam notes Anna's heart rate has increased since they entered the room. Her heart pulses in her neck at the same location as her sister's pulse. "As a member of the royal court, you need to see what's up here. Give me your hands." She grabs his arm and Kristoff lifts her up. They easily lift her up into a small room.

She adjust her clothing to regain control of her royal composer. With a smile she comments, "You are strong."

"I bet Kristoff has no problems lifting you at least the same height." He points to the stacks of bags sitting on the narrow shelves surrounding the room. "Look inside of them."

She slides along the narrow space and opens the first bag. Two small nuggets with the same shiny color fall into her hand. Opening the second bag, her fingers pulls up a stream of tiny yellow flakes. She ties the two bags closed and examines the room with every shelf filled with similar bags. "Do all of these have gold in them?"

"Unless you picked the lucky two, I would say yes."

"Wow, where did it come from?" She counts the bags.

"Possibly the dirt in the corner Kristoff found is a clue." Suddenly their cloaks fly up from the hole followed by Kristoff grabbing the edge of the hole. He locks his hands under Kristoff's shoulder and pulls him up. "What's going on?"

"I heard voices outside of the door and it rattled like someone is trying to open it."

"Anna, the shims," Sam whispers. He and Kristoff lowers the trap door and positions the shims in the exact location they were in when he opened the door. "Do not move or speak. Whatever you do, do not look directly into the light."

A light flashes across the room where they were standing. The light shines up through a crack in the floor. He hears muffled voices.

"I don't see anything here," a gruff male's voice comments.

A younger male's voice says, "I know I saw something through the window."

"Do you see it now?"

"No."

Boots scuff on the wood floor below like they are walking around. The light flashes through the seams between the floor and the trap door. "The door has not been opened."

The light returns the upper room to darkness, but momentarily illuminates the face of one of the intruders.

"The two desks have not been moved. What did you see?" asks the gruff voice.

"I thought I saw the shadow of a person near the fireplace."

"Shadows, are you sure you're not seeing ghosts?"

"Ghost?" the younger voice asks in a higher pitch. "If there are ghosts in here, it is one more reason to get our share of the gold and leave on the morning ship before they discovered the mine."

"They are not going to discover the mine. Jensen and his silver tongue or in this case a gold tongue, will delay the Queen from taking over this building long enough for us to get the gold out." Sounds of their boots move towards the door as the voices fade. "Get the others to meet here tomorrow, after midnight, we will clear two of the three rooms and come back the next night to finish the job."

"What about the mine shaft?" The outer door closes.

Sam points in the direction of the two voices. Not hearing the voices below them, he scans the area. Two individuals walk up the street. He notes the lookout on the bridge is missing. He looks at Anna, "It sounds like Jensen is removing gold from Arendelle."

"Umph, let me get the guards and arrest him," Anna huffs.

"And arrest him for what, two voices mentioning his name," Kristoff comments.

Anna flails her arms at the gold, "I counted one hundred and thirty-six bags up here. That's a lot of gold."

"He is right. Neither one of you can identify who belongs to the two voices. I did not detect anyone at the bridge just now. Maybe one of the two is the guard from the bridge."

"But you could find them if you had to, right?" Kristoff asks.

"I will find them, but unless we have hard evidence, they can deny everything." He studies the room and motions to the gold. "We leave it as it is until we find the other two locations and the mine."

"What if they come back?" Anna asks.

"They can be charged as liars for deceiving us."

"That is not funny." She crosses her arms.

He moves to the trap door. "It wasn't meant to be funny." He and Kristoff removes the shims and lifts the door. Kristoff lowers himself through the door and drops to the floor with a barely audible thud. He holds out his hand and motions to her. "Come here."

Hesitantly, she moves to him and takes his hand. "You have already proven your love for your sister. I do not wish for you to be injured, but you have the proof that someone is stealing a lot of gold from Arendelle. Unless you have an idea as to the purpose of the gold, history says, if a kingdom or Queendom, does not have the money or finances to maintain itself, someone could negotiate for power to keep the Queendom solvent."

"You think Jensen is trying to financially starve Arendelle?" Kristoff asks from below.

"That is a very good analogy. If the other locations have similar quantities of gold, they have mined for some time. Jensen claims the building has not been occupied for the last six months. If he is the ring leader, he or whoever, has been planning this for a long time. He would get the greatest gain if the people of Arendelle overthrow Queen Elsa."

Anna stands in silence and stares at him for a moment. She covers his hand with her hands and kneels next to him. "You have to stop him."

He touches her cheek and detects a small amount of moisture. "Anna, WE, will stop whoever is doing this. But whatever we do, we have to maintain a plausible deniability for Elsa, okay"

She nods and wraps her arms around his neck. "Thank you."

He glances at Kristoff, "Okay buddy, catch her. Do not look directly into any light not even the moonlight. Follow the gold."

He lowers Anna through the door into Kristoff's waiting arms. Dropping their cloaks through the door, he lowers himself and Kristoff guides Sam's foot onto his thigh. He closes the trap door and installs the shims into their previous positions.

They search the rest of the room's ceiling. Anna and Kristoff find two more cutout panels similar to the first trapdoor. Each trap door hides a small room on the upper floor like the first one they discovered. Kristoff enters the upper rooms followed by Anna. Each secret room contains multiple bags of gold nuggets and gold flakes. Sam stays on the first floor and constantly scans the area for unwanted guests. They continued to search the first floor for any other secret room, but find none.

As Sam closes the third trap door and places the shims in their exact positions, Anna comments, "I counted a total of six hundred and ninety six bags of gold plus or minus a few. That is a lot of gold." She begins to pace around the room. "If Jensen is stealing this gold from Arendelle, I will punch him myself. Nobody steals from my sister and gets away with it." She stops near the fireplace and stomps her foot on the floor. She grumbles, "Ah!" The floor board flexes and catches her boot under the next board. She struggles to get loose, "Uhm, Kristoff, my foot is stuck.

Kristoff walks over to her and kneels to examine her shoe. He shifts his weight pressing on the single board and her shoe slides out. As he stands Anna gives him a peck on his cheek. He steps back, bumping into Sam. He turns quickly with slightly wider eyes, as if he was caught with his hand in the cookie jar or on the cookie.

Sam responds before he speak, "Don't worry about it. You freed her shoe from the boards and she gave you a reward." He points to the floor. "I'm interested, why the two boards have space underneath them." He kneels and slides his hand over them.

Anna asks, "Are you okay?"

Kristoff answers, "I'm fine."

"Your face and neck is turning bright," she points at him.

While studying the boards Sam comments, "You're seeing an infusion of blood near the surface of his skin."

Anna snickers, "Are you blushing?"

"No," Kristoff quickly responds.

"Really?"

"Well . . . maybe a little."

"Aw, everyone knows we kiss." She wraps her arms around his arm.

"I thought it was supposed to be a secret."

"Yeah, right," Sam comments as he pushes on the floor boards.

"What did you say?" Anna snaps at him.

"Sorry, I didn't mean for that to slip out. You two are distracting me with his blushing and you cooing him, but that was a very good imitation of your sister. Just for a fraction of a second, I thought Elsa was here." He lifts the first board and sets it to the side.

He pulls three more boards out of the way. The light colored soil exposes several small dark colored rocks. He picks up a rock and hands it to Kristoff, "Hold onto this and look at it in the daylight when you get a chance."

He runs his fingers through the loose soil and brushes across a metal ring. He tries to pull on it, but one side of the ring is attached to something. He pulls on the ring which creates a slight raised circular indentation in the soil. Anna and Kristoff brush away the soil to reveal a bolt latch on each side. They slide the bolts and Sam lifts the door. On one side of the hole a ladder descends into the dark. At the bottom of the ladder a small light flickers up at them.

"What is that light down there?" Anna asks.

"It looks like amber from a light stick." Kristoff answers as he sticks his head into the hole. After a few seconds he sits up, "I can feel air moving."

Sam picks up a hand full of the soil and slowly pours it out onto the floor. The heavier particles fall straight down onto the floor, but the sandy particles drifted into the hole. He looks at Kristoff. "The other end is open."

"When we entered this room, I notice clouds forming north of here. If the other end of the tunnel is up in the mountain, wind is blowing across the opening. I may be able to find the other end." The entrance door creaks and a piece of charred paper floats out from the fireplace and disappears into the hole. Anna pushes on the legs of her trouser being fluffed open by the draft. Kristoff points to Anna's trousers and to the hole. "It must be getting windy up there."

Sam searches the room. "The tunnel is creating negative pressure in here. Loose material is being drawn under the door. We need to close this."

"What about the gold?" Anna yips. "If they are coming back tomorrow night, they will take it all."

Kristoff asks, "What do you suggest?"

"Suppose we put the bags of gold in there." She points to Sam, "You freeze it shut or something. At least until we can get it out of here." Sam stares at the opening. She continues, "It is either that or we try to carry out as much of the gold as we can."

He smiles. "Actually, Anna that is a very good idea with a small adjustment. In the first room of gold one wall has a loose board over a support wall. You and Kristoff put the bags of gold into the wall and close the opening. I'll take care of the rest." They move to the front of the room. He interlaces his fingers together.

Kristoff places his foot on his hands and removes the shims. He pushes the trap door open and climbs up into the room. He reaches down for Anna. "Come on up."

She steps onto his hands and reaches up to Kristoff. She disappears through the opening. A few seconds later a board pop then a bag of gold slide down in the wall.

"I guess you found it."

"We found it." Anna replies.

Next to the opening in the floor, he draws moisture up from the hole and down the chimney. An ice ramp forms from the opening up to the second and third trap doors. He climbs into first room and throws the bags of gold down the ice ramp. A muffled thump sounds from the hole as the bags of gold collect at the bottom of the ladder. Once the top layer of gold bags are off the shelves, he creates an air burst behind each bag to push it on the ice. Each bag follows the previous bags like a train. Making quick work of removing the gold he jumps down and moves the ramp to the second door. Climbing through the trap door, he repeats the same process and finishes removing the gold from the second room. He jumps down and looks in the hole, but does not see the glow at the bottom. The gold from the two rooms fill part of the shaft.

His eyes shift to the blue spectrum and sees a miniscule amount of energy radiating up. His hand touches the energy band near the top pf the ladder. His hand tingles and creates a familiarity he cannot place or remember when, if he had encountered it before. The energy radiates a purity that should not be here. The energy wraps around his forearm and the tingling moves up to his shoulder.

"Sam . . . Sam, are you down there?" Anna disrupts his thoughts.

He stands and watches the energy falls back into the shaft. Standing under the under the first room, he asks, "Did you finish?"

"Not exactly," she replies breathing heavily.

"How much did you hide?"

Kristoff pokes his head over the edge of the door. "Maybe half, I think some of the bags are wedge and there is still some space."

"Even in the dark I can tell both of you have red faces." He motions to them. "Come on down, I will finish it."

They help Anna through the opening and Kristoff swings himself down. He waves his hand at the ice ramp and it moves to position itself under the first trapdoor. Sparkling dust radiates from his hand and up into the upper room. A slight whistle sounds as the bags of gold fall out of the upper room and slides down the ramp into the hole. Anna and Kristoff catch their breath as the last bag of gold drops into the hole. With a sweep of his hand the ice breaks into tiny pieces and flows into the hole.

Anna pinches his arm. "Why did you not do that to all of the gold instead of having Kristoff and I work so hard?" She peeks into the hole under the floor.

He and Kristoff walk over her and peeks into the hole. "Are you saying you did not like working with him?"

She pinches his arm again and a static arc snaps between her fingers and his arm. She rubs her hands together. "No, I did not say that." She cautiously wraps her arm around Kristoff's arm and smiles up at him. "I love working with him, but after several minutes he was doing most of the work."

"Then maybe the two of you need to spend more time together outside of the library." He glances to Kristoff. "Don't mean to put you on the spot. Why don't you take Anna with you the next time you check on the ice? Explain what you are doing and how to determine when the ice is ready for harvest."

Kristoff hand covers her hand. "Is that what you want? I want you to go with me, but—"

"But I am a Princess," she interrupts.

"Well, yes, I don't know what I can ask and not go too far."

She places her hand behind his neck. "You can always ask. I will let you know if you step over the line."

His eyes widen. "There is a line?"

Sam chuckles at them. Anna pulls his head to her and whispers, "No line here." She kisses him.

Sam closes the door in the floor and covers it with the dirt. He places the floor boards over the hole as they were when Anna found it. He walks around Anna and Kristoff still in their embrace. Finished with closing the upper room trap doors, he slips his cloak over his shoulders. His fingertips touch the sides of both of their necks. "Don't mind me as I return your eyes to normal vision."

When they did not move, but grown, he says, "Time to go kids. Mom is not going to like me keeping you out all night."

He moves to the front door and presses his palm against the door frame to scan the outside area. He detects no one and glances back. They are still in their embrace. "Do I need to splash you with a bucket of cold water?"

They break their embrace and slip their cloaks on as they slowly walk towards him. "Okay, you two need to detach and focus. When you go out the door, turn to the right and stop at the end of the block. Hoods up." He pulls the hood over his head.

The door creaks open. A warm salty breeze pushes against the door. A lighter blue fills the sky. The upper level clouds to the north hint at the first rays of the sunrise. They will have to hurry.

He pushes Kristoff out and Anna follows him. Her cloak strikes the door frame with a thump. They turn right and creep along the wall towards the end of the block.

He struggles to lock the door. His mind detects a warm body around the corner moving towards his companions. Kristoff must have also heard the stranger. He pins Anna to the wall in an embrace. Their cloaks cover their activities. Sam runs up the block and hides around the corner. He peaks back at them. An early morning merchant walks past the two and stops. The merchant stares at them.

He steps around the corner and waves his arm. The merchant looks in his direction. He motions by pointing to his eyes then to the two cloaked figures. The merchant nods to him and continues on his way across the street.

Kristoff peeks in the direction of the merchant and looks back at him. Sam motions for them to move. Kristoff nods and places his arm around Anna. They walk around the corner towards the bridge.

Sam moves up the street towards the wharfs. A few early merchants head towards their shops to prepare for the new day. At the end of the block he recognizes the sentry sitting on the bridge rail as one of the males who entered the building, earlier in the evening. He picks up several rocks and throws them high into the air. The first rock lands several meters to the side of the sentry. Three more rocks land in rapid successions hitting the wharfs with a loud pop as they bounce into the water. The sentry moves from his post to the wharf. Sam launches three more rocks up into the air. They hit the water, creating tall plumes. The sentry searches the sky and searches the water. His distraction allows the two cloaked individuals to walk over the bridge. Sam drops his other rocks and notices a sailor on the ship tied up at the wharf. The sailor waves to him before continuing his duties.

The lookout moves back to the bridge and searches up the street away from the castle.

Sam takes his cloak off and drapes it over his arm. He moves quickly and marches across the square's platform. The noise draws the sentry's attention. "Hey, what are you doing there?" he yells at the lookout.

"I'm not doing anything, just walking."

"You were asleep when I walked past you. Who are you waiting for?"

"I'm not waiting for anyone. I'm just walking."

Sam stands with his feet shoulder width apart and his hands on his waist. He watches the lookout walk up the street and turn down an alley. Sam walks across the street towards the bridge. Peeking over his shoulder, he stares at the alley. A partially exposed face looks back at him.

 _I should throw a rock at him, but he is just the hired help._

After a moment he picks up a rock. The rock travels in a slight arc and hits the lookout's shoe. As he walks over the bridge, Sam opens and closes his hand as the tingling starts up again.

 **End of Chapter**


	55. Chapter 54 Property and Gold

**Title: Chapter 54: Property or Gold**

 **3 year 3 months until correction**

Sam stands in front of the dining room door. He adjust the belt to his black trousers and smooths his white shirt around his waist. After he flicks his white hair over his shoulder, he enters the room. Anna and Kristoff, still wearing their evening clothes they wore under their cloaks, sit in their normal chairs to the Queen's left. Elsa radiates her beauty in the buttoned up blue blouse with light green ruffles around the cuffs and collar. He hesitates and absorbs the energy of her beauty.

Kristoff's head twitches as it hangs against his chest. Anna rests her head on her arm on the table. He walks along the table as he watches them and glances at Elsa.

Her eyes dart back and forth between Anna and Kristoff. She does not delicately chew her food, but chomps on it. She drops her fork against her plate. Anna does not move. Kristoff snorts raising his head, but the effects of gravity pulls it back against his chest.

Sam sits in his chair to the Queen's immediate right. Elsa pulls her lips tight as she throws her napkin onto her plate. He grabs her arm.

She snaps her head towards him and vents. "I have asked them to be discrete with their time together. I have tolerated Anna being late to the meetings because she was with him." She jerks her arm from his grip. "Do you know what time they were caught coming into the castle this morning?"

Before she could take another breath, he replies, "About five-thirty when the guards were getting ready for their breakfast."

She eyes him. "That is right, five-thirty. They sneaked out and their condition says they were out all-night."

He blurts out, "It's my fault."

Her right brow rises.

"They were with me the whole time. I assure you they did nothing inappropriate."

"They were with you?"

"You asked me to spend time with them and I did." He holds up his hand as she starts to speak. "Please hold your questions. I promise to answer them, but not right now. You'll have to trust me. You'll get your answers before the sun sets if not sooner." He lightly places his hand on top of her hand. "I beg you to trust me on this one. If it blows up it will be on me, not them nor you. I take full responsibility for the events that will happen this morning."

She leans towards him and narrows her eyes. "Like what?"

"I can't say for now, but I request you go with me to inspect the center building. I also request you do not make any commitments to any deal for the building or the eastern building, no matter what they offer. . . Please."

She moves her hand on top of his hand and squeezes. "Because you asked I will wait. You know this is the first time you have asked me to trust you?"

Now he narrows his eyes at her. "Are you sure?" She nods. He leans back, but she does not let go of his hand. "Is this a bad thing?"

With a smile she shakes his hand, "Only if it blows up in your face. I am happy you believe in me to ask me to trust you."

He leans forward and lifts her hand to his lips as they lightly brush across the back of her hand. "This afternoon you may feel differently."

"That is so sweet of you." Anna mumbles with her eyes partially open.

Elsa motions with her head towards them. "Do you need them?"

"They had enough of an adventure this morning. They probably should go to their own beds to sleep. Kristoff can sleep on the floor or on a chair in my room."

Elsa taps Anna's arm. "Sister dear, go to your room and sleep. Kristoff will sleep in Sam's room."

"Oh, okay." She pulls on the back of Kristoff's chair as she rises to her feet and pulls Kristoff out of his chair. "Come on. Sam is letting you sleep in his room." They lean on each other and stagger out of the room. Sam's eyes track them up the stairs and into their appropriate rooms.

He turns his head towards Elsa. She holds a fork with a piece of meat in front of his face. He watches her as he leans towards the fork with his mouth open. She feeds it to him. They sit in silence. With a smile she continues to feed him his breakfast. He finishes.

"Why did you do that?"

She sweeps his napkin across his mouth and chin and drops in onto his plate. She tilts her head slightly. "You asked me to trust you. Trust goes both ways. If you did not trust me, you would have taken the fork away. We have taken a step closer together in our relationship."

He nods. "That is a good assessment."

Gerda with another staffer enters the room and clears the table. She points to the two meals not eaten. "Are they not hungry?"

"They had too much fun exploring and not each other since I was there the whole time," he answers with a smile.

Gerda picks up his plate and stares at him. "You're up to something aren't you?"

"Hold that thought until after the noon time. I will give you an answer."

She walks past Elsa and whispers. "He's up to something so be careful." She exits the room.

The service door clicks shut. He scans the other door searching for a possible interruption. Detecting none, he turns towards her.

Elsa leans over the table very close to him. Her eyes search his face. "Go ahead. What do you need to say?"

He watches her eyes dart back and forth. "Okay, do you remember when I enabled you to see the ship on the horizon?" She nods her head rapidly. "I enabled both of them to see in the dark. Because of the duration of their sight, it uses a lot of their energy. I was actually surprised they were here when I came in. And if you hear a report of rocks falling out of the sky that made a large splash, I did throw a few to create a distraction so Anna and Kristoff could get across the bridge without questions."

"Did you hurt them?"

His brows push together. "No, I did not hurt them."

"But you wanted to?"

He holds his breath for a few seconds. "I wanted to scare him away. I'm pretty sure I hit his foot."

She leans closer to him. "So is this a continuation of your actions with Jensen, yesterday?" Her right brow rises.

His left brow rises to mirror her brow. With a moment of hesitations he says. "I will answer later today."

She wrinkles her nose at him, "I knew it. Where did the three of you go?"

He leans his head close to her, but does not touch. "You don't know it and you're not going to know until I tell it to you. We went outside of the gate for a walk."

She bites and holds his nose a moment. She leans back into her chair. "You went to the center square to check out the building. What did you find?"

He wipes his nose and looks at his hand as if there was something on his nose. "You can guess all you want. I'm not saying."

"Too bad, I already know where you were." With a grin she asks, "Do you want me to show you on the map?"

"I will neither deny nor confirm anything you say until the inspection is over." He replies with a slight smile. "You can gloat afterwards."

"And I will." She stands. "Our ride is here."

The hall door opens, but his eyes are glued to the slightly tight black trousers she is wearing. Kai steps in and announces, "Majesty, your coach is waiting for you."

She walks past him and taps his chin. "Close that before a bat makes a home in there."

His eyes fixate on the curve of those black trousers. His body has no choice, but to circle around the chair. He follows her out of the room and comments as he passes Kai, "Interesting!"

A guard opens the royal coach door and assists his Queen into the coach. Sam moves to the back of the coach and stands on the footboard. He glances through the coach's rear opening. She looks up at him with her lower lip protruding.

"In due time my Queen, for now, proper protocol."

With ten riders, four in front and six behind the coach, the procession travels out the gates. A few minutes later they stop in front of Jensen's building next to the town square. A grinning Councilman Jensen and Snorre wait by the open door. Neither wear their council meeting clothes, but more distinguish clothes as if they were going to church or to someone's funeral.

Through the window, Sam sees a shadow and detects movement inside as the coach roles to a stop. The shadow of a large man steps out the door and whispers to Jensen. His grin rapidly disappears as he rushes into the building. Snorre peeks over his shoulder at Jensen. Sam steps down observing the two other individuals in the building.

Jensen flails his arm and paces. He speaks loud enough for Sam to hear. "How is it possible, never mind?"

Jensen steps out the door and whispers. Snorre's eyes widens. He runs into the building and closes the door.

A guard holds out his hand as Queen Elsa steps down from the coach.

Jensen glances back into the window as he meets Elsa at the coach and bows. "Majesty, there is a little mess in there we need to clean up before the inspection. It will take a few minutes."

"That is quite alright. We will go in when the mess has been removed." She glances at Sam.

"Majesty, if I had known you were going to be here, I would have been here earlier to inspect the place and made sure there would not be any delays."

"Again, it is alright. I will wait until you are ready," she says.

Jensen bows. He glances through the window and runs into the building.

She takes a few steps towards Sam and asks with a smirk. "Did you contribute to the mess in there?"

He slowly shakes his head and rubs his eyes as he tilts his head down. "Not until we are done here."

He holds his eyes closed for several seconds. With a smile he opens them as Jensen opens the door and waves for them to enter. Two guards enter first, followed by Queen Elsa. He follows behind her. The heel of her shoes echoes with each step she takes until it makes a thumping sound. Even she notices the difference. He squats near the thump spot and sweeps his hand across the floor. Two small pools of water fill depressions on the floor, exactly where the ice ramps were located several hours earlier.

She asks, "Well, what did you find?"

"You stepped in water." He points to another spot. "There is water over there near Snorre and water by the fireplace."

"Leaky roof?" she asks.

He stands. "If it is a leaky roof, I hate to see what damage has occurred to the upper floor."

One guard whispers to the other guard. "Did it rain last night?" The second guard shakes his head rapidly.

"He is quite correct. If this is from the rain three days ago," he looks up at the ceiling, "the water is being stored up there in some place." Sam angles his head towards his Queen. "Depending on the location of the leak and the amount of water damage, the cost of repairs will significantly reduce the value of this property."

"Uh," grumbles Jensen, "Let my men do a thorough inspection and we will repair any damage found before we negotiate a price."

"Will that include the stairs or am I just not seeing them?" He walks to the fireplace and stands on the spot where earlier they filled the hole with the gold. He stares at the floor and shifts his weight from one foot to the other.

Elsa stands next to him. "What are you doing?"

"We can put loose floor boards on the list." Motioning to the floor, "It would be a shame to have to replace many of these boards. The supporting structure underneath the floor may have also been damaged. Maybe water has gotten underneath and rotted the boards." She nods at him. They hear a slap as Jensen holds his forehead.

Elsa asks him, "Are you okay?"

Jensen replies, "I'm doing fine as long as the repairs don't mount up any further. Or if someone would have waited," glaring at Sam, "I could have fixed these problems before our Queens visit."

"Then we would not have found the problems until after the sale," he fires back. "How do we get upstairs?"

Snorre speaks, "The stairs are outside. The building was meant to have two separate entrances, living space upstairs and work area here."

She turns to Sam. "Let us go upstairs to see what it looks like."

Jensen motions them to the front door. "This way, Majesty, the stairs are closer to the rear door, but for some reason we are not able to open the lock." He glances back at Sam. "I'll put it on the list to repair." They follow Jensen out the front and walk around to the stairs located at the end of the building.

Sam follows close to Elsa going up the stairs. Stale air meets them as they enter the second floor hallway. At the first plain door Jensen struggles to get the lock to open. Sam observes the second door across the hall and notes the short distance to the door at the end of the hallway. The first room considerably smaller than the room below the floor would be a comfortable apartment for him or a family with small children.

He walks to the closer of the two windows and notes the top of the castle's wall is in clear view. His instinct is to measure the distance from the window to a visible guard walking along the wall. Maybe with lots of practice, a well skilled archer might hit the guard from here with a crossbow.

He reins in his instinct and reminds himself he is not in that business anymore. Elsa stares at him with her non-emotional royal expression. With a quick nod to her he counts his steps to the other end of the room. The side wall shortens the room. He notes behind the wall is one of the gold rooms.

"Is there a problem?" Snorre asks.

"No, I'm trying to envision a purpose for this room other than a small apartment. This wall is not part of the original construction."

"Maybe the last occupiers built it."

"Why?"

"Maybe to hide the body of a nosy neighbor." Snorre faces him.

Sam steps close enough to poke a hard finger into his chest. "If that is the case, this property has zero value and will be condemned to dispose of the dead body or two or three."

"Come on, Samuel. Remove your finger from the nice councilman. I am sure he does not know where your finger has been."

With a grin he follows Elsa.

They walk across the hall to the other room. The room is also missing space blocked off by a wall, the second gold room. He points to the far wall.

Snorre answers before he could ask. "This room is smaller because of the up stair's plumbing. The wash room is down the hall."

Calculating the floor area and adding the three gold rooms, the floor space almost matches the down stair area. Even accounting for the fireplace, the numbers do not match up. His hand slides along the wall as he walks around the room. Near the fireplace on the outer wall, he detects a noticeable temperature difference in the wall.

Snorre steps next to him. "What do you think of this room?"

Not acknowledging him, he slides his hand on the wall. "Why is this wall cold?"

"The sun has not warmed this side yet."

He pushes on the wall. Halfway down the wall, his finger scrapes a small trace of white substance. He sniffs and tastes it. "It's salty." He looks back at Snorre. "There has been salt water here. Maybe there is water behind this wall which would explain the salt and the cold temperature."

He glances past Snorre. Elsa barely motions her head towards the door. "Majesty, I've seen enough here. If you wish we should proceed to the second site." With a nod she exits the room.

Stopping at the door and preventing Snorre from exiting, he waits for the exterior door to close behind Elsa and Jensen. His head snaps around to Snorre, "I have detected enough damage to bring the question to the table, if this building should be torn down for structural integrity. Tell your boss unless he can make substantial repairs and not just hide it, I will recommend to our Queen not to purchase this building."

Snorre does not reply, but follows him out the building. They catch up to the others. Elsa already in the coach smiles at him as he steps onto the coach footboard.

As they ride across Arendelle, his long white hair flows behind him. Several females call to him as the coach passes them. He politely nods and smiles to each of them. A cold spot forms where a small hand touches his shirt. He glances down. Elsa grins as she slowly shakes her head at him.

The procession travels to the east side of Arendelle and turns up a trail barely wide enough for the royal coach to pass over. The horses huff to climb up the hill. They stop in front of a single story building with plenty of windows. Before stepping off the running board, he scans the geological feature in the hill. The ground next to the hill has been recently rolled over. He stands at the top of the dirt road and studies it. A good rain would wash most of the dirt down the hill. Unless the path continues around the building, the coach or any wagon will have trouble turning around. He slowly walks up to the building, noting the fresh paint and lack of vegetation near the building. He steps through the doorway. Jensen speaks to Elsa and points to the different areas in the building. No doubt giving her his best sales pitch.

He steps out the door and comments to the guard. "So as not to embarrass your squad, get the horses turned around. This will not take long."

He steps back into the building and walks along the walls. A reflection emerges in the window. He glances back at Snorre. "If you are going to follow me at least get closer so I can ask you questions." Snorre does not move.

Sam snaps his finger and pats the side of his leg. "Heel, heel."

Snorre crosses his arms and narrows his eyes at him.

"I guess, I don't have Jensen's finesse."

He flicks his hair over his shoulder and continues moving along the walls. A spot on the wall sticks to his finger. A sniff tells him, the tree used to create this piece of lumber was cut recently. Wet lumber will swell and shrink with the rain and sun. Joints will loosen and holes will appear between the boards creating drafts.

Other than the fireplace in the center of the open room, the area of the room would fit inside of the ground floor of the Jensen's building they viewed earlier. The back door resists opening. With a groan and a pop it opens. The distance from the door to the hill has enough room for a wagon to pass, but the ground features make him uneasy.

He turns to Snorre. "When was this building built?" Snorre stares at him without responding. Shaking his head, he steps to the side. "Jensen, when did you build this building?"

As Jensen walks over to him as he rubs his chin, "I believe it was right after the last snow melted." He steps into the doorway. "That is a nice view. It makes me hesitate to give it up."

"So why are you?" he asks.

"I'm a businessman. I buy. I sell. I build. I sell. I make good money."

"So you have enough money to risk with this building?"

Jensen points to the hill. "With that view on this side and Arendelle on the other side, I will get top money for this, but since our Queen is interested in purchasing a building, I would humbly ask for only ten percent above my actual cost."

"How much snow do you think collects up here?"

"A half meter," Snorre answers. "We are not that high up."

"And you can use Jensen's humility to dig this building out when two and half meters of snow collect on the nice view side, which was the depth at the top of the hill. When it starts to melt the water will wash out the road and undermine the foundation. How about we look at this property after the last snow next spring?"

"It will be gone by then."

"Not unless I get the word out about the snow hazard at this location." He replies with a slight grin.

"You would interfere with my business?" Jensen asks.

"You said it yourself. You're in the business to make money. To squeak out a little more profit, you cut corners in the quality of the material or workmanship. You leave out information about a potential hazard that could bury the occupants in this building, but they would not know the hazard until the snow reached sufficient height to avalanche into this building."

Jensen explodes, "I have never cut corners on quality or workmanship."

"Let's go back to your other building and I will show you where you did." He replies with a big grin.

Queen Elsa steps between them. "Gentleman, I did not come here to see you bash each other. Mr. Jensen, while I do see the beauty of this building and location, Samuel has made a valid point about the snow. If you could correct the flaw, I would look at this location again. I will receive the report from Samuel with the discrepancies on your other building and present it to you at our next council meeting."

They both separate to allow her to pass. She stops by the door and turns her head slightly to them. "Come Samuel, we have your report to discuss."

 _Come Samuel, she has never called me that. Did I miss her signal?_

He follows her out the door. The guards took his advice and had the coach facing the road down the hill. He studies the wheel tracks. They are too close to the cliff's edge for his comfort. Another discrepancy found. He steps onto the footboard and the coach lurches forward. The ride is a little bumpier until they turn onto the stone road. The back window's curtain is drawn closed.

 _Are you upset?_ He detects a cold spot forming above her hand. _What did I do?_

The curtain open as a solid piece of ice, shoots through the opening. He leaps off the coach and rolls onto the road. As he gets to his feet the six guards ride past him. He watches the royal coach continue down the hill towards Arendelle. He tries to walk, but his feet do not move. Ice anchors his boots to the road. Off the road the familiar sound of a boulder grinds against smaller rocks. The large rock pushes through the bushes and transforms into a troll with a green cape.

Pabbie glances at his boots and nods at him. "Our Elsa has gotten better at using her ice powers."

"So it would seem." He points to his boots. "Can you help me out?"

"I probably could, but then Queen Elsa would be upset at me. She obviously does not want you in Arendelle at the moment."

"Obviously. I'm sure you're not here to state the obvious." He pulls his feet out of his boots. "How is it you happen to be at the spot she throws me off the coach?"

"I told her I needed to talk to you immediately."

"So Kristoff doesn't come around often enough to relay a message?" Sam's left hand glows white and the ice begins to melt.

"Kristoff has other things on his mind at the moment."

"That wouldn't be a bubbly, cute little red head would it?"

"If you mean Princess Anna is causing the other thing, yes."

"She is causing. Like what?" He breaks one boot from the ice and slips his foot into it. He kneels next to his other boot and begins working to free it from the ice.

"Not being human, there are areas I can provide information, but to explain how the information relates to other humans, I lack the cognitive words that he would understand."

"So Elsa thought I would know what to say to him," he asks.

"No."

He pulls his other boot from the ice and slips it on. With a half-smile he looks down at him. "If not Kristoff, why the delaying tactic?"

"You found a tunnel under a building on the north side of Arendelle. Its entrance is near here. I'll show you." Pabbie waddles back through the bushes.

"If Kristoff did not contact you, how did Elsa contact you?" he yells walking through the bushes.

"I'm right here. You don't need to yell. She talks to me the same way she talks to you when you are not around."

He stops suddenly and slides across the small rocks. He looks back towards the castle. "Why that little girl, is she communicating with you now?"

"I have been told to answer that question by saying, 'I can neither confirm nor deny your question.' Follow me down the path," Pabbie answers. He changes into a boulder and rolls down the path.

Sam starts down the path and comments, "That's how I would have responded."

Two horses trot down the road. He drops behind several bushes. Jensen and Snorre ride past his location. Snorre glimpses in the direction of the path, but they continue down the road. Sam runs down the path and around an outcrop of boulders. He trips over a small boulder in the middle of the path and comments, "Next time, park yourself to one side of the path."

The boulder transforms into Pabbie and he smirks, "After all these years, you still do not know what I look like curled up."

"When I'm looking for you, I can find you among your family. I didn't expect you to stop in the middle of the path, but I will from now on." He brushes the dust off his pants.

Pabbie waddles into a clearing. "We are here."

Sam follows him and looks back towards the road. "That outcrop of boulders and these bushes hides the entrance from the road. Even if there was a fire, you would miss it if you didn't know it was here."

"Look at these tracks." Pabbie points to the ground in front of the cave.

He kneels and presses his palm next to the tracks. "The ground is fairly hard. These are wagon tracks." He follows the tracks to a large clearing. "They turned the wagon around here. The spacing between the wheels is not very long nor between the front and rear axles. This is a small wagon pulled by one horse, maybe two if they are in line."

"There are two sets of horse prints and you are correct about one following the other, but these prints are not animal."

Sam walks through the grassy area not to disturb the tracks in the dirt. He kneels next to the new tracks. Most were rounded with smooth indentions. "These are humans unless the animals have started wearing boots." He flakes a corner of a boot print. "Either you had many sets of boots walking here or a couple who walked back and forth between the cave and wagon." He crumbles the dirt in his hand. "When was the last time it rained here?"

Pabbie replies after several seconds, "Twelve nights ago."

"Did it rain hard enough to soften the ground?"

Pabbie waddles in the direction the wagon tracks lead away from the cave. "Water from the hills would by-pass this area." He points. "The rain would have to cross the castle first." He looks at Sam. "That was two full moons ago."

Sam walks to the cave entrance and slides his finger along a meter length straight groove. A half meter up another groove appears in the rock. Scanning the cave entrance, he spots fourteen grooves. "This opening was dug out. They would not have dug this, unless they had evidence of something valuable worth digging." He kneels and slides his hand along the rock face. "The first groove is a meter and a half above the ground, while the other side has two groove near the ground. Was there a small entrance here?"

Pabbie taps his arm. "If you duck your head down, you would have been able to crawl the original opening here. A few of the children would roll through it to hide from the humans."

"So it was big enough for an adult human to crawl through on their belly."

"A human child could crawl in. Why would a human adult go in there?"

"If this cave leads to the building in the center of Arendelle, I know what they were digging. Do you need a light to go in there?"

"I do recall you used a light in your cave."

"I have perfected my ability to see in the dark as long as there is some light. I'll go as far as I can, then I'll turn on the light." They walk into the cave. After a short distance a hint of light reflects off the walls. He looks down. Pabbie flicks the crystals around his neck. "Okay, I forgot your crystals."

They continue around a bend into total darkness, a tiny green light flickers in the dark. Sam focuses his vision on the green light, but does not see the source. "Is someone else in here with a green crystal?"

"You do see it?" Pabbie stops and looks up at him. "Do not expend any more energy than you need to see."

As they continued the floor begins to slope down. Tiny green sparkles, glitter the walls and ground. His senses tingle with a familiarization he hadn't felt in more than fifty years. "I know what these are?"

"You should, I'm wearing them. This is not what I want to show you. We have to go around the rocks ahead."

They continue for some distance and the ground levels out. They walk around a sharp curve that opens into a large cavern. The illumination in the cavern increases first with a yellow glow. A few seconds later, a green glow mingles with yellow. Green sparkles in the cavern's ceiling form a pattern that narrows into a tunnel opening.

"Now watch," Pabbie says as he hides his crystals. The green glow diminishes a little, but not enough that Sam has to use his vision to see. He points to a stack of picks and shovels near an opening. "That tunnel leads to the underground water. The humans channel water into a wooden box with dirt."

Sam glances at the tunnel. "They probably use the water to wash the gold out of the dirt."

"Gold? Are you talking about the yellow metal they collect in the little bags?"

"Yes, they consider the gold to be a precious metal used in trading. A little gold they trade for little stuff. A lot of gold they trade for lots of stuff."

"You mean like this?" Pabbie rolls a small boulder and breaks off a yellow rock on the bottom of the boulder and tosses it to him.

He catches the gold in his bare hands. The cavern's light changes to yellow and increases in intensity. He rolls the gold nugget in his hand. A bright spot in a crack on the nugget shines. He tosses the nugget back. "Remove the metal on one side to expose the crystal underneath it."

Pabbie melts the gold revealing the shining crystal. He asks, "What is it? I have never seen a crystal act like this?"

"Touch one of your green crystals to it."

Pabbie touches the white crystal to one of his green crystals and the cavern's glow changes to green.

"Are you sure you have never seen that crystal before now?"

"Never, this is a strange crystal. It radiates very intense energy."

Sam's eyes shift in the spectrum energy and sees hundreds, if not thousands of crystals radiating the same energy. "The crystal is not from here. As a matter of fact, it is not from this planet."

Pabbie's wooly brows rise as he stares at him, "Are you saying the sky dropped it like it dropped you?"

"If you are referring to a shooting star you see in the night sky, yes. I know of only one place where it could have come from and that star blew itself apart a long time ago." Sam examines the crystals in the ceiling. "That tunnel with the crystal does it continue to slope down?"

"No, it's the same level where we stand. The tunnel to the water slopes down."

"How far does the crystal in the cave travel?"

"It does not go all the way to the end. It just stops."

Sam kicks the ground. "I don't see any fragments or splinters of the crystal on the ground." He looks up at the ceiling again. "I wonder."

"Wonder what?"

Sam answers, "I wonder if we are looking at the bottom of the crystal and it is in one piece." He moves towards the crystal tunnel. "Come on, I need to find out."

He walks past other tunnels and stops where the crystal appears to angle into the rocks. His hand slides along the wall. He stops and gazes further down the tunnel. Pabbie rolls up behind him and transforms into himself. The crystals around his neck glow. Enough light reveals a mound of leather bags piled up at the end of the tunnel.

"You're under Arendelle." He snaps his head down to him. "You still have the white crystal?"

Pabbie pulls it out of the small bag and holds it up.

"Touch and hold it to one of your crystals."

He touches it to his smallest crystal. The crystal in the rocks changes to the same green color. He looks up at him. "Your eyes are green."

"Yes, I can feel the energy traveling along the crystal." He takes a deep breath. The energy charges his cells as though his thirst is quenched by a cool drink of water. "It stops under the north mountain." His head turns towards the south. "The other end passes Arendelle and into the fjord. It circles around the castle's island. If this gets energized." He steps back. "Remove the crystal and put it away."

Pabbie places the white crystal in his bag. The crystal in the rocks still glows green. "It's not going to discharge fast enough. Can you make the water from the other tunnel, touch my feet while maintaining contact with the river?"

"Give me a little time. I can do it."

He leans against the wall and pulls off one boot. "The faster you can the better Elsa will be."

Pabbie stares at him. "What do you mean better for Elsa?"

He pulls off his other boot. "Years ago, when a storm passed over Arendelle and lightning would strike in certain locations, near the north mountain, severe pain followed. I was able to block the pain. Elsa was not as fortunate. As a baby she suffered greatly. When the King allowed me, I held Elsa in my arms until the storm passed." He shakes his head. "I can feel the energy in the crystal. She may be suffering now. We need the water to discharge the crystal."

Anna follows her sister into the royal suite. "What do you mean you threw him off the coach? What did he do? I am sure he deserved it."

Elsa removes her gloves and drops them on the chair in passing. "He did not do anything. Kristoff carried a message from me to Grand Pabbie." She unbuttons her sleeves and the top of her collar as she continues into the royal bedroom. "I received Grand Pabbie's reply this morning and he asked me to send Sam to him."

Kristoff knocks on the door. "Anna are you in there?"

Anna swings the door open and leaps at Kristoff as she wraps her arms around his neck. With calculated precision, her lips lock onto his lips.

Kristoff gives in to her assault and wraps his arms around her waist.

Anna finally releases her lip lock and grins as she stares into his eyes. Kristoff's expression begins to change as he glances past her. "Do not worry. It will take Elsa a few more minutes to change back into her royal clothes."

A high pitch yelp sounds followed by furniture scraping across the floor and glass breaking in the next room. Anna and Kristoff runs into the bedroom. Elsa lies on the floor in a fetal position and holds her head.

Anna kneels and tries to release Elsa's hands clenching to her blonde hair. "Elsa, what is wrong? Are you in pain?"

Between her moans Elsa whisper Sam's name.

"Get Gerda."

Kristoff runs out the room.

"Elsa stop pulling your hair."

She partially opens her green eyes. "NO."

"No, what? I do not understand."

"Sam is in danger?" She rolls onto her back as her body stiffens.

"Where is Sam? Do you see him?"

Pabbie moves his hands above his head in a rhythmic pattern. He reaches away and moves his body as though he is pulling an invisible rope. He continues the motion for a few seconds. At the end of the tunnel the water moves like a snake slithering on the ground. The water pools around Sam's bare feet.

Sam twirls his finger and ice forms around his feet. The ice moves up his legs, up his right side, and up to his right hand. "I do not recommend you be in contact with the water when I touch the crystal."

Pabbie steps back to the wall as he continues to hold his hands out to move the water. "I will have to let go of it."

Sam nods. "On the count of three, you let it go. I will touch the crystal. Ready?" Pabbie nods to him. "I sure hope this works," he mutters to himself.

"What?"

"One, two, three."

Pabbie drops his hands and the water starts to trail back to its source.

Sam places his glowing left hand over his heart and slaps the palm of his frozen right hand against the green energized crystal. A static charge leaps from the crystal and bounces down the ice until it sizzles into the water. The tunnel echoes with the hum of the energy traveling along the water and into the underground stream. The discharge seems to take a long time, but if it passes through him, he would cook like an egg in bacon grease. For an instant he sees Elsa lying on the floor with Anna and Gerda next to her. He sees Kai and two other staffers running towards them. Suddenly he feels himself flying through the air. His back slams into the wall. He slides to the ground and closes his eyes as Pabbie waddles towards him.

He does not know how much time has passed, but his eyes open. Bulda places a leaf mesh on his forehead. The cool mesh eases the pain and slows his thoughts. He tries to speak, but only grunts and groans come out of his mouth. He tries to move, but his body does not respond.

"Shu-shus, you are badly injured. Your hand and feet have been burned." Bulda grins down at him. She lifts her hand from over his heart. "Pabbie is correct. You have a strong heart to live." She looks up and backs away from him.

A shadow leans over him as a rough texture touches the side of his face. The ceiling of the cave changes dark and for a moment he hears silence. All is black. He does not feel anything, not even his body. No pain, a sensation he has always had. He does not remember ever being without his friend. He doesn't even hear his thoughts. He is alone.

 _What are you waiting for, get up._

He hears someone take a deep breath.

 _At least he is breathing again. Maybe I should step on his will wake him up._

 _Did you hear that? If you do not open your eyes, the troll will step on your hand and release the pain._

His eyes open to a blinding light. For a moment it dims to a blue and white surroundings. With a deep breath, his lungs fill with the cold mountain air. With a smile he searches the area and recognizes his snow covered mountain. His body responds to his commands as he sits up. Both his feet, encased in ice up to his knees, and his right hand encased in ice below his shoulder, produce a dull throbbing pain. He stares at his left hand.

"It was smart of you to cover your heart an instant before touching the crystal. You have forgotten what happened to us years ago when you tried to align the crystal in the star-chamber. I recall it was a spectacular show of lights showering the engine room. Back then, you were lucky a medical person was there to treat you. Your little rock friends has knowledge of human anatomy. No doubt we are here because you are important to them."

Sam searches for the owner of the voice, but sees only the snow. "Who are you?"

"Seriously?" a familiar voice asks.

"The residual energy is blocking some of his neural paths." Pabbie steps back. "You still have too much energy in your body. Until you can remove it, I, too, will fade out soon."

"Is anyone touching my body now?"

"No."

He stares at his left hand for a moment before looking at Pabbie, "did my hand move?"

Pabbie leans to one side. "No, your hand is near your heart."

"If you can move it so my palm lies flat against the ground, I should be able to discharge the excess energy."

Pabbie leans to one side, then leans to the other side. "Your hand is flat against the ground. Everyone has moved out of the way." His body fades.

He holds up his left hand and ice particles begin to orbit around his hand. A strong wind blows from behind him, forcing the ice particles to flow in a stream from his hand. His white hair whips around in front of his face and stands out in the wind. The pressure of the wind increases with the solid flow of ice from his hand. A tingling sensation moves up his legs and arm. Thousands of tiny pin pricks consume his body. With each beat of his heart another part of his body feels the pin pricks assaulting it. Suddenly the wind stops and he falls back as his arm falls in the snow. He stares up at the blue sky. His eyes gradually close.

"How long do you think he will lie there?"Asks a young voice.

"Until something motivates him to move." An older voice answers.

"What are you waiting for, Fifty-six? I'll motivate him."

"Seventeen wait. Don't step on it." The older voice of Samuel-56 says.

Pain shoots through Sam's right arm. He hears himself gasp. His heart beats faster as he takes a deep breath.

"He's still not moving. May be I should stomp on his foot. Who's that?" Samuel-17 points to the approaching woman. "What is she doing here?"

"He gave her the key. That's how she can get in here without him being awake. Oh crap, look out." Fifty-six dives to the ground.

Crunching snow rings against his ears as the sound of something heavy swishes by him. The delicate touch of small hands warms his face. The sweet fragrant of tropical fruit and a hint of coconut fills his nostrils. Sam breathes it in. The warm taste of mint washes across his lips.

The sweet voice of an angel whispers to him. "It is time to wake up, my love."

"Did she call him love?"Seventeen snickers.

The giant snowman, Marshmallow swings at them again. "Grrr."

"Take it easy big guy. We are a part of him." Seventeen rolls out of the way as Marshmallow steps. "He must have come in here when she did."

"Of course he did, she created him to protect her ice castle. Wait, the Admiral is moving."

"What does she have that we don't?"

"Sorry Seventeen, you need to move forward a number of years to discover what she has that you do not."

The taste of mint departs his lips even though Sam hungers for more.

"Samuel, you need to wake up. We will be there to get you soon," the angel says.

His eyes slowly open. A set of blue eyes look down at him. A vision of beauty is surrounded by platinum blonde hair. He stares at her smile.

"Are you awake," she asks.

His left hand reaches up and touches her face. She places her hand on top of his hand as she partially closes her eyes. The warmth of her touch and the delicate features of her face warm's his hand. She kisses his palm. A surge of energy fills his heart. He finally speaks, "Elsa, what are you doing here?"

She smiles down at him. "I felt your pain, my love. You reached out to me."

"I did? I don't remember. What happened?"

"I heard you calling me right after the pain in my head eased up. We will be there soon, my love."

"I have been injured. I may not be the same."

She places her finger across his lips. "Shh, No matter what, I will take care of you." She brushes her lips against his lip and kisses him.

"Will I find someone who will love me the way she loves him?" Seventeen asks.

"As a matter of fact, you will."

"What's her name?"

"I can't tell you, but I will say, be true to yourself. In time, she will kiss you the way Elsa kisses him."

"Commander that's not fair, why can you not tell me now?"

"Seventeen, you will go through many trials and tribulations. You will change. You will be different from who you are now."

Elsa leans back and glances to the side. "I have to go. We are almost there."

He reaches up and places her hand over his heart. "We need to talk." She starts to fade. "I love you." He sees her smile. She disappears. Sam rolls onto his side and sits up. Two younger versions of himself stare back at him.

Fifty-six shakes his head. "You haven't told her have you?"

"I just did."

"You can't lie to us. To her, this is a dream. She loves you. When she gets here you tell her in person."

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"You don't understand. I made a promise I intend to fulfill."

"To who," Fifty-six asks. "I understand promises. I understand what happens to your honor if you fail."

"I'll find out," Seventeen says as he runs across the snow and fades.

"Will you at least admit you love her?"

"Of course I do," the Admiral shoots back. "The moment I saw those blue eyes and she nuzzled up to me it took everything I had not to run away."

"And now that she is a young woman," asks Seventeen.

"I desire nothing more than to be with her always. I watched her from a distance for so many years. If all I have is to stand behind her and to the one side, then I will accept it," Sam replies hanging his head low.

"If your circumstances were different, the promise, your status in her life, you would want more?"

"Yes." Sam glances away. "I would do anything to keep her from another's arms. I would take her as my own and we would be one."

"Including blocking parts of your mind?" Seventeen asks.

Sam does not answer.

"Then talk to her, tell her how you feel. She will either accept you or turn you away as a friend." Fifty-six touches his shoulder. "After what we saw, she wants you to be more." The ground shakes violently and all goes dark.

In the darkness he hears his name. "Sam?" The voice gets closer. "Sam, we have to get out of here." A rush of light overwhelms him with the feeling of being lifted up. His eyes open. The ground moves past him. He starts to move, but a familiar voice stops him. "Buddy, you have to stop moving before I drop you. This is a tight tunnel to be carrying you."

"Stop in the cavern to rest. I know I'm heavy."

They enter the cavern and Kristoff stops for a breather. "I have carried ice heavier than you. The problem is the ice on your hand and legs move. They are throwing my balance off."

"Set me down and I'll remove them." Kristoff slides him off his shoulders and onto the ground. "It will take a few minutes to thaw the ice. Did you see the bags of gold at the end of the tunnel?"

"I saw the end, but I didn't see the gold where we dropped them."

He looks down the tunnel where he fell. "Did you see Pabbie down there?"

"Only you."

"Hopefully Pabbie moved it. If they are in there, can you detect them?" The wall next to him crumbles as a boulder rolls out and changes into Bulda.

She says, "Kristoff, you need to visit us. I'll make your favorite soup. You bring Princess Anna."

"I have been busy. I will come by for the soup, but she will not eat it." He answers looking away.

"I think he is trying to say the Princess's delicate taste has not reached the selective proficiency of yours." Sam comments.

Bulda places her arm on his shoulder and stares at him. "If she doesn't eat the soup, are you asking for her bowl of soup?"

Sam nods. "I love your soup. It makes me feel warm all over."

She touches his forehead. "You feel warmer than you did earlier. Your arm is hot. What are you doing?"

He stares at the ice on his hand. "It's taking too long to melt." He looks up at Bulda with concern. "This isn't my ice. Did Pabbie do this?"

She steps back. "You were in pain. Your hand and feet were burnt. I wrapped your wounds with healing plants. Pabbie wakes you so you could put the ice on them."

"Yes, now I remember. I was trying to thaw the whole thing as ice. The plants are slowing the process." He waves his left hand over his right hand and the ice melts leaving the plant bandage.

She removes the plant wrap and pries his hand open. "The edges of your hand have started healing. It will take some time for the rest of your hand to heal."

Kristoff stares at Sam's hand and wrinkles his nose. He pulls his collar over his nose as he steps back.

"Don't tell me you never smelled burnt human flesh? It is different, that's for sure, but you will never forget it." Bulda wraps his hand with the healing plants. "What did Pabbie do with the metal rocks in the bags?"

She continues to wrap his hand. "It is here."

"Can your family get to it without touching the white crystal?"

"Uh-huh." She nods.

"Is any of your family down that tunnel?" She shakes her head no. "Good," He flings two fireballs, one after the other, down the tunnel and it sends a cloud of dust back at them as it collapses. Kristoff coughs and wheezes. Sam twirls his left hand above his head and it hits the ground. The dust falls to the ground as clean air from outside fills the room.

With the last cough Kristoff says, "That's an interesting trick."

He grins at Bulda. "Will you do me a small favor?" She nods. He whispers, "When Kristoff gets me to the surface, please give him a couple of bags of the metal with the white crystals. Make sure this tunnel is compacted all the way to the other end. No humans are to ever touch the white crystal. Do what you will with this cavern. Don't block the water flow."

She taps his forearm. "Is the crystal the same?"

"Yes, it is the same. It created the monster in me. I have to ensure no human is ever forced to endure what I went through."

She touches his face. "You no monster, just misunderstood." The wall opens behind her as Pabbie and several other trolls roll into the cavern.

"I see you are awake." Pabbie says as he looks at the collapsed tunnel. "You are in agreement with me that no humans should find the crystal. The metal is in a safe place." He turns to him. "The tunnel to the surface narrows too much for Kristoff to carry you. My family will carry you to the surface. Elsa will be there soon."

"Soon," Sam asks. "Pabbie, we cannot let her come into this cave. She will be in danger."

Pabbie steps back and motions to his family. "Take him to the cave entrance and hide." Eight trolls lift Sam up onto their shoulders and run up the tunnel. A couple of minutes later they set him down at the cave entrance. A minute later Kristoff staggers out of the tunnel. The eight trolls run back into the tunnel filling it behind them.

Sam counts to ten. A fireball floats above his left hand. He shoots it at the tunnel's previous location. The fireball spreads along the wall and solidifies the dirt creating a solid rock-like cover that blends with the rest of the cave. "Maybe it will discourage them not to dig here."

"As much as we saw in there, do you think it will stop them from coming back?" Kristoff asks as he walks to the entrance.

"Actually, I was hoping you would tell me this would stop them. I guess I'll have to keep an eye on it."

"I see several guards on horses by the road. The royal coach should be close." Kristoff looks back at him for a moment, before asking, "What happens to Elsa if she enters this cave?"

"If I'm lucky, nothing. I still remember the last time she got a severe headache. It took everything I had to block it out. I don't think I can do it now. I would have to stop my healing and there is no telling what that will cost me."

"I see the royal coach." Kristoff moves next to him. "Let's give her no reason to come in here." He kneels down and lifts Sam onto his shoulders. He carries him to the road. The coach barely stops in front of them when the door burst open.

A cold hand touch his face.

"Oh God, what happened to you. You scared the life out of me when Pabbie said you were hurt." Elsa touches his ice covered hand and glances at his feet. "Is the rest of you going to freeze?"

He moves his head towards her and kisses her cheek. "The bottom of my feet and my hand were burned. The ice is green because Bulda wrapped them in a healing plant."

"Oh my love, what happened?" she asks pressing her cheek against his face.

"I'll gladly tell you, but despite Kristoff being able to lift heavy ice blocks, he is holding a lot of mass in me. Let him get me into the coach so we can get back to the castle. I will answer all of your questions."

Kristoff sets him on the floor of the coach. He runs around to the other side and pulls Sam completely into the coach. He runs back around and assists Queen Elsa into the coach before closing the door. "I'll meet you at the castle as soon as I find Sven." The coach driver maneuvers the coach around the open area in the forest and back onto the road to the castle.

Sam smiles up at her, but a tear rolls down her cheek as she watches the world outside of the window. He places his hand on her knee. She pushes his hand away and slides to the end of the bench seat and looks out the window. Several tears race down her cheeks.

"I am sorry."

"What do you have to be sorry about," she asks without turning away from the window.

"I have made you sad. If I could hold you I would."

She glares down at him from behind the tears preparing to follow the others. "Do you know the pain I felt when Pabbie said you were injured and would not tell me exactly what happened?"

"Probably similar to the pain I felt you were having just before I was injured. You had a severe headache that crippled your ability to think . . . and I caused it before realizing what the crystal was."

She turns her head towards him. "What crystal?"

"The one that is in both of our blood." Slowly shaking his head, he continues, "Do you remember having the headaches when you were little?"

"Not like this."

"I didn't know what was causing it. When a storm rolls over Arendelle and into the mountains, every time the lightning struck either Arendelle or the mountains, you cried in pain. The first time it happened to you I felt helpless. I didn't know what to do, so I cuddled you as tight as I could and put an energy barrier around us. I was able to deflect most of the pain, but not all of it. Your pain lasted several minutes. I knew the lightning caused it, but I did not know why or how, until today."

He watches the trees passing the window and continues. "A solid piece of crystal that surrounds half of the castle's island runs through Arendelle and up into the north mountain. I asked Pabbie to touch the crystal with one of his crystals. The whole crystal changed to green. It still did not click with me as to what was happening. I touched the crystal trying to find the ends of it. That is when I detected you curled up on the floor. I felt your pain. I tried to remove the energy, but it wouldn't let go. Pabbie drew water from the underground river. I stepped in the water and touched the crystal at the same time. The crystal discharged around me and into the ground." He glances at her. "Thus my burned feet and hand. It slammed me into the wall. I woke up long enough to see Bulda wrapping my hand. The next time I woke up, Kristoff was carrying me out." He uses the seat to lift himself into a sitting position and leans against the door.

She grabs his hand. "Please stop before you hurt yourself." She slides across the seat next to him and lifts his chin up to gaze into his eyes. "You scared me. When the pain hit my head, I could not hear you. When it stopped, I still could not hear you and that is when Pabbie said you were hurt." Tears begin to race down her cheeks again. "I thought I lost you. I started thinking about you not being here."

Reaching behind her, he pulls her down on top of him. Despite his iced right hand, he cuddles her with his arms around her. She positions herself to nuzzle against his neck. He kisses her forehead and holds her. "Sometimes shedding a few tears helps to remove the dirt that blinds us. I know I'm not what you want me to be. My job is to protect you."

With a half-smile Elsa looks up at him. "That is what I try to do for you, but you keep backing away from me."

"I am merely one. You have all of Arendelle to protect."

She squeezes his nose. "And you are a part of Arendelle so I will protect you as well." He tilts his head up and licks her fingers. "Eww," she wipes her fingers on his shirt.

"Okay, you got me on that one. After living here all these years, I can't continue to say I'm not part of Arendelle."

She leans up and stares down at him. "So I am your Queen?"

"I have never denied that."

"You are one of my subjects?" She begins to smile.

"Well, as close as we are at this moment I hope I'm more than just one of your subjects." The coach vibrates and clatters from rolling over the stone streets. She falls into him. "There will be less explaining if they find you in your seat instead of on me."

She pushes off his chest and sits in her seat. He holds her hand. The coach lurches to a stop. Their hands separate as the door opens.

"What happened to you?" Captain Larsen stares down at him.

He replies with a wave of his left hand. "Long story."

"Well your long story will have to wait." Larson offers his hand to his Queen. "Ma'am."

"Thank you Captain." Larsen assists her out of the coach. "Please have several of your men carry Samuel to my room and sit him on the lounge chair."

Larsen motions to the two guards standing by the coach to assist Samuel. They grab his trousers and drag him out and slide his arms over their shoulders. Larsen whispers to his Queen. She holds up her hand.

"Did I hear Queen Elsa say to take me to her room?" Sam asks.

"I do believe she did," answers a guard. The other guard nods in agreement.

"Take me to my room. I can heal as well there."

They continue walking towards the castle. Elsa turns her head towards him. "I cannot help you in your room. What if you tried to get up and fell?"

"I would lie there until someone checks on me or I climb back into my bed and wait until the next morning."

Elsa stops. Larsen and the guards stop. She asks, "Since you are already injured, what would happen if you injure yourself more severely from the fall?"

He stares at her as his left brow rises. "Depending on the severity of the injury, my whole body may freeze."

She faces him with her hands on her waist. "What happens to your memory?"

His brows push together as he narrows his eyes at her. _Why is she asking about my memories? Does she already know the answer to her question?_ He answers, "Some will become dormant."

She raises her right hand and asks quickly, "Which ones?"

 _What is she up to?_ "I don't know."

She points at him. Larsen motions to the guards. The two guards step away from him quickly. Sam's eyes grow wide as he tries to stand on the ice surrounding his feet. The ice on his hand throws off his balance and his feet move in different directions. He tries to protect his right hand, but sacrifices his face as the ground rushes up to meet it. The sound of crunching sand moves towards him. He opens one eye. Elsa's shoes stop near him. She brushes his hair out of his face.

"I have seen you do wonderful and mysterious things. Why did you not create something out of ice to catch yourself?"

He rolls onto his side and looks up. "I was trying to protect my hand. I didn't think about the ice."

She presses her palm against his face. "You are in pain. It did not occur to you to use your ice to stop your fall. What if controlling your pain is masking an unknown injury? What if you fall and your body releases the ice?"

"I may not remember the injury or something else more important." He rolls face down. His left hand taps her shoe. "You have learned. Do what you feel is right."

She applies her icy hand against the back of his neck and barely whispers in his ear, "Go to sleep my sweet Prince."

In the forest, a distance away, Samuel-17 watches Samuel Ryan walk with Queen Elsa. Snow crunches behind him. "I was wondering if you were going to show up."

"I had nothing to do so I came by to see what he's doing. This makes the fourth day in a row she has been in here." Samuel-56 glances at the younger version of him and chuckles. "Do not worry. One day you will know what it is to have a female like you for you and not what she can get from you."

"All they do is walk and talk and run around throwing snowballs at each other then she kisses him. He doesn't fight it."

"In here, it's all a dream. They can do whatever they want without consequences. When she wakes up, she will stare at him and not say a word. He will fight to maintain the proper distance from her."

Seventeen stares past Fifty-six and nods towards him. "The dark zone is over there."

Fifty-six looks towards the zone.

Seventeen continues, "If that is released, he will remember all of his memories and we will have access to them?"

Fifty-six glares at Seventeen. "Don't even try to release that block, assuming you could get past the short green creature. If we release the block, those two will never get together." He stares at Sam and Elsa playing in the snow. "Have patience brother. Your time will come and you will see waiting for the right moment will give you one of the greatest memories."

Seventeen walks up the snow covered hill. "That's easy for you to say since it's already happened to you."

Fifty-six puts his arm around Seventeen's shoulder and walks with him. "She is the key. Don't give up." They dissolve into a flurry of snowflakes.

Several hard thumps echo on a wooden structure. Sam struggles to bring his mind into focus, but his ears seem to be the only part of him responding to his commands.

The muffled voice of Anna speaks through the door. "Elsa, are you ready for breakfast?"

"Let me put my dress on and we can go downstairs," Elsa answers.

Anna kneels on the edge of the mattress. "Are you still sleeping? Can you hear me?" She moves close and starts to lift the sheet. "Are you proportional as big as the rest of you under there?"

"Argh," Elsa growls in the next room.

Anna drops the sheet and stands. "Elsa what is wrong?"

The room door opens and closes. Anna laughs. "Are you sure he is not awake. That's a big hand print on your bottom. He got you good. That is what you get for laying so close to him on the floor. You should have left him in the lounger."

Elsa kneels on the mattress. Her hand touches his forehead as she whispers in his ear. "If you are awake, I will send Anna away and you can place your matching hand print on the other side of my bottom."

"Elsa, you are the Queen." Anna giggles. "At least make him work for it."

His nose detects a minty fragrant. The breath of a cool breeze brushes across his cheek. Several strands of hair tickle his nose. Even his facial muscles do not respond to the stimuli. As close as she is, if his arm would move, he could encourage her to lie closer to him, but for now, he will accept the light touch of her lips against his cheek.

"He is still asleep. Maybe he will join us for the evening meal."

A tingling sensation sweeps across his body like the cool breeze from an open window. "Much better, your blue dress is nice for winter, but I like this one with the flowers. It reminds me of spring." Anna comments.

Their shoes scuffle across the floor and the outer hall door closes.

 **End of Chapter**


	56. Chapter 55 Queen and Gold

**Title: Chapter 55: Queen and Gold**

 **3 year 3 months until correction**

The fog of the deep sleep begins to retreat as his senses reconnect to his brain. Information pours in overwhelming his thought processes. His sense of smell detects a light perfume, a familiar fragrant and yet unknown as to the wearer of it. His mind sorts through his memories, trying to identify the perfume to a specific person. Another fragrant tickles his nose. This is robust, charcoal fire with a hint of sweetness that hides the burning of flesh, yet different from his burned hand. As quickly as the fragrant fills his nostrils, it dissipates and is replaced by a cool moist breeze. A hint of mint fills his nose. The mint stirs his mind as he breathes in deeply. More senses begin transmitting information to his brain. He swallows the void of a desert. His brain redirects fluids to the salivary glands to quench the desert. More parts in his body begin sending information. His right hand twitches. A normalization returns without the searing pain from the burns. His left hand twitches, but it is his left arm that strains to move. Each foot reports similar sensations as his right hand, tingling but without the searing pain. The slight movement of his right leg encounters an obstruction. His body reports a mass pressing down on his left side. He takes a deep breath and force the minty air into the bottom of his lungs. His ears detect the movement of air. His mind correlates what he hears to the rhythmic movement of air filling his nose, the same rhythmic movement of cool air across his face. Finally, his eyes begin to see shadows of light. The weight on his left side moves and something cold cups the right side of his face. Faintly he feels the rhythmic heart beat against his face. Movement comes to Sam's lips upon seeing the blue eyes of his love.

"There he is. I was wondering if you were going to sleep the rest of the day away."

His face responds with the corners of his lips curling up. He stares at her beautiful blue eye as he hungers for the opportunity to swim in them. She slides up his body lying mostly on his chest as she grips her fingers through his hair. Nuzzling her face against his cheek, she lightly nibbles his ear. His body screams for the joy of having her body touching him. His right arm moves free of the sheet and swings out and across his body as his right knee bends. His right foot pushes against the bedding. The momentum rolls his body towards the center of the mattress. His right leg falls over her leg and presses into the mattress. His body pins her to the mattress with his left hand trapped under the small of her back. His right hand slides under her left shoulder. His lips lightly nibble her shoulder and nibbles towards her neck. She wraps her arms around his neck, forcing him to shift more of his weight onto her. Her teeth scrapes on his neck.

"Oh my, your white hair definitely contrasts with that nice tanned bottom. What do you think Anna is going to say in less than a minute when she barges in here?" Gerda Grins at them.

He lifts his head and rotates it from side to side as he looks at her. "Protect the Queen at all cost, no compromise." He sits on the edge of the mattress. The mattress moves as she slides off of it. The bathroom door opens and closes a few seconds later. He whispers as he covers his face in his hands. "Oh God no. It was too close."

"There is nothing to be ashamed about."

He wraps the sheet around his modesty.

"She is a very beautiful woman. Your body responded as a healthy male should." Gerda touches his shoulder. "I don't know what's holding you back. I will pray you can overcome it."

"Hey, is he awake yet?" Anna asks as she barges into the room with barely a knock.

Gerda turns Anna to face the door. "Don't get too close. I have to get his cleaned clothes from the next room." The suite door closes.

Behind him, he hears shoes rocking on the floor. He peeps over his shoulder. "Go ahead and ask your questions."

"I do not mean to pry."

"That's okay as long as you are not doing it to be mischievous."

"I try not to, but sometimes I come across as being mean or stupid with my questions," she asks peeking over her shoulder.

"Anna, the only stupid question, is the one not asked. If you do not know you have to ask," he replies.

"It is a personal question."

"I understand, but please do not be offended if I choose not to answer."

She faces him. "Deal, okay, well, I see a white spot on your lower back and a jagged scar below your shoulder. I thought your ice heals completely?"

He turns his upper body towards her still protecting his modesty. "It does. If I stop the ice from forming, my body will heal as any other human body does. At the time I received these scars, I did not have my ice abilities." He reaches behind himself and touches the white spot. "This scar almost killed me. I was so far out of my mind. I did not know I was hit. My partner pointed it out. A doctor patched me up the best he could. It was good enough since I'm here."

"Will you show me your hand?" He holds up his right hand for her to see. "It does not look burned. Your ice did that?"

"Yes."

"It looks like you have fresh scratches on your back and shoulder."

"I must have done it when I woke up."

"Will you use your ice to heal them?"

He reaches over his shoulder and touches the scratches. "Only the surface layer was removed. They will be gone by morning."

"Does Elsa have the power to heal with ice?"

"I believe she does. She needs training to focus her mind on the process. If she can't control the ice, it will encapsulate her and make her vulnerable to harm."

"Could she heal others like you do?"

"If she has the ability, yes, she can."

Anna looks down sheepishly. "May I ask another question, a little more personal?"

He narrows his eyes, "Sure?" answering more with a question than a statement.

Anna stares at the bedroom door as if she expected it to open. With a slight gleam on her lips, she asks, "Do you like my sister?"

"Very much indeed," he replies with a broad smile.

She stares at the bedroom door before turning her head to look directly into his eyes. She asks in a monotone voice. "If circumstances were different would you ask her to marry you?"

He nods once.

The bedroom door opens. "Anna?" Elsa searches the room, then focuses on him. "Where is Gerda?"

"She is getting my clothes from the other room." He replies still smiling.

A wide eyed Anna says, "Clothes?" She slowly steps back from the mattress and motions to the hall door. "I am going down stairs. I will meet you two in the dining room." She quickly opens the door and glimpses back with a grin.

He waves to her as she exits the room.

Gerda enters carrying his trouser and a shirt and lays them on his side of the mattress. "Will there be anything else, Majesty?"

"No, that will be it. We will be downstairs in a few minutes." Elsa replies still standing in the bedroom doorway.

When the door closes he slips his legs into the tan trousers and rolls onto his knees as he pulls them up over his waist. He hears a muffled giggle. "What's so funny?"

"Gerda's right, you do have a nice tanned . . . and muscular bottom."

He reaches for his shirt and turns towards her. "Is the Queen ogling me?"

Her eyes shoot up to his face as a big grin blossoms across her lips. Her white cheeks bloom to a bright pimk. She moves into her regal posture. "This Queen does not ogle anyone."

"Yeah, right." He slips his white shirt over his head and tucks it into his trouser. Sitting back onto the mattress, he stares at the floor. "Elsa?"

She sits next to him. Her hand slides onto his arm. "Are you okay?"

His body sends confusing signals to his brain with her so close to him. His heart beats a little faster as a memory from long ago surfaces. He looks away from her. "I'm not sure."

He knew. The signals his body was sending to his brain had only one purpose. It all stems from his heart. His brain had to get them under control again. The brain chastises the heart for being careless and reminds it that he gave into the hearts desires long ago. They are in the situation now, because the heart leaped first instead of waiting for the brain's report. He should have dropped her off at the first port. With each passing day more parts of Sam's body sided with the heart. Finally, the hormones drugged the brain enough that it wanted more. How many years did she stay in his life? Even the brain had to admit, it missed her and that is why it must protect Sam from the emotional swing of his heart. _We cannot betray our first true love._

She moves closer to him. "What are you feeling?" His eyes dart across the floor as his head shakes. She turns his face to her. "Samuel, what is going on?"

His eyes continue to dart around until they stop on the light indentation of his bite mark on the corner of her neck. He looks into her blue eyes. "It is you."

"What about me?"

He taps the marks on her neck. "It seems we have matching bite marks."

"Oh no," she runs to her mirror searching for the mark. Her neck stretches and turns. She slides her finger over the mark. "Is this it? I will have to change into a high collar dress."

"In this light, it's barely noticeable. Anna mentioned the scratches on my back. Do you think she saw the bite mark?"

"She saw it the moment she saw the scratches." She looks at him in the mirror. "Did she ask about them?" He nods. "What did you say?"

"I said I must have gotten them when I woke up." He stares at the floor as he massages the indentations behind his eyes. "I'm sorry for causing this. I didn't mean for this to happen to you."

"To me, I am the one who got careless. If I had not practically laid on top of you when you woke up, we would be downstairs by now."

He whispers, "It's not your fault." He closes his eyes, trying to bring order to the confusion in his mind.

The mattress moves as she places her knees against his bottom. She leans her body against his back and applies her cold hands to his tense jaw. His muscles relax. She lifts his chin and he turns his head towards her. The collar of her dress covers the bite mark on her neck. She slides her hand down his neck and covers the bite mark and generates a light frost over it. "What did you mean it's not my fault?"

His jaw tenses again and he closes his eyes. She touches her cheek to his face and whispers, "Please tell me why is it not my fault?"

"When my eyes opened and I saw your blue eyes, I couldn't breathe. Instead of pushing you away, I could not stop myself. I wanted you, and did not want to let go. I desired to have you, to take you, to be one with you. I apologize for having these thoughts about you. You are my Queen. I crossed the line. Please forgive me."

She wraps her arm arms around his neck and pulls him tightly to her. She whispers, "There is nothing to forgive. I should apologize to you. You have been very patient and honorable to us, even to the point of endangering yourself for me. It is my fault. I apologize to you."

She slides off the mattress and her hand slips from his neck. "Come downstairs when you are ready. If you run away, I will understand, but I beg you. Please stay in the castle. I will get whatever furniture you need for your room." She straightens her green flower dress with a high collar and walks across the room. By the door and with a slight smile, she glances back. "Other than trying to kill yourself to save me, I hear you have an interesting story about Jensen's central building. I anticipate your report." The door closes behind her.

Several minutes later, he walks into his room and hesitates upon seeing Elsa sitting on the edge of his bed. "What are you looking for?"

She looks up. "I recall you telling me your room is very sparse. What can I do to make it more at home for you?"

"A lounge similar to the one in your room would be nice. I could put it by the window to listen to Arendelle or the waves brushing against the shore."

She nods at him. "What else?"

He looks around his bed and under it. "Maybe a new pair of boots. I seem to have misplaced them. I wonder what I did with them." He sits on the edge of the bed next to her. "May I ask you a question?"

She smiles. "I make no promises that I will answer your question, so please do not be offended if I choose not to."

She receives a half smile from him. "That's something I would say, but it's a deal. I recall when your guards let me fall on my face in the courtyard, you told them to place me in your room on the lounger. Did they?"

With a nod, she replies, "Yes, they did."

"And did I have my clothes on when they set me on the lounger?"

"Yes, you did."

He twists his body to place his hand behind her on the bed. His movement shifts her weight to lean against him. She does not push away. His other hand rests on her thigh. "Then how did you get me out of my clothes?"

She stares at his hand then wrinkles her nose. "By the evening of the third day there was a pungent odor coming from you."

"Wait, Third day," he interrupts. "How many days was I out?"

"Including today, five." Her hand slides across the top of his hand and up his arm. "We tried to get your clothes off, but they would not go over the ice. Kai helped me to cut your clothes enough to get it past the ice. We saved most of your shirt. Gerda said it could be repaired, but your trouser did not make it. I did not see anything."

"How did you get me onto the mattress on the floor?"

"That was actually easier than I thought. You were too big to lie on the lounger and Anna kept stepping on your blanket."

"Hoping it would slide off?"

"I think so. Evidently, when you are in your healing state, you are very receptive to my suggestions. As long as I kept my hand on you, I was able to lead you to the mattress. Kai pulled the covers over you."

His brows push together. "Why the floor? Why did you not just leave me on the lounger?"

She slides her hand onto his thigh. "You groaned a lot. The first night you laughed. I could not understand what you saying. Each successive night you became louder. Your body twitched. You spoke clearly. I did not know what you were dreaming, but whatever it was, you called out Ladycat. You cried. You screamed and demanded that it take you in her place."

She stares at the door. "Two guards came in here and they were going to strike you. You jumped out of the lounger and moved towards them. I wrapped my arms around you and ordered them out. Your heart was racing." She looks at him. "You placed your arm around me. Calling my name in your language, you said you will protect me. You fell onto the floor. I went back to my bed. You were calm for several hours, then it started again. I was losing too much sleep. As long as I was touching you, you stayed calm." Her fingers trace his jaw line. "Lying on the floor next to you, you slept." She snickers. "At some point in the night, I must have rolled over. You maintained contact with me. I have your hand print on my bottom to prove it."

"Again, I must apologize to you. I crossed a line, even in my dreams I crossed the line. You have my key that is why I responded to you." He pushes off the mattress and moves towards the window with his back towards her until he gets his emotions under control. "Since I can't find my boots, I guess I'll walk down stairs in my bare feet." He glances back. "Are you staring at my tanned bottom?"

With a grin her eyes hesitates before looking at his face. "I only looked once because I stumbled into your feet."

She slides off the mattress and walks towards him. He turns around as he narrows his eyes at her. "Where were you in relationship to my body when you stumbled into my feet?"

She stands in front of him. "I was to your left and a step behind you."

He offers his arm and they walk towards the door. He partially opens it. "And where were you looking when you stumbled into my feet?"

"Does it matter how I saw your bottom? I could have been walking beside you and stumble, then I would have seen your manhood in front." She answers with a grin.

He opens the door further. "I would prefer to show my bottom when I'm fully conscious of my surroundings."

"Oh, like now," Elsa giggles pointing to Anna standing in the doorway with her hand up to knock on the door. With wide eyes Anna glances back and forth between them. She pushes Anna's mouth close. "Princesses do not stand in the doorway with her mouth open."

Anna adjust herself to turn slightly toward him in her best regal pose. "You sir, did you or did you not show your bottom to my sister, the Queen?"

He steps back and bows to Anna. "No Princess, in my conscious state I would not do an inappropriate behavior as showing my bottom to your sister, the Queen, but in a semi unconscious state the behavior could be possible if your sister, the Queen, stumbled over my feet."

"I see," Anna turns to Elsa, "Sister dear, were you given the chance circumstance of seeing his bottom?"

Elsa grabs Anna's arm as she walks out the room. "Let us get downstairs before the food gets cold."

He follows several steps behind them. They reach the top of the stairs and Anna looks over her shoulder with her hand over her mouth. They start down the stairs. He hears Anna say, "Oh Elsa, you did not."

He stops walking when he hears Elsa say, "It was an accident, but when I bumped into his firm bottom, what a tanned bottom he has." They both giggle and continue down the stairs. Neither of them notices he is not behind them. He watches them walk across the Lower Hall to the dining room. Not seeing anyone, he sits on the rail and lifts his feet off the floor. A few seconds later he slides off the hand rails and rolls across the foyer floor. He stands and brushes the dust off his white shirt.

"You definitely do not have the grace Anna has when she slides down the rails." From the foyer Kristoff tosses his boots to him. "Pabbie said you probably need these."

He examines them. "These are the cleanest I have ever seen them, thanks."

"That's what Bulda said when she handed them to me." He walks towards the dining room. "Have they started the meal without us?"

Sam walks back upstairs to his room. He dumps out four black bags stuffed into the boots. In one bag an energy surge reaches out to him. His hand rest on the bag. The purity of the energy cleanse the stagnation in his blood. The noise in his mind calms down. The random surges in his body shift to a parallel with the crystal. The noises in his ear become the clear voices of individuals. The crystal energy becomes the refreshing drink to quench his thirst mind. He breathes the clean crisp air of a freshly snow cover mountain.

He steps back and glances at the door. "Thanks buddy."

He locates a pair of socks and slips them on followed by his clean boots. A few minutes later he enters the dining room and sits in his chair to Elsa's right. Four bags drop in the chair next to him. He glances at Elsa's plate. She has eaten part of her bread. He tears off a piece of bread and spreads butter across it. As he is about to taste the bread, he sees Elsa and Anna smiling at him. Kristoff stares intently at him. "What are you looking at?"

Pointing an accusatory finger at him, Kristoff asks, "Did you show Anna your tanned bottom?"

Elsa and Anna burst out laughing.

He gives them their moment, then leans close to Elsa. "Who else knows about the shade of brown on my bottom?"

"I only told Anna then she told Kristoff before you came into the room."

"And Kai told me after he helped Queen Elsa remove your clothes." Gerda comments as she sets a plate in front of him.

"Who else knows?"

Elsa leans close to him. "We are only playing. We mean no harm."

He stares into her blue eyes. Transfixed he watches her pupil open and close. She blinks. In reality her blink is barely noticeable, but to him it was slow motion. Her eye lashes float down and back up. She parts her lips and exhales a frosty mist. He inhales. The minty fragrance swirls around in his sinuses before moving into his head. Her fragrance overwhelms his defenses. She leans closer and blows frost on his lips and chin. He does not move, but he does feel her hand gripping his hand. A loud snap echoes in the room. She looks to his right, but he does not move. Her lips move, but he does not hear. He detects her distress. She speaks to him. Her brows are down as her eyes dart back and forth between his eyes. She places both her hands on his face and rotates his head towards his right hand.

Blood drips onto the table from his closed fist with two halves of the fork between his fingers. The fog clears from his head. His hand opens and the broken parts of the fork fall on to the table. He lays his hand flat over the blood dripped on the table. His eyes close. Elsa grips his left hand. After a minute he opens his eyes and his hand. A small scar reveals the puncture location and no blood on his hand or the table.

"I am so sorry. I did not mean to cause you to lose focus," Elsa holds the back of his hand to her cheek.

"Sorry, there is nothing to be sorry about." He replies holding his hand open. "I've done stupid stuff to myself that was worse than this."

He slides his chair back and kneels next to her chair. He wraps his arm around her shoulder as he presses his cheek against her cheek. He whispers, "This is why I can't go over the line. I love you too much to let my self-interest take precedent over your safety. The little kid in me wants to play. The adult in me wants to play with you, but the cost to you will be too great. Today has not been a bad day emotionally for me. You and I can do a lot of things together without letting our emotions go too far. Are you ok?"

She nods her head against his shoulder, afterwards she gives him a peck on his cheek and leans back in her chair.

He returns to his seat and they continue to eat their meal.

After a few seconds of silence, Gerda asks, "What on earth was that? You two hugging and whispering. Now you eat like nothing happened between you."

He sits back in his chair. Elsa watches him. He turns to Gerda and Kai standing at the end of the table. He takes a deep breath.

Before he could reply, Elsa comments. "Sometimes nothing happens because nothing happened."

He looks down at his plate. "Then sometimes," His eyes glance towards Elsa as he continues, "something happens because it did happen."

He uses the broken piece of the fork to eat despite the grin forcing itself onto his face. Another quick glance reveals Elsa grinning with her head down as she eats.

She finishes her meal and places her hands in her lap. He slips his hand under the table and touches her knee. She grips his hand and comments to Kristoff, "Please tell Pabbie and Bulda thank you for taking care of Sam. Their healing plants appear to have done an excellent job of healing his hand and feet."

Kristoff replies, "Actually, Bulda says the plants were to prevent infection from taking hold until his ice took over the healing process."

She shakes his hand. "Does that sound correct?"

He looks up just as he takes a bite of the bread. Kristoff and Elsa watch him with intent. A second later he stares at Anna grinning at him. He holds his hand over his mouth. "Bulda is correct. Until my internal systems came back on-line, I was quite vulnerable to catching anything that is in the dirt. If I had caught an infection, I would still be upstairs asleep."

Their expression does not change.

Chewing the bread quickly he swallows. He holds up a finger then drinks.

"If you are through breaking the utensils, I'll take your plate." Gerda slowly removes it.

Elsa waiting patiently as she continues to hold his hand.

"Think of it like this. For whatever reason there is a hole in the roof and it's raining. We place a temporary cover over the hole until we can repair the roof. If there was nothing over the opening, everything on the inside gets water damaged. The same principle applies with an infection."

Elsa slowly nods.

He looks around and Kristoff nods to him, but Anna grins from ear to ear. Looking down he asks, "Did I drop food on my shirt?"

"I think she is grinning at us." Elsa smiles.

He places their hands on top of the table. "So they are grinning because I'm holding your hand?"

"You are ok with them knowing?"

"Does it make you happy they know?"

With a slight hesitation, she answers, "Yes, Anna can be very ruthless with her questions at times about us. As long as she knows that unless your status changes, this will be the most we will do."

"For now," Anna states gleefully.

"Are you ready for the report?" he asks.

She lets go of his hand. "You may proceed."

"Then let us go to the council room to see the map of Arendelle."

Assisting Queen Elsa from her chair and follows her to the door. He hands Anna and Kristoff the bags. "Hold Please."

Elsa looks at the bags before looking at him. "What is in them?"

"The contents will be revealed very soon." He opens the door and holds out his right arm. She places her hand in the crux of his arm. They walk across the lower room and up the stairs into the council room. He slides the large chair from the table and assists her to the seat. Kristoff and Anna sit to Elsa's left.

The door closes and Sam locks it.

Elsa glances up at him as her right brow rises.

He steps to the map hanging on the wall. "Due to the seriousness of the matter a locked door will give us a little warning."

Pointing to the Jensen's eastern property, Sam continues. "While the site would work initially for your desires, the first heavy snow will prove its flaw. It has a nice view if you did not fall off the cliff." He steps to his left and points to the central building near the town square. "Other than the high price, I thought negotiations with Jensen would make the property worth the higher payment." He steps to the left of the map and stands with his hands clasped behind his back.

Elsa watches him. "Do I need to ask?"

He stares at the map for a moment and glances at Elsa. "How old is this map?"

"I'm not sure. That is the only map I have seen, why?"

His eyes search the floor, then he looks up. "Kristoff, using this map as a reference, where is the north mountain?"

He points to the upper left corner of the map. "It is in that direction."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure?"

"This map shows the harbor water on the east."

"But the harbor is on the south side, so the map needs to be updated." Anna comments.

"Remember the underground river?" Kristoff nods. "Assuming the river exits into the fjord, where would it come out?"

Kristoff moves to the map and studies it. He places his finger on a few points north of the central building. "It should exit along the shoreline between where Elsa ran across the fjord and Arendelle."

"Inside the wall? Did you notice which way the water was flowing?"

"Water flows downhill. I would expect that water would flow to the fjord." Kristoff answers shrugging his shoulders.

"As would most people, but what if someone discovered that the fjord flows up the river twice a day?"

"A ship could offload supplies that could be stored in the cave." Elsa comments.

He was hoping she would understand the dangers of a back flowing river. Her expression tells him she is considering the possibilities.

She waves her finger at the map. "It has been reported several ships have anchor near the shore in that spot and Snorre or Jensen would visit those ships."

"Depending on the size of the opening, they could smuggle goods into Arendelle without paying the entrance fees," Anna says.

"How many goods could they push up the river only twice a day? I suspect the river flows into the mountain just after low tide for a short period of time. There was clear evidence of salt along the shore, but nowhere else in the cave. The goods would have to be small and valuable enough to go through the effort to maintain profitability." He stares at Elsa.

She stares back at him. "If they are not smuggled in, what are they smuggling out that would increase their profits substantially?"

His left brows rise as he smiles. "Get those candle holders behind you and pour some flakes in each." Kristoff takes the candle holders from a side table and places them in front of Elsa. Anna unties one of the black bags and pours gold dust into one candle holder. Kristoff pours gold flakes in the second holder.

Elsa watches. "Is that what it looks like?"

Anna nods with glee, "Yes, these are not the only bags."

Elsa scoops some dust and flakes on her fingers. She picks up each bag. "A half kilogram?."

"Good guess," Kristoff says. "Actually, the dust is one kilogram and the flakes are one and half kilograms"

"Show her the one you have," Sam says. Kristoff places a small bowl next to the candle holders and pours small nuggets in the bowl. "Each bag is just over a kilogram."

Elsa turns to Sam, "Where did you get this gold?"

He places his thumb on the central building. "Right here, we had to leave approximately one third of the gold we found, still in the building. I assume Pabbie and his friends moved the other two thirds to a safe place. The estimated value is just under 8-million Krones, a nice tidy sum of money."

Elsa wipes the gold from her fingers and moves next to him. "How did it get there?"

"You remember the fireplace on the ground floor?" She nods. "In front and to the right, under several boards is a hatch covering a ladder that drops down ten meters. Following the tunnel north it eventually exits in the cave where you pushed me off your coach."

Elsa pinches his side as her eyes slightly narrows. "Tunnel, who dug the tunnel?"

"Probably the same person who dug up the gold," Anna answers as she pours the dust back into her gold bag.

"Anna is probably correct, but the question is who told them to dig there." He places his finger on the central building and slides it north as he marks three indications from the tunnel. "There were three side tunnels." He slides his finger east towards the harbor. "This one runs parallel to the cryst-. I believe this tunnel is where they found most of the gold." Elsa touches his arm. "I'll explain later," he whispers.

He turns to her as he taps the central building. "This is my recommendation." He says as he places his hands behind his back. "Set up a meeting with Jensen at your convenience. No need to delay it any longer. If he found the one third gold in the walls, I suspect they have already moved it."

"If they did, they had to bribe the guards. Captain Larsen assigned two guards at each entrance with a patrol on the outside." Elsa smiles at him.

"What did Jensen say?"

"I told him I did not want anyone to damage his property while I waited for your report," she answers.

"And he believed you?"

"Why should he not? Anna and Kristoff stayed in the castle the whole time. They refused to tell me anything until you were awake. With so much gold I see why."

He slowly nods his head. "I'm impressed. Ask him for a price on the building. No matter what he states, counter his offer by half."

"That would twist his tail," Kristoff comments.

"After he calms down, begin listing the problems found. For each problem and he argues, reduce the price by twenty-five percent. He will counter to make repairs and state a delay in transferring the building. You counter by asking him to guarantee the repairs for ten years. Any additional repairs during the ten years must be guaranteed for five years after the remainder of the original ten years."

"You are not trying to twist his tail. You are trying to break it off," Kristoff comments shaking his head.

"When he balks at the repairs, tell him if the building does not work as you planned, he will refund all of your money."

"He would never go for that and withdraw the sale," Elsa says staring intently at him.

"You declare the building unsafe for habitation and you will hold him responsible for anyone injured in his building. If he still has any sanity, he will ask for a few days to think about it. Agree to give him time and have the guards removed from the building. I'll be nearby to see what he does."

Elsa tilts her head slightly as she narrows her eyes at him, "What do you expect him to do?"

"If he believes the gold is still in the building, he will do whatever he needs to do to get it out of there. 8-million Krones compared to ten thousand, what would you do?"

Kristoff says, "As you said, anything to keep Queen Elsa from buying it."

Anna asks, "What if he asks for some ridiculous amount like a million?"

"I would condemn the property immediately and tell the guards to secure it. No one will be allowed entry," Elsa states as she stares at the map. "I would hire a team to tear down the inside of the building to determine if the structure is salvageable."

With a smile he nods. "You impress me again.

Anna asks, "If he knows the gold is not in the building, would he sell it anyway? He must know where they dug the gold."

"After five days do you think they know the tunnel has been closed," Kristoff asks.

"They probably knew within an hour or two after seeing me carried into the castle. So it will depend on how soon the guards were stationed in the building. There was too much gold to try moving it during the day. Too many people would get nosy. If it was me, I would have had several of my henchmen throw the gold into the shaft to the tunnel, then get a wagon to the other end to get out as much as possible. If they did, they know the tunnel is closed."

Elsa asks, "If you were Jensen and know all that we know, what would you do?"

He glances at the floor before looking at the map. After several seconds he answers, "Eight million Krones could be considered a lot, but two unknown variables would have to be considered."

"Which are," Anna asks, sitting at the table.

"The tools in the tunnel indicate several workers were in there. The workers would know about the gold unless I did it myself, so did I already pay them or will I pay them from the sale of the gold, or maybe I promised a share. Two, do I have an estimate of how much gold is still in the mountain and could I get it out in any reasonable amount of time."

Elsa taps his chest. "If it was you?"

He looks at her. "If the gold is considered illegal because where I saw it, it's under Arendelle. I would not claim it."

"Not claim it," Kristoff comments still staring at the map.

"If I believed there is more gold than has been taken out, I would purchase the land where the cave entrance is located and wait you out. A year or two and I would start the mining operations again. The workers would be paid up front, then give them a bag or two of gold for them to go away."

She places her hand over his heart. "Will you be there when I meet with him?"

Without saying a word he loses his focus as he looks everywhere, but at her. Her hands cup his face and turns it towards her. She mouths the words, 'what is wrong'. He stares at her for a moment and takes a deep breath. His lips part. He exhales a cold mist downward that surrounds their feet and expands out across the floor.

Anna moves to Kristoff. "What are you doing? That is cold."

Elsa watches him and says, "Leave the room. It is going to get colder in here." Shoes scuffle across the floor. The hall door closes behind Kristoff and Anna.

His eyes blink a long blink and focuses on her as a smile creeps onto his face. The cold mist dissipates.

She narrows her eyes and smiles back at him. "You did that on purpose."

"It got them out of the room with no explanation."

She grabs his ears and wiggles his head. "You are a bad influence on me. Now why the secrecy?"

He steps closer as he wraps his arms around her waist. "Have you heard of people living near or on the slopes of a volcano?"

She slides her hands down his chest before slipping her arms around his waist. "I have read of people living in the shadows and on the slopes of a volcano."

"Many of those volcanoes are extinct or it has been for hundreds, if not, thousands of years since their last eruption. Those are of little or no concern. Some create a false sense of security by rumbling and spewing ash, then go dormant again. The longer it stays dormant the greater the false sense of security, especially when no one remembers the last time it spewed ash. There is a similar cause and effect under Arendelle."

With raised brows, her voice pitches slightly higher, "A volcano?"

"Same effect, but different cause," He bends his knees and tightens his arms around her waist. He lifts her off the floor. "Feet up." She bends her knees as her feet leave the floor. He side steps them over to the table and bends his knees. Expecting her to straighten her legs, he lowers her further than he did to lift her up. He can't help, but to notice her grin and the twinkle in her eyes. She lays her head against his chest. He straightens his legs and stares at her for a moment and slowly lowers his head as a grin inches onto his face. "Under different circumstances I would take you on the table." She looks up with an expecting smile and he licks her nose.

She leans her head back, wrinkling her nose, "Awww." She wipes her nose on his shirt. She straightens her legs and he sets her onto her feet. He steps to the side and removes the crystal in the embedded gold from the fourth bag.

She stands next to him and places her hand on his thigh. "Would you really?"

Glancing at her and asks, "Just to make sure I'm understanding what you are really asking, would I really what?"

Her hand slides across his thigh. "Different circumstances, you would take me on this table?"

He leans his head to her and sweep the tip of his tongue across his lips, "in a heartbeat."

She clasps her hands together in front of her and shifts to her regal pose, but her grin breaks the majestic of her Queen-ship.

He continues, "Before five days ago I knew of six pieces of this type of crystal." He places the crystal on the table out of her reach and places his curved finger tips together to create a small sphere. "There were four crystal spheres larger than my hands. They were aboard my ship." He picks up the crystal by the nuggets. A fifth crystal was several centimeters smaller than this one. Rumors said that crystal destroyed the thieves who tried to use it. The locals were able to crush it and scattered the dust over a large field. The sixth piece, three times larger than this one, was actually the first time I've encountered the crystal. At the time I and the others using it did not know what it was. Only after finding the other five did I finally solve what was injected into those children." He holds up the crystal and sweeps his hand over the crystal several times. It begins to glow." She stares at the crystal. He brings his finger close without touching it. A tiny arc jumps from the crystal to his finger with a snap and the glow fades out.

She reaches up to the crystal. "What is it?"

He moves it away from her hand. "Whatever you do, do not touch it. Move your hand close to it." He holds it close. She sweeps her hand over it several times then it begins to glow. He sets it on the table.

She continues to stare at it. "Can anyone make it glow?"

"A certain troll with a green energized crystal has done it and another crystal like it." He turns his head slightly towards her and waits to see if she has understood what he said. He doesn't have to wait long for an answer.

Her brows angle down and wrinkles her forehead as she narrows her eyes. She places her hand on his arm. Her lips part for a moment. She comments, "Another crystal." She points to it and points to him. She points back and forth between them. She squeezes his arm and grabs his hand. Gradually shaking her head with wide eyes, she asks, "Is that in me?"

His hand closes around her hand and he gently caresses her cheek. "With one hundred percent accuracy I can't say for sure. If a certain troll was to unbury my ship, I have medical instruments that would determine if there are crystals floating in your blood. I could pierce your finger to see if your blood glitters when my hand is close, but I have no desire to cause you more pain. Long ago, I tested my theory with your parents. They were impressed. Myself though, I know for sure there are tiny fragments of crystal in my blood."

She turns her arm up and traces her vein. "I do not feel anything." She looks at his arm and slides her finger along a slightly protruding blood vessel. "Can you feel it in your veins?"

"No, but I can feel the effects of it when I induce energy into it."

She looks at the crystal. "If you think it is in my blood, how did it get there?"

"When I saved your mother after the wolf attack, a drop of my blood was transferred into your body. You were born with it. Based upon my observations of your powers, has the volume of crystals increased in your blood?"

"It multiplied?"

"I have never encountered that effect. I suspect it has been added over time. Another question, where did you get it? Again if a certain troll would unbury my ship, I could determine the source of the crystal."

"If not multiplying, how would it have increased?"

"Unless you recall a very painful event where a sand-like watered substance was poured into your mouth or injected into your blood, it is possible you have been absorbing it through your skin and have not known it."

She opens his hand and rubs the two injured spot left by the broken fork. "You mean the way your hand hovers over your spilt blood and white sparkles float from the blood to your hand?"

He lifts her chin. "You have been watching me. What else have you seen?"

She stares up at him, but hesitation removes her smile as she focuses on his hand. Two cold spots form on his hand covering the injury. Her fingers continue to rub across the ice.

With a note of concern in her voice, she asks, "Were you born with it in your blood?"

"I don't remember the actual event, but a dear friend told me I was strapped down to a table and for two days a silvery colored fluid was injected into my blood. She said I screamed the whole time begging them to stop. The last few hours I begged them to kill me. When they were through, they left me in the room by myself. She said a half day later I stopped screaming. They believed I was dead and checked on me the following morning. I remember waking up that morning and wondering why they had not brought my morning meal to me." He takes a deep breath and gives her a half smile, "And the rest is history."

She puts her arms around his waist and lays her head against his chest. "I am sorry. I did not mean to bring it up. I can only imagine the pain you were in." She peeks up at him. "Your blood causes the crystal to glow?"

He nods. "Yes."

She studies her hand and the crystal. "I understand why you think I may have crystals in my blood." He holds her in silence for several minutes. She whispers, "Samuel."

He feels a great uneasiness building in her mind. "Yes?"

"The short time we have been together . . . well?"

He slides his hand up her back and caresses her cheek with his finger as his hand rest on her shoulder. "Since I have the crystals in my blood, will you begin to act wild and crazy as you have seen me do?"

She replies in a barely audible whisper. "Yes."

"Look at me." She slowly looks up. "Only if you have gone through what I have gone through, I will say there is a chance. You might exhibit similar actions based upon what has happened to you. Excluding myself, how many people do you know who is alive after being kicked in the head by a horse?"

"None."

"You have a good head on your shoulders. You did the best you could under the circumstances growing up. After your coronation you were scared. There was no one who could have helped you."

She pinches his side. "You could have."

"Your father banished me."

"What about afterwards? You could have come to me then."

"Really, assuming they would have let me in, would you have talked to me and believed what I would have said?"

She glances up at him. "Probably not, and you are correct. I was afraid. I know you were there by the door when I sprayed the floor with the ice." She slides her hand low on his side and stops over the area where one of her ice spikes stabbed him. "I just wanted to get away."

"I do not blame you. In moments of terror you do what you have to do. Have you thought what your life would be like if Anna did not come after you?"

"She would be dead and Hans would have sent someone to kill me."

He nods his head. "I can't say if events had been different for your parents, they would be here or your father would have trained you differently." He touches his cheek to her head. "Sweetie, we are who we are. Can't be looking back and asking what if. I believe someone here said 'let it go'." He gets her to smile.

She pinches his cheek. "So what about that crystal?"

"Hmm, like a volcano that is dormant, the large crystal under Arendelle has been there for a long time. I estimate it was here before the ice carved out the fjord. With my recent personal experience, I am certain of what it takes to charge the crystal. I believe the crystal has been charged and discharged safely into the ground. As long as it stays in the ground, you and I will be the only ones who will know if it charges again."

"You said it landed here. Where did it come from?"

"Have you seen meteors streak across the sky?"

"Yes."

"And evidence of meteorites hitting the ground?"

"Yes."

"The crystal is called Tytrianium. It has the characteristics of a super strong metal and crystal combined. The crystal part is the transference of energy by amplifying the input energy by many times. The how and why has yet to be discovered. The crystal under Arendelle is a meteorite that hit the ground long before any humans walked in this valley, which explains why Pabbie's magic does not work on it. The crystal is not a natural crystal from here."

"But I have seen him use his magic on you and he can communicate with me."

"So how is he able to use his magic on us if we have that type of crystal in us?" She nods. "We both allowed him access to our minds. Do you remember when he changed the events of the accident with Anna? If he had the power to control the crystal, he would have prevented you from developing your ice powers and you would not have been locked away from Anna. I allowed him into my mind, hoping he would have seen me as a threat and killed me. At the time I was very disappointed I woke up."

Her brows curl down as her eyes glare up at him. "Well I am not. I am glad you are here." She pinches and twists the hairs on his arm.

"Ouch, that hurt."

"Good, that means you are alive. Do you know how much harder it would be for me without you?"

Did he dare to answer if he had died, her family would not be the monarch. Instead, he answers, "I am beginning to understand. I did not mean to be so stark about my feelings. I still have my moments of asking, why am I here."

She inhales a sharp breath, "Do I not mean anything to you."

He takes a step back and lowers his body until his eyes are at the same level as her eyes. He holds her upper arms. "Elsa, you are the most important person in my life right now. To think of living without you in my life is a continuous nightmare of torture. In this short time I have known you as Queen. You have helped me to accept who I am. Without the crystal in my blood I would not have the memory of adventures nor would I have met you. My mission is to protect you and I will continue to do that, but the more I get to know you the more I wish . . . no, I desire to be with you for however much time is allotted to us. If my circumstances were different, if you know of anyway, we could be together. Short of you advocating the throne, I would drop to my knees and ask for your hand in marriage."

Her eyes dart back and forth searching his eyes. Moisture begins to collect in the corners of her eyes. With a smile she wraps her arms around his neck and whispers, "I accept it as my mission. I will find a way to release you of the bondage that keeps us apart."

As he wraps his arms around her waist, he whispers to her. "God bless my Queen."

The following morning as he stares at the window, Sam sits at the small table. The sunlight passing through the window hides the color of his eyes. The room door rattles as someone tries to enter. The rattle becomes a pounding. It stops for a few seconds. "Kai, I'm not deaf. What do you want?"

"Queen Elsa has been meeting with Councilman Jensen for the last half hour."

"Yes, I know."

"Everyone in the castle can hear Jensen screaming his displeasure at the deal. Why are you not in there to support your Queen?"

 _I am supporting her from here. After all this time why do you assume I'm not?_ "Where is Anna?"

"She is in the meeting with them."

"Anna can give Queen Elsa the moral support."

The handle jiggles. A solid thump hits the door. "Why are you hiding? Why don't you help her?" The handle jiggles again. "Do you have a block of ice in front of the door?"

"You're not going away are you?"

"Not until you go to the council room and assist our Queen." Another thump hits the door.

He sweeps his hand behind his back. "Enter." A click of the latch and the door opens. Shoes scuffle across the floor behind him. His elbows rest on the table and his hands clasped together. He closes his eyes and rests his forehead on his hands.

Kai touches his shoulder. "What is wrong?"

He sits back in the chair and slowly opens his eyes. The blue glow reflects in Kai's eyes. Kai has a momentary twitch in his eyes, but years of experience have kept his face non-responsive to seeing Sam's eyes. "I have been in contact with our Queen the whole time. She is doing an outstanding job as I knew she would. Acting on my recommendations and adjusting the plan as needed, she has the upper hand against Jensen. If she can keep the pressure on him, he will go into survival mode. It will be a matter of determining what his limit is."

"Limit, what limit, I thought the central building was a good deal."

"At this moment if Queen Elsa wishes for you to know, she will tell you the reasons why the good deal is only good for Jensen and his cohorts. I am here so as not to undermine her confidence in herself. Queen Elsa has the facts and she has the knowledge. She will make the correct decision at the appropriate time."

His eyes dart to the direction of the main gates. For several seconds he stares at the wall. He stands and blinks his eyes to his normal Hazel color. "On second thought, your concerns are warranted. Mister Jensen has sent for reinforcements. Is the kitchen staff temporarily shorthanded and you need someone to take the drinks and muffins into the meeting?"

Kai does not answer immediately, but does. "We are not short a staff member and Queen Elsa did not prearrange a break."

He walks towards the door. "Unless you have an alternative plan to get me into the meeting, you have less than eight minutes to get the drinks and muffins ready for me to take them into the meeting."

Kai follows him out of the room. They walk down the stairs in silence. Councilman Snorre enters the foyer. A guard closes the main doors as a staffer speaks to the Councilman. Sam whispers to Kai. "One of your colorful comments would be appropriate about now before he gets into the meeting."

Kai hesitates as he glances at Snorre. "Get a move on you big oaf." He pushes him to the side. "I have more important duties to be tended instead of getting you. We are shorthanded. You need to go to the kitchen right away."

He slows his descent. Kai whispers to the staffer who runs towards the kitchen. At the bottom of the stairs, Sam and Snorre lock eyes. As he walks past them, he hears Kai speaking to Snorre. "I am not aware of a change to the guest list."

"Councilman Jensen sent a runner requesting I be here." Snorre continues glaring at Sam.

Kai escorts him across the Lower Room. "I will check with Queen Elsa and if she approves I will announce you."

Sam continues into the kitchen. Gerda walks in behind him and asks, "Why are you not at the meeting?"

"Actually, I'm trying to get into the meeting. I need four drinks and four pastries to take into there."

"But there are only three in the meeting."

"Kai is escorting Councilman Snorre to the meeting as we speak."

Gerda watches him for a moment, before barking the commands, "Chef, five biscuits on a plate with cups of honey and butter. I needed this done two minutes ago." She glances at his clothes and runs into a side closet. "Ah-ha," she hands him an apron. "Put this over your head."

He barely gets the apron over his head and turns when Gerda ties the apron strings together. A female staffer with a smile winks at him as she hands him a platter with four drinks with two slices of fruit. The chef hands Gerda the plate of biscuits. She pushes him in his back. "Let's go before Mister Cheapskate and Mister Snooty changes the dynamics of the meeting to their favor."

They hurry to the side door of the council room, he glances back. "Dynamic? I'm impressed you use the word correctly."

Her open hand connects with his gluteus maximus. "You are not the only one who can use big words." They stop by the side door and Gerda peeks in. She whispers, "Set the drinks on the table by this door, then take the pastries in." She pushes him through the door.

He scans the room. Elsa, Anna, and Jensen stand next to the Arendelle map. He sets the drinks on the side table and retrieves the pastries. As he sets them onto the table, his knee bumps the table, causing the drinks to rattle against each other. With a big smile Anna winks at him and with a hint of a smile Elsa raises her right brow.

Jensen bemoans, "Great, more noise."

Sam shoots back, "Actually, your noise is about to arrive."

The hall door opens and Kai steps in. "Majesty, Councilman Snorre has arrived at Councilman Jensen's request.

Jensen speaks, "Majesty, since the refreshments are here, this would be a good time for a break and it will give me the opportunity to consult with Mister Snorre."

Queen Elsa replies, "Excellent suggestion, ten minute break."

"Ma'am, I will adhere to the ten minutes, but if I go a little past, no more than a total of fifteen minutes?" Jensen asks.

"Ten or fifteen is okay."

Jensen nods to her and scurries out of the room. Kai follows him and closes the door.

Anna and Elsa walk over to the pastries. Anna slices a biscuit on a plate and spreads the butter on it. She pours honey over both halves. Elsa slips her arms around his waist and pulls him close. "You are a surprise, but I am glad you came here. Did you hear Jensen yelling?"

"I think Arendelle heard him yelling." He wraps his arms around her shoulders. "Uh-oh."

"What?"

"Snorre told Jensen they did not find the gold in the building and told him the cave collapsed." He lifts her chin up. "Are you ready? Don't let them rattle you. Let him make the mistakes."

She smiles up at him. "If both of them come into the room, find an excuse to stay. If only Jensen comes in, go talk to Snorre." He nods. His eyes focuses on the door. "What is it?"

"Remember when I said if he thought there was more in the ground than was taken, he would try to wait you out?" He stares intently at the map. "I bet Pabbie could determine where the gold runs." He looks at her. "Maybe the gold runs under the eastern house that overlooks Arendelle."

"I would be hard pressed to buy that house after you critiqued it."

He slowly nods his head. "I trust you. Do what you think is right."

The door opens and he steps back. At the last possible second, their hands separate. Elsa picks up a drink and moves to the head of the table. Anna stares at his hand and glimpses up as she grins at him.

Jensen and Snorre enter the room. "Majesty, I know I said ten to fifteen minutes, and I'll wait if you wish, but after consulting with Councilman Snorre, I believe we can come to a mutual agreement."

Elsa sits and motions to them. "Very good, please proceed."

Jensen makes his proposal.

Sam holds the tray of drinks on one hand and turns to the councilmen. He waves at them and points to the drinks. Jensen stutters for a moment as he glances at Sam. Snorre rolls his eyes and indicates he does not want the drinks. Putting the drink tray on the table, he picks up the tray with the pastry. He motions to the councilmen. Jensen ignores him, but Snorre stares at him. Sam motions to the pastry again. Snorre slowly swivels his head side to side. He nods to the councilman and sets the tray on the table. With his back to them, he observes Anna sipping her drink and he smiles at her.

Jensen finishes his proposal.

 _What do you think?_

He does not answer her. She stares at the table for a moment, before standing in her regal pose. "I accept your proposal. Please write out your proposal and I will review it. I will contact you when I am ready to sign it."

For once Jensen grins and almost too much as he clasps his hands together. "Excellent Majesty, I will have it delivered by midday tomorrow. Until then, we will see our way out."

Elsa walks them out of the room. Sam smiles at Anna.

She sets her cup down and whispers, "Why are you looking at me?"

"You are a very beautiful young woman. Where is the love of your life?"

She whispers, "I have not seen him in a couple of days."

"Do you know where he went?"

"No," She looks away, "I wish he would at least let me know when he will be back."

He lightly touches her arm. "Do you want me to go find him? I'll beat him up a little for making you sad."

"Who are you going to beat up?" Elsa says as she slips her cooler hand into his hand. He glances over his shoulder and squeezes her hand. "They just left and we agreed to a price lower than your minimum. They admitted there will be some repairs. We will sign the property transfer for the central building tomorrow morning." She reaches up and strokes his cheek. "You were right. The more I kept my composure the more frustrated he became and I countered as you said."

He kisses the back of her hand, "I knew you could do it. You just need practice."

She slides her arm around his waist and turns to Anna. "What is this? You do not know where Kristoff is?"

Anna replies with a partial smile. "I do not mind him leaving. It's just . . . well," her smiles disappears, "he does not tell me when he will be back."

With raised brows Elsa looks up at him. "So when you find him you will beat him up, right."

Anna grabs her sister's arm, "No, please do not do that. He needs time to think."

They pull Anna into their brace for a group hug. He says, "Let see where he is and when he gets back, I'll talk with him. I think he and I have similar issues, but his issues can be clarified before mine will."

Elsa comments, "And if you cannot, I will get my chance to persuade him for making my sister sad."

 **End of chapter**


	57. Chapter 56 The Kiss

**Title: Chapter 56: The Kiss**

 **3 year 2 months until correction**

Sam hangs the broom on the nail in the corner with the other tools to clean the stables. He grabs the handle of the hay cart and starts to pull when he looks down the aisle between the stalls. All of the horses stare at him. "Is anyone hungry?"

With heads nodding a choir of neighs and an odd sounding horn echoes in the stables. One by one he loads up their troughs with hay. As he gets to Sven he pulls out a carrot from a bag hanging on the side of the cart. Sven trumpets upon receiving the carrot. After a time, Sam pushes the hay cart into the corner and steps to the small door marked water. Reaching inside he pulls a red handle lever, which in turn, moves an overhead pipe. Past the lever he rotates a wheel, before pushing and pulling two levers. A rumble vibrates the pipes. A few seconds later water moves through the pipe along the back of the stalls. Soon water fills the buckets in each stall and a choir of slurping replaces the chomping of hay. He closes the small door.

The blacksmith did an excellent job of creating the watering system for the horses after coming up with the idea. Now if he could discover a way to get the water to the upper floors of the castle without having the staff to carry it. Maybe the blacksmith needs to hear another suggestion.

His horse, Aurora neighs and holds her tail high. Sam tucks her brush into his belt as he stops in front of her stall. With his fist on his waist he asks, "What do you want beautiful?"

She sniffs his face and continues to sniff down his chest. She pulls the brush out of his belt.

He takes the brush. "So do you wish to try a new hair style? Perhaps you want the same style of the royal horses?"

Aurora shakes her head and snorts. "You want your usual style?" She steps closer and rest her head over his shoulder. He moves the brush in a circular motion along her neck. After a few minutes, a shiver rolls through her body. "You like that." She bumps her head against his head and sounds a quiet grunt.

"Do you two wish to be left alone?" a voice asks behind him.

"Sven, you're getting better at sounding like Kristoff. Keep up the practice. If you get better you may be able to fool Anna."

"Sven, are you seeing Anna behind my back," Kristoff asks. Sven trumpets a reply. After a moment Kristoff comments, "Here is a nice carrot. Maybe you should practice taking a carrot from Anna."

Sam stops brushing Aurora and takes a step back. She turns her head towards him. "Did you hear that? An innocent statement, but I detect a hint of sadness." He peeks over his shoulder, and looks back at Aurora. "Whoa, even Sven thinks there is something wrong."

He waits a few seconds before turning around. Aurora rests her head on his shoulder. Kristoff scratches behind Sven's ear. "Neither you nor Sven has any comments." Kristoff appears not to have heard him. "All the time I have been here, I believe this is the first time you have come in here while I'm here. You usually wait until I leave, so what's up buddy?"

After a few seconds Kristoff almost whispers. "I don't think I can marry Anna."

Sam glances at Aurora. "And I thought you dropped some stink bombs." He stares at Kristoff. He doesn't have to scan him to sense Kristoff's distress. "Are you sure you spoke what you meant?"

"I'm sure. It would not be fair to Anna to marry someone like me."

"Someone like you, what disqualifies you?" He tucks the brush into his belt and leans against the stall gate.

"She deserves someone better than me."

Sam glances at Aurora. "Maybe he did not understand my question."

Aurora snorts.

"You think so?"

She stomps the ground.

"Okay, if you insist. Who would be better than you or describe the person who is better than you."

Kristoff lowers his head and whispers, "Someone who does not have trolls for a family."

Sam partially turns his head to Aurora. "Did he say troll." Aurora nods her head and Sven nods. He turns back to Kristoff. "You don't like your troll family?"

"I love my troll family. They raised me most of my life." He shrugs his shoulders. "They are not like other families."

"Humans?"

"Yes, you know how they are. You have experienced the troll's different view of the world."

"They're short. Their view of the world will always be different from a human's perspective except for a baby crawling around their feet."

Kristoff rests his head on Sven's gate. "You know what I mean."

The exterior door to the service room opens and closes. He waits for the one floor board to squeak, but it does not. He smiles at her overcoming his primitive alarm system.

Sam says, "I can speculate as to what you are trying to say. I could extract the information from you and see exactly what you're trying to say. I believe you need to hear the words as you try to explain your apprehension to marrying Anna." A cup bounces on the floor in the service room. Kristoff, Sven and Aurora look in the direction of the room. "Don't worry about that noise. When the wind blows in a specific direction, a strong draft blows through a crack in the wall. But please, tell me what about your family bothers you."

"Nothing about them bothers me. They are different compared to Anna's family."

Aurora exhales a deep sigh.

"Could be," he replies to her. "Kristoff, we have already established your family are trolls and Anna's family are humans. Trolls and humans are completely different in everything they do. Help Aurora out with this. What specifically is your concern between Anna's family and your family?"

Aurora butts the side of his head.

Kristoff kicks at the stall post. "Anna's family can travel and is invited. My family . . . well."

Aurora sniffs as one turns forward and the other turns to her rear.

He scratches her nose as he nods. "I think you're right. Maybe I should hold him by his ankles and shake him until he tells the truth or spills his lunch, whichever comes out first."

Kristoff glances back at him.

Sam shrugs his shoulders. "Okay, you want to go down this rabbit hole. What has Anna said that she does not like about your family?"

"She has not asked to visit them, nor wants to talk about them."

"Well, let's check the score. Anna met the trolls a long time ago where Pabbie removes part of her memory. She is separated from the sister she loves, but does not know why. She tells Prince Hans she dreamt she kissed a troll that caused the blond streak in her hair. She meets the trolls a second time with you when Pabbie tells her heart is freezing due to her sister's powers. She will freeze solid unless an act of true love thaws her heart. Let's see. First Troll and she loses her sister. Second, dreamt of troll and Hans almost kills her sister. Third, troll tells her she will freeze to death because of her sister." He cups his hands with his palms up and moves them up and down like a pendulum scale. "Do you see a pattern here? Unless there have been other times I'm not aware of, when a troll comes on to the scene, something happens to her sister."

Kristoff turns and leans back against the post as he crosses his arm in front of his chest.

He continues, "I'm just pointing out the obvious. She has had three encounters with trolls and three not so nice results. Now what do those three have in common, besides Anna, trolls, and her sister?"

Kristoff stares at him and shrugs.

He rolls his eyes. "Anna was under duress each time. Maybe she needs to meet them when she is not under duress." Kristoff frowns and looks away from him. "If you are concerned she may not like them, think back when she met your family. From the time she realizes they were trolls to the point you two were almost married, did she go into a spasm or try to run away?"

Kristoff stands and drops his arm to his sides. "No, she appeared to like them."

"I'm going to take a stab in the dark. Maybe she is more in tuned with you than you are with her. Maybe you don't talk that much about them. Be blunt with her. Allow her to ask questions about them and do not hold back. Tell the truth as you know it. Ask her if she is willing to meet with them or have a picnic with your family. I know a great spot along a stream where the smaller trolls played."

"Where a rocky beach is on one side and the trees overhang the water on the other side?" Kristoff nods his head. "That is a nice spot. They taught me to swim there."

"If that is your only concern, every couple who has ever gotten married has had similar concerns. Is my family good enough? Will they feel my family is beneath them? Will my family look down on her family? Kristoff, there is only one person who should matter to you. Not your family not even her family should be of concern. Either Anna is worth fighting for or she is not."

Kristoff looks at the ground.

"Do you love her?"

Kristoff glares at him, "That's not fair."

"You're the one who came in here. I grow tired of this rabbit hole. Are you here for advice or to vent, which is it?"

Kristoff searches the ground again. Sven bumps his arm. He swallows several times before commenting, "I don't think I can meet Anna's expectations in her life."

"Her life?" Sam narrows his eyes. "Because she is a Princess?"

Kristoff nods.

"So it's not whether your family is good enough, but whether you are good enough for her. Your family was to be the excuse to leave."

Aurora rubs her nose up the side of his head. "Aww, okay, you were right from the moment he walked in." He uses his sleeve to wipe the horse stuff off his face.

"Buddy, I don't know what to say to you that would not be thrown back into my face." Sam shrugs his shoulder and looks towards the service room. "Maybe we are in a similar situation."

He turns his head back to him. "At least you have a family whom Anna can see. Elsa will never see my family. Everything I have said about my life before coming here, she has to take a leap of faith and not call me a liar. I can't prove any of it. Anna can talk to Pabbie and Bulda to hear how you grew up."

He closes his eyes for a few seconds before continuing. "I know how she grew up. I have talked to the staff who watched Elsa and Anna grow up, but she has no one to tell her about my life. If you are concerned about the inter-dynamics between a Princess and you, the law allows it and should Anna become Queen, you would become a King. If Elsa and I marry, the law prevents me from ever becoming King, not that I would want to be one."

"You really would not want to be King?"

"How many people do you think live in Arendelle?"

"A couple thousand, include the outline hamlets, a little more than twice that."

"I remember a time when I led a fleet of ships into a conquered port. I controlled the lives of tens of thousands defeated souls. In the beginning, it was easy. I gave them direct orders. They obeyed. After several months of distributing what little supplies there were, it became a nightmare even after I assigned others to administer to the population. Six months into the occupation, I spent more time in meetings, listening to this group complaining how the other group received more supplies than they did." He looks over at him. "Do you know what I did?"

Kristoff shrugs his shoulders with his palms turned up. "What?"

"I rounded up the leaders of the groups and I pulled my crew back to the ships. I told the leaders they had two days to get their population under control. At the end of two days if I do not see progress, I will bombard their city out of existence. If they do get control and I find out later they took a larger share I would execute them on the spot."

"What happened?"

"They did get control and on the day a relief fleet arrived with administrators to work with the groups. I lined up all of the leaders, their second in command and their administrators in front of a wall, then I executed them." He holds up his hand. "Before you ask, each group gave out more to those who bowed down to them, although the leaders did not get a larger share than the others. Their underlings did."

Sam closes his eyes to block out the images. "It was a necessary action to send a message to the next group who took control of the population." He shakes his head. "All I know is control through strength. I assassinated many so others would be strong. Even if Elsa and I could get together, once she finds out about my past, she may run away."

He opens his eyes. "Kristoff, it would be easier for me to tell you what you should do and it would be just as easy for you to blame me if it fails, but I will make this recommendation. Tell Anna you want her to know some concerns you have, but take her to a nice quiet place, where she is comfortable and tell her the truth. Tell her what she means to you. Open your heart and soul to her. I am sure she will listen. Now here's the deal. To receive a great reward you must be willing to take a great chance even to the point of losing everything."

Kristoff glances at the ground before turning to Sven and scratching behind his ear.

Did he push too hard? Perhaps Kristoff understands his life will change He will have to make compromises. His life will not be his own nor will Anna's life be her own. Is that it? He does see her pain from his hesitation? He looks towards the service room. Two individuals completely different in every way. Each struggle over the same problem and fight to maintain their identity. To see through the eyes of the other, would allow a better understanding. The ultimate sacrifice to open ones heart to pure joy or devastation.

Sam places his hand on Kristoff's shoulder. "What does your heart say? For the chance to love her and have her love you, is Anna worth pursuing?"

Kristoff's smile answers, but he speaks he words without hesitating. "Yes, she is."

"Then let me tell you one more thing. I was married a long time ago and this is what I learned.

"I know something about love. You have to want it bad. If she has gotten into your blood, Go out and get her.  
If you want her to be the very thought of you, she makes you want to breathe. Here's the thing to do.  
Tell her you will never leave her. Tell her you will always love her. Tell her." Sam shakes his shoulder. "Tell her right now."

"I know something about love. You have to show it and make her see the moon up above. Go out and get her if you want her to always be by your side. If you want her to only think of you, tell her you will never leave her. Tell her you will always love her. Tell her." He shakes Kristoff's shoulder again. "Tell her right now."

Kristoff stands a little taller.

"Ever since the world began, it's been that way, for man and woman were created to make love their destiny, then why should true love be so complicated. I know something about love. You have to take her hand. Show her what the world is made of. One kiss will prove it. If you want her to always be by your side, take her hand tonight, swallow your foolish pride. Tell her you will never leave her. Tell her you will always love her. Tell her." With the back of his hand, he slap Kristoff's shoulder. "Tell her right now."

"You have to go now. Don't let her go. Just take her hand in yours and tell her."

Sam focuses on the wall in the direction of the castle. "I sense Princess Anna is on the front steps. Now is a good time. Go tell her and show her your heart."

"I will, thanks buddy." Kristoff stops at a horse gate and looks back. "You should write your words down. It could help others." He trots through the gate with more vigor in his steps.

Sam hands Sven two carrots. "Someday the word will be written down and inspire other lonely hearts. I hope it was enough for him."

He returns to Aurora's stall and continues to brush her neck.

She grunts at him.

"You're right."

She groans and her ears loosely point forward.

"When you're right, you're right." He glances at the service room and chuckles. He whispers, "Before I make a fool of myself, do you have any advice?"

Aurora looks in the direction of the service room. She moves sideways pressing him against the stall.

"What are you doing? Aurora, stop." He pushes her off of him.

She looks at him and nickers.

Sam rubs his chest and gasps to breathe. "Crushing my lungs defeats the purpose."

Aurora neighs and Sven trumpets.

"I understand. Don't press too hard or pin her to the wall. You could have said that without the visualization."

A cold breeze sweeps across his arm.

"Pin who to the wall," Elsa asks with a smile as she stands in the entrance way to the service room.

The afternoon light casts a halo around her. For a second his breath catches behind his parted lips. She sweeps the delicate green material of her dress. The light makes the purple and green flower float. Her dress follows the curves of her body and blossoms with smaller flowers draped across her shoulders. Her infectious smile draws a hunger to taste her lips. Those blue eyes staring directly at him. They challenge him not to look away. He looks but cannot touch. A smile forms and allows his breath to pass.

With a deep breath he says, "I was wondering how long you were going to wait."

"You knew I was here?"

"I heard you come in when Kristoff was talking, even if I didn't hear the door, you stepped passed the squeaky board and got caught by the cup at the edge of the table alarm.

She slowly sashays over to him. "Squeaky board, cup at edge of table, what other alarms do you have in here? I thought you said a breeze knocked it over?"

He leans against the stall and rest his arms on the rail. "I did and I meant it. So how much did you hear?"

Sven trumpets as Aurora leans against him, forcing the air out of his lungs again.

Reaching his right hand back to touch her neck, he barely whispers, "Get off me."

A snap, crackle, and pop sounds as miniscule sparks jump from his fingers to her neck. She moves quickly to the other side of the stall. Sven swivels his ears down and lets out a muffled trumpet.

Sam struggles to take a deep breath as he pulls himself up to the top rail.

Elsa raises her brows as she stares at him. "If we have a disagreement will you do the same thing to me?"

"Only if you are in the process of squeezing the air out of me, I will."

Aurora whimpers a neigh.

He turns and she places her head against his chest. His fingers press in specific spots on her head and neck. His head leans against her head. "No, I'm not mad at you."

She softly exhales.

"I know you were giving advice, but you are a big girl."

She whimpers a neigh.

"I accept your apology."

She whimpers again.

"I don't know. Maybe you should ask her."

Aurora raises her head as he turns around. She places her head over his shoulder and sniffs at Elsa.

Elsa narrows her eyes as she points to Aurora. "What did she say?"

"Why are you here?" he replies scratching Aurora's neck.

Elsa places her hands on her waist. "Did she really ask that or are you asking?"

"Oh no, she did. I can wait until you decide that I need to know." He slips out of the stall.

"Why would she want to know?" Elsa asks.

Aurora neighs twice and stomps the ground.

"What did she say?"

Shaking his head slightly, he glances back at Aurora. "You're showing off and no I will not repeat it to her." She neighs and snorts. "Aurora, that is uncalled for and to think you eat with that filthy mouth?"

Sven trumpets with a nod of his head. Several other horses neigh in agreement. Sam pours water into a small bucket and washes his hands and arms.

Elsa steps next to him. "What was that all about? It sounded like you were having a conversation with her."

His head turns towards her as he glances at Aurora. He splashes water on the side of his head where Aurora kissed him earlier. "She made a derogative comment about you."

Her right brow rises. She steps towards Aurora. "What did she say?"

He pulls his shirt off and stuffs it in the bucket of water. "Since I can't prove to you what she said, does it really matter?"

"If you never tell me, no problem, but if I find out later, can you guess who will be in trouble?"

He chuckles. "Aurora, I told you our Queen is smart. I'm not going to take a fall for you because you speak the garbage words of the stallion at the far end of the stables." He squeezes the water out of his shirt and flips it over his shoulders. "She asked 'why is the slutr not in her castle?'" Elsa gasps. He glances over his shoulder.

She points her finger at Aurora, "Did you really say slutr?" Aurora ducks her head down and peeks between the rails. "Is that her way of saying yes?"

Reaching for the small hand towel hanging on the wall, he says, "Aurora, tell your Queen you apologize."

Aurora whinnies and sticks her head over the top rail as she sniffs at Elsa.

He wipes his face and arms with the towel. "Now that was her apology. She is sniffing at you to see if you will accept her apology. Hold your palm out and let her sniff. She will let you pet her."

"I accept your apology. I have been around horses to know that trick." Shoes scuffle on the floor behind him. "Whoa!"

Sam turns. Elsa stares at his back. She quickly looks up with a smile. A red blush rises up from her neck and into her face.

He reaches for his shirt. "Now I have to apologize. I did not mean to put you in a compromised position."

She walks over to him. "No, you did not compromise me. The scar on your back looks different in the daylight." She stands next to him. "Does it hurt?"

"No, sometimes it will remind me that it is there if I stretch too far." He watches her out the corner of his eye. She moves her hand towards his back, but clasps her hands together. Holding the towel out he says, "I don't always get completely dry."

She stares at the towel. Her blush returns faster this time.

"It's okay if you don't." After several seconds he holds a corner and whips the towel over his shoulder. With the two corners between his hands, he slides the towel across his back.

She takes the towel from him and touches it to his back. "What happened to cause the scar?"

"Shortly after my mother taught me how to use my ice to heal, I decided I needed a reminder of how things were. That is one of two scars I kept all these years. Notice it does not have clean lines like a wound from a sword. Before I met S5, I upset two guards who were waiting for my team to return from a field exercise. I was pulled aside while the rest of the team returned to their barracks." He glances over his shoulder.

Elsa dabs the towel across his back. She examines him.

"It was the worst beating I ever received. When I could not get up from the beating, the two slammed me into a tree. They lifted me up and punched my body a few more times. One held me against the tree while the other slid me down the tree trunk." He stares at his hands. "I should have died that day, but an angel saved me." He peeks over his shoulder. "She had blonde hair similar to your hair. For the next three years she taught me who I am."

"Your mother found you?"

He shrugs his shoulder. "She is actually my adopted mother, but yes."

"Turn around," she commands. He turns to face her and focuses past her. She pats the towel against his chest. For several seconds they stand in silence. He glances down. She watches him. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm trying very hard not to think."

She grins, "Why?"

Aurora snorts and stares at the stables outer gates. The latch rattles.

Kristoff says, "He was in here less than a half-hour ago. He will tell you."

"Time to go, they need time together. We'll go out the service door." He grabs the towel and his shirt. Elsa lifts her dress off the floor and follows him. He opens the door. A cool breeze brushes past the guards standing at the corner of the stables. The door closes quietly.

She whispers, "Why did you stop if you do not want Kristoff to see us?"

"Because there are two guards standing out there, I think one of them saw me." She starts to move around him to the door. "If they saw me without my shirt and they see you, what do you suppose they will think?"

"I will tell them the truth." she grabs the door latch.

"You go through the door and there is a fifty-fifty chance they did not see me, then no problem. If they did see me, despite you telling them the truth, they will probably think in derogative terms towards you."

She stares at him for a moment, before asking. "Like what?"

"You think Aurora can speak derogatively, there are human males who have a vast library of derogative terms to choose from."

She does not respond, but continues to watch him.

He takes a breath and holds it before answering. "A shirtless male followed by a petite, beautiful young woman, who happens to be the Queen of Arendelle, do you suppose they will talk about how lucky the guy is or what a wanton woman she is?"

"Oh?" Grabbing his arm she looks towards the stall area. "I cannot let Anna see us together. They are having issues."

"Which explains why Kristoff came in here." he looks towards the stall area. The main stable gate closes and the internal pressure pushes on the service room door.

Anna speaks, "I do not see him. Maybe he is in the other room." Boots click across the floor towards them. "Hi Sven, I did not bring any carrots, but I am sure Kristoff fed you when he was in here earlier."

Sam bends his knees and lifts Elsa by her waist. With a smile she wraps her arms around his neck. He carefully takes several specific steps backwards not to make noise. Backing into a corner he lowers her to the floor. Holding her close he reaches down to pull her dress around her feet. His body tilts to the right and pulls her closer. His hand points to the floor and sweeps above their head. His other hand in the small of her back pulls her closer. Peeking over her shoulder, he nods to himself and leans back with his finger across his lips.

Anna walks past them and searches the room. She opens the side door. "Hey, did either of you see Samuel or Queen Elsa come out this door?"

An outside guard responds, "No Princess, we have been standing here a few minutes. They may have exited, before we arrived."

"Okay," she closes the door and walks back to the service area.

Kristoff steps in front of Anna. "We don't need Sam. He gave me his advice. If you believe it's not working for us, I will find him and we can talk to him."

They walk out of his sight, but he can hear them.

"Okay, buddy, who wants a snack." Sven trumpets. "Okay, but you will have to take it from Anna."

He tries to listen to them.

Elsa places her palm over his heart. She slides her other hand through his chest hairs. Her finger traces the outline of his collar bone. Her fingers slide along his neck.

His eyes close for a moment as his head tilts and moves slightly with an automatic response to her touch. He gazes at her smile and her right brow rises.

Kristoff takes a deep breath. "Sam said I should show you my heart and tell the truth. Anna, when I saw you frozen in the ice. I wanted to die. When you were unfrozen my heart skipped several beats. When you kissed me, I knew then I wanted to be with you forever."

Elsa's hand slips behind his neck and clenches a hand full of his hair.

"Something changed, did it not?" Anna asks.

Sam presses his hand into the small of her back and pulls Elsa even closer to him as his body responds to her presence.

"My love for you has not changed." Kristoff says. "I see the things you have to do as a Princess. I see what your sister has to do as Queen."

Elsa releases his hair and moves her hand along his jaw line. With the lightest touch her finger slides across his lips. She stops when his lips separate.

Shoes slide on the floor as Kristoff continues. "I see how people treat you and Elsa in the castle. When guest come here they act proper and, as Sam says, snooty." Shoes scuff across the floor and a shovel rattles against Aurora's gate. "I don't know if I can accept other people's comments and jesters knowing they are just doing it to get something from you or my Queen."

Sam closes his eyes. His heart beat increases. _Why are you doing this? Any movement will reveal our presence._ Who cares screams his body. She is real and standing next to us. She has made no indications she wants to leave. We deserve this moment. Let us enjoy her touch while we can. Do not ruin it for rest of us. He opens his eyes. She stares at her finger against his lips. A slight haze of the mist floats past her finger as he exhales. His lips move to kiss her finger.

The sounds of boots stepping heel to toe from of an individual trained to move across the floor with elegance. Anna comments, "Elsa knows they are being nice because they want something. That is part of being a monarch. As long as you know the truth, you learn to deal with it. I know you will be uncomfortable in the beginning. Did you not tell me not too long ago that your family was really loud and unusual? What was my reaction?"

Elsa gazes up at Sam. She drags her finger down, causing his bottom lip to flop up. She grins and does it again.

"You stood there staring at them until you said they are trolls." Kristoff answers.

Sam puckers his lips and replaces it with a smile.

"Yes, they took me by surprise at how fast they moved me over their heads and landed me on my feet next to you. I know you do not like talking about them."

Elsa slides her hand down his side and onto his back. She lays her head against his chest over his heart. A tantalizing fragrance ascends into his nose. He inhales deeply to take in as much of her fragrance as possible..

Kristoff interrupts, "But that's just it. I want you to know them. I hesitated because they are not like anything you knew growing up."

Sam's mind flashes back to his mother telling him he will know when it is right for him to approach a girl. She told him when something reminds him of a place that brings joy and happiness to him. He would be in tune with the girl. _Is this what she meant?_

"Kristoff, they are your family. I want to know them. I want to be a part of your family. It will take time for us to become comfortable with each other's families. That is part of life. When we visit your family I will be expecting you to help me to interpret them. If you stay with me, I will help you with the royal etiquettes."

The fragrance in Elsa's hair brings images of the snow and the freshness of a clear blue sky. He inhales another deep breath. His face forms a broader smile.

The sound of boots and shoes scuffle across the floor. Kristoff says, "And when I make a mistake and war is declared will you still love me?"

Sam's other hand touches the back of Elsa's arm and slowly slides up. She takes a deep breath and barely moves her hand across his chest.

"If you will have me as I am and a Princess, I will stand by your side and we will fight the invaders together."

Sam slides his hand across her shoulder. Barely touching the back of her neck, his fingers slide up along her spine. A whisper of mist escapes her parted lips. With her eyes closed, she arches her neck as his fingers continue to slide along her face. He lifts her chin up and her eyes partially open as she exhales another cool mist from her smile.

"Anna, I'm not asking for your hand, I'm asking for all of you and your family to become a part of my family. Will you marry me?" Kristoff asks.

He lowers his head. His parted lips inhales her mist. His lips draw close to hers. His heart races. Their lips touch. No static discharge.

Anna's voice answers in the distant, "Yes, yes, yes." The sound of two bodies fall to the floor.

The noise of the world drowns out by the rhythmic hum of their hearts. For the moment she becomes a part of his world. The minty taste of her lips propels his mind to the snow covered mountain with a cloudless blue sky. The air crisp and fresh flutters his long white hair in the breeze. He feels a presence and turns his head. Elsa holds his arm as she grins up at him. Her ice blue dress sways as her blonde hair flutters in the breeze. A blond female in a white uniform walks towards them from down the hill.

Elsa squeezes his hand. "Go to her. We are the reason she is here."

A tear races down his cheek as he squeezes her hand. "If she is here because of us then we go together."

They start down the hill. The blonde female vanishes into a mist swirled by the breeze. Another mist swirls together to form an image of Anna.

Slowly his eyes open as Anna comments, "I knew if you cornered him, he would do it."

He stares at Elsa for a moment too long. Her expression of happiness gradually fades as she slowly shakes her head. He holds her shoulders and lightly pushes her away as he steps to the side.

She grabs his arms and pleads, "Samuel NO, do not let go, please do not let go."

With a glance at Anna and Kristoff, he slowly shakes his head. Picking his shirt off the floor and slipping it over his head, he bows his head. "I apologize for my nakedness. I have crossed the line between . . . between our Queen and the stable boy that should never be crossed."

With a glance at Elsa, he continues, "I let my emotions get out of hand. I know better which makes it worse. I will not ask for forgiveness, but will accept any punishment you deem appropriate for me." He bows his head.

A cold hand lifts his head up. "Please stand up."

He stands at attention with his hand to his sides.

Through her red, teary eyes she stares up at him. She places her hand over his heart. "For several seconds I thought you were free. I cannot make you stay should you choose to leave. But this is your punishment for what you did to me."

Anna interrupts, "Elsa, what are you doing?"

"Anna when you are Queen then you can decide an appropriate punishment. Until as such time that you become Queen do not interfere." Kristoff hugs Anna from behind.

"Admiral Samuel Christopher Ryan, I order you to stay in the stables to perform your duties. I and I alone will give you your daily instructions. If you choose to leave, I will banish you from Arendelle forever."

"Elsa no," Anna pleads. Elsa holds up her hand to quiet her.

"Admiral, do you understand your orders?"

He nods to her. "I am restricted to the stables and will wait for your orders. I understand." He nods again.

She walks out the side door, followed by Anna and Kristoff. He picks up a shovel and bucket and walks to an empty stall.

Several minutes later Kristoff returns and watches him clean the stall. Sam continues his work.

Kristoff asks, "How is it possible you kissed the most beautiful Queen I have ever seen and make her cry?"

"How many other Queens have you seen?" Sam asks, as he continues to clean the stall.

"I admit Elsa is the only Queen I have seen as an adult. I believe I saw their mother years ago, but I don't remember much." He waits several minutes. "Is this how you get away with not answering a question you do not like? Ask a question to throw the questioner off balance?" Receiving no reply he pushes. "How is making her cry, protecting her?"

Sam sets the bucket and shovel down. He slams his body against the stall rail causing it to crack a loud noise. Kristoff does not flinch, but stares intently at him. Sam steps back. "Why didn't you move?"

Kristoff grins, "I may not always understand right away, but I understand as long as I am not a threat to you, you will not attack." Sam clenches his teeth. Kristoff asks again, "You are going to answer my question or do I need to repeat it?"

Sam glares at him. "How does making Elsa cry, protect her? It doesn't. My mission has always been to protect her from harm, no matter who or what the event. I failed to protect her because I failed to take account of everyone." He paces in a circle clinching his fists. "Do you know who I did not take into account?" He thumps his chest.

"You?"

"That's right." Sam continues pacing and slams his fist down in the air. "I had a plan of action expecting an attack from the outside." He turns to Kristoff. "I never planned for the assassin to already be on the inside." He grabs the rail. "I compromised myself by losing focus on my mission. The duration we stood there. She could have died."

Kristoff leans against the stall gate "What caused you to lose focus?"

The tension in his arms slackens and he leans against the rail. "Where is Anna?"

"In the castle consoling Elsa. Why do you not scan to see where she is?"

"You have never given me a reason not to trust you. Your actions have always been honorable." He lays his head on the rail.

"Do you love her?"

"Is acting like a fool proof enough." He looks towards the service room. "I absolutely love her." He focuses on the wall above him. "I understood your concerns with being a part of Anna's life. So much will change and your job will be to hold onto what you have now. One day you will look back and ask where did it go? By the way, thanks for giving a little warning before you and Anna came in."

"Truthfully, Anna slapped my bottom just as I reached for the handle and I did not release the latch completely. I tripped into the door."

"Well, if you had come in, you would have seen Elsa drying my back. She came into this area after you departed. She wanted to talk. I tried to clean up while she talked to Aurora."

Kristoff points to his horse.

"Yes, she was talking to her. I took my shirt off. Dunked it in the water and squeezed it over my shoulders like I usually do. She squeaked and saw the scars on my back. I told her how I received them and she dried my back. You rattled the door. We went into the service room and that is when I made my mistake."

He looks back at him. "I lost it when she placed her hand over my heart. My facade began to crumble. Her fragrant radiated pleasurable memories. When I touched her and she did not pull away, but actually moved closer, I wanted more of her. At some point I didn't care what happened. If the last thing I felt was her lips against mine, I would die happy."

"That sounds similar to what happened to me. After the first kiss, I wanted another. I didn't want to ever be without her. I wanted to hold her all the time. Her touch made me glad to be a man." Kristoff shakes his head and smiles. "It seems when it comes to the monarch family, we have the same problem."

Sam nods. He rests his head on the rail.

After a few minutes Kristoff taps Sam's arm. "What is stopping you?"

"My mind has been in conflict since arriving here. When I arrived long ago, I had already lived several lifetimes. I can't count on my fingers how many times a government betrayed me or that I should have died. I wanted nothing to do with the Arendelle monarch. Whether it was her family or someone else, I did not care.

He closes his eyes and taps his head against the rail. "Until that one day."

Aurora places her head over his shoulder and leans her head against his head. He whispers, "I know and you're right." Aurora pushes her head against him until he moves and stands. "All right, you don't have to be pushy."

Kristoff nods his head. "I thought I was the only one who experienced such treatments from a friend." Sven trumpets.

"Let me just say it. Until that one day." He stops and closes his eyes as he takes several deep breaths. His mind throws him into the scene again. The past two decades should have quenched the fire, but now it burns hotter. The image of his hand inside of Queen Iduna's side brings the energy sensation in his hands. All proceeds according to the written text of life and death, then she touched him.

"That day," a tear runs down his cheek. His voice wavers. "She wanted to live and I almost killed her."

Kristoff squeezes his arm. His warm breath breathes against the side of his face. "You mean Elsa?"

He struggles to breathe, taking another breath. He barely whispers, "Yes."

The floor creaks as Kristoff backs away. Aurora touches her head against his head. She emits a silent rumble. He reaches up and rubs the top of her nose.

"Before then I did not hesitate to give orders to slaughter thousands of people to end a war. I did not know who they were or if they had families. They were just numbers of casualties sent to die for the governmental idiots in the habit of offending each other. At the moment on the coach, other than God, I was the only one who knew she existed. From her mother's womb Elsa's magic touched me."

"She touched you from inside of her mother's belly? So Elsa owes her life to you?"

He vigorously shakes his head. "NO, I owe my life to her. It wasn't that she touched me like this," he grabs Kristoff's arm. "She touched me in here," he taps his forehead, "and here." He thumps his heart several times with force. "I knew Elsa was going to be a special little girl. I didn't know she would have ice powers. My science says she should have been a normal human female, but we know differently."

He wipes the tears from his cheeks. "It may be a little hard to understand. I am the first of my kind. I should have died before I was ten years old. Each day is a new record for how long I have lived past the age of ten years. Elsa is the first of her kind by the way she interacted with my energy before she was born. I have no knowledge of anyone like her or myself."

"From where I'm standing it looks like the two of you are even for saving the others life."

"Under different circumstances, I would agree with you. If I'm the only one who gets close to her, I would be in a better position to protect her from the outside world. Even if she released me from my oath, she does not have the power to change the law. It was written for people like Hans. Even if he succeeded, he could not be King without destroying the laws."

He turns his face to Kristoff as he leans his chest against the rail. "Let me ask you a question. You may or may not know or you may choose not to answer. I will not be offended if you choose not to answer."

With a smirk Kristoff comments, "I think you are about to run down a rabbit hole."

"You may be right, but other than the law, do you think the people would accept you or me as King?"

Kristoff frowns. "That is a hard question to answer." He shakes his head. "They know very little about me."

"They have seen you and Anna walking around Arendelle. Has anyone cursed you or tried to attack you?"

"No, I have received a few mean expressions, but that was right after the thaw."

"But since then?"

"No, everyone is kind to me."

"Even when Anna is not around," Sam asks as his left brow moves up slightly.

"Yes, when she is not around," Kristoff answers and Sven nods in agreement.

Sam leans back against the rail facing Aurora. A smile creeps onto his face. "I think you and Anna would make a great King and Queen. Arendelle likes the both of you."

"And how do you know?"

"I asked around." He pauses for a few seconds. "So when is the wedding day?"

Kristoff grins, "Before the end of the year." He turns to Sam. "Since I don't have any close friends, would you be my best man?"

Sam gazes at Aurora without motion. "I guess I can't wear my stable work clothes." He turns his head towards him. "Ah, I get to carry a sword, but then unless they have family elsewhere, Elsa would be the only one who could try to stop the wedding. I don't foresee her doing that. She likes you."

He pauses, "If someone will help me get the appropriate best man clothing, I'll be there for you buddy. I will also offer any advice that you request. I do have a number of years' experience in that area."

He slaps Kristoff's shoulder as he holds out his hand. "Congratulations, Princess Anna will make a fine wife and if she inherits the kingdom, I have no doubt you will make the previous King and Queen proud to call you their son-in-law."

Kristoff shakes his hand. "I hope I can live up to everyone's expectations."

"There is only one person whose expectations, you need to meet and if she had any doubts she would not have said yes."

"And what about you?"

"In this timeline, it doesn't appear it was meant to be. I'll do what I can to help her find her soul-mate." He walks over to Aurora and scratches the top of her nose. "Soon Anna will be taking up a lot of your time. I recommend you let her know what your day schedule is and be prepared for her to fill in the rest."

"I will." Kristoff walks over to the gates and comments as he opens it. "I think you already know who Elsa's soul-mate is. The question is will you admit it?"

Sam looks towards the gates as it closes. A sharp pain stabs into his mind. His hand rubs the area above his left eye.

 **End scene**


	58. Chapter 57 Elsa's Proof

**Title: Chapter 57: Elsa's Proof**

 **3 year 1 months until correction**

Their bickering stops and Elsa slides her hand across the table. As her finger reaches for his hand a spark leaps between them. Her eyes narrows at him.

Sam draws his hand away from her and rubs the spot over his left eye where Aurora pealed the flesh off his forehead with her hooves. The spot becomes redder as he continues to rub it. He mumbles under his breath. "It was stupid."

Elsa leans towards him. "What did you say?"

He mumbles again.

"She meant nothing by it."

The palm of his hand slaps against the table. "No. It meant everything to me. I don't like my personal moments shared with everyone. It was supposed to be for us only. I don't care she is your sister." He pushes against the table and stands. "I assure you this little thing will not happen again." His boots make the distinctive sound of the heel-toe movement as he storms out of the room.

Elsa watches as the door slams behind him. He had no incidents the past month. She had watched him closely. So what changed?

Anna, sitting in the chair to her left, also noted Sam's demeanor. "What is wrong with him? He is acting very temperamental over a little thing,"

Before he left something changed. He and Anna bickered as though they were spoiling for a fight and she was caught in the middle. "Leave him alone. It is not his fault the way he is."

"Why are you taking up for him after the way he just treated you." Anna slides her chair away from the table. "I am going to set him straight when it comes to talking like that to my sister and Queen."

Her hand shoots out and grabs Anna's arm, "No. He is doing what he needs to do to accomplish his mission."

Anna stares at her sister's hand for a moment and looks up. "Mission, what mission is he on?" She points to his chair as if he was still there. "Take Arendelle from us."

Maybe if her sister understood what she knew about him, Anna would not push. The burden of her knowledge has become overwhelming and she desires a counter balance that she is doing the right thing. She pulls Anna to her and looks directly into her eyes. "What I am about to tell you, please . . . please do not repeat to anyone, not even Kristoff."

Anna's eyes widen. "You are scaring me." Her brows push together and her eyes narrow as she whispers. "Is he holding something against you?"

Elsa lets go of her arm. "No," with a glance at the door, she takes a leap of faith. "I am holding something over him and he does not know it."

"If he finds out," Anna leans back and looks at the door, "are we in danger?"

Her hands interlace their fingers in her lap. She closes her eyes for a moment and replies. "No, but he could be."

She hears nothing. Anna usually has a comment. A comment that she did not think about or a comment she did not think was important. In Anna's own way, she helped to clear the clutter and show what was important, so why is she silent now. Elsa peaks at her sister. The corner of Anna's lips pulls back as they curl. Good, she must have found something. Her head turns towards Anna displaying her smile of triumph.

Her sister smirks. "If you have this thing over him, make him show you respect or use it against him."

No, she missed. "Anna," her hand slaps onto the table. Anna does not flinch. "If I wanted him to be afraid of me, he would not be allowed in this castle. I might as well banish him from Arendelle."

Elsa stands quickly sliding her chair back. "It is because of what I know about him that frightens me." She leans on the table with her head down. "If he is captured, he could be forced to do what he did before he came here. At least here he has a chance of freedom."

"If he could be in danger, why would you not tell him? I would certainly want you to tell me if I could be in danger." Anna shakes her head, "I do not understand."

"I would want to know as well." Elsa glances at the servant's door than the main door. At least Anna's expression has changed from the determined to caring.

"Remember when Sam was hurt in the stable, you heard me chanting." Anna nods. "He knew he would lose part of his memory through the healing process."

A flood of her own memories from the event batters her defenses as she struggles to keep them at bay. "He opened his mind like no one could possibly do." She swallows hard as Anna stares at her intently. "I saw him as a young boy and the tragedy in his life. There was this other person who talked to me and said he needs help in finishing his mission. He needs to build a bridge between his world and her world."

Her fists tighten to the point her arms began to shake. An emotion breaks past her defense. A tear rolls down her cheek. "Anna, he was never meant to live to adulthood. This other person changed his life by giving his humanity back to him. He survives only to complete his mission."

"Well, send him on his way to complete the mission." Anna states in a matter of fact manner.

"I cannot."

"Why not?"

"His mission is to protect the Queen of Arendelle at any cost to him."

"Then what is the problem? You have a personal body guard."

"Because he is more than that." She grits her teeth together.

Anna tilts her head slightly and smiles, "Are you sweet on him? He said he is just a commoner, so you and he will never get together."

"Well," Elsa looks away.

Anna widens her eyes. "You do like him more than just a little bit. Come on, tell me what you know."

Her face warms as her heart beats a little faster. She stares at the table. "In his past . . . well, I do not know when it occurred, but according to our laws, we could if he asks." She glances up at a smile and wonders if she has made a big mistake by telling her sister. Father did not cover this type of burden with her.

Anna slides out of her chair and hugs her. "That is great. Let me and Kristoff push him off the fence so he will ask you."

Her heart seems to stop hearing Anna's comment. This is exactly what she didn't want her sister to do. "No Anna, if he is pushed he may just walk away or revert back to his previous training. When he mentioned he was an assassin, I saw him in action and he truly was. We have to guide him and never tell him directly. He has to come to the conclusion on his own or he may be lost again."

"Be lost, become an assassin, Are you listening to the words you are speaking? How do you know this is the truth and not a mind game he is playing with you?"

Elsa steps back and watches her sister's her expressions and mannerism. Anna does not find fault in anyone until their action prove her wrong. Yet today she has her sights on Sam. She is purposefully provoking him. What has he done to her?

As she walks around her chair, she asks, "How would he prove he had been an assassin?"

Anna shoots back. "Well, that is just it; he cannot prove it, unless you tell him to kill someone."

She covers her mouth looking away. A second later she snaps her finger and points at Anna. "Yesterday morning you said he appeared to be walking around aimlessly bumping into people. Was he playing a mind game with you? Of course not, when I spoke to him he stopped. You were standing there, was he playing a game?"

"I do not know, but you cannot prove he was not."

"Just as you cannot prove he was." She places her hand on Anna's shoulders. "I have no doubt that if you spoke the same words to me, I would question your sanity. I can only tell you what I have seen. If he wanted to get rid of us, we would not be talking now. I ask you to keep an open mind about him. The other person I saw in his mind showed me how she died trying to save him."

"You were talking to a ghost?" Anna asks squinting her eyes and steps back out of her embrace.

"I do not know what I was talking to. She said when they were attacked, she placed a message in his mind only to be revealed to the one he takes to his snow-covered mountain. I was there. She said he could bring anyone to his mountain."

"He could show me?"

"Would it help you to believe me if I went with you?"

Anna shrugs her shoulders. "It sounds very creepy to me, but if you are there I will go with you. Does it hurt?"

She smiles and hugs her. "No, it does not hurt, but since I was there, I have been able to communicate with him at a distance."

Anna leans her head back. "What are you talking about?"

She watches Anna as her expressions appear to be shifting. Is Anna receptive to an idea? She points her finger at her. "Watch this."

Her eyes search the floor before she focuses on a spot on the wall. "Sam, can you hear me? I know you are busy, but do you remember when you made a frozen drink with fruit and milk." She smiles, "I think I saw some wild fruit in the kitchen. At your convenience would it be possible if you could make me and Anna that frozen drink." Her head barely moves from side to side. "It is no hurry, when you have the time. Thank you."

Her eyes glance up at Anna.

Anna shifts her weight onto her heels and points her finger at her. "You want me to believe you were just talking to him?"

With her own smirk Elsa sits and slides her chair closer to the table. Clasping her hands together resting on the table, her right brow rises. "We shall see in about twenty minutes or less."

Anna sits with her arms crossed.

They sit in silence.

At the five minute point, Elsa points to the servant's door. Anna glances at the door still with her arms crossed. "Just wait, he is almost done."

A minute later, the servant's door opens. Sam cares two large frosted mugs on a tray. He sets it on the table between them. Elsa takes the closest mug and spoons a large scoop into her mouth. The creamy richness slides across her tongue exploding with berry flavor and just enough sweetness not to overwhelm her taste buds. She scoops another spoon full and glances over to her sister.

Anna stares into her mug. Her finger leaves a small indentation in the thick drink. Her lips consumes the drink off her finger. She sits back in her chair and places her hands in her lap.

Elsa raises her brows as she looks up at Sam. She points her spoon at Anna, "Do you not like it?"

Anna glances at both of them as she crosses her arms. "You want me to believe that my dear sister magically communicated with you. She was thirsty for a fruit drink and you heard her say it five minutes ago?" She shakes her head. "I am not buying it. You planned to make me look foolish." She picks up the spoon and scoops her drink.

"Really Anna, you think I have nothing better to do than to embarrass you?" Elsa sets her spoon down and lifts her mug to her lips. "I was actually trying to explain despite Sam's abrupt departure of the room, he is still healing and you should give him some time."

Anna points her spoon at him. "First, I want you to know whatever you call this drink, is extremely heavenly." She smiles up at him. "But it is not going to get you off the hook. How much time do you need to heal?"

Sam glances at her and Anna. "I do not recall this ever happening the way it's going, so I'm not sure, but I have a question for you. What evidence will you accept as proof this is not a mind game?"

0With raised brows and a slight smile, she watches Anna. "Go ahead and answer him."

Anna glares at her sister and drops her spoon in the mug with a clink, "Ok," pointing to her, "She said you took her to a snow covered mountain."

He stares at her non-responsively.

"She said you could take me there, well, can you?"

His head lowers and his eyes move as though they were search the floor. He looks at her. "I did and I believe I can. Now it's your turn."

"What is my turn?"

"You have not answered his question on what proof you need." Elsa comments and scoops more of the frozen drink.

"Ok, what is your mission? Show me this bridge you are supposed to build. Show me the person who talked to Elsa and what is her relationship to you?"

Sam holds up his hand before she can speak again. "My mission is to protect Queen Elsa from harm. The bridge is a figurative analogy of developing good relationships. I'm not sure of between who. Under the circumstances, I believe it could be between Arendelle and the Southern Isle."

He glances at her and continues, "While at this moment in time those relationships are not going to happen, but in the future it should be pursued despite a few rotten elements. Just like one bad apple does not poison the whole barrel."

She watches him. _If he can just bring the logic to the surface more often we could have greater conversations despite his metaphors_.

"Remove the poisonous element to save the rest and not throw it or them away. Future wars are started over unresolved issues from the past. As for who talked to Elsa, I do not know." He faces her. "Who talked to you?"

She was not expecting him to question her and hesitates before answering. "She called herself S5."

His eyes widen. "S5." He looks at the ceiling with a slight smile and whispers. "I have not thought of her in a very long time."

She watches his expression intently and notices his smile slowly fading away. Anna breaks the moment of silence. "Who calls their child S5? It sounds like a code word."

"It is a code word. We were not supposed to know their actual names. She was a scientist, thus the S. She was the fifth scientist we met, thus the five, so S5 was her name." He looks at the floor. The color in his face drain to white. His right hand moves behind his back as a tremor passes through his hand.

Before she can intervene, Anna strikes.

Anna steps towards him and bares her teeth as she grills him. "What was her real name? Was she your wife? Did she leave you because you are weak?"

He starts to turn from her when Anna grabs his arm. "Do not turn your back to me. Did you make up the name S5 to sway Elsa?" She balls her fist and grabs his shirt. She yells. "I WILL NOT LET YOU HURT MY SISTER."

Elsa steps in front of Sam and grabs her sister's hands as she pushes him back. "Anna that is enough." She pulls Anna's hand free of his shirt. "What is wrong with you?"

"I could not pronounce her name. She took the human name Elsa." Sam moves to the servant's door and glances over his shoulder. "She was not my wife. She was my adoptive mother." With his head down it moves from side to side. He opens the door. "I will not speak of this." The door slams behind him.

Anna pushes her chair to the table as Elsa grabs her arm. "What is wrong with you?"

"With me," she points to the door and demands, "he is the one with all of the secrets. What do you know about him?"

Her grip tightens around Anna's arm. "I will tell you what I saw. The tragedy I mentioned in his early life was seeing his mother die as he tried to protect her. Her blood splattered all over him and he killed those who killed her. If it was not for his uncle raising him, he might not be alive today."

She releases Anna staring at her hands. She does not recall ever being this angry with her. The more Anna attacked him the more she wanted to freeze her to her chair. She stares at her sister waiting to pounce if she says the wrong thing. As if a blanket fell to the floor, Elsa's anger also fell away. Even Anna's expression changed from a stressful anger to a bewilderment that she thought Anna was about to pass out.

Anna looks around. Her hand moves to her face to wipe the tears as she looks to her sister. "Elsa, I do not know what came over me. I could not stop myself. It is like I became possessed. My mouth started talking and would not stop."

She touches Anna's arm. "I was having a similar experience, but I was becoming very angry at you." She places her on the side of her face and slides her finger to the blood vessel in front of her ear. "Even now my heart is just starting to slow down."

Anna touches the side of her neck. "My heart is doing the same thing, but it felt like it was going to burst out of my chest." They both look at the servant's door. "Do you think he was causing it?"

"I have a strong suspicion he does not know he is doing it." She taps her fist to her head, "What did he say, before his accident. Something about his energy is not synced with others." Her eyes search the floor. "When I first touched his hand, I felt a static shock. After a few minutes, I could touch his hand with no problem. I even noticed the pressure of the Queendom did not seem as big. He explained later that until his energy and my energy synced together we would have been in conflict. Maybe that is what just happened to you."

"You saying his energy is in conflict with me and that is why I spoke so harshly to him?"

She wraps her arm around her. "It was not just his energy interfering with you. The more you spoke to him the more I wanted to freeze your feet to the floor. I think he will have to clarify, but I think because his and my energy were in synced, we may have inadvertently pushed you to feel the way you did.

The servant door bursts open. Both snap their heads around to the door. Gerda rushes into the room. "Majesty, please pardon the interruption, but there is something wrong with Sam. He has climbed the outer walls."

She glances at Anna. "Stay here until I can figure this out." She lifts the edge of her dress and runs out the room.

A few minutes later she runs out into the courtyard. A light breeze stirs up the leaves. Several castle staffers and guards point as they converse with each other.

One asks, "Did you see him?"

Another says, "I saw him climb the wall without a ladder. He ran across the top covers to the corner turret."

The clouds block most of the sunlight, but enough gets through that Elsa has to shade her eyes as she looks up to where the others are pointing. She does not see him. She moves as quickly as possible without running or appearing to be in a hurry. Two guards acknowledge her and bow as she passes them. She reaches the bottom of the tower and takes several deep breaths to calm herself down. Captain Larsen steps out of the door.

"Majesty, I thought you might be heading this way." His finger points up. "He is on the very top of the tower."

She steps around him and reaches for the door. "Let me talk to him."

Larsen grabs the door latch. "Majesty, he is not in the turret. He is on top of the cover over the turret."

She stares at him and then glances up the wall. "How did he get up there?"

"A guard said he climb the wall like there were hand holds in the wall and ran across the covers. We could not get to him once he got to the top and blocked the door to the flag."

She narrows her eyes and whispers, "Has anyone tried to talk to him?"

"A guard ordered him down. At least that is what he claims once he regained consciousness after being hit with a ball of ice."

She pushes Larsen back. "Get out of the way before he starts to throw your guards off the wall."

Larsen follows her to the top and orders the other guards down to a lower level in the turret. Before he could protest, she marches up the steep stairs and through the turret's floor.

A dusty turret meets her. A small weathered table and two short stools sit to one side. Her eyes slowly search up. She tries to speak in a calmed voice. "Sam, I know you are up there. Please come down."

A whimper of a young boy's voice replies, "Why, so your sister can make fun of my mother."

The metal above the roof pops with movement. She did not expect a boy's voice, but she is glad, one of the other versions of Sam did not surface in the castle. This young boy's voice sounds different. "Sam?"

The young voice replies, "You have forgotten what my voice sounds in your head." She hears him sigh. "I wish to be left alone. Go back to your sister and play the games she thinks I was playing."

Suddenly an emotional hurt drapes over her like a blanket. "Sam, you have to come down. I know why Anna hurt you. You told me that other people's energies can affect how you feel, if you are not aware of it. Is it possible that your energy was affecting Anna and she did not know it was happening?"

For several minutes he does not reply. She continues to watch the roof and listens for any movement. Voices sound, but they are not coming from any particular direction and it is definitely not Sam. She shifts her weight and with the slight movement she recognizes one of the voices as the castle's cook. She moves to the inner wall side of the turret. Near the servant's entrance door, the cook and a guard discuss Sam's erratic behavior and questions why the Queen does not send him away. She listens to them until they go about their business. She looks over her shoulder and whispers, "Are they right? How many others see the same thing?"

With his normal voice Sam comments, "You are correct. I'm not in sync with her. My apology for not taking Anna into consideration, is she ok? Did it affect you?"

"After you left and your influence dissipated, I remembered what you said about our energies. I tried to explain it to Anna. She said her heart is sad." She moves towards the fjord side of the turret. The sun peaks under the edge of the roof. A light puff of wind brushes a few strands of hair from her face. The fragrance from different fireplaces prepare the evening meals for Arendelle's citizens. She inhales the delicacies. Water below sing to her as it lap at the boulders. A calmness release the stress. Another puff of wind whispers into her ear as it moves the few strands of hair.

From above she hears, "Now you know why I like to come up here at sunset. Don't move. I'm coming down."

With a pop of the metal roof, Sam slides down the cover and falls past the space between the cover and the turret. Her hand covers her mouth to hold back the impulse to scream. Her eyes close as she hopes to hear a splash, but after several seconds there is no splash. Her heart sinks and waits for the guards to call out a body on the rocks. His energy level does not change. Did he encase himself into a block of ice or is he bleeding out. She steps closer to the edge and prepares for the horror she will see. A sheen of ice forms on the embrasure of the turret's edge. A frosty hand appears on the ice. A second hand, followed by his head and the rest of his body appears as he crawls into the turret.

Sam rolls to his feet and dusts off the dirt as the frost on his hand melts. Just as he looks up, her body slams into his and she wraps her arms around him. Holding him tight with her ear pressed against his chest, she hears his heart beating through his clothes. His arms slide around her shoulders and holds her. It may be his mission to protect the Queen of Arendelle, but she will do whatever is necessary to keep him from getting lost again.

Her ear listens to the rhythmic beat of his heart and notices an echo of a second beat not as loud as the first, but is distinctively there. A cool mist drift down over her face. The emotional hurt falls away. Another mist drifts down, then another. The movement of his chest exhaling corresponds with another mist a second later. She smiles to herself. So that is how he washes away stress.A comfort of peace covers her and she wants it to go on forever. Even the smell of his sweat entices her not to let go. She opens her eyes to see a bead of sweat running down his arm. She wondered if her presence is having the same effect on him as he is to her.

"Yes, it does." He says.

She leans her head back looking up at his smile. "What does?"

He leans down and kisses her forehead. "Your presence has the same effect on me as I do to you."

She pushes away from him and his hands slide along her arms before letting go of her hands. She steps to the edge of the turret and places her hands on her waist. "I am not going to ask how you got up here, but I am quite sure I saw you fall."

He stands next to the embrasure and lightly splashes the small amount of remaining water. "First, I had no intentions of falling off the roof. I was too close to the edge. When I moved the friction that held me in place, let go, and I was over the edge before I could grab hold of anything. I generated enough ice to stop my descent before hitting the rocks. I created ice holds on the wall to climb back up here, then you nearly pushed me right back out."

She steps up to him and pokes his chest with her finger. "You scared me."

"As I said, I was not doing it on purpose."

She runs her fingers down his arm, particularly where she saw his sweat drip. She wipes her hand on his shirt and with a slight smile. "Were you afraid?"

He glances at her hands. "When I fell?"

She nods and watches his expression. His slight hesitation before answering he does again. She had seen it many times and thought he was collecting his thought, but this time there is a noticeable change. She wonders if he is aware of the change.

He slowly rolls his shoulders back and moves his head with purpose. Taking a deep breath, he answers, "This is not the first time I have fallen off a high place. Since arriving here in Arendelle, I have reacquire a skill from long ago and that has saved my life at least twice. The second time was a few minutes ago."

Her smile fades. "When was the first time?"

"Instead of when, I'll tell you how. Near the North Mountain a certain red wolf caught me looking the wrong way and attacked. We both fell over the cliff. The distance to the bottom was a longer than this wall. We were already halfway down before I could push away from the wolf. Once I did, I was able to create an ice slide which carried us over the boulders. We landed and came to a stop. He rolled to a stop twenty-two meters away. He regained his senses and tried to attack again. I hit him with enough ice balls and he ran away. The area where we fell does not get much sunshine. It is possible the ice slide is still there."

An evasive answer to overwhelm the question or confuse the questioner. She asks again, "Were you afraid?"

His head turns slightly and his eyes look past her. "If the cliff was shorter, the red wolf would have died, despite him clawing at me. I determined the distance was sufficient for an alternate plan that would save the both of us. Unfortunately, his descendants show up every now and then."

"You still have not answered my question." His head turns to one side and to the other side to avoid looking directly at her. "What do you not understand?"

His focus snaps back to her, another change. "The word afraid."

She looks into his eyes for deceit or confusion. Is the blank stare his way of hiding something? "Were you concern you were about to die?"

He draws his lips tight. "No, I am not afraid of dying. When it happens, it happens. My concern is if in the process of my death, I may cause someone else to die. In both falls I had the confidence of surviving the fall." He lowers his head close to her. "I know what my limits are and try very hard to stay away from them. Unfortunately, most humans do not know where their limits are."

Do not even ask me about my limits."So you almost died twice?" She glances up raising her brows, wondering if he would remember one specific event from her youth.

"By a fall yes."

"You imply you may have almost died by other means?"

"Yes."

She steps away from him and shifts into her regal pose. "Explain your answer."

He looks straight ahead. His arms hang to his side as both hands curl. His heels touch as the toes of his boots create a small space between them. "I have been shot, stabbed, and attacked by many animals, including humans. Any of which could have ended my life. I was not afraid. I was prepared. Each event prepared me for the next attack."

His head bows.

There is the hesitation again. Did she find a truth as he says, or something he trying to hide.

"Continue."

His lower lip quivers before he pulls his lips tight. His jaw clenches. He does not look at her as his eyes close.

A heaviness in the air presses against her. Her emotions build as she desires to reach for him. She fights an urge to touch him. If she feels the pressure, does he also feel it? Will he cut the conversation off or run away? He hesitate when he becomes comfortable around her so she pushes. "Why did you stop? Is there an event when you were afraid?"

His eyes opens and focuses on her. A tear rolls down his cheek. His lips separate as he inhales. "You were there. Your mother just found out she was pregnant with Anna. You were running in the courtyard when a team of horses pulling a heavy load charged at you."

Her hands clenches together over her heart as the memory of the event returns. The feeling of the moment as the large beasts ran towards her. She could not move. She watched them get closer. A large arm wrapped around her and turned her away from them. The arm pulled her tight against his body. She remembered him saying, "I am right here. I will protect you. You are safe."

The noise became deafening. She closed her eyes and suddenly the noise quieted to the sound of a heartbeat. The sound calmed her fears.

A second tear rolls down his cheek. "I placed myself between you and the horses. The horses hit me just as I put up an energy barrier. It took all of my will to keep the energy up until your father crawled through the opening and pulled you out of harm's way." He glances away as another tear leaps from his eyes. "I was afraid you were injured. I could not sense your presence. I held the barrier open for as long as I could. When it collapsed I did not sense you . . . I wanted to die."

His emotional stress weighs heavy on her heart. She remembers her father reaching for her and she pushed him away. That was the first time she wanted him not to let her go. Her father grabbed her and pulled her out. She begged her father to help him, but he did not listen. Her mother carried her upstairs to her room. Her screams went unanswered. Why do they not help him? The anger raged in her little heart. How could they leave him there? Her mother was too strong. She could not get away. Sam needed her and she needed him. Why did they not understand? She remembers crying herself to sleep and how disrespectful and rude she was to her mother and father. One day she heard him call her name. So long ago and yet the pain of the memory still cuts like a dagger into her heart. She looks to him through the moisture swelling in her eyes.

Turning to the door she speaks over her shoulder. "Sam, do not move, you will stay here for twenty minutes. After that time you will go to your room in the castle. Do you understand?"

"Yes."

The door opens and she proceeds down the stair without looking back at him.

On the lower level Captain Larsen asks, "Any orders, Majesty?"

She continues walking down the steps. "Clear a path so he can leave in twenty minutes."

The more distance she gets away from him the lighter the blanket of guilt becomes. She marches across the courtyard and into the castle without speaking to anyone.

Gerda approaches her. She responds gruffly. "Get out of my way." She stops at the bottom of the stairs and points her finger at Anna. "You stay away from Sam for the time being." Baring her teeth, she speaks, "If I hear you tried to approach him, I will lock you in your room and bar Kristoff from the castle. This is how important it is. You leave Sam alone."

She lifts her dress and sprints up the stairs. In her room, she stops long enough to lock the door. Sitting on the edge of her bed, she retrieves the handkerchief out of the side table. With a wave of her hand, her dress changes into loose fitting clothes. She curls up on the bed and pulls her knees up close. With the handkerchief to her eyes, a flood of memories return.

 **6041**

 **End of Chapter**


	59. Chapter 58 Losing Control

**Title: Chapter 59: Losing Control**

 **3 year 24 days until correction**

The sun dips lower and warms his back. Across the way his shadow moves along the castle wall.

Confusing reigns in his mind. Why was he on the roof in the first place? His mind replays the event with Elsa as if he was watching from outside of his body. It appears at a point he lost control of his responses.

A breeze flows through the turret and whips his long hair out to the side. His mind registers the twenty minutes are up. He steps forward. _What is going on? Why could I not move until now?_ His mind scans the area. _Where is she? She was sad when she left. Did I hurt her?_

His heartbeat increases as he searches for her. As if leaning against the turret's edge would help him to find her, he stares at the wall that leads to her room. The vision in his mind passes through the walls. She is on her bed crying. His body leaps down the stairs. His breathing increases as he jumps down to the next level.

A guard reaches for his sword. In an automatic response Sam slams him against the wall and runs past. He takes several steps at a time and pushes another guard out of his way.

He burst through the turret door to the courtyard and runs towards the castle's main entrance. Two guards try to slow him, but he knocks them onto their backside as he runs past. Another guard tries to tackle him, but he flicks the guard to the side. The guard's action slows him enough so several guards tackle him to the ground. As fast as he throws one off, another jumps on. Fists, elbows, and boots hit from all directions. His eyes focus on each target and his fist strikes. Bodies fly everywhere. He gets to his feet. No one individual gets closer to lay a punch on him.

Two guards swing a thick post across his back. He stumbles and falls to one knee. Others hit him with whatever heavy object they can throw at him. He begins to succumb to the punishment and a guard runs towards him with rope. They tie him up with several layers of rope. They drag him up to his knees. A guard kicks him in his face.

Princess Anna walks up to them and mocks him. "So your eyes do change to a dark green. How does it feel to be hurt and not be able to stop it?"

He looks up at her grin. She smirks down her nose at him. Suddenly the toe of a boot connects to the side of his face. A salty taste fills his mouth as a burning sensation stings his lip. A fluid runs down his chin.

"Answer her, you idiot, or I'll show you the bottom of my other boot," A guard spits on him.

Anna steps closer, waving her hand at him. "Hold on. Let's give him a chance to answer. After all, he is on a very important mission."

"What mission?" a guard yells.

Anna grabs a fist full of his hair and twist his head back. She leans close to his face. "Do you want to answer him or shall I?" She waits a second, then spits in his face. "I'll answer for you. His mission is to protect my sister and your Queen."

Many guards laugh as one speaks, "How can he protect her while he is tied up?"

A guard comments, "If he is guarding her that means we are no longer needed. We are out of a job." The laughter stops.

With a glazed appearance across Anna's face, she twists his hair more. "I wonder if you can swim tied up?"

Turning a bruised face towards her, Sam whispers, "I'm sorry Anna." He lunges forward, knocking her to the ground as he gets to his feet and runs for the castle doors. Kristoff cuts him off with a powerful fist to the side of his head. He staggers. The toe of a boot connects to his lower abdomen sending him to the ground with a groan.

With the same glaze appearance in his eyes as the guards and Anna had, Kristoff yells, "Hold him up." Three guards lift Sam to his knees. Kristoff pushes his head back. "You like hitting a Princess with your head. HIT ME." He drives another hard fist into his face. "Come on big man, HIT ME." Kristoff's fist strikes his forehead.

One of the guards holding him punches the back of his head. "You heard him, fight back you scoundrel." A hit strikes from the side as another guard yells, "Yeah, fight you worm." The rain of blows change into kicks and stomps when he falls over.

A sharp pain strikes Elsa's face. She rolls to the edge of the bed and swings her feet to the floor. A pain strikes the side of her face, then the other side. For a moment the floor changes to the stones in the courtyard. A set of guard boots appear in front of her. A boot swings back and strikes towards her. Another sharp pain pulses in her lip. A commotion of yelling sails through her open window.

She hears Anna's voice. "How does it feel to be in pain and you cannot stop it"

"Anna stop!" Elsa says and hears flesh hitting flesh. Her face stings. She leaps off the bed and sweeps her hands across her clothes. As she runs out her door, she calls out. "Samuel stop them. Protect yourself."

In her dark green pants covered with a plain green dress and her hair flowing behind her, moments later, Elsa runs out the castle doors. Her eyes spot his blood dripping from his face. Her anger explodes with a shower of large chunks of ice plowing over the guards and Kristoff. As the ice hits the men, she launches a snowball that bowls over the other guards cheering. The snowball hits the castle walls exploding back into the courtyard. From the castle steps to the main gates and from the stable to the guard's barracks, a meter of snow covers the yard, except for a narrow path of visible stone from the steps to where Sam lies bleeding.

Anna sits up, brushing the snow out of her face and hair. She looks around with bewilderment. A pointy rectangular, animal hide boot wiggles a short distance from her. She wades through the snow and digs Kristoff out. She hugs him as he also looks around with a confused expression.

Elsa runs down the path and keeps an eye on the guards starting to dig themselves out of the snow. Anger builds as her heart races. Let them give her a reason to freeze them in a block of ice. She kneels next to Sam. His blood pools in spots on the ground. She hesitates, but gently touches his face. Sam opens his swollen eyes. She clenches her hand around the rope. "Why did you not defend yourself?"

A weak and bloody smile forms. "You said do not hurt anyone unless they are a threat to you, Anna, Kristoff, and the castle staff. They were not a threat by your definition."

"Ah Sam, I need to clarify that with you. What if they had a sword or an ice ax?" She glances around and ready to strike at the others if they move towards her.

"I would have taken it from them."

Small mounts in the snow groan and other guards dig them out. Anna helps Kristoff to his feet. He starts to move towards her sister, but she stands in front of him.

Elsa spots a couple of guards climbing out of the snow and trudging towards her. She speaks to Sam. "Show me how you would have gotten out of these ropes."

Sam rocks to one side, then to the next until he rolls over and sits up on his knees. A spike of ice grows from his hand between his back and the ropes. It expands, pushing against the ropes. The edge of the ice forms a sharp blade. The ropes fall off of him with clean cut edges. He staggers and uses the ice sword to get to his feet. He stands next to her holding the ice sword in a ready position. Several guards dig themselves out of the snow and move towards their barracks.

She wraps her one arm around his arm and slides her other arm around his waist. She leans her head against his shoulder watching them and asks, "Why did they attack you?"

He points his sword at Kristoff. "Look at his eyes. They are glassy." He points at the guards, "so are theirs."

She draws her lips tight and tilts her head up at him. "You are causing it. Are you not?"

He glances down at her and slightly nods. A dried spot on his lip rips open and more blood drains down his chin.

She wanted to know if he understood what was happening. Her hand slides up his back. "I need you to put the sword away."

The tip of the sword presses into his hand and he applies pressure. The sword completely melts as his hands come together.

She slides her hand up the inside of his arm. "I need you to kneel." As he drops to his knees, she slides her other hand up to his neck and generates a cold blast. His eyes slowly close. She whispers, "I am sorry. I love you." She grips his arm and lowers him to the ground.

Blood pools in the small indentations in the stones under his face. She looks up at the crowd and clenches her fist ready to strike if they move closer to her. A short distance away Captain Larsen calls all of the confused guards to a formation near the barracks. Slowly the guards withdraw.

Anna examines the bruises forming on Kristoff's hands. They look around and their eyes clear of the glaze. Anna covers her mouth with her hand as she points to Sam at her sister's feet. Kristoff looks in the direction Anna points and whispers to her. They take several steps towards Elsa.

She raises her palms towards them as a fog of ice crystals surrounds her hands. "Stay back. I will freeze you to the ground."

Anna grabs Kristoff's arm as they stop. "But Elsa, there has been a mistake."

"Yes, there is a mistake," she interrupts and points to the ground. "Whose blood is that?" She sweeps her hand at them. "Who is standing and who is lying on the ground bleeding?"

Anna pulls Kristoff back.

"Back away." Elsa commands at the guards watching her. "All of you back away."

Anna shakes her head as she watches everyone. "I could not control myself. It was the same when we were upstairs."

Elsa lets out an outburst, "I KNOW." With a calmer voice, she peers down at Sam. "I know he was doing it." She steps over him. She places her hands on her waist. "He is still quite active. I can feel his emotions dying down. Please, no one gets any closer until he is completely out."

Captain Larsen stations a guard every several feet in a circle at a radius distance Anna was from her sister. A guard hands Larsen two horse blankets. He folds it under his arm and walks towards his Queen.

Elsa holds her palms towards Larsen. "What are you doing? He is not out."

Larsen continues walking towards her. "I know. I can feel his energy also." Her hands glisten as ice forms around them. He stops. "Your Majesty, he affects me as he is affecting you."

"How?"

"A year before your coronation, I was knocked off my horse in a training exercise and busted my ribs." Larsen points to Sam. "He healed my ribs and a few other ailments. He said his energy had to be in sync with the patient in order to heal them. I don't recall hearing a report that you were injured and yet you are standing there over him. My Queen, we are not the only ones he has healed and can stand in his presence as others cannot.

Elsa lowers her hands. "Who are the others?"

"I only know of a few, Lieutenant Niles, Six of the castle guards, and I hear of at least one adult and three children from the town," Larsen answers.

Her head shakes as she stares down at him. "It will be several hours before he is completely calm."

"Well past dark," Larsen says as he searches the sky.

She nods her head in agreement, then glances at Larsen, "Where are the six guards?"

He sweeps his hand to the six in the circle around her. "We need to get him into a more defensible position instead of out here in the open."

She observes the few other guards in the courtyard and those on the wall. Anyone could attack. "I agree and I know where he can stay that will minimize the effect of the staff." She steps to Larsen and grabs his arm. "Get him ready to be moved into the castle." She leans closer and whispers. "If you are lying to me, I will rip out your frozen heart and show it to you as you bleed to death."

He smiles. "I understand completely. No harm will come to him." He moves to Sam and waves the six guards over to him.

She walks towards the castle doors where Kai and Gerda stand. "Clear the castle of all staff members. They will exit through the servants' door and stay by the stables until you call them back. Captain Larsen will take care of the guards. Once you are sure everyone is out, both of you stay out. I am going to put him in the room next to my room."

Gerda touches her arm. "Majesty, he doesn't affect us. He did shortly after we met him, but we are in sync with him."

Her left brow rises up. "He healed the both of you?"

Kai smiles to her. "We know he took you to his snow-capped mountain. Do you think you were the first?"

She points her finger at them. "I definitely have to talk to the two of you. You have five minutes." She walks down the steps.

Anna approaches her.

"I do not have time right now. I need to get him to a safe place before anyone decides to take another shot at him." She continues to walk past her.

"I am sorry," Anna lowers her head and turns back to the direction she walked.

Elsa stops and closes her eyes for a few seconds. She turns back to her sister. "Anna wait." She places her arms around her shoulders. "I am sorry too. We have to find a way for Sam to be emotional calm without anyone wanting to kill him."

Anna places her head on her sister's shoulder and wraps her arms around her. She whispers, "I could not control myself. I watched them beat him and I wanted to join them."

"It is ok. I will come up with something." She replies, kissing Anna's forehead. "You are my sister and Kristoff will soon be your husband. Family comes first. He will be all right outside of the Queendom."

Anna lifts her head. "Elsa no! Despite you and him denying the attraction you two have for each other, you deserve happiness."

"What if he cannot control it? My happiness will be meaningless if my Queendom and you are at a constant strife with him."

Anna steps back and points to him. "What does he say? He has been in Arendelle for several years. Unless you know or Captain Larsen knows, I have not heard of this type of incidence until now." Arm in arm, they both watch the guards wrap Sam in the horse blankets. "How is it they do not appear to be affected?"

"The Captain says at one point he and they were injured. In order for Sam to heal them he has to sync their energy to him."

Anna glances at her. "When did he heal you?"

She hesitates for a moment and wrinkles her brow as she turns to Anna, "He has not. I have never been seriously injured." She peeks back at Sam. "Why does he not affect me?"

Gerda stops next to them. "His room is ready. The castle is cleared." She motions to the Captain who gives the order for the guards to lift Sam to their shoulders. Gerda comments, "Princess Anna, you will be safer with Kristoff in the stables with Sven."

Anna smiles at her sister. "I know you will figure this out."

Elsa watches Anna slide her arm around Kristoff's waist. He waves at her and they turn to walk towards the stables. The guards carrying Samuel walk past her. Even in Sam's sleep state, she feels his energy sweeping over her. His energy dissipates as quickly as it started, as if she had passed into and out of a bubble. She glances back at Sam's body.

 _What if I cannot find a solution? What if the only choice left is to banish you?_

She blinks her emotions away before they disrupt her duties to her Queendom. Anna and Kristoff enter the stables. Sand crunches under a pair boots next to her.

"They make such a nice couple," Captain Larsen comments. "What were you thinking about?"

 _Great, did he see my emotions?_ She looks at him. "Do you know why I am not affected by his energy?"

He smiles. "From my vantage point, you were quite affected by him."

"Explain."

"You took on the sixteen guards to get them away from him, and then stood over him." He walks towards the barracks and comments over his shoulder. "Like a mother protecting her cub."

She watches Larsen. _What did he mean by that?_ _Did he just say I was a momma bear protecting him?_

"Wait, what did you mean by that?" Larsen does not respond, but points to the upper floors of the castle. She looks towards Sam's bedroom. "What am I going to do with you?"

A guard glances in her direction. She searches the yard. Everyone goes about their business trudging through the snow as if it was a common occurrence. She walks up the steps and into the castle.

Sam opens his eyes and is greeted by the pink canopy above the bed. "Before you ask, it is a temporary situation until I can get you a different bed." Elsa leans over him and waves her hand in front of his face. "Are you in there? Hello, Sam?"

"Pink is pretty in a dress or in a little girl's room. Have I changed that much."

A giggle comes forth before she could swallow it. "Your sense of humor seems to be working." Her fingers run through his hair. "How do you feel?"

"I'm sure my face looks like mush."

"It could have been worse if I had not applied a layer of ice. There is some swelling, but you can heal it."

He turns his head to her. "Unless you are offended by it, I'll let it heal on its own. It will give everyone and me a reminder of what happened. A couple of weeks and you will never know it happened." He squints at her.

"What?"

"Are you lying next to me?"

Her right brow rises. "Are you offended?" With the noticeable hesitation, she sits up on the edge of the bed.

His hand touches the blue sleeve on her arm. "Wait . . . what would Anna say if she barges in here and sees you?"

She turns her head with a devilish grin looking over her shoulder. "Do you really believe I would allow her to catch me in a compromising position?"

A thud echoes from the door, followed by a muffled, "What the!" A soft knock comes from the door. "Elsa, are you ok?"

She whispers, "You knew she was there."

He chuckles and whispers, "Just a few seconds before her shoulder impacted the door."

"Elsa, is he awake? I hear whispering?" Anna asks.

He chuckles, then moans as he grabs his face in pain. After a moment he opens his eyes. She watches him a little longer then stands. She starts to move, but he grabs her hand.

With a gentle smile, she turns to him.

He asks, "What do you wish to do?"

Her gaze drifts to the floor as her smile fades.

He lets go of her hand. "Do what is right for your family."

"You make this so hard. Will you feel this way a few minutes from now, or an hour?" She leans against the bed and places her hand over his heart. "This is what I want to hear and feel."

The door handle rattles. She walks to the door and he closes his eyes to listen. The lock clicks and she slips out the door, closing it behind her.

"What are you doing here? He can still affect you this close," Elsa says.

"He is not affecting me now. Why was the door locked?" Anna asks.

"It was locked for the very reason you slammed your shoulder into the door and to keep others from charging in." Elsa answers. "Why are you smiling?"

"How do you know my shoulder hit the door?"

"Shoulder, head, it does not make a difference. You tried to walk in without asking."

"He is awake. That is why he is not affecting me. Does he know what happened and how to prevent it from occurring again?" Anna asks.

Sam does not hear a response. He rolls out of the bed and staggers into the side table. He leans on the table and examines the room as a sharp pain shoots up his foot.

 _The only piece of furniture and my little toe finds it._ He flexes his toes. The pain is quite less as compared to his face. The door opens and Elsa steps in trying to keep Anna out.

He says, "It's ok, she can come in here."

"No, it is not" Elsa replies.

Anna gasps with a sharp inhale. The door closes. He hears a soft mumble then Anna distressed, "I am so sorry. I did not know."

He hears Elsa but decides to leave them to their privacy.

Pouring water into the bowl, he stares at the unrecognizable face in the water. "No wonder Anna squealed at me. They did a pretty good job on my face and yet she still saw my green eyes."

A cold hand touches his shoulder. "Yes, they did and yes she did."

He turns his face away from her. "How can you look at me?"

She steps to his other side and places her cold hand on his bruised face. "Because I have seen your heart. If this is what I get to look at every morning, then so be it."

He tries to smile, but the pain stabs his face. "Do you really mean it or just hope I can heal it to the way it was?"

She grabs his arm and forcibly turns him to her. "Samuel Christopher Ryan, do not talk to me like that. I care for you. You are my friend. I am sorry I did not stop it sooner. I know it may be hard for you to trust me right now, when you have no reason to trust. Please give me a chance."

She lifts his chin. "I have heard you say the eyes are the windows into one's soul. Do you believe that?" With a moment of hesitation he nods. She holds his hand against her face. "Then look into my eyes and see my soul as you scan my thoughts."

His eyes dart back and forth between her eyes. He detects no deception. Long ago, another woman asked him to do the exact same thing. She had beautiful brown eyes and his trust in her was repaid thousands of times over. In the end he lost the trust in himself. Here he is staring into the most beautiful blue eyes that has captured his heart. There is no deceit in her. He is just one more problem added to her plate of responsibility. He places her hands over his heart. "I make this promise to you. I promise to never scan your mind without your permission, except in a safety issue for you. There may be a time in which I will ask permission, but only you can nullify the promise."

With a gentle smile she lays her head against his chest and wraps her arms around his body. He slides his arms around her and generates a blue field that surrounds the both of them.

After a few minutes he says, "I'm sorry I have messed it up for you."

"You have not messed anything up. I am sure we can find a compatible solution to your energy affecting everyone."

"Mom would have loved you."

"What?" she looks up at him.

"I never knew my biological mother. My adoptive mother said similar things you say. I remember she always listened to me and gave me great advice that I still use today. She never judged me, but helped me to understand why I felt the way I did at the moment. I think maybe that is why I seem standoffish at times."

He stares at her eyes. "I don't want you to ever be afraid of me despite myself. Don't let me bull you over. Of course, you may have to send me to my room to calm down. But please," His head turns from side to side, "never be afraid."

"I accept your promise and I will make a promise to you. I trust you will keep me safe along with Anna and Kristoff. If you state my circumstance is in danger, I will not hesitate to follow your instruction to get me to safety."

With a painful smile, "I accept your promise. The last time I made a promise to a beautiful young lady, we kissed to seal the deal. Unfortunately, with the pain in my face, it will not have the same effect."

She tilts her head slightly, "I like that. We can seal the deal when you are feeling better."

"Good, I need to lie down and concentrate." He gradually turns and she slides her arm around his waist hooking his side. He allows her to control his direction. "You know, if I fall on you, you will be in a lot of pain."

"I do not think you will let that happen."

He falls onto the bed with a moan. She rolls him onto his side. Her hand touches the back of his neck.

"Wait." With his arm up, he says, "Grab my arm."

She gently grasps his arm.

"If you generate a hard blast for one second, back off and generate a light frost. For each second of the light frost will be the number of days I will sleep. You will know the hard blast was not cold enough when I wake up several minutes later. Now practice on my arm."

She stares at his arm. "Have I been doing it correctly?"

"You have, but the sleep duration is too random. What would have happened if I woke up before the guards got me out of the yard? This is a more precise method."

"Okay," she grabs his arm and generates a one second hard blast of cold, then three seconds of the frost.

"How many seconds?"

Hesitantly, she answers, "Three seconds."

"Correct, don't count the hard blast. Just be careful when you go longer than five seconds, you need to accurately count the seconds, not too fast or too slow."

He looks over his shoulder back at her. "This is one of the hardest things I have revealed. If the blast is too long my body will defend itself before I can control it, but you have already seen what can happen." He forces a smile. "Elsa, I am grateful how you handled me waking up early from the healing process."

She pushes his arm down. "Stop before you make me cry." She places her hand on the back of his neck. "Go to sleep sweet Prince." Her hand shoots a one second hard blast followed by a five second frost then rolls him onto his back.

She kisses her fingers and touch them to his lips. She steps out of his room and closes the door quietly and bumps into Anna wearing the 'I got you' grin. "How long have you been standing there?"

"Long enough to hear two promises. When will you seal the deal?" Anna asks with a smirk.

"Soon, we need to talk." She slides her arm around her sister's arm and they walk down the hall.

For three days Elsa tries to maintain her schedule of appointments. In her private study room, she sits at the small table. She smiles at her sister watching her from across the table. Kai hands her the afternoon's itinerary. The door opens and a staffer brings in her lunch. A quick glance at the itinerary shows one appointment for three o'clock, but a question mark follows the person's name, Brigit.

As long as she is working with others, time passes. When she is alone, time takes forever to pass. Her mind wanders back to the scene where they beat him. Small red pools on the courtyard stones collected his blood dripping from his face. She saw several blood drops disrupt the pool's surface to create a shimmer of sparkles. For a moment the sparkles flashed a light brighter than the daylight, but the others doing the beating did not notice the sparkles. As quickly as they flashed, the sparkles disappeared with the calming on the pools motion, until the next blood drop fell. Her hesitation of watching the sparkles cost Sam two more hits to his face, before she covered them with snow.

She picks up Captain Larsen's report.

 _Okay, these reports are not going to read themselves._

Six of the twelve injured guards returned to their duties this morning, with four scheduled to return this afternoon. The other two will be confined to light duties until their broken arms are healed.

 _This morning, I thought they were back to duty yesterday?_

She turns the report over and sees it is marked with yesterday's date. Her breath exhales with a little extra force. The report gets stuffed at the bottom of the stack of parchments. She flips through the stack and pulls out today's guard report.

Ten guards are making minor repairs to the stables. The two on light duties are painting the outside of the stables.

 _Painting and repairs? That is too easy for them._

Captain Larsen said it would be unfair to punish them harshly, since they were under the influence of Sam's energy, as was Anna and Kristoff. The Captain has sound judgement maybe that is why Sam praises him.

 _At least, I do not have to hire someone to fix up the stables._

The clock tower chimes once. She looks towards the open window. A clanging of metal on metal draws her attention back to the table.

Anna picks her knife off the table and sets it on her plate with the fork. "I did not mean to startle you. The knife slipped out of my hand." Anna stares at her. She glances at her sisters barely eaten meal, then back to her, then back to her plate.

Elsa rolls her eyes, "What are you trying to say?"

Anna leans towards her. "Do you really want me to say it?"

"I am not hungry."

"That is not what I am talking about." She nods her head towards the wall. "It has been three days. Do you know, if he is alive or not?" She glances at the report. "That is the same report you started reading thirty minutes ago." She touches her sister's hand. "You stayed calm and submerged yourself in your work. I could not do that knowing they hurt my Kristoff. I would be out there beating them with a horse whip and throwing each of them into the fjord."

"And what would that accomplish?"

Anna lets out a sigh. "Nothing, I am just as guilty as they are." She crosses her arms.

Elsa pats her arm. "Anna, this is so frustrating." She places her fork on the table. "Even if I were to spend all of my awake time on managing Arendelle, I would not have time for you, let alone for him." She leans back in her chair to stare across the room.

"Can you see him through the wall?"

Elsa rolls her head back to her beloved sister who searches the wall and motions like she sees something. She cannot help but to smile. Anna smiles back at her.

"No, I cannot see him. I know you may not understand, but he has experience controlling a large organization." She shakes her head. "If I can persuade him to assist me for a short period of time, I could catch up on everything and spend quality time with you."

"Do I look like I was born yesterday? It has been three days. I am surprised you have not gone into his room to check on him."

Elsa glances away. She looks in every direction except towards her sister.

"Wait . . . You did go into his room." Anna grins as she shakes Elsa's arm. "How does he look? Did the swelling go down? They did not hurt any other part of him, did they?"

Now she sighs, looking at her sister for some sympathy. "The truth is, I went into his room every evening and every morning. He is a sound sleeper. He has not moved since I helped him to fall asleep."

"If he has not moved, how do you know he is alive?"

Her fingers automatically tug on her ear lobe, as she looks in the direction of his room. "I put my ear on his chest and heard his heart beating as of this morning."

With a non-emotional face, Anna asks, "What does he smell like?" She waits a few seconds and asks, "Do not tell me you held your breath while listening to his heart."

She throws up her hands. "Ok, I did hold my breath. He has been there three days."

Anna smiles grabbing her hand and shaking it. "The more you are around him the less you will notice, unless he works out like Kristoff does when he harvests the ice. Olaf picked up on the pungent reindeer before I did." She pinches her nose and crosses her eyes.

Elsa laughs at Anna's expression. Since she ordered the gates open, this is what she wanted for Anna and her to spend more time together. The fond memories of long ago remind her of the fun they had.

Outside of the window someone yells, "Hey, what are you doing? Get out of the way."

She and Anna run to the window. They do not see anything out of the unusual, but they hear, "Go tell our Queen."

Elsa and Anna look at each other and they run out the room. They meet a guard at the bottom of the stairs.

Anna asks, "What is the yelling about?"

The out of breath guard replies, "Sam is out there."

"Good Lord, not again." Elsa runs past the guard and out the main doors with Anna close behind her.

A grinning Captain Larsen stands at the bottom of the steps pointing his open hand towards the castle's wall.

Elsa holds her hand to block the sun reflecting off the partially melted morning's snow. She searches and spots small staggered clumps of ice clinging to the wall.

"The sad fact is the gate was open and he could have gone through it instead of climbing the wall." Larsen chuckles.

Anna asks, "What's so funny."

"Wait until you see what he is doing now."

 **End of Chapter**


	60. Chapter 59 The Decision

**Title: Chapter 60: The Decision**

 **3 year 20 days until correction**

Time: 4:20 pm

A light flurry of snow adds to the layer of snow from the morning. Elsa follows Larsen out the side gate down to the water's edge. Several of Arendelle's females wave to her from the bridge. A splash draws her attention to the tanned body standing waist deep in the water. Sam soaps up his upper body. A couple of ladies whistles and wave from the bridge. Her breath catches as he waves back at them.

She raises her hand and throws. The snowball hits the back of his head. Sam stumbles and falls with his face leading the way into the water. His head slowly rises out of the water. For a second, two blue orbs change to his normal eye color as they break the surface. He wipes the water off his face and with a smile he waves to her. A loud laughter erupts from the bridge.

Her finger motions for him to come to her. Sam continues to watch her as he gives his hair a good soaping and scrubbing. He slips under the water and a trail of soap suds rising to the surface reveal his movement towards her. His white bottom breaks the surface and brings hoots and whistles from the bridge.

Anna steps close to the water's edge. She picks up a shirt and pants. "Uh Elsa, he is not wearing his pants." Another round of hoots and hollers echo from the bridge calling for Sam to stand up.

Elsa eyes the women making the noise on the bridge. Frost forms around her hands. Several snowballs will cool them off. She regains control of her emotions and stands in her regal pose with her hand clasped together in front. _Could this get worse?_

One of the men standing on the wharf yells, "Sam stand up and give the ladies something to laugh at."

Of course they have to add to the humiliation. _Sam, do not embarrass me anymore. I should have sent Larsen to drag you to a cell._ She focuses her glare at him. _I thought you had it under control._

Time 4:25pm

Kristoff walks up to Anna. "Why is he out there?"

Anna snickers, "Sam is taking a bath and left his clothes here on the shore."

He whispers to Anna. "Has he forgotten the castle has indoor plumbing?" He turns his head towards the bridge then towards the wharf. "Is his energy influencing them?"

Elsa passes behind them as she slowly shakes her head. "Truthfully, I did not know if he knows of the plumbing, but I am sure his energy is not influencing them. I just did not know Arendelle had so many wanting women to ogle a naked man."

Kristoff whispers, "I talked to Grand Pabbie. He said he could help, but . . ."

She glances at him. He motions with his head and walks towards the wall. "Anna, do not give him his clothes just yet."

As her brows rise Anna grins.

Elsa walks up the shore. Kristoff has always been forthcoming in expressing himself. It could not be good if he does not want Anna to hear him.

Kristoff steps next to her with his back towards the water.

"I detect a problem when you stop on the 'but'." She watches Anna tease Sam with his clothes. "What did Grand Pabbie say? Can he help Sam or not?"

Kristoff stares at her for a moment. "Grand Pabbie says he can change Sam . . . where he can control his energy, but you may not like the results."

She hears what he is saying, but it is what he's not saying that is becoming disturbing. Even Sam warned her, she may have to make a difficult decision about him. The answer has to benefit the greater good above all, if she is to remain Queen.

"What results? As it stands now, if he cannot control his energy, he has to go. Anna and you are my family. I will do whatever I have to do to protect the two of you and Arendelle from him."

From the bridge a female's voice yells, "Make him dance, Princess Anna"

She glances over his shoulder. "For the greater good, what are the results I may not like?"

"Ok, I will support you any way I can. I don't know if I could choose one way or the other." Kristoff peeks back at Anna and takes a deep breath. "Grand Pabbie said this is not the first time his energy has had a negative effect on humans . . . and trolls."

She leans close to him and whispers, "Explain?"

He looks up at the bridge. "When he first crashed here, Pabbie had a troll follow him to determine if Sam needed to die before coming to Arendelle."

Her hand automatically covers her mouth before she utters something she may regret. She did not know Pabbie was prepared to kill him. She steps back and remembers every time the trolls are mentioned. Sam would get quiet or walk away.

Kristoff continues. "I had a similar reaction. Grand Pabbie determined Sam was influencing the troll. Evidently he and the troll had an altercation. Pabbie would not say what it was, but did say if you bring Sam there, he could help him to control it."

"But I may not like the results," she interrupts. Kristoff nods. She turns her head away from him. What if Pabbie thought Sam was a danger as he had been in the past. What if Pabbie underestimated Sam? What if a troll dies as the result of fighting them? Her hand shakes as she presses it against her chest. Anna will side with Kristoff and his family. Why do I have to choose between Anna and him?

Kristoff touches her arm. They hear a commotion and turn their heads towards Anna.

"You got my dress wet." Anna ties the pant legs into a knot and shoves rocks in them. "I will throw your pants onto the bridge." A loud cheer comes from the bridge as the ladies yell for Anna to throw the pants at them.

Sam lowers his body into the water holding up his arms towards Anna. "Ok, ok, I made a mistake, I apologize for getting your dress wet. I will do whatever you ask if you will give me my pants back."

"No, No, make him walk out of the water." they call from the bridge.

She points her finger at him. "You promise?"

"Yes," Sam replies as he bows his head and hands.

"Did he say what the results are?" Elsa asks.

"No, he said he needs to talk to you first and to let him know before you bring him, so he can prepare his family. If he goes through it, it will take several hours."

Elsa watches Sam. For her family, she decides, "Would this evening be too soon?"

Kristoff looks at Anna. "Let me get a bite to eat and I'll head back. Wait at least two hours after I leave before you depart. That should give Pabbie enough time. If not I'll meet you on the road or I'll be back before you leave."

She hugs him. "Thank you, I know you two have not been the best of friends as of late. You and Anna are my family and will come before him for the time being." She turns to Anna. "Give him his clothes so you can spend a little time with Kristoff."

Anna dumps the rocks out of the pants and drops them on the shore. "This has been fun. We need to do it again sometime." She quickly walks up the shore and holds Kristoff's arm. They stroll towards the gate.

Time: 4:45pm

Elsa walks to the water's edge and picks up the pants with her finger. She waves her other hand, creating an ice wall the same color as the water. She turns her back to him. A choir of disapproval comes from the bridge. She hears him stepping out of the water, then snatches his pants. She asks, "Well?"

There is a moment of silence behind her. "Well, what?"

"Are you going to thank me for saving you the embarrassment from the bridge?"

Several minutes pass with only the sound of the fjord brushing against the shore and a splash against the ice wall. The women grumble and laugh as they head back across the bridge. A breeze blows across the water, bringing the familiar smells of the salty ocean. Anna and Kristoff pass through the gates. Four guards watch the surrounding area. These are the same guards assigned to her since the great thaw. At times, they have become invisible to her. One at a time they look in her direction. They are close, but would they be close enough to stop Sam.

Sand and rocks crunch behind her. Her body tenses. She senses him behind her. Everything she heard moments ago fades into silence. Droplets of water splash on her shoulder as two large hands lightly touch her upper arms. She moves her eyes. The dark water stains against her pale skin. Before she can turn her head to the other side a pair of lips brush against her shoulder. A shiver radiates through her body.

His lips lightly move across her shoulder to her neck. She doesn't dare look back at the bridge to see who is gawking at them. She is glad no one is saying anything if they can see them. Why would he not do this when they were alone in her room? The many times they were alone in the castle he could have sneaked a kiss. Too many times she desired to steal a kiss from him when he was not looking.

 _Am I no different from the women on the bridge? Why did you have to do this now? You have made my decision harder. I am sorry. I have to do what is right for Anna and Arendelle._

His lips and hands withdraw. Rocks and the sand shift as he steps back. She clamps down on her emotions before her body acts on her desire to wrap her arms around him.

In a whisper he says, "My apology, Majesty, I crossed a line and will accept any punishment you deem fitting for me."

She glances back. He holds his head down with his hand clinched next to his upper thighs. "Put your shirt on and follow me."

He follows a short distance behind her as she walks up the path to the gate. The ice wall melts back into the fjord,

A young female's voice calls from the bridge, "you're in trouble, aren't you?"

Sam replies, "I am a healthy male. You didn't see what I was looking at. It will be worth it"

The female giggles, "Does this mean you can't go fishing with us tomorrow?"

"It depends on my punishment."

"Ok, we will be by the last pier if you get to go. Sam, I still think you are funny, and good luck with that."

Elsa stops and twirls around quickly as she places her hands on her waist. She does not see anyone on the bridge. "Who were you talking to up there?"

He slowly raises his head. "Kristen, she is the daughter of Brigit."

Her right brow rises. "She sounds very young."

He looks towards the bridge. "I think she is twelve."

"And you go fishing with her?"

"With her brother, Erik, his friend Andrea, and Andrea's two friends Emma and Edvard, we try to go at least once a week."

"I have never been fishing?"

He places his hands behind his back and with a slight smile he asks, "Do you want to go fishing?"

She remembers looking out the window that day. Papa carried Anna on his shoulder. One of the few times he did not wear his royal coat. A guard followed behind them with their fishing poles. That is what momma said. When they passed through the gates, she ran up to the attic and saw the guard rowing a small boat out into the fjord. She could barely see them. She remembers her mother asking what she was doing there as she wiped the tears off her cheeks. She remembered replying to her mother. 'Why can I not go?'

"Yes, one day I would like to try." She leads him back to the castle in silence.

Time 5:20pm

Sitting at her desk, Elsa adds the finishing touches to her letter. The door opens. The not so cheery face of her sister enters her study. "Did Kristoff leave?"

Anna flops down in the reclining chair and lets out a long sigh. "Yeah, he left several minutes ago." She rests her head on the chair's arm. "I wish I could go with him. He did not say why he was leaving, but said it was important." She sighs again.

Elsa snickers.

Anna looks up with her sad eyes, "What is so funny?"

"You are."

"Do not laugh at me," Anna says with another sigh.

She points the quill at her. "I am laughing at you because Kristoff did not tell you he is doing something for me, and you want me to tell you what it is."

Anna sits up. "And why do I not get to know?"

"Because with your emotions you are the easiest for him to read."

Elsa places the quill next to the document. Enough time has passed for the ink to dry. Folding the letter and dropping a glob of wax to seal it, she stamps the Arendelle Crest into the wax. At the appropriate time, Kai will open the letter. There are enough detailed instruction should something go wrong with Sam and the trolls. She caresses the parchment and positions it in the center of her desk. The Crest stamp lies across one corner of the parchment and the quill lies across the opposite corner. Her decision has been made. She will not go back and hopes the seal will never be broken. It is time.

She turns her attention to her sister. "Anna, I do not want anything to happen to you so please do not ask any more questions. By the end of the day or tomorrow, you will have your answers."

Anna smiles, "Does it have to do with Sam washing in the fjord?"

"You are dreadful for asking that."

Anna wrinkles her nose at her. "So where is the naked white bottom beast?"

"You are going to keep it up until you get your answer?" she asks narrowing her eyes.

With a big smile Anna nods rapidly.

Elsa crosses her arms and sits back in her chair. "Ok, I re-introduced him to the castle plumbing when we got back. He is in my room, taking a bath."

Anna sits up. "I knew it. You know, if you let him use your tub too many times it will become harder to get him to leave. He may begin to want something else. What are you going to do?"

"ANNA, get your mind out of the mud. This is just for the one time." She leans against the desk. After a few seconds she picks up the quill and writes Kai's name on the letter.

Anna fidgets in the chair. A long sigh sounds as she forces herself out of the chair and drags her feet across the floor. The door opens.

Elsa relents. "He should be back within two hours. If not, you can accompany me when I get ready to leave within two hours."

Anna's normal bubbly expression answers. "Thank you."

The door closes.

Time: 6:30pm

Elsa pulls the light green shawl over her shoulders and reaches into the pocket of her green dress. Her knee high brown boots echo across the lower hall's stone floor. Kai holds the door open. She hands him a letter with the Arendelle crest. "I hope you will not need to open this, but if you do, I expect you to follow the instructions explicitly. I will ask for it if I get back."

"Yes, Majesty, I will," Kai answers. He touches her arm just as she steps past him. "It will be all right. Please have faith in him."

She glances back. "You have been good to our family and I know you will continue in the near future, but this will end one way or the other after tonight. Thank you for your encouraging words."

Standing on the top steps, Elsa searches the area. No one in sight, not even the guards are posted along the walls, only Captain Larsen stands by the main gates. He bows to her, then steps behind the open gate.

A flash across the dark sky draws her attention to the stars. Another meteor streaks across the sky. It takes a little longer to disappear. The light breeze that met her when she exited the castle has also disappeared. The stillness of the night rings the silence. A torch crackles and pops.

She nods to Kai. He walks back into the castle as she moves down the steps and stands next to Kristoff's sled mounted on wheels.

She turns towards the castle's doors and bows her head as she closes her eyes.

" _Sam . . . Sam . . . there you are. Please come down stairs. I am taking a little trip into the mountains for a couple of hours. You will escort me. Yes, we will talk. . . No, bring just what you're wearing. Ok, I am waiting for you."_ She opens her eyes and stands in her regal pose.

A few minutes later, Sam walks out the door and focuses on her as she expected. The torches by the door cast a large shadow of him over her. An outline of his body flickers with orange and yellow flames behind him. Halfway down the steps he points to the front of the sled. "Why is Sven or a horse not attached to the sled?"

Sam stops in front of her. His shadow fully encompasses her. He stares down at her without dropping his head. His eyes twinkles with the tiny sparks from the torches along the walls. With a partial smile she places her hand on his cheek. "Until you can show me you can control your energy without affecting anyone else, I cleared the area until we get away from Arendelle."

"Oh," His eyes dart back and forth searching her eyes. He motions towards the stables. "Well, I'll get Aurora and race ahead. I'll meet you outside of the walls."

Sam was correct. When he taught her to block out her emotion and focus on a person, she would begin to feel that person's emotions. As he said, when she is in tune with the person she will know the emotional state of the person. She detects his confidence giving way to confusion and uncertainty. She needs to help him to maintain control.

"Can you guarantee you will not affect anyone as you pass through Arendelle?"

He peers into the darkness of the courtyard and shakes his head as he looks down. "No, I cannot. I guess I'm riding in the back."

Elsa lifts his chin. How many times did her father lift her chin to give her encouragement? "It will be just for a short time until we get past the outer walls."

Sam nods and moves to the end of the sleigh. He kneels on one knee and holds out his hand. She holds his hand and steps onto his knee to step into the sled. He slides onto the sled, then crawls towards her.

She points to the side. "Lay on your side facing out."

She kneels behind him and adjusts a pillow as he lays his head on it. She detects greater confusion in him. His fear begins to affect her as her heart pounds in her chest. She needs to be quick before he overwhelms her emotionally. Her hand glistens with a layer of ice as she touches the back of his neck.

"Elsa?"

She leans over him so he can see her. "Yes?"

"Is this a case of 'X' number of individual leave, and 'X-1'number of individuals return to the castle?" he turns his head and focuses on her eyes.

With a smile she answers, "No, nothing like that. I will be with you the entire time."

He returns a smile to her and turns his head to allow greater access to the back of his neck. The fear and confusion leaves him. His smile fades as he closes his eyes. He whispers, "This is correct. I trust you will do what is right for Arendelle. It will be ok."

She generates a one second cold blast follow by two seconds of a frosty cold. His body relaxes and takes a deep breath. She lightly kisses his cheek. "Good night my sweet Prince."

Captain Larsen runs up to the sled. He helps to roll Sam onto his back. "Are you sure I can't send a detachment of guards with you, at least until you get close to the valley?"

"No, that will draw too much attention to us." She rest her hand on Sam's chest, "He is asleep for the moment, but if anyone comes close, he would be out of this sled before I could stop him."

"As you wish." He signals to the guards. Anna and Kristoff walk Sven to the front of the sleigh and harness him to it. Elsa lies on her side next to Sam. The guards place a framed canvas cover over them, which allows some room for movement without revealing someone is underneath it. Once they had the frame secured, Larsen pulls the cover near their heads back, "Last time, your Majesty, I can send these four guards with you."

She answers with a slight nod. "No thank you Captain, we will manage."

He nods to her and assist Anna into the front seat. Kristoff rocks the sled as he climbs on.

Anna holds the sled's lamp and peeks over the seat. "Aw, you appear so natural next to him."

She looks up. "One problem at a time. Anytime you are ready, Mister Kristoff. Take your time. We have a couple of hours before he wakes up."

"Yes ma'am," He grabs the reins. "Ok, Sven, Sam owes you a bunch of carrots." Sven bugles and pulls the sleigh at a leisure pace.

Elsa rests her head on his shoulder. Her hand over his heart feels the beats of a consistent rhythm. She visually explores his face. With each miniscule scar she wonders what adventure caused it. The small curved indentation above his left eye appears hardly noticeable. A gift from his horse, Aurora. A day that changed everything for Arendelle. Maybe it is just one of many days that changed his life. Unfortunately, that was the day he started to lose control of his energy. His erratic behavior seems to have started after that incident.

In the shadow of the seat she notices he breathes out a small amount of mist under his nose. She watches it, then it fades.

 _Why would your God allow such a thing to happen to you? Will he hear my prayer if I pray for you?_

Sam inhales a deep breath. Her hand rides the movement of his chest. His heart beat slows. His hand moves next to his side and places his smallest finger on her hand. She slides her hand closer to him. His fingers cup her hand. She shifts her body closer. The hint of a smile forms on his face.

The sleigh bumps as it rolls off the street and onto the ground. She moves his arm behind her and snuggles closer to him as she rests her head on his shoulder. Her leg hooks above his knee. He takes a deep breath. His hand in the small of her back pushes her closer.

Anna asks, "Is everything ok back there?"

"We are doing fine," Elsa replies. The lamp swings up to reveal a more noticeable smile on his lips. A calming sensation sweeps over her. She smiles back at him as she closes her eyes.

Time: 6:45pm

The temperature drops considerably. A gust of wind blows in her face. Elsa moves her arms. Her hands clench to the sound of soft snow crunching. The tighter she clenches the more resistance presses against her hand and the colder they feel. Hard pellets sting her face. She rolls onto her side and opens her eyes. Everything is white. She sits up. Everywhere is white. No sounds but she feels the wind and the cold temperature.

"Cold! The cold does not bother me. Why do I feel cold?"

She rubs her arms, but they get cold again when she stops. Her hand waves in the air for the magic, but it does not come. Her body suffers the sting of the cold. She cannot stay here and must find shelter. She blows into the cup of her hands and a cloud of vapors rises between her fingers. The vapors solidify and rain tiny pellets onto the snow at her feet. That has never happened to her before. Is this what Anna felt freezing on the fjord as she saved her from Han's blade? Is this what it feels like to freeze and not be able to get warm?

Elsa searches in all directions. Without a reference she is not able to determine distances. The wind seems to be traveling from one direction. Does she move with the wind or against it? A flash of light appears to come from everywhere. Her surroundings change. The sky darkens giving a contrast with the ground. Even though the wind continues to blow, its strength lessens. The snow crunches as though someone is walking on it and it is getting closer. She spots a gray figure in the direction of the wind. The wind lessens more as the shadow gets closer. Something seems familiar about it. The closer the shadow gets, the more definition forms with it. It appears to be a man, but the wind suddenly changes directions and the shadow displays, sparkling long hair that would have blended into the background if it was not for the blue sparkles.

An appendage extends from the shadow and a large teal gloved hand stops in front of her. Does she hold it? Does she run and if so where? She shifts her weight and catches a glimpse of a pattern on the back of the hand. Her head moves and she recognizes her snowflake. Her hand rests in the glove. The fingers gently surrounds her hand and creates a familiar sensation. She stares at the hand. It looks like his hand, but not his hand. She looks at its face. Is he another one?

"Are you Samuel?"

The sky clears to the blue of Samuel's snow covered mountain. A wave sweeps across the snow and calms the winds. His dark gray trouser and black boots clash with the snow. His long white hair settles on his shoulders covered with a blue shirt that transitions to a forest green around his waist. His hazel eyes are unmistakable. She has seen only one set of those colored eyes.

He smiles, but not the smile of her Samuel. When he moves his head the faint colors of the rainbow glistens off his flesh. For a fraction of a second after the rainbow passes his flesh shines a light emerald green.

"Why have you not answered me?"

He steps back and bows at the waist. "I am Commander Samuel Ryan from the United Starship Aurora. I was not aware you are familiar with my language. You like the snowflake? Someone special gave it to me."

"Your mother," she interrupts.

His left brow barely flinches up.

"Your mother gave you the symbol. A remembrance of who you are."

He stands motionless for several seconds. With a blink, he lets her hand drop and moves both his hands behind his back. He pivots and walks to the crest of the hill. "You are correct. I see why he gave you his key. Why else could you be in here."

"Wait," she follows him. "I have never seen you before now. What time are you from?"

He stares in the distance. "I understand this is my appearance two years prior to passing through the temporal ribbon which is eight years prior to my ship passing the temporal ribbon again and crashing on your nation." He slightly turns his head towards her. "Which was twenty-three years ago of your time."

A tiny flash sparks on the horizon. She focuses on the point of the flash. A dark mass undulates and folds on itself like when she pours a small amount of cream into a dark liquid, but the mass does not change to a lighter color. Several flashes strike from above the mass to the ground.

"I'm impressed. You see his defenses holding back the invader."

She glances up at him staring at her. For a moment she sees her Samuel and just as fast his flesh glistens with colors then with the emerald green. "What is the invader?"

"Do you not recognize the dark mass?"

"No, I do not. Should I?"

He turns his head back to the horizon. "He was hoping you would." With a shake of his head he continues. "It is too bad. Those flashes are the automatic defense barriers to protect his mind. He is losing the battle. The mass has expanded beyond its original size. The larger it gets, the more resources it takes from his body. Precious resources he needs to control himself."

He faces her. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, do you believe this Pabbie can extract the mass from him?"

"I do not know?"

"That truly is too bad. Are you prepared to make the choice to protect your sister and Arendelle from the monster he will become before the mass kills him?"

"You mean kill him before it is too late. There has to be another way?"

"You saw his effect on a small group of humans. What if all humans in your Queendom attacked each other instead of him? The death of your Queendom will be his gift to you." He turns back to the horizon.

"May I ask you a question?"

"Go ahead."

She notes the rainbow colors crosses his flesh a second after the flashes on the horizon. "Why are you here?"

"I can ask you the same thing. Why are you here? You are lying next to him." He turns his head towards her and stares for a moment. "Do you love him? Don't say yes unless you truly love him. Don't play with his emotions for your own self-gratification."

Who does he think he is? Sam has never talked to her like that. She faces him with her hands on her waist. "Self-gratification, the pain he has inflicted on those around me and Arendelle, I could have banished him the first time I saw him in the side room."

He interrupts, "Why didn't you? If you had, you would not be here now."

Her hands automatically clench. She shifts her weight slightly towards him. "Because he saved my life. If it was not for him my sister would be Queen. I would not have been born."

"You feel obligated to help him because he saved you. You saved him from your friends beating him to death. Sounds like you have paid your debt. Again, I ask, why are you here?"

"Because it is important to him to build his bridge between her world and his world."

His left brow rises and he snickers. "Really, a bridge between him and her." He laughs a roaring laugh and moves several steps away from her. He catches his breath and laughs some more.

Is he laughing at me? If this Samuel is a part of my Samuel, Does he laugh at me as well? "What is so funny?"

"Your innocence and ignorance of him makes me laugh." He stands tall with an emotionless expression. His hand sweeps above his head. The blue sky above them changes to dark blue, then to black speckled with tiny lights. A light in the center blossoms to fill a third of the blackness.

"This is where 'her' is. This is the Sariphan star where she is. Now watch."

A blue light streak from the lower right corner towards the star. A bright flash emits from the center of the star. The sunlight dims to a yellow as it shrinks. A dark spot on the surface grows. The yellow fades creating a dark hole. A brilliant flash causes her to cover her eyes until the light dims enough to see chunks of the star traveling outwards.

He clenches his fist at her until his arm shakes. "The fourth planet from that star contained the inhabitants of over twelve billion souls. A few seconds after the star exploded, they all died."

She glances towards the horizon. "Did he know they were there?

"He removed the personnel from the bridge of his command ship over their objections. His reply to them, 'the war ends now'. The blue streak you saw. He fired the star killing missile so no one could be held responsible." He points to the black void overhead. "You tell me. Did he know they were there? The war ended, but not forgotten."

He turns his back to her and drops to his knees as he stares at his hands. "The beast that killed them is still in here. He is at war with it. If that thing breaks through his barriers, the beast will get out." He glances over his shoulder. "And your chance to save your family will be lost."

Tiny snowflakes begin to break off from his body. He stands. More and more tiny pieces of his body float away in the breeze. "How was I able to show you that event? I was the one who fired the weapon. I killed twelve billion souls. I am a part of him. If you cannot save him, he will destroy you." The last of him fades into the white snowy background.

 **End of Chapter.**


	61. Chapter 60 Trolls

**Title: Chapter 60: Valley of the Rocks**

 **3 year 16 days until correction**

Across the valley floor, Grand Pabbie watches Sven pull a wheeled sleigh with Kristoff and Anna into his domain. He sees the tinted blue glow behind them. It is a correct decision to have the rest of his family hide in the caves until this night is over.

Kristoff waves to Pabbie as the sleigh rolls to a stop. Without a word he assist Anna out of the sleigh and runs to the other side. Together they remove the remove a framed canvas. The blue glow intensifies into a deeper blue surrounding Sam and Elsa.

"Aw, they look cute snuggled together," Anna says.

Kristoff comments, "We need to hurry before he wakes up."

Anna reaches in and shakes her sister's shoulder.

Elsa's eyes slowly open. She looks past Anna and sees the circles and symbols on the boulders. "We are here. I thought it would take longer. I just closed my eyes."

Anna chuckles. "Do you remember me asking if you were ok?" Elsa nods. "That was about an hour ago. We took the long way to get here."

Elsa pushes on Sam as she sits up and stretches her arms. She slides to the end of the sleigh and Kristoff helps her down. She turns towards Sam. "How do we get him off the sleigh?"

Kristoff smiles. "Like this." He grabs both of Sam's feet and pulls until his legs hang over the edge. He grabs his arms and pulls him to a sitting position. "Please do not let him fall back."

Anna and Elsa hold Sam up by his arms. Kristoff turns around and squats low enough to pull Sam's arms over his shoulder. He stand and leans forward, but takes a moment to shift Sam's weight onto his back. Kristoff groans, "What has he been eating?"

He staggers forward. Anna and Elsa step close to steady him, but he replies, "Stand back. I will not be able to stop him, if he falls."

They back away.

Kristoff carries Sam to the troll's meeting circle followed by Anna and Elsa. Holding one arm he slides Sam off his back and lets him roll onto his back. Elsa kneels beside Sam adjusting his arms and his head into a more comfortable position.

Anna touches Elsa's shoulder, "You really do like him?"

Elsa smiles and stammers as her emotions choke her words. "He . . . he needs me."

Pabbie sitting on an upper tier level jumps down to the ground.

Kristoff asks, "Grand Pabbie is everything's ready."

Pabbie replies, "You and Anna go see Bulda. She has a meal for the two of you. I need some time to talk to Queen Elsa."

Kristoff and Anna walk towards the back of the circle where Bulda greets them and leads them into a cave.

Pabbie walks up to Elsa and touches her hand. "Does he really need you?"

She replies with her lips drawn tight. "Yes, he does. I have seen part of his past. He has suffered needlessly because others wanted to use his powers for their gains."

"And you do think he has not used his powers for his own gain?"

She looks down at Sam and brushes a few strands of his hair off his shoulder. "He may have used them to free himself from the tyrants."

Pabbie holds her hand and touches Sam's arm. For a moment he does not move, then he nods his head. "Just as I thought. The energies that surround you and him are one in the same. Did he tell you why your energies are the same?"

With her brows up and widen eyes, she stares at him. "He said initially our energy was out of sync, but now they are in sync."

He leans close to her. "The statement is correct, just like water in rivers at different locations are different, but become the same when they flow together. Did he tell you why your energy is the same as his?"

She frowns. "Are you saying our energies were different, but now they flow together?"

"Yes."

She looks at Sam. "Just like the point where two rivers merging together, it can be very chaotic. Move further down past the merger and you cannot distinguish which water came from, which river." With a slight smile she continues. "That would explain why initially when he touched me a spark jumped between us. I do not recall if he ever told me our energies were the same."

He steps back and points to Sam, "He has been here for many years. I detect his energy fluctuating, and it does not affect you. Even the short time it took Kristoff to bring him here from the wagon he was getting agitated." He pats her hand, "Elsa, what do you know about him? Where does he come from?"

She looks around as if she expected one of the trolls to be listening. She stares at Sam. "I remember my parents saying there was a stable boy who helped in their moments of needs. I assumed he left Arendelle for a few years, and then came back before the freeze."

Pabbie pulls on her hand. "Come with me. Sam will be ok where he is." He walks towards a large moss covered stone with hanging vines. The vines divide to reveal the large stone is actually two stone leaning against each other. Pabbie walks between the stone. The vines on the other side open to a garden. Elsa squeeze between the stones. Her face transform into wonderment upon seeing the array of flowers. She inhale the fragrance of a red bulb flower.

Pabbie cradles a blue and white flower in his hand. "This is my favorite. It reminds me of the beauty that will grow in the harshest of climates." He turns to her. "Do you remember when your parents brought you here, because of your accident to Anna?"

"Yes, I remember."

"I told you fear will be your enemy and it did come to past. Sam has a similar issue he brought with him from his land."

"He has fears, of what?" she asks.

"Of being alone, he is afraid his past will take you away from him."

"He told you that?"

"The pieces put together are obvious. Did he tell you why he left his home land or the things he did that he says makes him a monster?" Her silence is the answer he did not wish to hear. "Sam can be a great friend or your worst enemy. Ask him about those humans, he killed." This time her expressions changes as she puts her hand to her lips. He continues, "When he crashed here, he visited Arendelle looking for technology to repair his ship. When he did not find it, his intent was to leave the area. At the time I encouraged him to leave."

"What happened that you wanted him to leave?" Elsa asks as she sits on a small ledge.

He touches another flower and blows the pollen off it. "He is not the first to crash here. The two who came before him sided with a warring King. He almost took over a large area of land, which would have included Arendelle. When Sam arrived, my brother and I was concerned he would finish the work of the previous two. My brother followed him from a distance until he got too close. My brother changed. He became aggressive."

"I did not know you had a brother."

"No one in my family knows, not even Kristoff. I ask you to honor my request and not mention it to anyone."

She places her hand on his arm. "Nobody will hear it from me."

"You are a good person, Queen Elsa. Your father and mother would be very accepting of the person you have become. I understand why Sam has his heart for you."

Her eyes widen as she smiles. "He does?"

"Absolutely, he has great respect for you. He has told me this twice since the freeze. I know his issue of seeing himself as a commoner." He holds her hand. "I also know he is afraid for you. He knows you will have to choose between him and your Queendom and Anna."

Pabbie walks a short distance and touches a red flower. "Elsa, do you see this flower?" She stands next to him. "If I were to pluck this flower halfway down and hand it to you, would you take it?"

"No, I would not. That one has the sharp, thin thorns that can break off in my hand. I have seen sores develop on the skin as a result of not removing the thorn."

He clips the flower and removes the bottom two thirds of thorns with his stony fingers. He holds it out by the bottom of the stem. "Will you take it now?"

She stares at him as she grasps the flower just above his fingers.

"Why did you take it?"

She turns her head slightly. "You removed the thorns, so I could hold it."

"Exactly, there is a small bird that can hover above the flower to extract the nectar and not get pricked by the thorns. A larger bird cannot hover, but will try to hold on to the stem and get pricked. It will repeatedly try, but at some point it will fly away to heal from the thorns. Unfortunately the flower itself will be damaged and die prematurely."

He turns to her. "Sam has his thorns and he removed them as I made it possible for you to hold this flower. You can get close to him where others cannot." He walks further down the path and points. "Elsa, look at these flowers, a blue one and a pure white flower. Rarely will two plants drop their seeds close enough to the other that the seeds combine to bring forth a new species of flower." He pushes the leaves out of the way, "Look, tell me, what you see?"

She looks over his shoulder. "It is beautiful, the combination of the blue and white flower."

"Yes, these two formed a bridge between their worlds."

Elsa stares intently at him then whispers, "His mission."

Pabbie nods. "They were separate, but now they are together." A cool breeze sweeps down from the mountain tickling a few strands of his hairs. He looks up at the moon. She follows his gaze. "Elsa, as you look at that heavenly body, do you see anything near the bottom, a flash of color?"

She stares at the moon. "Yes, I just saw the colors, green and red."

"I am glad you saw it. It passes close, where it can be seen every two years." He looks back at her. "That is why he is afraid."

"But why?" She glances down at him.

"Keep watching, you will know soon enough."

"Excuse me, your majesty, Grand Pabbie wishes to see you in the meeting circle," a small voice behind her.

Elsa blinks several times and slowly moves her body. Her neck and shoulder feel stiff like when she falls into a deep sleep and does not move. Turning around, one of the troll children greets her. She glances around looking for Pabbie. "For an old troll, he moves quickly. I did not see him get past me."

The small troll waves for her to follow it. Back up the path she sees the red flower and remembers what Pabbie said. She whirls around looking for the individual blue and white flowers, but instead sees two beautiful blue and white flowers. One has a blue bulb with white petals. The other flower has a white bulb and blue petals. Both are taller than the parent flowers. Something ruff scrapes against her leg. Looking down the small trolls smiles up at her and waves for her to follow. She travels up the path and ducks to pass under the two leaning stones.

On the other side, Anna wraps her arms around her neck, "Did you have a great sleep?"

Elsa holds her little sister feeling safe and relax. She registers Anna's question, "Sleep, I have not fallen to sleep."

Anna looks up at her. "You did not? What did you do all night?"

Feeling a little light-headed, she steps back. "All night, we have been here only an hour."

Kristoff walks up to Anna and places his arm around her waist. With a slight chuckles he points to the sunrise. "Then what's that coming up in the east?"

Elsa looks to the eastern sky. The first rays of light caress the mountain peaks. _How is this possible? I know I did not fall asleep._ She glances down and looks over to the meeting circle. Sam's body is not there. Her heart sinks. The slightest movement pushes her balance off. _Where did he go?_ "Please do not tell me he is gone?" she asks out loud. _Sam why did you leave. I cannot let you go back like this._

Anna places her arm around her. "He was not here when I got up this morning."

"PABBIE," Elsa cries out as her heart beat increase. The pressure in her head builds with her anxiety of not knowing. Someone moves her and she struggles to keep from falling. All sounds merge to a high pitch shrill. Her mouth completely void of moisture strangles any sound she tries to speak. _Who is holding me? Who are you?_ Something sharp and ruff sweeps across her hand. The muscles in her hand contract and flex. She feels each contraction and flexion. Now the muscles in her forearm begin the contraction and flexion. A fire moves up her arm and into her shoulder. It moves across her back and into her neck. _Why do I not hear my heart? Is this what it's like for my heart to stop?_ Her face hurts, then her eyes hurt. She can't close them. The sound of the shrill stops. The pressure in her head eases quickly. _There, my heart is beating._ She looks down at Pabbie.

His stony hand holds her hand. "Walk with me," he leads her to a path on the other side of the meeting circle.

She asks, "What happened? When I called your name something happened."

"Wait until we are on the other side," he interrupts. Pabbie leads her through a large boulder formation, covered in moss and hanging vines. At the third boulder he waves his hand. As he had done the previous night, the vines parted to reveal two stones leaning against each other. He walks through them unimpeded.

Elsa bends low to past through the rocks. On the other side, a colorful garden bathe with the morning sunlight opens to her. A sense of calm drapes over her. The sweet fragrance of the flowers lifts her anguish and she smiles. Looking back she does not find the dark tunnel of the leaning rocks, but a green cloak of moss.

Elsa says, "If I had this in the garden below my balcony, I would never be inside."

Not seeing Pabbie, she strolls down the path. Each flower tantalizes her desire never to leave. Each flower proudly displays its color in brilliance. The flowers begin to wave with the passing of a breeze. Continuing along the path, she examines each plant and inhales their fragrance. The tranquility of the moment reminds her of her mother showing her around the castle garden. The memories are some of her favorite times. The following summer changed everything.

Several meters further down the path a young deer sits up from behind a clump of flowers. A few seconds later a second young deer sits up. They both stare at her and appear not afraid as she walks closer to them.

"Hi there, does Pabbie know you are in his garden?" With caution, she moves closer. Their mother would not leave them alone, but the tranquility of the garden does not foster evil, so it would be safe for them. She lifts her hand close to the first deer. It sniffs and rubs its nose against her palm. The second deer leans close to sniff and also rubs its head against her fingers. The two stand and walk towards an opening between two boulders. The tall grass waves with a gust of wind except where the two deer had laid. Their impression in the grass draws her attention to a particular gray stone formation covered in short stem flowers. The clumps of flower on the stone form the shape of an individual lying on the ground. Another breeze sweeps the field. The movement of the flowers exposes the stone underneath.

Kneeling she separates the flowers and reveals ice, not stone. The flowers and other vegetation are not frozen and the two deer were lying against the ice. Along the sides white strands protrude out of the ice and lead into the ground. She leans closer. Under the ice appears to be a face. Her fingers tips brush away small clumps of dirt.

A voice sounds behind her. "Please do not touch, my love."

She sits up and looks up the path. Not seeing anyone she looks where the young deer ran. Still not seeing anyone she looks at the gray face. Rocks crunch behind her. Turning quickly her breath catches upon seeing Pabbie standing next to her. "What did you say?"

With his stony grin he replies, "I did not say anything. I was over there," pointing to a bush next to the path, "tending to the garden. Did you hear something?"

She glares at him. Is this what you do to Sam when he asks you question? _What are you not saying?_ "You know I heard someone speaking." She points to the gray face. "Was it that person?"

"Yes I do know, and yes, Sam said it." Pabbie waddles back up the path.

"Wait." She gets to her feet and stops him. "If that is Sam, why is he there?"

Without looking up, he answers, "Because he needed to see you were ok."

"I do not understand."

He walks to a short stone ledge and taps it. "Elsa, come and sit."

She sits and holds her hands in her lap.

"Elsa, the pain you felt this morning when you called my name, Sam was trying to reach you. Because his energy had become random, non-synchronous, it caused you pain. When I touched your hand, his energy withdrew. He needs time to properly heal. Last night I removed you from his focus by locating you in a place he knew you would be safe. I helped the flowers to induce a sleep state." Pabbie grins. "It did not occur to me, you would fall asleep standing."

He points down the path. "Sam has been there since you and Kristoff brought him to the meeting circle. I do not claim to know a lot about him. What little bit of information he told me, he has not had the time to heal properly and you have seen the results. He tried to explain, but I do not understand his technology. On his ship, there are others who can help him. I made a promise to him. I would not reveal the location of his ship, except under dire conditions."

She interrupts, "You do not think this is an extreme condition?"

"No it is not." Pabbie shakes his head with a hint of frustration. "He still has us."

Elsa looks at the icy clump of flowers covering Sam. "I can understand you helping him, but I seem to make it worse for him. How am I helping?"

"Have you ever been injured where initially there is a lot of pain? It goes away only to remind you later. You have not completely healed. What you thought you could do, you cannot. This is a learning experience for him also." He tilts his head. "May I see your thoughts?"

Only if it help him, she leans forward and closes her eyes as he touches her face.

She opens her eyes as Pabbie steps back and stares at her. She asks, "What do you think?"

"He is very lucky you have a desire for him." He rubs is chin and looks down. "Two humans, so similar and desire the same thing, yet both afraid of hurting the other." He glance up. "Elsa, what do you really know about him?"

She glances in Sam's direction. "He is kind and gentle. I hear most if not all children like him. Over the years he has helped most of the elderly people." She looks down and shakes her head as recent events invade her thoughts. "He can be a little harsh. The past week has demonstrated that."

"Elsa, that is now. What do you know about his past? How did he come here? Why is he here? How did he sustain himself before coming here?"

Her lips draw tight, but she does not answer.

"You have considered these questions. They are the ones you have asked. Why do you not know?"

She looks away. "I was told not to push him."

He tilts his head towards her. "By whom?"

She gazes at the mound of vegetation covering Sam and blinks several times as moisture wells up in her eyes. _Why can he not talk to me? What is he hiding? What is he afraid of?_

"Was it S5?"

She wipes away a tear escaping from the corner of her eye.

Pabbie touches her hand. "You saw what happened to S5?"

Her hand covers her sob before it escapes her lips. Her arm crosses in front as if to create a shield between him and her emotions. She nods and more tears roll down her cheeks.

"My apologies Majesty, I know it is quite painful for you. It is because of what happened to her that Sam is the way he is. His actions are a mask to hide his pain. He suffers and causes pain for others. I am greatly concerned. He will cause you and Arendelle a lot of pain, if he cannot accept what he is, and why he is here."

She looks to him. "What do you mean why he is here? I thought he was shipped wrecked here?"

"Yes, he was. I watched his ship crash near here. When he arrived, what he is looking for, was not here, but now it is."

"Not here, but now it is here. What is he looking for?" She ask trying to understand his double speak.

Pabbie leans towards a yellow flower and sniffs. "I know you were at his snow covered mountain. Is it a coincident in your moments of fear you ran to a snow covered mountain? You built your ice castle there. What did he build, nothing as yet? He has to build it before he can be set free."

"He needs to build the bridge between his world and her world."

"Yes."

She partially closes her eyes, then shakes her head. "I do not understand. Who is she and where is her world?"

Pabbie sniffs another yellow flower. "She? He will have to explain her. I have heard humans use the phrase, 'mend fences or build bridges to create a lasting relationship'. Is that what you and Anna are doing to make up for the loss time between you?"

She narrows her eyes at him. "Are you saying he needs to build a relationship with another female?" With her back straight she asks, "Who is she?"

"Is it not obvious to you? How many other females has he shown more attention than to you?"

Her shoulder slightly round forward. "I guess no one."

"Elsa do not guess, know for sure. The moment he landed here he became a part of your life. If you do not want him here, you have to tell him. He will leave under great duress, but he will leave. If you wish for him to be a part of your life, give him little nudges. Help him to find his true destiny. He does not wish to be alone. You already know that."

"If he cannot control his influence on others, I may have no choice and tell him to leave Arendelle. If you can help him to synchronize his energy or at least reduce it so it does not agitate others, he can stay."

"Elsa, it's not up to me. He just needs time to heal. When he wakes up, he will be back to his normal self. It will be up to you to keep him under control."

"Me?" She rests her fist on her waist. "How am I supposed to control him?"

He motions her to lean down. She hesitates, but does. He touches the side of her head. "He gave you his key. You have it in here." He taps her head.

"What key? He told me a bunch of words I cannot pronounce." A strong desire wants to push Pabbie away. Even when her parents brought her to him after the accident, he gave her a riddle and she lost her sister for all those years. Why can he just say what he means?

 _That is what you get for having the troll explain human relationships._

Her eyes widen as she sits up looking in Sam's direction. She glances at Pabbie smiling up at her. "You heard it too?"

He shakes his head. "I hear a lot of noise. I wish to caution you. When he awakens, he may seem different. You have his key. You control. He will follow. You guide him. When the time comes and you feel you have lost control of him, the words will make perfect sense. You speak the words and he will awaken to see the truth." He slides off the ledge and walks up the path. "He will be here for some time. If you wish to stay, I will leave the entrance open. Anna and Kristoff are on the other side. Do you have a message for them?"

She follows Pabbie, but she cannot ignore the tug on her heart. She holds her hands close to her heart. "Pabbie is right. I hardly know anything about you." She glances back for a peak at his ice cocoon. Not seeing it she turns and takes a few steps towards him. There he lies. These emotions have to be controlled if I am to rule. "Am I selfish for wanting to be with you? For the longest time I ached to be with Anna and now that I am, you pull on my heart. How do I control you when you clearly control me?"

 _My desire is not to control you. I want you to be here, because that is what you want. I know you need time with your family. I'm glad you have a family who loves you and soon your family will increase by one. If I can control my mind, I hope at least to get a wedding invitation. Go be with Anna. She is concerned how the current events have affected you. I'll be alright where I am._

"Am I wrong for wanting to stay?"

 _No, you are not wrong. When I awaken I will make your choices easier. Your plate is already too full with the responsibilities to your Queendom to be worrying about me. If it is meant to be, it will be._

"Okay. I will ride back to the castle and come back later." She walks up the path. Before stepping through the entrance, she looks back and lets out a deep sigh.

 _I will be alright. Be with your family._

With a nod, she walks through the rocky archway. Anna greets her on the other side with a hug around her neck. Kristoff stands behind Anna. She quietly holds onto her sister. After a few minutes she sees Kristoff looking everywhere except at them. She grabs his sleeve and pulls him to her.

"Soon there will be three in my family. I need the both of you to advise me in running my Queendom. If at any time the two of you decide you wish to move into a living space of your own, I will do what I can to help you set it up or not at all."

Anna leans back. "Elsa, I do not plan on leaving you in that castle by yourself."

Elsa looks to Kristoff. "Is this your desire as well or do you need room of your own?"

He glances at Anna. "Well?"

"Just as I thought." She looks at her sister. "You and he needs time to discuss these issues." She forces Anna and Kristoff's hands together. "There is more than just living together." Glancing between the both of them, "Before you get married please promise me, you will talk to each other about who, what, when, where, and how you will live together. You do not have to answer all of the questions, just be aware of them. At some point you will have to answer them. Anna, do not dominate the conversation. Kristoff, do not be afraid to ask questions. Both of you listen to the others comments. When you reach an impasse in an area, set it aside and move onto the next thing, then come back to it. I no experience in marriage so I will understand if you go to someone else to help with your issues." She tries to put on a happy face, but a tear betrays her emotions.

Anna holds her arms. "What do you want to do?"

"I need to get back to the castle. I am sure they are wondering if something happened to me." She steps back and glances at the moss covered stone. "He will be alright. Pabbie said he will keep an eye on him." She walks towards the sleigh and hopes they cannot see her heart breaking. "I will come back after I finish the stack of paperwork on my table."

Kristoff helps her onto the sleigh first and assist Anna. She adjusts her dress and folds her hand into her lap. Anna rests her head on Elsa's shoulder as she places her arm around her.

Kristoff sits next to her and lightly taps Sven with the reigns. "Back to the castle." Sven trumpets and pulls the sleigh.

On the morning of the third day after Elsa's departure, the trolls gather in a circle as Pabbie sings the songs of nature. The songs bring Sam to the consciences state. His breathing increases with each breath to the point of a long sigh. His eyes open as he continues to listen. A large bird flies high on the thermal waves. With its white tail and large wing span the bird appears to be staring down at him. His nose detects the many fragrances of flowers and a not so pleasant odor. The odor reminds him of a time long ago when a sweet innocent little blond girl knocked him off his bed. Then as now, his body feels scaly and tingly. A bath will clear the odor and the scales. His muscles are slow to respond. He pulls his hair out of the ground. Pushing the grass and flower mat off of him, he rolls onto his side.

Holding a small bowl of liquid, Pabbie stands next to him. "Drink this."

Sam takes the bowl and asks, "How long have I been here?" He takes a sip and wrinkles his nose as his eyes close. Taking a deep breath, he swallows all of the liquid.

"Four days," Pabbie answers. "Do you still have the pain in your head?"

Handing the bowl back, he runs his fingers through his hair. "I'm not feeling any pain, so it must be there." He pulls his white hair over his shoulder and notes its length has grown centimeters. "Well," he glances at the other trolls watching him. "It seems I have changed more than they were expecting." He holds his hair. "The longer it is the more repairs were done."

"If it wasn't for the offensive odor assaulting my nose, I would say you have become younger," Pabbie comments.

"What was in the drink you gave me?" a rumble sounds from his abdomen followed by a belch that echoes against the boulders.

Pabbie shakes his head. "The sweet nectar provided by nature to boost your energy. Next time do not drink the air with it." He points down the path. "A stream, go before we bury you. Your stench is burning my eyes."

Bulda walks up to him and holds out a bowl. "Use this to wash, maybe it will get the smell off of you."

With a smile Sam takes the bowl and walks down the path. Around a bend he finds the stream. Setting the bowl on the shore, he steps into the water. Dunking himself several times he stands in waist high water. He removes his shirt off and rinses out the flakes of skin. A trail of flakes and a shimmering layer of oil drift away from him. Removing his pants he shakes out more of the flakes and oil. Not feeling bashful, he wades to the shore and use the gritty gel-like substance to wash his body.

He sniffs his hands, "At least it smells nice. I'm sure it's a lot better than the dead skin."

A quick dunk under the water, he watches the clump of the gel-bubbles float downstream. "I hope it dissipates before anyone sees it."

Sam closes his eyes and scans the area for humans and detects none. He lays his clothes on the boulders to dry in the sun. Finding a nice flat rock, he lies down to enjoy the warmth of the sun on his face and the heated rock against his back. His needs to rest after expending so much energy in the healing process. With a sigh and his muscles relaxing, sleeps over takes him.

The sound of stones bumping together and laughter, awakens him. The warmth in the rock sends a chill through his body. The tops of his feet glow a reddish orange. The shadow from tree blocks the sun from his face. Puffy clouds drift from the south. He sits up and stretches. The sun has stared dip behind the forest across the stream. Laughter draws his attention to several children and adult trolls rolling in the sand. Most stare at him.

He waves. "Don't mind me. I need to get back before it gets too late. I just hope someone has been feeding Aurora healthy stuff while I was away."

He turns his back to them and brushes the dust off himself. The warm sand under his feet causes him to hesitate as his thoughts go blank. The surroundings of nature sing a soothing melody. Nearby a bird screeches. Peering into the sky, a large bird flies above the tree tops. The bird angles into a turn revealing a wide wingspan with a brown body and white tail feathers. It swoops down and flares its wing as a boulder transforms. The bird lands on Pabbies arm. Another boulder rolls up to him and transforms into Bulda. She holds out a set of earth tone clothes.

Pabbie comments, "I have seen Kristoff white and get red from the sun, but you are red on one side and white on the other."

Sam twists his body to see his white bottom as compared to his red front. He chuckles at himself. "If the sun is out tomorrow, I could come out here and toast my backside to blend my color." He takes the clothes. "How do you know they will fit?"

Bulda answers, "Easy, while you sleep, I measured."

He leans against a boulder and puts on the clothes. With twists and bends to move in all directions, he does not find any binding points. The leather hide on the inside caresses his body, no pinch, no pulling of body hair, and no squeezing of delicate parts, even the boots cushion his feet. He turns to thank to Bulda, but only Pabbie remains. The bird on Pabbie's arm screeches and flares his wings. Focusing on the bird, he says, "I hope you are not seeing me as your next meal."

Pabbie moves his arm up and the eagle flies.

Sam ducks as a wing tip brushes against his head. He watches the bird soar up and out of sight. A stone bumps his hand.

"Do you have the same desire to fly away?" Pabbie asks.

He looks down. "The truth, my heart does wish to leave, but where will I go? This world is new to me. I could use my knowledge to influence a government to do my bidding, but at what cost to human life." He looks at Pabbie, "Your father had firsthand knowledge of the human cost to take control. I think I know what the Sariphans were feeling when they came to the conclusion they could not go home."

"What are you going to do?"

"I should make amends for disrupting the lives of those people in the village. After that, I don't know. There is nothing there for me." Sam searches the sky.

"You should not be so hasty to leave. Arendelle has a few qualities that would interest you."

"Like what?" he asks with a smirk.

Pabbie kicks his ankle. "Queen Elsa, has shown you compassion and understanding when your actions did not deserve it? She stood over you, to keep the others away. She brought you here knowing you could lose part of your memory for her. She took a chance you might have a desire to leave."

"If she knew that, why bring me here?"

Pabbie steps away shaking his head. "If I had all of your answers, I don't think you are ready to hear them." He turns back pointing a stony finger at him. "If you do not have your energy under control, she will issue orders for your death to be enforced by anyone seeing you. She has to protect her Queendom."

He nods to himself. "A wise decision, I would do the same thing in her place. It's another reason for me to leave."

Pabbie shakes his head again. "As intelligent as you think you are, you are not seeing the obvious. Do you think it was by chance you came here? What if you were sent here to correct a wrong?"

"A wrong?" Which wrong needs correcting? Sam turns towards him. "I can look back and see one thousand, nine hundred, sixty-one wrongs that should not have occurred by my hands. Unfortunately, I got paid well for them. What am I supposed to do, prevent myself from killing them or not be born?"

Pabbie stares at him with no emotions.

He glances away. "Those who died would have died by another's hand, but what if my hand is not involved?" He looks up and fixates on the moon just above a distant mountain. For several minutes he remains motionless, frozen in time.

Sam looks down again, not seeing Pabbie. "Where did you go, little toad?" A rock hits the side of his head. Following the rock's trajectory back to its launch location, he sees Pabbie grinning and walks over to him.

"When you didn't respond, I did not want to be near you when you fell, let alone if you fell on me." Pabbie says. "Did you find your answer?"

"The only way to keep my hands out of their deaths is to either not be born, in which case, I have no information as to who my parents are or their family line."

"OR," Pabbie asks a little more vocal as he approaches him.

"Or," He draws his lips tight and his face tenses. Taking several deep breaths, he continues, "Or prevent myself from leaving the training facility in the condition I was in." He glares at him. "S5 has something to do with this, doesn't she?"

Pabbie touches his hand. Like a door opening, the light fills his mind, but not the same light he encountered when he first crashed here. The memories of joy and happiness fill his heart. Just as fast as the door opens, it closes. He sees S5 kneeling and holding a young boy.

The memories over flow his mind. A young boys scream rings in his ears. She lies on the floor with no anger in her eyes. A slight smile had formed across her lips. She did not scream or make a sound. Her blood from where the bullet pierced her forehead, trails into her hair. The red pool under her head stains her blonde hair. Sam looks at her blood splattered onto his hands. A shiny copper projectile passes across his eye sight. His energy surges and he allows it to explode on those he sees.

Sam opens his tear filled eyes. He doesn't remember falling to the ground, but many trolls sit in a circle around him. Bulda sits next to him and holds his arm. "It is sad when you lose a loved one, but it is especially hard when you lose your mother."

He touches her hand. "Thank you. I do not recall anyone ever saying that to me." He sits up and stares at the blurred vision of Pabbie. "All these years, why did you hide it from me?"

"Because you ask me to hide it," he replies.

"I still don't understand?" A tear runs down his cheek before he could stop it.

"When you first landed here, we were having an issue of trust. It was after I showed you the Sariphan ship, you understood my concern about you being one of them. You allowed me access to your mind. You showed me those events and understood what needed to be done. You formulated a plan, as you said, to maximize the chance for success. I placed blocks in your mind to be removed, when I felt the need of the information would serve your purpose, but there was a condition. These were safety mechanisms that would keep me from controlling you. It also kept you from getting the information until the circumstances required it. If I chose not to release the information or if I'm not able to reach you, it would be released over time."

"You know that scene is very painful to me?"

"I know. It was time for you to remember. You told me the ripples in time are like the ripples caused by a rock dropped into the river. The longer the ripple travels it will eventually disappear, but if the ripple hits a target, it may change the course of the target just enough." Pabbie walks out of the circle.

"If I change something here and it creates a large enough ripple, it could change the course of events in the future." He runs his hand across his lips then down his neck. He watches Pabbie walk away. "Interesting hypothesis, did I by chance say how large of a rock would be needed to change my future?"

The other trolls roll away but Pabbie keeps walking. "Yes, you did."

"Well?"

"You already have your answer," Pabbie replies as he transforms into a boulder and disappears into the forest.

Sam stares at the indentation in the ground where Pabbie rolled. "I bet I didn't like you before my injury, you little toad." He searches, but the troll's camouflage hides him well. "Someone could at least tell me what directions I'm supposed to go. Never mind, I see the path over there." He heads to the path that leads to the rock formation near the river. Just as he gets to the formation several small rocks bounce off his back. He turns and a slightly larger rock smacks the side of his head.

From the forest sounds a voice. "If a horse's rear had eyes, it would only see where it has been. The end with the brain would take the other path."

"Did that toad just call me a horse's rear?"

Sam walks towards the other path which leads away from the river. Cautiously he scans for any movement from the bushes or projectiles arching towards him. His feet stumble into a group of rocks forming an arrow and walks in that direction. Several meters up the path and around a slight bend, another arrow of rocks point to another path. After the fifth group of rocks, a wagon trail lays before him. In the middle of the trail he looks in both directions. Neither appears familiar, yet both directions lead into the hills and mountains beyond them. Unless the trail curves behind a hill into another valley, he would be guessing which direction to travel.

He calls back into the forest. "You could have blindfolded me and dropped me off near the path that leads to Arendelle."

Sam chooses and walks towards the mountains. Two large rocks land in front of him. He looks back. "You could have just told me which way to go."

From the forest, a small boulder arches in the air. He steps out of the way and the boulder lands with a thud where he had been standing. "What is wrong with you? That rock would have caused severe pain if it didn't kill me."

Many small rocks erupt out of the forest and rain on him as he runs in the other direction. The trail curves and widens with a view to the sea.

 **End of Chapter**


	62. Chapter 61 Samuels Returns

**Title:** Chapter 62: Samuel Returns

 **3 year 15 days until correction**

Sam enjoys his peace sitting on a boulder releasing the last of its warmth. The cold wind from the north dies down. An occasional breeze rustles the tree branches as if to say the snow may move to the lower levels by morning. He stands on the boulder and stretches to limber up for the rest of his walk back to the castle. Few lights remain lit in the homes of Arendelle. The orange and yellow glow from the castle's courtyard diminishes as the flicker from each torch is distinguished.

From his vantage point, if someone crested the hill behind him and did not know the area, they would not know there is a castle sitting in the fjord. The occasional floating torch in the dark, where a guard walks along the wall, may cause the visitor to camp on the hill and wait until morning before proceeding into Arendelle.

For an assassin, this would be the optimum time. They would have scouted the area and mapped out the village to plan their entrance and exit. Despite no moonlight and the few clouds drifting from the north, starlight is more than enough light for an expert assassin. He met only one assassin who used the starlight to attack his prey. Unfortunately, that assassin chose the night Sam was hired to protect the local Lord's daughter. He sat on a boulder similar to one he stands on now. In almost complete darkness, the shadow of a person is impossible to distinguish from the shadows in the back ground, but if you are waiting for one specific shadow, it can be seen.

Sam spotted a shadow in the shape of a cloaked person moving behind the few trees that covered the land. As the shadow moved to the next tree, a rock strikes the ground behind him. His movement to the ground created a clear outline of his body in the grass. With a deep breath, Sam drew the arrow back and slowed his breathing. The shadow raised its head, the cloak's hood reveals the temperature difference in the surrounding area and the heat in the person's face. The assassin may have heard the arrow traveling through the air a moment before he rolled onto his back.

Sam feels a grin on his face. A cold breeze sends a shiver down his back and reminds him, he is not in that business anymore.

A vibration shakes the boulder. His vision shifts to the blue spectrum. A small herd of reindeer runs past him and down the hill. Up the hill two wolves trot after them. The wolves will not bother him, but the reindeer could trample him if he fell.

He looks back at Arendelle. The castle wall stands out with three torches moving along the wall. Close to the water, two lights float on a sail ship tied up to the pier. A short distance from the water a door opens and the light exposes several people leaving the building. This late at night it must be the local watering hole next to the wharf.

With the deer herd well off the path. Sam trots down the hill and through the heart of Arendelle. An occasional dog barks and a horse neighs as if they were greeting him, but his movement goes unnoticed. He stops at the foot of the bridge leading to the castle and listens. He does not hear the expected noises of the nocturnal animals and bugs. Even the fjord does not make its normal sounds of splashing against the shoreline or the ship in the harbor. No breeze greets him.

A sailor gives tribute to the fjord. Hopefully, the sailor gave most of his tribute to the water and not on himself. Two voices mention the sick sailor. The sound of crates falling on the pier is followed by laughter. A commanding voice calls the three sailors to get aboard the ship. Even, the ship's riggings and flag do not make a sound.

On the hill behind him, a wolf's call breaks the silence. A second wolf answer a second later. He recognizes the two from his pack. Neither sound as though they caught a deer.

A muscle spasms in his abdomen followed by a rumble and gurgle. Bulda's fruit did its job of restoring his energy, but he wants more. Voices come from the water front. He tracks the voices to the wharf and moves up the street towards the building that has many people passing through its front door. The door opens and closes several times as drunkard men stumble out.

He reaches for the handle when a large burly woman opens the door and steps out. She yells back in. "This is the last time I'm going to tell you sailors to go back to your ship." She looks up at him, "Sorry big boy, I'm closed. As soon as these two leave, I'm locking up."

"I was hoping you had any leftover food."

"Sorry the kitchen is closed. Come back tomorrow." A crash echoes from inside and she yells, "You two get out of here now. I need to get to bed before the sun rises."

They run and stagger to the door. "We . . . we um." They lean against each other to maintain their upright positions. "We can join you in your bed."

The taller of the two belches and they both laugh.

She waves her hand in front of her face. "If you get these two out of here, I'll see what fruit or vegetables I have left and you can have that."

"Deal." Sam steps into the light and the two drunkards stop laughing. He grabs their shirts pulling them out the door. The smaller one falls onto the pier and the taller swings a fist at his head, but Sam catches the wild fist and bends it back causing the taller to fall over the shorter drunkard. He looks back at the woman, "They have similar clothing. Do you know where their home is located?"

She steps out onto the pier and points. "I believe they are from that ship."

"I guess I better deliver them." With a handful of shirts and belts, he lifts them off the pier and walks towards the ship.

The woman exclaims, "Damn, I'll have a bowl of soup and bread waiting for you when you get back, big boy."

He carries the two drunkards up the pier and over to the ship. Unfortunately, their feet and the back of their hands drag on the pier. At the bottom of the ship's gangplank and calls, "Ahoy, is anybody home."

A few seconds later a sailor stands at the top of the plank and holds up a lantern. With an English accent he replies, "Who calls this late at night?"

"Do these two belong to you?" Sam drops both drunkards and rolls them face up.

The sailor looks at both of them. "Yes, they are a part of the crew. What mischief did they get into?"

"Over indulgence of a beverage," he answers and steps over them. Several minutes later he hears water splashing on the pier followed by several colorful adjectives from the two drunkards. Back at the tavern he opens the door. The smell of alcohol and other unpleasant odors assault his nostrils, but the hunger pains push him to enter.

The woman sets a bowl and a piece of bread on the bar. "Come in, you will get accustomed to the smell."

He scans the room and looks up. No surprises or any other humans in the building. He stands at the counter and points up. "If you had vents or windows you could open up there, the smell can be circulated out to allow fresh air in."

She holds up a bottle of an unknown alcohol. "What do you drink?"

He shakes his head. No sense in taking a chance of catching bugs that would leave him in a similar predicament as the sailor contributing to the fjord. He lifts the spoon full of soup to his lips. A familiar fragrant entices him to taste it. The flavor tantalizes his taste buds. A little bit watery for his desires, but the salt flavor mixed with potatoes and carrots and parts of a fish blend well enough that he finishes the bowl and sops up the rest of the liquid with the bread.

"Was it good?"

"I don't recall having it. What do you call it?"

"Fiskesuppe, it's a fish soup."

"Fiskesuppe! I have heard of that before. Wait," his memory flashes back to the first time he had this fish soup with S5. The memory fades as fast as it arrived. He stares at her as he finishes the last piece of bread.

"How is it you're working here alone?" She glances at the door then back at him. "I know you are alone. I'm not going to attack you, but this is good Fiskesuppe."

"My husband bought this place from the previous owner. I'm taking care of it until he gets back. He is on the royal merchant ship." Her voice trails off.

"How long has he been gone?"

"Four years, I waved goodbye to him right after he helped the King and Queen get aboard the ship." She picks up a cloth and moves to the end of the counter. In slow circular motions she wipes the counter.

Her energy fluctuates from her pain. He wishes he had just finished the soup and thanked her, instead of being polite with conversation. As she wipes the counter next to him, he touches her arm. "Helga, it is ok to miss loved ones. I know two young ladies who also lost their family on that ship as well."

She takes his bowl. "It's time for you to leave before I cry. You know where the door is." She washes the bowl and cup, then sets it on a drying rack.

"Thank you for your hospitality." He departs the tavern. Another soul in Arendelle waits to die. He knows what it is like waiting. Only to have a piece of your heart ripped away as each hope is dashed as it is for her, when a different sailor comes into her place.

Sam walks back to the foot of the bridge. A slight breeze brings the smell of alcohol. He sniffs his sleeve and wrinkles his nose. The guards will never let him pass smelling the way he does. He runs and uses the rail to leap into the fjord. The cold water stings his body with thousands of needle like pricks. The sensation energizes his cells as they all scream at the same time. Two lights on the top of the castle wall stop near each other. With his head barely above the cold water he hears them speaking.

"I'm telling you. I heard something fall into the water by the bridge."

"It could have been a rock with the wind," the other comments.

"Since when does a rock splash around?"

Sam watches the two continue walking along the wall. With as little noise as possible he wades to shore. Peeking back at the castle wall and the ships tired up to the wharf, he takes a chance. His hands slide over his clothes freezing the water into tiny ice droplets. With a shake the droplets fall to the ground. He wrings the water out of his hair and sniffs it.

"Great, my hair smells like a wet dog." A breeze blows a little harder from the north. He nods, "Thank you."

After a wash, rinse, and repeat several times, he sniffs his shirt and hair. "Not the best, but if I can sneak into the royal tub to clean up, no one should be able to detect the fjord or the alcohol."

Climbing on the bridge he observes Arendelle. His ears listen. His eyes searches for the object making the sounds. A simple operational check of his senses. Water splashes against the bridge's footing. A wave slaps against a ship's hull and ricochet against the pier, only to slap the hull again. Further out in the fjord, many gulp plopping sounds from the fish catching whatever insect fails to leap off the water. A crackle comes from the flutter of the castle's flags, followed a flag snapping on the mast of the ship as if to say 'look at me'.

Temptation feeds his hunger and his eyes close. His mind searches for any electrical signal not normal for nature. He reaches for the top of the atmosphere. In his previous timeline, he would have detected a minimum of three human satellites, but here there are none. An electrical energy of a storm builds at sea.

His eyes open. Clouds gather in the north and reach across the sky to hide the stars. A small break allows a shaft of moonlight to dance on the fjord. A blanket of heavy air drapes over him. It creates a tingling sensation that slowly wraps itself around him.

His senses detect a perpetrator targeting him. He stands motionless as his body prepares to fend off any attack. His mind scans the immediate area, but does not sense anyone. The sensation of danger fluctuates as though who or what is watching him. Possibly they are moving to get a closer shot. He will not wait for them to strike, but will go on the offensive once he finds them. His eyes close except for the slits to see as his eyes change to the attack mode. Anything or anyone who approaches will suffer.

The bridge and castle walls illuminate against the background. The small lanterns the guards carry appears as bright beacons in the dark. He searches for anything that does not belong.

Two red eyes stare at him from a hill. Two more appear. Another set of red eyes appears noticeably higher than the other two sets. A wolf calls and the three sets of eyes move to their right and disappear. A set of red eyes returns and bounces up as it replies to the first call. Another set of red eyes appears further to the right. The three sets return and the taller sets move up as a deeper wolf call sounds. Four more sets of red eyes appear.

Sam cups his hands around his mouth and barks out several wolf calls. Five sets of red eyes disappear. One set of the original three disappear. Another howl leaves only the tall wolf staring at him. A light to his right grows brighter as it moves closer to him. Sam changes his eye color back to normal.

"Hey? Hey you. What are you doing there? Don't call the wolves down here."

"I'm not calling them. I told them this is my territory and they should stay away." Sam continues to search the hills, but the lantern's light diminishes his vision. If the wolves are on the move, he does not see them.

"Samuel?" A guard walks up to the group.

His head slowly turns to the new arrival.

The other guards step aside to allow the Lieutenant to pass. "Samuel, where have you been?"

He tilts his head. "You look familiar."

"I am Lieutenant Niles. I was guarding your door in the castle when you knocked me out."

"Niles?" he slowly shakes his head and looks towards the hills. "Your name sounds familiar, but things must have changed."

"Change? Many things have changed since your horse kicked you."

As if out of habit, he rubs his forehead where his horse almost killed him. "Like what specifically?"

"Your clothes for one," Niles answers. "I have never seen you wear hides. Unless the light is playing tricks, you look younger with that long white hair. Our Queen may get a little jealous at the length of it."

The other guards snicker.

"What's wrong with my hair?" His fingers brush through it as he sniffs it. "At least it doesn't smell like a wet dog."

Two guards snicker.

"Control yourself gentlemen. Sam has had a rough time here lately or should I mention which one contributed to his condition?" Niles asks.

The four guards take several steps back towards the castle. He watches the guards then focuses on the one whose heartbeat increases significantly as a bead of sweat forms at his hairline. The guards take several more steps back into the darkness.

With a slight smile and an upturned left brow, he comments to the guard. "While I remember very little between the time my horse kicked me and a few days ago, I do understand the circumstances that may have contributed to your actions and it is not entirely your fault. I hold no revenge in my heart."

He hears a sigh of relief from the guard.

"But if I ever remember what you and the others did to me, my heart may lead the charge for revenge." A few seconds later the sound of boots scuffle against the bridge stones as the guards march back to the castle gates.

Niles glances over his shoulder at the young recruit staring at Sam. He turns to examine the absence of guards at the gates. "Well, I see your way of influencing others has not changed."

"Who is the red head with the two braids and that blonde fellow?"

"Princess Anna and Kristoff?" Niles answers.

He nods towards the castle. "Yes, Princess Anna." He leans close to Niles. "She is funny." He stands straight, "Did they get married?"

"Not yet."

"What is the hold up?"

Niles leans close to him. "Rumor has it. He is having doubts."

"Oh, I guess my circumstance didn't help him either."

"After giving them the winnings you tricked the guards into donating, it should have been enough for him to at least try on his part. There is not a guard here who would not jump at a chance to be the husband of Princess Anna." Niles steps to the bridge rail shaking his head.

Sam gazes at the moon. The clouds have allowed enough moonlight to pass through making it easier to see the bridge and the darkness of the forest across the fjord.

Niles snaps his finger and points to the guard. "Give me your lantern. Go back to your post on the wall." He sets the lantern by his feet and watches the guard passed through the gates. With his arms crossed Niles pivots and tilts his head away as though staring past him.

Sam stares at Niles for a few moments. "I can hear the contempt in your posture. No more small talk. What's on your mind?"

"Okay, from a reliable source on the inside, when our Queen came back this last time, she was in an emotional distress. Kristoff and Kai practically had to carry her into the castle. They sent for the doctor. It was very hush-hush about it. Only Gerda and Princess Anna was allowed into her room." Niles motions his head towards the castle. "There are a few guards who wish to see you dead. No one is confessing as to who they are, but if your intent is to stick around, you may wish to watch your back."

"And how do you feel about it?" Sam searches him for any signs of a hidden agenda.

Niles shrugs his shoulders. "I believe the threat is real to the extent everyone is concerned. They are just releasing their frustrations."

He glances at the castle and turns towards Arendelle for a few seconds. He peeks over the rail. With his feet at shoulder width apart and his fist resting on his waist, he faces Niles. "Is there anyone here besides you and me?"

Niles rests his hand on the hilt of his sword. "There is no one here, but us."

"Then answer my question, how do you feel about me returning?"

With a moment of hesitation Niles answers. "I do not think you should return. I think you should turn around and go back into the mountains. I hear our Queen has a nice ice castle up there for you to live in."

"If I try to walk to the castle?"

"You may get past me, but I know there are others who will stop you." He lifts the sword's hilt exposing parts of the polished blade.

"If that sword leaves its sheath, they will find it in your heart. Think very carefully for your next move."

In another time he would have taken the exposed blade as an insult, but since Niles is not of oriental descent, he is bluffing. If he is wrong, he may get the sword in his back.

The pulse in Niles neck visibly beats rapidly. He labors to breathe as if he is having difficulty taking a deep breath. The final sign, Niles wipes his left hand on his pants.

"I'll make a deal with you. I'll leave if you promise to tell Queen Elsa you have seen me awake and follow her instructions." Without waiting for a reply he walks towards Arendelle. At the foot of the bridge, he glances back. Nile has his arms crossed and his hand over his mouth.

Sam nods with a smile. "Lieutenant Niles, you're a good man for the intent of what you did, but you are also stupid for what you did. You have to know your adversary to get away with it."

He looks to the ground and stops after a short distance. For a moment he stands there and reconsiders his assessment. _Did Niles know his adversary?_

He pivots to face the bridge and places his hands on his waist. The gates open then close. He chuckles, "You are brave and smart Lieutenant Niles. It seems I'm the fool for thinking less of you." He walks to the wharf.

At the edge of the pier, he counts how many steps he would need to reach the castle wall. His eyes change color and sees the blue tint around everything. He continues to count as the guards move along the wall. Seconds pass and at the calculated time, his right hand waves over the water. The water rises up and crates a frozen ramp. The guards walk past each other. He aims for the point where they pass each other.

He jumps on the top of the ramp and slides. With his right hand out in front of him, he extends the fjord's color ice slide by creating a few hills with enough height to keep his momentum moving towards the castle. He extends the ice over the rocks to the wall. Behind him, he waves his left hand and the ice melts back into the fjord.

Sam counts, Seventy-nine, Eighty, Eighty-one. If the guards maintained their pace, they are passing directly above him. If either of them has been delayed, they will be surprised when he lands in front of them. He steps away from the wall and points to the water. Ice swirls under his feet. It lifts him to the top of the wall. He leans across the embrasure. The guards move to the end of their area and are about to turn around. He steps onto the walkway. With a wave of his hand, the ice pole melts back into the fjord. Across the walkway he looks down into the courtyard. Three guards move in different directions. Over the edge he jumps and creates a spiral ice ramp down to the courtyard. The ice melts as he runs towards the castle.

He moves along the inner wall and stops under the Queen's balcony. In a crouch position he listens and watches for the guards. Not wanting to draw attention to himself, he draws the moisture out of the air, which take longer. A seven centimeter diameter ice pole rises from the ground to the balcony. He climbs.

He pulls himself onto the balcony. With a wave of his hand over the pole, it melts. He kneels next to the door. His blue vision sees into the room with the clarity of daylight. Elsa appears to be asleep on her bed. The more time he wastes increases his chance of getting caught. A light from the top of the wall reflects in the door's glass. He remains motionless and the light continues moving along the wall.

His fingers roll against each other and creates a small ice pick with ridges. The pick slides into the lock and the lock clicks. A dull creak sounds as the door open and he slips into the room. The door closes and a moan comes from the bed. In the shadow next to the door he watches her.

Her body tosses and her arms flails as though she is fending off an attacker. Her arms fall to the bed and she moans.

His leather boots silence his movement across the floor and he kneels next to her bed. He reaches to brush her hair out of her face.

She swallows, then whispers, "I am sorry."

Static energy builds around his hand. A tear trails down her face and into her hair. He pushes past the energy barrier and touches her face before an arc jumps between them. She rolls her head and body to face him. Several tear trails on her face shine in his blue vision. His eyes change to his normal vision. He barely sees her in the dark. He wraps his hand around her hand and likely strokes her face with his fingertips. Her breathing becomes less labored. The energy between them moves from fighting against each other to mutual cooperation. He watches a smile form on her face. He stops.

Her eyes open. "I knew you would come back to me." Her eyes close and she lets out a deep sigh.

He rests his cheek against her hand and lightly rests his hand against her cheek. His eyes close except for a tiny slit where he can see her.

The sun in the clear blue sky warms his face. In every direction snow covers his mountain. The clean crisp air tickles his nose. Sam scans the horizon.

 _I wish she was here._

A large shadow falls over him. Before he can get out of the way, a large snow fist smashes into his side. The horizon changes from the ground to the sky and back to the ground several times before he stops face down in the snow. He waits a few seconds before lifting his head.

A giggle replies followed by a young girl's voice. "Got you again."

He sits up. Half way down the hill a young girl with flowing blonde hair runs.

"I'm going to get you."

She giggles a response. "If you catch me, I will let you kiss me."

His smile changes into a grin as he jumps up and gives chase, but his young boy's body has difficulties moving through the snow.

His eyes slowly open to see a set of beautiful blue eyes staring back at him. "Are you awake?"

Her smile grows larger as she replies, "I woke up the same time you did."

He glances past her. More details in the room reveal themselves as the darkness gradually yields to the light behind him. He leans back and peeks over his shoulder. The sunlight touches the top of the wall.

She teases, "You broke into the Queen's room, in the dark, to do some ungodly thing to her while she sleeps. I could scream"

His left brow rises as he watches her. "Then we would both lose and you would not be able to visit my snow mountain."

She leans up onto her side and pulls her cover up to her neck. "I have my own snow covered mountain and it has an ice castle."

"How many times have you been to your ice castle since you built it?"

She looks away. "Once."

"And you have been to my snow mountain twice."

Both of her brows rise with her slightly larger eyes. "How do you know I have been there before now?"

His brows push together and his eyes search the blanket. He stares at her for a moment. "I believe you have been there and you were talking to someone, but I'm not sure."

She touches his arm. "Do you want me to tell you?"

He looks down again. "If you feel it is something I need to know right now then please do."

"Why are you giving me the option?"

"I obviously brought you there for a reason." He slowly nods his head. "I must trust you enough to allow you into my personal area. Do you know if anyone else has been in there?"

Hesitantly, she answers. "Yes, his name is Pabbie."

His left brows shoots up as he glares at her. "That toad has been in my head?"

"He is a troll and yes."

He holds her hand and she does not pull away. His hand closes and her hand almost disappears. The softness encourages his fingers to trace the delicate detail. His thumb massages her palm before slipping to her wrist. Her pulse beats higher than normal.

"Did he tell you what he blocked?"

With a deep sigh Elsa answers, "No. He said once you located them, you would be able to open it."

His body presses against the bed and his hand rest on her side. He leans closer to her neck and takes a deep breath. His eyes close as he takes another breath of her fragrance. His eyes open and he whispers, "Do you trust me?"

Her lips move next to his ear. "Yes."

The tip of her tongue brushes against his earlobe. She slides her hand up his arm to his shoulder. He does not retreat. Her hand continues to the back of his neck and her fingers interlaces through his hair. With a hand full of his hair, she pulls him away from her. "You surprise me. I thought you would have backed away."

Loosening her grip, her fingers rake through his hair. "I have not seen your hair this long."

He leans forward until his face is within several centimeters in front of her face. "Do you like it?"

"You have changed. I like what I see." She pushes herself up and swings her legs over the edge of the bed. The bed covers fall back revealing her white night clothes. Her hand rests over his heart. "Has this changed as well?"

He watches his hand cover her hand. "I don't know. You saw me before my accident and immediately afterwards and now. Have I changed?"

Sam shrugs his shoulders. "You'll have to tell me if I have or have not. Last night I encountered the guards on the bridge. They were all afraid of me, so much, that one ran back inside the wall and three back out of the lantern's lights. Even though the Lieutenant was afraid he held his ground and was prepared to give his life for you. I sensed in his mind, he thought he would not see the next sunrise."

He peeks back at the balcony door. "I wonder if he did see the sunrise." A smile explodes onto his face. "You said yes to what you see and I will answer your question with a yes. If you feel I need to know, tell me. If you feel I may not be ready, don't tell me. In those areas I trust you to do what is in my best interest."

Elsa drapes her arms around his neck, drawing him closer as she nuzzles. "You have changed."

Sam wraps his arms around her waist and slowly tightens to draw her body close. His hands do not stop. One slides up her side as the other slides along her back until it reaches the top of her nightclothes. The tips of his fingers slip under her hair and trace the hem of her clothes along her neck. Her arms tighten around his neck. His fingertips continue exploring and trace her spine up to her head. She moans, then shivers.

"This is nice."

"Yes, it is," she purrs.

His body responds as a healthy normal male's body should, next to a beautiful woman. It was a good thing he wore trousers and was pressed against the bed to hide his excitement.

Sam glances at the bedroom door. "Anna's at the hall door. She's coming in."

For a moment he wonders if she heard him, but she did and pushes him back. "Anna cannot see you in here. She will not understand."

He chuckles, "That's ok. Your guards are not going to understand how I got in here after they confronted me on the bridge. I'm sure the Lieutenant passed the word to be on the lookout for me."

The hall door opens. Elsa leaps off the bed and pushes him towards the balcony door. "You have to go before she sees you. Under different circumstances I will let you stay. Please go."

He turns and bows with a kiss on the back of her hand. He steps onto the balcony and to the side as Elsa closes the door.

Anna knocks as she walks into the room. "Good, you are up. Are you feeling better?"

Elsa turns from the balcony door. "Yes, I am feeling better. I stepped outside to get a bit of fresh air." She walks around her bed and moves into the Queen's washroom.

Anna walks to the balcony door and looks to either side. She opens the door, making as little noise as possible.

Holding onto an angle support under the balcony floor, he hopes a guard does not look in his direction. The boards above his head creak as Anna walks onto them. She stands near the rail.

Elsa opens the door, "What are you doing out here?"

"You are right, the fresh air does make me feel better."

"I am hungry. Care to join me for breakfast?"

Anna takes her sister's arm. "I am glad you are feeling better. I was beginning to worry about you."

The balcony door closes.

 **End of Chapter**


	63. Chapter 62 Christmas in Arendelle

**Title: Christmas in Arendelle**

 **2 year, 11 months, 28 days until correction**

Princess Anna sits at the side table and brushes her hair. A cold draft sweeps across her feet. Her body shivers. She calls to the next room. "Kristoff, did you leave the balcony door open."

Not receiving a response she turs towards the door and calls again, "Kristoff are you out there?"

Placing her brush on the table as she pushes her chair out, she slip her feet into a pair of fur lined boots and moves to the outer room. Another cold draft sweeps across her body from the opened balcony door.

"You are going to freeze me to death if you do not close the door."

She reaches for the door handle when she spots Kristoff in his gray with red striped night clothing. His fur trimmed boots peak out from under the blanket around his shoulders. He stares at the top of the wall. She opens the door a little farther and starts to call him when she hears singing.

Anna stands next to her husband. "Who is that singing this late hour?"

Kristoff's head snaps around to her. "You will get sick if you stay out here." He wraps his blanket around her shoulders. Anna snuggles in closer to him, then a moment of silence. Anna starts to speak, but he places his finger to her lips, "Shhh, just wait." They do not have to wait long. From over the wall comes the sound of many voices singing. A baritone's voice starts with other men and women adding their voices and females sing the repeated last of the stanza.

A New Year, A New Year, a child was yborn, Us for to saven that all was forlorn, _So blessed be the time._

The Father of heaven His own Son He sent, His kingdom for to claimen (on earth is He lent). _So blessed be the time._

All in a clean maiden our Lord was ylight, Us for to saven with all His might. _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, mine own dear fode,How shalt Thou suffer (to) be nailed on the Rood?" _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, mine own dear smart,How shalt Thou suffer the sharp spear to Thy heart? _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, I sing all for Thy sake, Many (a) one is the sharp shower to Thy body is shape!" _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, fair haps Thee befall, How shalt Thou suffer to drink eisel **3** and gall?" _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, I sing all beforn, How shalt Thou suffer the sharp garland of thorn?" _So blessed be the time._

"Lullay, lullay, little Child, why weepest Thou so sore, And art Thou (then) both God and man, what wouldest Thou be more? _So blessed be the time._

Blessed be the arms the Child have tucked, And also the teats the Child hath sucked. _So blessed be the time._

Blessed be the mother, the Child also, With _Benedicamus Domino. So blessed be the time._

Anna smile as she adds her voice to the womens part. When the sonds ends, she asks, "I have never heard such a beautiful song. They sing as one." Voices in the courtyard draw her attention. She watches several people walk towards the gates. She slips out of his arms and moves to the door. "Come on. Let us go down there."

Kristoff follows her into their outer room. By the time he closes the door, Anna has already removed her night clothes. She holds up a green flowery dress and a wool gray dress with fur around the edges.

She turns to him and asks, "Which do you like the green or the gray?"

Not looking at either dress, but his attention focused, well below her chin, he replies with an eager grin. "I like the pink in the middle."

"You do, do you." Anna positions the dresses to hide all, but her smirk. "If you cannot choose, you will not see pink, later."

He answers as his finger points. "Gray, gray, the gray will keep you warmer if we stay out for any length of time."

Anna puckers her lips and blows a kiss to him. Hanging both dresses on the hooks on the dressing screen, she slips into the wool under garments.

He sits on the edge of the bed to remove his boots and watches Anna cover her luscious body. With his shirt on the bed, he stands and drops his trouser. As he gets his pants off, a blur of red hair, slaps on his face and soft lips lock on to his lips. She pushes him back onto the bed and squeezes his manhood. Instinctively, it is filled with the anticipation.

She grins at him. "Later, I promise." Before he could grab her, she runs across the room. "Hurry up before they stop singing."

Even with a slight discomfort of his slightly tighter his outdoor trousers, he hurries with his shirt and boots. He flips the blanket over his shoulder and marches out the door. Around the corner and down the hall, a flash of red in front of the Queen's door slows his walk to finally stop on the landing before the stairs. He glimpses back and leans against the rail.

Anna knocks on the Royal Suite's door and comments, "Elsa." The door handles jiggle and open. "I know you are not asleep, yet."

He is sure she will persuade her sister to go outside with them. Temptation bites at him to leave without them, but valor is better and his trousers remind him of what waits for him later. The castle main doors open. The people outside begin singing another song. Several dignitaries on the main floor walk towards the open doors. Kristoff rest his head in his hands. From the next floor down more guests make their way to the main doors. Patiently he waits. A few seconds later a hand slides across his bottom. He spins around quickly.

In her ice blue dress, Queen Elsa steps out of his way and with wide eyes, she points to her sister running down the stairs.

Anna calls back to her husband. "You wanted to go outside, let us go. You are holding us up."

He shrugs his shoulders and offers his arm to Elsa. With a smile she places her hand in the crux of his arm. He glimpses at her. "You look nice with your hair down."

Her right brow slowly rises as her smile disappears. "Are you flirting with me?"

With a gasp he leans away from her, "No . . . No, I would never do anything like that to you."

"So you would flirt with other women?"

"No, I would not. I -"

Elsa interrupts him. "So you are saying I do not look nice with my hair up?"

"No, you look nice with your hair up . . . or hair down. I was not trying . . . but I was just trying to give you a compliment." Kristoff stops as Elsa continues down the stairs.

At the bottom she peeks up and grins as Anna walks up to her. "Your right that was too easy." Elsa comments over her shoulder, "Come on mountain man, you wanted to hear the singing."

Anna waits for her mountain man to walk down the stairs and hooks her hand around his arm. "Ah, come on, she was just playing."

The anticipated excitement he expected for later, which he hoped Queen Elsa did not notice, disappears with the chilled air drifting in from the open doors. "Why do you let her do that to me? I never know if she is serious or not."

"She is trying to get you to relax around her." Anna wraps both of her arms around his large arms and rest her head against his shoulder. Two dignitaries from the Yule ball bow to Queen Elsa and shuffle their way out the door.

In the courtyard, Elsa notes most of the castle staff huddling together in small groups. They sing along with the people outside of the wall. She walks a short distance to Kai holding a blanket around Gerda. "Why are they out here?"

Kai steps back and bows his head to her. "Majesty." He sweeps his arm across the courtyard, "this event has become a tradition on Christmas eve, the past ten years."

"Ten years," She searches the faces of the staff and guest. Red noses and cheeks, they laugh and talk as if the cold does not bother them. Their smiles of happiness glow with the warmth of a fire. "Why have I not heard about this until now?"

"As far as I know, he only does this once a year and before midnight. Afterwards, he returns to the corner turret to complete his shift of guard duty. Several times I saw your father go up to the turret to talk with him for many hours." Kai watches her. "Each year the crowd gets larger. From the sound coming from over the wall this years is the largest yet."

Anna and Kristoff stop next to them, but Kristoff quickly steps to the other side of Anna to place her between him and Elsa. Anna asks, "Why we were not invited?"

Gerda leans forward and peeks around Kai. "No one gets invited." She points to the gate. "This is strictly word of mouth. He doesn't want anyone to feel obligated to come out here in the cold."

Elsa asks, "And who are you referring?" As if on cue a baritone voice calls out to the people.

The voice says, "You know this one. Most of you sang it last year. If you don't know the song, stand next to someone who does know it. This year, make the fjord and ocean hear your praises. 'Our God is an Awesome God'." Several members in the courtyard cast off their blankets and raise their arms to the heaven.

She should know the voice, but Elsa is not able to put a face to the voice.

Watching her, Gerda asks, "Sounds familiar, but you don't know who it is. Rest assured you will be surprised."

Kai leans close to her, "He is standing on the tower clock where the people can see him."

The voice speaks, "Everyone now, clap like you mean it." After several seconds they clap as one.

The voice sings, "Our God is an awesome God, He reigns from heaven above  
With wisdom pow'r and love, our God is an awesome God

The voice and the people sings, "Our God is an awesome God, He reigns from heaven above  
With wisdom pow'r and love, our God is an awesome God

The voice sings, "When He rolls up His sleeves He ain't just puttin' on the ritz"  
The people sing, "(our God is an awesome God)"  
The voice sings, "There is thunder in His footsteps And lightning in His fist"  
The people sings, "(our God is an awesome God)"  
The voice sings, "Well, the Lord wasn't joking When He kicked 'em out of Eden It wasn't for no reason that He shed his blood  
His return is very close and so you better be believing that our God is an awesome God"  
The voice and the people sings, "Our God is an awesome God, He reigns from heaven above  
With wisdom pow'r and love, our God is an awesome God

The voice sings, "And when the sky was starless in the void of the night"  
The people sings, "(our God is an awesome God)"  
The voice sings, "He spoke into the darkness and created the light"  
The people sings, "(our God is an awesome God)"  
The voice sings, "Judgment and wrath he poured out on Sodom, Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross  
I hope that we have not too quickly forgotten that our God is an awesome God  
The voice sings, "Our God is an awesome God, Our God is an awesome God"  
The people sings, "(Our God is an awesome God) (Our God is an awesome God)"

The voice and the people sings, "Our God is an awesome God, He reigns from heaven above  
With wisdom pow'r and love, our God is an awesome God

A thunderous cheer erupts from Arendelle, even those in the courtyard with their arms raised to the heavens let out a cheer. Kai walks over to the nearest group who cheered and whispers to them. They run to the other groups and they all pass through the gates, including several staff members of the dignitaries. Another hour passes with songs and readings. The baritone voice drew them in. Even the Royal guest, Anna, and Kristoff sang. The infectious voice persuaded them to sing the songs. Elsa searches the faces of all she could see in the torch lighted courtyard. They appeared to have a similar angelic expression, as though they were seeing the words being spoken to them. Then all went silent. After a few seconds the tower clock strikes midnight.

Upon the last gong of midnight the voice speaks to the people. "Each year I teach you a new song. Someday in the future a gentleman named Matt Redman will put several musical instruments to this song and the world will sing it. I will sing it all the way through once. On the second time through, if you wish to sing along, please do. On the third song, we sing together to let our Lord and Savior hear us.

Several in the crowd and the voice begins to sing as they stomp out the rhythm.

"Bless the Lord, O my soul; O my soul, Worship His holy name  
Sing like never before, O my soul, I'll worship Your holy name

The sun comes up, it's a new day dawning, It's time to sing Your song again  
Whatever may pass, and whatever lies before me, Let me be singing when the evening comes

Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul, Worship His holy name  
Sing like never before, O my soul, I'll worship Your holy name

You're rich in love, and You're slow to anger, Your name is great, and Your heart is kind  
For all Your goodness I will keep on singing, Ten thousand reasons for my heart to find

Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul, Worship His holy name  
Sing like never before, O my soul, I'll worship Your holy name

And on that day when my strength is failing, The end draws near and my time has come  
Still my soul will sing Your praise unending, Ten thousand years and then forevermore

Bless the Lord, O my soul, O my soul, Worship His holy name  
Sing like never before, O my soul, I'll worship Your holy name

Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name, Lord, I'll worship Your holy name  
Sing like never before, O my soul, I'll worship Your holy name  
Jesus, I'll worship Your holy name, I'll worship Your holy name

The voice calls out, "Sing with me. Bless the Lord, O my Soul . . ."

"Everyone sing to God our Father." Everyone sings, "Bless the Lord, O my Soul . . .

Then it was silence except for the sniffles from the few still in the courtyard. The tower clock strikes the quarter time. Elsa observes the faces, the smiles, the hugs and tears. Even Anna and Kristoff have an angelic glow about them as they are wrapped together.

Several minutes pass, then the baritone voice calls out. "My mistake, I moved from my spot and most did not hear me, so I will start again. Let us all pray. Our Father in Heaven, Hallow be thy name, thy Kingdom has come. We pray, dear Father that our songs were pleasing to your ear. And that maybe even the angels stopped to listen to the people of Arendelle sing honor and glory to You. We pray that the things we have done this year has been pleasing to you. We ask you to show us how to be a better servant to those around us, to accept and give thanks for what is given to us. With the coming of the New Year, we pray for our families, and friends, and the stranger we have yet to meet. We pray you will bless Arendelle that we can be the servant you want us to be. Father, we ask a special prayer for our beloved Queen. You know her heart, you know her struggles. We pray it is Your Will that You will use us, the people of Arendelle, to help our Queen lead us in your ways, keep us safe, and bring honor and glory to you. Thank you, Father, for sending your son Jesus Christ to save us from ourselves. For it's in your son's holy name we pray, Amen."

The people reply in unison. "Amen."

Several minutes pass. Sounds of scuffling feet move across the bridge. The gate opens and the castles' staff and dignitaries' staff pass through. While the gate is open Elsa hears many still singing.

Two dignitaries walk up to her and bow. "Your Majesty, I hope to get another invitation from you for next Christmas, but if it gets lost by the courier, I hope you will not be offended if I show up anyway. Your people can sing and I wish to be out there with them."

The second guest, also comments, "Maybe next year you could have the gentleman sing at your ball. Is he a member of your court?"

Her right brow rises as she smiles. "I think he is, but I am not one hundred percent sure with that voice."

The second guest comments, "Well, if he is not, maybe we can entice him to come back with us. His voice could make a fortune traveling around with us." The two continue their chat as they walk back into the castle.

Anna stops behind her. "You are not going to let him leave, are you?"

Elsa turns around. "I do not know who 'he' is."

Kai walks up to them from the castle. "You didn't know that was Admiral Ryan?"

"What?" She looks in the direction of the clock tower and the pieces begin to fit together. "It is Sam!" She turns to Kai, "No, I did not know."

"I believe in a few minutes he will be in the corner turret to finish his shift as a guard." Kai hands her an open cloth bag revealing two glasses and a small bottle of wine. "I'm sure he is a little thirsty by now."

She stares at the wine for a moment and looks at him as he continues. "Your father did it for five years. This could be a new tradition for you and Arendelle."

She glances towards the clock tower. _How much more have I missed exiling myself to the castle? He is doing what I should be doing to encourage my people._

Kai offers his arm. "I'll get you all the way up to the door, but you will have to step through it."

Hesitantly, but with a smile, she takes his arm and they walk towards the corner tower.

Kai carries the torch that barely provides enough light to see the stone steps. After stumbling for a second time, she is thankful to be holding Kai's arm. In the daylight, she did not remember the tower being so uninviting and taking so long to climb. Despite both of them breathing heavily, they reach the landing below the turret. Kai touches his torch to the torches on either side of the door.

Despite the sweat over his brows and his labor to breathe, he holds the door handle and asks, "Are you ready?"

Short of breath herself, she whispers, "yes."

"If you do not see him right away, stay by the table, he will show. Be yourself, not the Queen, be Elsa and I promise you, this will be a night you will not forget nor will he." The door opens.

Elsa takes a deep breath, hoping to calm her nervousness, and steps through. The door makes a dull screeching sound before closing with a thump behind her. A small candle in a lantern on the wall barely illuminates the steps in front of her. Her arm slips through the twine loop on the small bag. One step at a time she climbs up the stairs. She edges past the door propped open with a stick and onto the covered turret.

A small torch, low to the floor, barely flickers enough light to reveal a small table and two chairs. Sam has not returned. Elsa sets the bag on the table and dust off a chair before sitting with her back against the wall. A breeze brings the flavor of burning wood from several chimneys. The sounds of Arendelle die down. One by one the few lights in their homes wink out. Another breeze passes through the turret and almost extinguishes the torch. The breezes kick up the dust and something runs across her shoes. She holds up her hand and the moment she sees what ran across her foot, she will freeze it. In the corner something runs up the wall and floats out at her. A spit of ice hits the object causing it to fall to the floor. It does not move. She leans towards it. It glimmers from the torch and yes, she froze a leaf to the floor.

Elsa settles back into her chair. She eyes the bag. A shot of wine would calm her nerves. Beyond the torch light, darkness passes the embrasures around the turret. A fluttering of wings attracts her attention, but she sees nothing.

A thud hits the outside of the turret. She grips her chair, but is ready to freeze another leaf if she has to. She sees movement and raises her hand. Fingers from two hands strain at the edge of the embrasure. A grunting noise sounds as a large body jumps over the wall. It sits between her and the doorway. A familiar voice causes her to smile.

Down on one knee, Sam studies the scrape on the side of his hand. "Well that was stupid. I should have cleared the opening with plenty of room. I'm glad no one saw it."

With a slight giggle, Elsa says, "I saw it."

Sam crouches in a defensive position and his eyes change to a blue color. They stare at her. "It's a good thing you're not a hostile." He stands and reveals a long narrow ice spike in his hand.

Her eyes widen. Her heart races at how close she could have been stabbed. A slight sheen of ice covers her fingers.

He tosses the spike over the side. "I'm rather surprised I did not see you there, but then again lately, you seem to catch me at a disadvantage." He stops next to the table, "Before you say anything, please let me scan the area."

With his back to the torch he covers his eyes. A minuscule amount of blue light shines on his face through the openings above and below his hand for a few seconds. Dropping his hand and blinking several times, He focuses on a face he hasn't seen in years, the expression of wonderment. He sits in the chair and asks, "What did you see?"

She sweeps her hand in front of her face she says, "I do not think I have seen you do that trick. What are you doing with the blue light?"

"I scan the area since I am on guard duty. During the day, no one would see the light, but at night with no moon, someone could see me from many kilometers away."

She watches him with no response. He continues, "I am honored that you came up here to visit me, but I thought you would be asleep right now."

She blinks with a smile and points, "How is your hand?"

He holds it up in the light. "Oh, I scraped it on the wall when I jumped. My aim was a little off."

She covers the scrape with her hand. "A gifted gentleman showed me this trick." Her lips part as she exhales an icy fog into her hand. He inhales rapidly from the cold air sweeping across his hand. He would have done the same thing had she not been there, but the sensation of watching her sends a slight chill down his back. Her hands open to reveal the scrape has been healed. She stares into his eyes as she leans forward. Her lips lightly kisses the spot where the scrape had been.

A shockwave shoots through his hand and radiates throughout his body. His heart beats faster. His body begins to stir with energy. The sensation reminds him of another, who was in tuned with his emotions. She could evoke the animalistic desires, cravings, and lust. His eyes close to regain control of his emotions. They open.

"Where did you get those?" he points to the short bottle and two glasses sit on the table.

"I brought them with me." With a slight grin she asks, "You did not fall asleep on duty, did you?"

He leans over the table and squints at her. "I can't believe in the few minutes you have been here, you have caught me not at my best, twice."

The corner of her lips curl up as she points to the bottle, "Would you be so kind to serve the drinks?"

With a nod, "It would be my honor." Pealing the wax coating off the top of the bottle, he pops the cork and pours a little wine into each glass. She lifts her glass and he holds up his glass. "What shall we toast?"

She swirls the wine. Her expression changes to seriousness. "Did you mean what you said to the people of Arendelle?" She looks over the edge of her glass at him.

An uncomfortable feeling stirs in him as though her stare would pierce his soul. He glances at the bottle and tilts his glass to study the wine. "Which part are you referring?"

Without moving or blinking, she replies, "The special prayer."

Try as he might he is not able to hold back the smile forming on his face. "I absolutely meant it." He lifts his glass. "To Arendelle's Queen, may she reign as long as she does God's will."

Her glass clinks against his glass. "To Arendelle's Queen." They both drink the shot of wine in one gulp.

He fills each glass a quarter full and picks up his glass. "Who do you wish to toast?"

She swirls the wine in her glass. "Actually, I have some questions."

His brows drift up. "So you brought this delicious wine to get me drunk and to confess my soul?"

"Is it working?" She sips the wine.

He watches her. They have never drank any alcohol together before now. His brows scrunch together. He looks at the wine bottle and back to her. "You're going to need a larger bottle of wine to get me drunk enough to confess my soul."

With a snicker, she downs the rest of the wine, then pours herself a full glass. "No, I do not want you to confess your soul. The bishop may be willing to listen to you." She takes a small sip. "I am curious as to why I have never heard you sing. Is this why you did not come to the Yule Ball?"

The wine in his glass slips down his throat as he continues to watch her. He sets the glass on the table and stares at it. Her questions remind him of the first time the King made almost the identical statement and question. She holds her glass to her lips, watching him with a slight grin.

"The children loved the ice figures and snacks last year. They looked forward to them this year. Your guests come here for the alcohol, food, and perhaps hoping to catch someone in a compromised position, which could be used in their favor at the next trade meetings. At this time of night most of the children are in their beds asleep, even though I did see a few on the bridge. The parents need moments to renew their lives."

He smiles at her expression he saw many years ago. "The first time someone heard me sing. A three year old was having a hard time falling asleep. Her parents were at their wits ends. I had nothing to lose, so I sang a song that calmed me down when I was little. The next thing I knew she fell asleep in my arms. After that her mother would call on me to sing to her daughter to go to sleep. Word got around and other parents asked for my help. Over time I sang different songs and encouraged others to sing with me."

He takes a large swallow of wine. "A number of years ago. A friend and I discovered it quite by accident. A young man sang to a young lady on the tower. Around me, a number of couples gathered to listen to the couple sing to each other. When they came down and were greeted, they did not sound as they did on the tower. I tested a theory. Actually a young mother wanted me to test the theory. She asked me to go to the top of the clock tower and sing to her baby. I saw no harm. After a few tries, I found the location the young couple sang from. The location creates a harmonic resonate that if I enunciated and projected my words, many more could hear."

Her expression fixates on his every word. He stares into her blue eyes. "The little girl grew up. She was having trouble with life. From the clock tower I sang three songs on her birthday."

"Did she hear them?"

"I don't know for sure. I hoped she did." He glances towards Arendelle. "Well anyway, I was highly encouraged to sing Christmas songs shortly afterwards and I have performed for them every year since."

"Kai said you have sung on the tower for the last ten years." She leans towards him. "Why am I just finding out about it this year?"

"I made a deal with the Captain of the Guards. He allows me to be on guard duty on Christmas and other special events." He pours himself a half glass of wine. "As long as the gates are closed and the upper floor windows are closed you can barely hear me."

Elsa places her arms to the edge of the table and rests her chin in her hands. "I still do not understand. You were on the tower the first five years under my father's reign, and he never knew?"

He takes another sip. "The King knew. The first year he came up here with a bottle of brandy and thanked me for supporting the monarchy and the people. He drank three-fourths of the brandy. We had or I should say he took the opportunity to dump his pent up emotions."

Sam reaches across the table and rest his hand on her arm. "Your father truly loved you and Anna. He said he made a mistake for not accepting my offer to train you with your ice powers."

Her eyes glisten as she chokes on the whisper. "Then why did he not?"

"I believe someone knew you had been locked away even though he never said it. As to whom I don't know and he never mentioned it again. He had a good cry. I helped him to his room. After that he would visit me here. Sometimes he brought a little cake, but mostly brandy." He holds both of her hands. "I saw the hurt in his face just as I see it in you. I don't belong with the royal people."

Gradually his head moves from side to side. "I would say the wrong thing at the wrong time that could create a hardship for you. I have no desire nor, to the best of my abilities will I ever do anything to embarrass or hurt you." He glances down, then back up with a sigh. "I know you have to walk a fine line to keep the other royals semi-on your side and the people of Arendelle happy. For now I believe it would be in your best interest that I did not attend a ball with other royals' there."

The light flickers as a gust of wind passes through the turret. The breeze lifts the dust and carries it out the other side. He holds up his hand. A faint blue halo sweeps around the turret. The air along the turret wall undulates and the ripples flow as the tide water wash along a shore. The torch burns steady and the dirt settles.

She watches his action and looks past him. "How are you doing that with the colors and waves?"

He smiles. "I can manipulate the air around me and other objects." A thought crosses his mind as his smile fades. "Wait, you can see the energy barrier blocking the wind?"

"Yes, should I not be able to see it?" She leans back moving her hand from his hand. Looking around the turret she states, "You do not have to hide it because I see it."

He looks over his shoulder and back to her. "You don't see it now?"

"No! Is it still there?"

His eyes move as though they are searching the table and the wall behind her. They stare at his hands. He turns his palms up. "Take my hands"

She stares at his hands before placing her hands on top of his. She glances around the turret. "You brought it back."

He pulls his hand away from her. "Do you see it now?"

She slightly shakes her head. "No"

He touches her hand with one finger. "And now you do." She nods. "Interesting indeed." He looks over his shoulder and back to her. "May I conduct a test?"

"Will it hurt?"

"That I'm not one hundred percent sure. If anything, it may make you feel a little nauseous. If it does just let go of me?" With a nod, he leads her to stand next to the wall facing the fjord. He holds her hand and sweeps the air in front of her to remove the undulating air. "Tell me what you see?"

She lets go of his hand and tilts her head down. Her eyes close as she grabs the edge of the embrasure. He holds his arm close without touching her. She takes several breaths through her nose and exhales through her lips. She reaches for his hand. "I felt a little dizzy, but let me try it again."

He leans close and whispers, "I'm going to place my hand on your back. It will steady you." She nods. His hand touches between her shoulders. He feels her heart beating slow. He presses his fingertips into her back and they glow a blue tint. His other hand rest next to hers.

Elsa slides her hand on top of his hand. He closes his eyes to see as she sees. Her eyes open as she lifts her head and stares across the fjord. The hills teem with nocturnal animal life. In the fjord several small schools of fish swim near the surface. They dive into the deeps. Her head rises up and the stars blaze brighter, even the star constellations she knows by name appear to have many more stars in the background. A flash of light catches her attention. She narrows her eyes directly at the light on the open sea.

Sam whispers, "As you can see you do not wish to do this during the day. A full moon will be quite blinding."

She lifts her hand off his hand and the darkness of night returns. She touches his hand again and the night comes alive. She starts to turn her head towards him and he jerks his hand away from her.

"I don't think you are ready to see a human body under those light conditions, one step at a time." He places both of his hands to his sides. "How do you feel?"

"I feel fine. Did pressing your fingers into my back have anything to do with stopping the spinning in my head?" She searches his face.

With a half-smile he answers, "Alcohol does funny things to one's senses. I blocked the effect temporarily, but you obviously do not drink a lot."

"Very rarely do I consume alcohol and if I do, one glass will last me most of the evening." She leans against the wall yawning as her eyes partially close. "I think it is time for me to leave if I am going to see my guest depart tomorrow."

She yawns again. As she moves towards the exit, she stumbles into him. "Careful there, you almost fell on me."

He chuckles. "You fell into me. You are the one moving."

With droopy eyes, she looks up at him. "Really?" A smile creeps across her face. "Do you remember being on the balcony on my coronation day?"

"Yes, I do."

"Do you remember me asking if you wished to kiss Elsa and you said yes?"

His left brow rises. "Yes."

"You remember you said you would not kiss the Queen because you're a commoner?"

"Yes."

"Will you follow the Queen's commands?"

"If it does not diminish the Queen's stature or safety, yes, I will."

She pushes away from him and stands in her regal pose with a little wobble. She stares at him and points to the floor. "Kneel."

He hesitates. What are you doing?

"No one will see us up here, please kneel."

His body response to her command before his mind can argue a reason to disobey His knees bend.

Elsa moves to his side. "Do not move a muscle in your body unless I move you."

He nods once.

She steps closer and her body presses into his arm. Running her fingers through his hair, she grabs a fist full of his hair and pulls to tilt his face up.

Her face stops few centimeter his face. She stares into his eyes. "Do not move a muscle. The only thing I want to feel moving are your lips against mine." Her lips slowly contact his lips. A surge of energy builds between them. She runs her tongue across the inside of his upper lip. He tastes a hint of salt and the remnants of wine. Slowly their lips separate. With a smile she lets go of his hair and steps back.

The experience overwhelms his senses. He has not felt this way in a long time. His body enjoys the moment and fall back onto his side. Raising his hand, he proclaims, "God bless my Queen."

Her hand slaps against his hand. "I second the motion. Merry Christmas Admal." She steps over him.

He does not move and reminisces the good time he just had. Several seconds later, a high pitched squeal echoes behind him, followed by a thud at the bottom of the steps. In one motion, Sam rolls and jumps down the steps to land next to Elsa holding her head in the corner. He scans her and finds no broken bones. Positioning himself to roll her into his arms, he moves her hand from her head. She grimaces in pain. A scrape above her left brow has the top layer of skin removed. A small trace of blood runs down the side of her face into her hair. His finger sweeps a layer of ice over the scrape as his hand glows against her face. "Do you hurt anywhere other than your forehead?"

She barely opens her eyes. "I think I twisted my left ankle. I feel embarrassed I missed a step."

He grins and remembers staring into a set of beautiful blue eyes the last time she fell. For a moment the proper protocol does not exist. "Sweetie, I think you missed all of them."

They both chuckle. He removes his hand and wipes the melting water from her healed scrape. "I don't think you will be able to walk down the rest of the stairs."

She rolls her head against his chest and closes her eyes. "Please stay with me?"

"I'm still on guard duty." He watches her, but she does not appear to hear him as her body gradually relaxes. "Well, I can at least get you back to your room."

He closes his eyes for a few seconds and opens them. An eerie blue glow fills the room. The undulating air around the turret expands, dropping to the water line and covering the area he is assigned to guard. If anyone touches the air, he will know. Placing her hands in her lap, he cradling her against his chest. With one smooth motion, he stands. She stirs enough to wrap her arms around his neck as she lays her head on his shoulder. He waits for her pain to calm. She takes a deep breath and sighs. He begins the long and slow trip down the stairs.

At the bottom of the tower, he glances out the door searching for anyone who might see him caring their Queen across the courtyard. Two guards on the wall move in his direction. After several minutes they turn away. He tightens his grip around her and whispers, "Hold on sweetie, this may be a little bumpy."

Just as he steps out the door, she whispers, "Ok, I will not drop you, my Prince."

Her reply throws his balance off. He nearly drops her and stumbles next to the wall. She tightens her arms around his neck to the point he can feel her breath against his cheek. He whispers, "You're not playing fair."

With a slight giggle she whispers, "I am the Queen. I do not have to play fair."

A guard turns in his direction. He watches the guard closely and is ready to respond in a traumatic fashion if needed. The guard turns away from them. He waits a few more seconds. "Why did you call me your Prince?"

She whispers a barely auditable sound. "Because I know your secret?"

His body becomes rigid and she shifts her arms around him. "What secret do you think you know?"

Her lips move against his neck. "Did I hit a nerve? The tension in your neck says I did find a secret. When will you reveal it?"

"I'll take a chance you will not remember this in the morning. At one time someone may have thought I was a Prince. Reality says I'm a bridge between worlds. The question is will you be my anchor here or if you will be nothing more than a wisp in time." He glances at her. A slight glow surrounds the two of them.

He shakes his head and takes the chance to run for the castle door. Shifting his weight on to the balls of his feet, his knees bend. A layer of ice forms in front of his feet. A wave of ice pushes on his heels propelling them across the courtyard. The ice stops at the bottom of the steps and he runs to the top. The ice melts. The castle door opens enough for them to enter.

He scans the entrance way and all surrounding areas leading up to the Royal suites. One guard stands between him and stairs. The guard moves down the hall towards the kitchen. Sam sneak up the stairs with barely a sound. On the residential floor near the hall intersection, two guards talk. He waits until they round the corner.

Slipping into the royal suite, Sam carries Elsa into the bedroom. As he starts to place her on the bed, Elsa tightens her grip on to him. Her body tenses and with a slight whimper, a tear rolls down her cheek. Her legs move with mini spasms. He holds her tight and whispers, "I can't stay here. What am I going to do with you?"

Her eyes open with a blue glow. She bares her teeth and growls, "Not this time." Pulling his neck to her, she bites.

A surge of energy explodes in his mind. Everything in his vision blurs as all the colors swirl together. The sensation of falling consumes his body. Elsa disappears from his arms. A huge glassy snowflake rising up to him. Sam braces for the impact, but at the last second he lands on his feet. A sharp pain stabs into his neck. Instinctually, he had reaches up and catches an arrow by its feathers. The arrow tip slices the side of his neck. In the direction of the arrows origin, the tall beefy Weselton guard tries to reload his crossbow. The second skinnier Weselton aims to the right of his head.

Everything flashes to a green tint and moves in slow motion. The arrow leaves the crossbow's rail with its trajectory to move past his head. He turns. Elsa stares up at him with an expression of fear. Her hands slowly move up in front of her face. The arrow moves too fast even in this slow motion. His right hand grabs the passing arrow. With an arrow in each hand, he throws them back when the time jumps to normal speed. An arrow hits each Weselton guard and the force of energy slams them against the ice wall. Both men groan and kick trying to remove the arrow from their bodies. Their blood drains down the wall. After a few seconds both men stop moving with their feet dangle above the floor. A crimson red pools on the icy floor.

A sudden inhale attracts his attention to a wide eyed Elsa backing away from him. He reaches for her. She stumbles and falls. From down the hall, Hans and the Arendelle guards close in on them. Elsa tries to get to her feet. Her shoe catches in her dress. Sam locks his arm around her waist as he picks her up and moves to a corner of the room. His hand covers her mouth. She bites drawing blood from his fingers.

With his back against the corner, he sweeps his hand from the floor to above his head. An ice wall forms, sealing them into the corner. He whispers into her ear. "I know you are afraid, but I am here to help you."

Sam points to the two men on the wall. "They had orders to kill you by any means. Around the corner Prince Hans intends to take over Arendelle after he forces you to undo this winter." She trembles against him. "I'm going to remove my hand. Please do not scream until you see what is about to happen, ok?" Elsa nods. He removes his hand.

Hans and the guards run into the room and stop upon seeing the two dead Weselton men. One of the guards moves closer and points at the arrows in their bodies. "They were shot by their own arrows."

Another guard standing in front of the wall says, "Prince Hans, there is blood over here."

Hans walks over and kneels touching one of several blood drops. "This is fresh. She must have put up a fight and shot them with their own weapons."

"Prince Hans, their weapons are over here. She must have ran out that door."

Hans rises to his feet and runs towards the door. "We have to hurry and capture her before she gets too far."

A guard standing by Weselton men asks, "What about these two?"

Hans replies as he leads them out the door. "Leave them. The cold will preserve their bodies until we get back. We have to stop that monster."

Elsa turns her head slightly towards him. "Am I a monster? Why do they not just leave me alone?"

Sam holds his bleeding hand in front of her. "Whose blood do you see? What was the temperature in Arendelle yesterday morning as compared to now?"

She leans back against him and nods. "Maybe they are right. I have caused all of this and I do not know how to stop the winter."

He whispers, "My dear, you are not a monster. You have powers that you yourself don't know how to control, but I will give you a clue. There are people who love you. Receive their love and you will be set free. Unfortunately, there are too many people who are afraid of what you did and there are others who plan on taking advantage of this circumstance."

"Like Hans?"

"And the Duke, who wishes to exploit Arendelle for his own ambitions." His hand touches the wall of ice and it melts away.

Elsa steps forward, then twirls around. "You look familiar. Do I know you, Admal?"

Her question catches him off guard. He searches her face for deceit. "Admal? How do you know my name, if you do not know me?"

She looks down to one side and to the other side, then walks towards the open ice doors.

He follows a short distance behind her, but stops when he does not see the two Weselton men or blood on the floor. An extreme cold grips him.

Elsa stands on the balcony facing the rising sun. She turns to him. She has a scrape over her left brow and blood trailing back to her hair. "What are you waiting for? The cold does not bother you, does it?" She tilts her head up and falls backwards off the balcony.

Sam tries to move towards the balcony, but everything swirls together. His eyes close as the severe cold consumes his body. He falls back against the wall. His eyes open. They are back in the Royal bedroom.

A whimper draws his attention. In his arms Elsa pants. He steps away from the wall and she stops breathing for several seconds then gasps for air. Her body slowly releases the tension and she takes a deep breath to exhale a long sigh. He watches her for several seconds to determine she is breathing normally. He leans over the bed and begins to lower her. She tightens her arms around his neck.

Elsa nuzzles his neck and whispers, "You need to sit down before you drop me."

Sam searches her bedroom. The bed would create a scandal that would diminish her stature for the rest of her life. He recalls seeing a cushioned lounge chair in the front room. Dragging a blanket off the bed, he carries her into the front room. Sitting on the oversized chair, he positions her on her side. A flick of his finger shoots a puff of air under the blanket and drapes it over her. She slides up to rest her head on his chest. He tucks the blanket around her shoulders and under her chin.

With a light kiss on her forehead, he brushes her hair out of her face, "Good night my Queen. I'll protect you in this realm and in your dreams."

His hand presses against the small of her back as he holds her hand. His head drops back against the chair. His eyes close as a light blue tint fills the room. She sighs and her body relaxes. Everything is at peace.

Early the next morning, a pounding on the door brings his mind back to the moment. His vision returns to normal just as the door opens.

"Elsa, are you awake. I have been knocking on your door forever. Are you going to sleep the whole morning away?" Anna says as she walks past him and into the Queen's bedroom.

Sam blinks several times and starts to move, but a weight holds him down. His hair pulls his head back. A loud pop sounds as a hand slaps his forehead. A pair of angry greenish-blue eyes on a freckled face framed with strawberry red hair glares down at him.

In a rather loud voice Anna asks, "Where is my sister before I call the guards?"

He stares back. "What is it with you two that you have to pull my hair to get my attention?"

"I will pull it out of your head if you do not answer." She pushes his head forward and jerks it back against the chair. "You were with her late last night. Were you not?"

"Why would you make such a claim?"

A small hand reaches up near his face and pulls the blanket down, revealing a flushed face with partially opened eyes.

Anna gasps. "Elsa, what are you doing under there?"

"I was having the best sleep I have had in a long time until you came in here with the noise." She tucks the blanket under her chin and closes her eyes.

"Have you been under there all night?" Anna pulls the blanket off of them.

Sam sweeps his hand over Elsa and points to their clothes. "We did not do anything. She had a bad dream and I comforted her. This is the way we were all morning."

Suddenly it clicks in his mind as he peeks towards the window. The sun is up. "Aw, you're kidding me. I missed my shift change. I bet Captain Larsen is looking for me."

Kai stands outside of the door and smiles. His open hand points across the doorway. "No, he found you."

Stepping into the doorway, Larsen shakes his fist at him.

Elsa pulls herself up to rest her head on his chest. Her head moves with his breathing. "I will tell the good Captain you were entertaining me all morning." She giggles. "I can hear your heart beat increase." After a few more seconds she whispers, "If you are not going to get the blanket from Anna, it is ok to put your arms around me."

Anna steps back wide eyed and her hand covering her mouth. After a moment of hesitation, she places her hands on her waist and with a slight indignation she responds, "Elsa, no it is not ok. He should not be here in the first place, let alone in the chair with you lying on him."

"Oh please, how many times did I catch you and Kristoff with your hands all over each other in the Library before the two of you finally got married." Elsa pushes on his chest to sit up. Sweeping her hair out of her face. "He did not lie. After the singing I met him in the corner turret. We had a couple of drinks of wine, we talked; he showed me the life that goes on in the darkness. I slipped down the stairs. He carried me back here. I did not want him to leave just yet."

Anna shifts her weight and the image of her mother's scow covers her face.

Elsa opens her eyes just enough to see Anna. "It could have been worse."

She waves her hands at them. "Worse than this, how?"

With a devilish smile forming, Elsa answers, "You could have caught us like this in my bed."

He snickers as he sits up.

Anna stomps her foot and clenches her teeth together. "Elsa, you are the Queen. You cannot be seen doing this."

Her smile disappears as she glares directly at Anna. "Now you listen to me. I have to smile and be polite to others who are here to take Arendelle's resources in the name of a treaty or steal if they can. It is my job that Arendelle gets a fair deal in the trade. Only after the fact will I find out if I did my job or if Arendelle suffers for my inexperience or lack of knowledge. If I take a moment or several hours to forget about my responsibilities as Queen and to enjoy myself or get a good night's sleep, is it too much to ask?" Elsa closes her eyes as she lowers her head and rubs the injured on the back of her neck.

Anna sits next to her sister wrapping her arm around her shoulder and pulls her close. "I know you have a tough job as the Queen. I am sorry for what I said. I am just trying to do what I can to help you."

Elsa reaches up to cuddle Anna's face. "I know and I appreciate you looking out for me. You do not have to worry. Other than sleep nothing happened between us. He is an honorable gentleman and could have taken advantage of me like I wanted, but he did not."

"Elsa!"

She snickers. "I am picking. You have such a serious expression on your face. I would never do anything like that, except with my husband the Crown Prince." She places her hand behind herself.

A cool sensation encompasses his knee where Elsa's hand rests. A warming sensation radiates from his heart and consumes his body. He considers if she knows, but how. Did he say something while he slept? No, that couldn't be she said my Prince when he tried to get across the courtyard the first time.

Anna and Elsa smile at him. He smiles back not knowing what to say. After a few seconds of silence Elsa's smile slowly fades and her eyes close as her body relaxes.

Anna tightens her grip on her shoulders. "Elsa what is wrong?"

Sam slides off the chair and kneels as he grabs Elsa's wrist. Her heart beats fast. He leans close to her face. "Where are you hurting?"

She whispers, "My back, my neck, my head."

Anna brows wrinkle as she bites her lower lip. "Did she hurt her back falling this morning?"

He shakes his head. "I'm sure she did not or I would have seen it." He runs his fingers along her spine up to her neck. "I think there are two vertebrates out of alignment. Elsa can you stand."

He receives a moan in reply. "Help me to get her up."

They get her to her feet and he leans Elsa towards Anna. He places his foot between her feet with a slightly bent knee. He slides his arm between them to hold her. "My apologies, but I need to get her back into alignment. Lean her to me."

Elsa grimaces in pain when she rolls her head back onto his shoulder. "Cross her arms in front and hold her hands to her shoulders." He reaches between them again and grabs his wrist pulling his arms against Elsa's arms. He stands tall lifting her off the floor. Her back crackles and pops.

"Whoa, did you break her back?"

"Not yet," he says as he squats down until her feet touch the floor then he stands. The last vertebrate pops in place.

"Whoa, that was loud."

Elsa rolls her head back onto his shoulder with a smile. "Yea, but my back feels a lot better."

Lowering her feet to the floor, he moves his arms as Anna grabs her sister's shoulders, but Elsa grabs her neck as she falls towards Anna. "What is wrong with her?"

Sam runs his finger along her spine to the back of her head. He locates another vertebrate misaligned and flicks his hand to close the hallway door. "Don't move her."

He places his hand under her chin and his other hand over the misaligned vertebrae. An ice block forms around her neck to support her head. He leans her back to him and rotates her so her face rests against his shoulder.

Anna steps back and points at him. Her eyes widened. "The whites in your whole eyes are blue."

Sam touches Anna's shoulder with one finger touching her bare neck. "You did not see the ice around her neck. You are tired and decided to lie down while I massage the kinks out of Elsa's back."

Anna walks around them and lies down on the lounge. Using the blanket for a pillow as she closes her eyes.

He sits Elsa in the chair and kneels as he rests her neck on his shoulder. Melting the ice so only a small piece cradles her neck and chin, he separates her hair to either side of her neck to reveal the flaming red misaligned vertebrae. "Oh you poor girl, no wonder you were in such pain."

Applying pressure to the vertebrates, she moans, but it does not move. "Ok love, I'm going to have to do it the hard way." He kneels lower and shifts her body so her chin rest on his shoulder. Removing the rest of the ice, he lays his left hand over the vertebrate as gentle thermal swirls rise up from his hand. His fingertips apply a light pressure. His hand across the back of her neck. He moves his head to rest slightly behind her head and applies just enough pressure to give her neck a stretch. After several passes over her neck, both of his hands moves down to her shoulders. Gradually her muscles release and a couple of other vertebrates snap back into place.

She takes a deep breath and starts to move her head. Quickly placing his hand on the side of her head, "Please don't move. Just relax, I'm supporting you. Once the last vertebrate is aligned it should reduce your pain."

She hooks her thumbs into the back of his trouser.

"Where are you hurting?"

With a mumble she replies, "My chin, head and neck."

The last vertebrate slips back in place with a snap. "Oh God that feels better." Elsa sits up and rubs the back of her neck. With a smile and partially opened eyes, she rolls her shoulders and stretch her arms over her head, then brings them down around his neck pulling him close to her. She looks at her sister on the lounge. "Why is Anna asleep? Did you have anything to do with it?"

"Just as you passed out in her arms, I felt the knot in your neck and placed an ice collar around your neck to immobilize it." He replies wrapping his arms around her.

She runs her fingers through his hair. "And she was staring at you when you did it. So?"

"I suggested she was still tired and should lie down."

His fingers trace along her spine and across the still aligned vertebrate. He turns his head to visually inspect her spine's alignment. Several of her curls flick his nose causing him to breathe deeply. A new fragrant assaults his senses. The sensation of her hair reminds him of a little girl's hair from a not too distant past, whom also rested her head on his shoulder. The silky texture easily fell through his fingers as a few strands glisten in the light creating small rainbows. He inhales a spring rain, clean and refreshing. His heart begins to stir his emotions. His fingers gently slide down her neck and walk his hands across her shoulders. His body responds to this beautiful woman. He stops.

"Do not stop, it feels too good." She lightly brushes her lips against his neck.

The spark in his heart burst into a raging fire. Before the fire consumes his body, he whispers, "Oh God Elsa, I can't, I promised." He quickly stands, placing his hands on his waist, but she holds on to his neck as her feet dangle above the floor.

She rolls her head with a big smile towards him as she struggles to hang on. "When will she wake up?"

"Soon or when I tell her to wake up." He replies not moving to help her to hold on to him.

She presses her knees against his hip bones and wiggles her feet cupping the inside of his thighs. She uses his hip bone as leverage to push herself up and secures her arms around his neck then nibbles on his earlobe.

He tries very hard to stay focused and not encourage her in his losing battle against her assault. "You are clearly not playing fair."

She pulls on his hair, tilting his head back as she pushes against his hips to get her head above him. "As I told you this morning, I am the Queen. I do not have to play fair."

Anna yawns and pushes herself up to a sitting position. "Who does not have to play fair?"

Elsa drops to the floor. Adjusting her dress and brushing her hair out of her face, she asks, "Anna, you are awake, how do you feel?"

Anna yawns again. "I feel fine. I just had the strangest dream." She looks at them, "I dreamt you two were lying on this chair groping and kissing each other, weird huh?"

Sam moves quickly towards the door.

Elsa flicks a small shower of ice onto his shoulder. "Coward."

He turns and bows to her. "Yes and I get to fight another day, Merry Christmas Majesty and Princess."

As she flicks the door to close and says, "Merry Christmas my Prince"

Captain Larsen and Kai stare at him with raised brows. He grins at them, "I can explain."

Larsen with an open hand points down the hall. "Abandoning your post to be with the Queen. Now that's a new one on me."

Kai snickers. "I'm free for the next hour. I'll be all ears for this explanation."

Sam walks down the hall between them. "No, really I can explain."

 **End of Chapter**


	64. Chapter 63 Anna

**Title: Chp-65 Anna**

 **2 year 10 months until correction**

Samuel Ryan sits in the cozy chair in the castle's library. He always believed to know where a planet or nation or Queendom was going, their history is filled with clues, if one was willing to study their history. King Agnarr collected several old books of the previous inhabitants of the lands surrounding Arendelle. Sam continues to learn about their culture and finds explanations of signs, symbols, and spoken language of the older people whom reference their Nordic ancestry. Tonight, he selects a thick book that mentions trolls.

After a few minutes of reading, he stops. While his mind pushes to read at his normal speed, too much information is lost if he does not analyze the writing itself. The nuances of each character contribute to the meaning of the word and each word contributes to the meaning of the sentence. Even in his timeline the meaning of words changes with each generation who reads it.

Unlike the electronic books and documents in his ship's library, the words have specific meaning depended on the language of the reader. His ship's computer translates the text and would help him understood what the author knew of the trolls. In this time period, the reader must perform the interpretation. If they have no history of the culture, the true meanings of the words are lost from the author. He picks up the book and methodically begins to read.

With a chime, the hands of the clock read 11:30. He looks in the direction of the royal suite and closes his eyes to locate Queen Elsa. After a few seconds he finds her in the royal bedroom preparing for bed. Lately, she has been getting to her room later than the previous nights. He offered to stay up with her, but she said she does better retaining her knowledge when she is by herself. He did not take it personally. It remembers him when he stayed up all hours preparing for a war presentation or making battle plans, so he never pushed the issue with her. With each passing day her knowledge increases and her skills to rule her Queendom also increase. After several weeks he asked her to take a break for a day or two, but she insisted she will rest when she feels comfortable at running Arendelle.

How many times did he use similar words to his subordinates when they thought he was working too long? He just nods to her and goes about the castle studying anything that appears interesting. His eyes glance at the clock again, 11:41. Elsa sits in the outer room and holds up another document. He promised himself if she hits midnight before going to sleep, he planned for a family intervention to give her a break. At the rate she is going, he calculates he has six days to set his plan into motion.

As he does every night, which has been getting later, it is time to take a walk under the stars. "I guess I'll patrol the walls tonight."

He stands and stretches, then looks for his gloves on the back of the chair. One barely holds on. The other one fell to the floor. At least they are closer together. Several times recently in his emotionally tired mind, he would find one and he would have to search for the other one. Tucking the gloves under his belt he searches for his boots which are not next to the chair.

One boot is under the chair, but the second is not in sight. Lying on the floor he scans the room for the other boot. He does not find it. "Where was I when I took off my boots? I was standing by the fireplace and stumbled."

He jumps to his feet and moves to the fireplace. Behind the stack of wood a piece of leather peeks out. Retrieving the found boot, he sits and places his boots next to his feet. For a moment, A thought enters his mind of the most comfortable pair of shoes given to him a long time ago, for saving a child's life.

"I wonder if that child is still alive today." He hesitates and then shakes his head, "probably not." But still those boots felt wonderfully to his feet. "If I can find the right materials, maybe the local cobbler could make me a pair that is more functional and comfortable than just a symbol of status."

 _If you will show me what you want, I will get someone to make you a pair. Will this calm you down enough so I can get a little sleep?_ A not so angelic voice echoes in his head.

He looks in the direction of Elsa's room. "My apologies, I'm still trying to get use to everything shutting down for the evening. Once I start patrolling the castle walls, you will not hear a peep out of me."

His feet slide into his boots and he stands by the window. In his past he knew the constellations for every planet he had visited. Even the Earth's constellations were ingrained into his mind, so a sweep across the sky would reveal anything out of the ordinary. Tonight was no different. Every star is in its rightful position. A few minutes later he looks towards Elsa's room again, not expecting a reply, "My Queen, what can I do to ease your burdens?"

 _STOP talking, I can still hear you._ Elsa grumbles.

His fist taps his forehead and he closes his eyes. "Sorry, sorry, I'll shut it down for the next seven hours."

His fist glows for a second, before he lowers it to his side. "Elsa, are you awake?"

With no response either she is extremely upset, or the connection between them has been turned off. Either way he crosses the room and blows out the candle as he leaves.

A guard walking the hallways nods to him as he steps out the door. Sam walks slowly until he hears the guard go into the next corridor. At Elsa's room, he places the tips of his fingers on the door. With the slightest glow his mind enters the room. Elsa sleeps with her arms wrapped around her pillow. He wants to do more for his Queen, but she said it was her duty to run the Queendom. He even mentioned that he could help her to get several hours of sleep, if she would just ask, but he still waits for her reply. He continues down the hall and down the stairs towards the courtyard.

Walking briskly out the door with his gloves in his hand, he looks up in time to see Anna sitting on the steps. His body pivots and his momentum carry him past her as he takes the steps three at a time. He falls to a stop on his knees on the courtyard and spins around.

Anna moves slowly to get up and struggles to walk towards him. He runs up to her.

Her breathing labors as she speaks, "I am so sorry. I thought you had already started your nightly walk. I was waiting for you to come back."

Slipping his gloves under his belt, he grabs her hot and clammy hands. "Are you ok? Did I hurt you?"

"No, I should have sat a little more to the side." She squeezes his hands.

Her hair sticks to her neck and several sweat trails running down her neck and the side of her face. The blood vessel in her neck pulses a rapid drum beat. Another bead of sweat slides down her face. Her lips remain parted. She breathes as though she is trying to catch her breath.

Other than after the Yule ball, he has never seen her outside the castle this late at night. His mind blocks out the world to focus on her. "If I had started my walk earlier like I usually do –"

Anna interrupts as she forces a smile. "That is okay. I am alright."

He runs his left hand up her arm to her shoulder. A layer of moisture and heat separates his thumb from her exposed shoulder. "Why are you up so late?"

Her smile gives way as she slightly bends forwards. "I thought you were already out here and you would see me. I need to talk to you."

A distinctive odor radiates from her which verifies his suspicion of her elevated temperature. "Sit," He guides her back to the top step.

"What about your walk?"

"I walk every night. Missing one will not hurt me, but you are here so it must be important to you." He sits her on the steps. She grimaces in pain. Sitting next to her, he spots blood on her hand and covers it with his hand. "How can I help you?"

"Elsa says you have a head full of knowledge of things that many here do not." Any movement causes her to grimace. She glances at him and quickly looks away, "including the doctor."

He does not hold back as his desire to help her takes over his logic. With his arm around her shoulders, he does not have to try hard to feel the tension in her body. "Anna, are you in pain?"

She buries her face into his shoulder. Damp spots form on his shirt. With a muffled voice she answers, "Yes."

His senses say she is holding back and could be in trouble. "Where are you hurting?"

Her hand slides down to the lower part of her abdomen. "Here, I think something is wrong."

With limited knowledge concerning the internal anatomy of a human female and what he does know, he hopes that is not the problem.

"Have you talked to Elsa?"

Anna turns her head to sob. "She has been so busy lately. I know she is having trouble sleeping. I saw her go into her room tonight. I do not wish to disrupt what little sleep she does get."

He places his hand on the side of her face where his smallest finger lightly touches the blood vessel in her neck. Her heart rate slows, but still too high for sitting. He asks as he counts her heart rate, "And you don't think a doctor would be more appropriate?"

She looks up at him with her red eyes swelling with tears. "The doctor would tell Elsa and she would worry about me. I know she is preparing for the upcoming trade. I do not wish to be a distraction. Please do not tell her. Please?"

For the second time in his life, he is in a no-win situation. All the battles he fought, there was always a way out, but now, his two choices would betray one of them. He does not take long to think. He has to do the right thing.

"Elsa will know what I know in a little over seven hours from now, even if I don't say anything. What about Kristoff? Have you talked to him?" What he saw in her eyes he had seen many times before, a moment of fear and pain.

"Please, he must not know."

"Why?"

"He has been a little short tempered with me lately. I think he feels confined in the castle." She holds her breath and closes her eyes. Her heart beat increases. After a few seconds, her lips part as her she exhales. "He needs the open space." Her body tenses and strains as her heart beat races.

"These are the moments for true love. If he truly loves you, he will listen. I believe he does love you, so give him a chance."

"No, please Samuel," Anna begs as she opens her eye with tears running down her cheeks.

He sighs and holds her closer. "Against my better judgment, I will hold off for now, but you need to tell him, ok?"

She shakes her head in agreement.

"When did your pain start?"

Her eyes close as she squeezes his arm. She pants and after a few seconds she takes a deep breath. A bead of moisture along her hair line gathers it's friends and slides down her face. A large drop falls onto his sleeve. She slowly releases her grip on his arm. Eight minor cuts, where her finger nails dug into his skin, ooze a mixture of red blood with sparkles of white.

"I am so sorry. I hurt you." She begins to cry again.

"Please don't worry about me. When did the pain start?"

She swallows hard, "A couple of hours ago, maybe."

His mind pieces together the clues, which lead him down the path that a doctor will need to, take over. An image of Anna's Queen Mother about to give birth enters his mind. Who was the other woman, jordmor? "Has the pain been this tense the whole time?"

She nods.

The way Anna is holding onto him, he will not be able to get to the doctor. "Is it your time of the month . . . to bleed?"

She takes a deep breath and holds it for a few seconds before speaking, "I am more than a month late, but." She groans and bends forward holding her abdomen.

Now the path of knowledge is leading him into an area that the humans will not begin to understand for another hundred years. He is determined to amend his lack of knowledge and not make this mistake again. "Do you think you are pregnant?"

"No, the last four times the blood was a very small amount each time." She pushes on his shoulder to stand. "I should not have told you about my personal problems."

A thin layer of blood covers the step where she had been sitting. His concern level rises for her safety. He jumps up to steady her. "You waited for me and asked for help. What do you want me to do?"

She looks back to where she was sitting, "As you can see I am bleeding a little bit. The pain has diminished." She glances around as though she is looking for someone, then looks at him. "I bled a little more on our sheets. I do not want Kristoff to get upset because I did not wake him up when it happened." She holds his arm to steady herself. "Please help me to remove the sheets without waking him?"

"Ok, I'll help, but please tell him." He holds her hand and places his arm around her waist. They walk slowly into the castle. Each time the pain surges they stop until Anna is ready to take another step. A couple of times he leans her against him to keep her from falling. Each step becomes more labored. He stops near Elsa's room, but she tries to pull away from him.

"No, she needs her sleep," Anna protests.

"Too late for that," he states just as Anna collapses to the floor in a tight fetal position. A low moan grows to a loud scream. He scoops her up and she tries to use his shirt sleeve to muffle her screams.

"Anna bite." Just as she starts to scream again, he curls her close to his body just enough for her to bite into his arm.

The Queen's door opens. "Who is screaming?" A wave of panic comes over Elsa's face when she sees Anna. "Come in quickly."

He carries Anna into the outer room and marches towards the royal bedroom. "She is bleeding. Do you have a blanket to lie over your bed?"

Elsa barks. "I do not care about the bed cover. Lay her on it."

He tries to set her on the bed, but she does not let go of his arm. Another wave of pain stabs at Anna as her hoarse voice screams into his arm.

Elsa strokes Anna's hair as the pain subsides and she whispers. "I will stay with you, but he needs to get the doctor."

"No," Anna says in a quiet raspy voice as she looks up at Samuel from behind her tears.

A tear rolls down Elsa's cheek, "He can get the doctor faster than I can." She pulls Anna's matted hair from her face and neck.

Anna insists as she stares at Samuel. "No, Momma said the stable boy can heal us as he healed her."

Samuel holds his lips tight as the memory of that faithful day charges into his mind. He helped their Queen Mother after she was attacked by the large Red wolf. He helped their family once. Now, he commits himself to the continuation of their family.

His brain sends out the necessary commands to his body. 'Action station and all cells are ready for action'. He releases his lips to speak, "Sit on your bed with your back to the headboard."

Elsa sits on her bed just as he asks. He sits Anna on to the bed and leans against her sister. Elsa wraps her arms around her little sister gives Anna a kiss on the top of her head.

He touches her arm. "Elsa, you will have to take my word for now. What she said is the truth. I think I know what is going on and I can help her, but I will have to touch her. Do you understand?"

Elsa nods as other tears race down her cheek. "Please help her."

"I will do my best."

Kneeling next to the bed, he lifts Anna's dress up to her waist. Bright red colors her under clothes. He rips her bloomers to reveal the source of her bleeding. He tucks several pillows under her knees. Removing a pillowcase from a pillow, he wipes away the blood. Anna lets out an ear piercing scream. He leans toward Anna's face with his right hand changing to a blue tint. Just as he touches her face a small spark jumps from his finger to her cheek. "Go to sleep Anna."

Her screams subside immediately as her body relaxes. He removes a ball of flesh followed by a quantity of blood. The ball slides into the pillowcase. He sets it on the floor.

Even as she sleeps, her face distorts and she rolls her shoulder as she moans in pain. Elsa holds Anna's arm to keep her from rolling off the bed.

He places his hands on her lower abdomen to feel for anything that may be still inside. His hand also scans for any remnants. "I believe all of the material has been removed."

He places his right hand several centimeters below her navel with his left hand on top. His eyes close for a second. They snap open and see everything with a blue halo. His right hand glows a cool white and his left hand glows a warm red color. The colors radiate out from his hand. Anna's lower abdomen begins to change colors from pink to red to white in a slow oscillating transition.

After a few minutes, Anna straightens her spine lifting her lower back off the bed. She pushes her head into Elsa's shoulder. Elsa holds on to her sister's arms and Anna's body relaxes. The glow in his hands subsides. He withdraws his hands and Anna's abdomen returns to a healthy pink.

His vision changes back to normal as he slowly clinches and releases the tension in his hands. Elsa stares at him with wide eyes. At the moment he does not remember if he had told Elsa that he has healing properties under certain circumstances. If not, he is sure she will confront him soon. He closes Anna's legs together and pulls her dress down to cover her modesty.

He rolls the pillowcase with the flesh into a ball and walks over to the vanity table containing a vase. Pouring water into the bowl and the cup, the water washes the blood off his hands. He turns his head towards Elsa, "I'll get more water when I go to dispose of this."

He returns to the side of the bed and places the cup and a clean cloth on the side table. He watches Elsa. Barely two years have passed since the last time she cried for her sister when she thought Anna had been frozen to death defending her from Hans. With her eyes closed and more tears racing down her face, Elsa sings a song to Anna. "Yes, I want to build a snowman with you."

He kneels beside the bed. Dipping the cloth into the cup of water, he wipes as much blood from Anna's hands and legs. As he turns to place the blood stained cloth into the cup, Elsa stares at him with a slight smile and whispers, "Thank you."

"You may wish to hold the thanks, for what is about to come. You need to get her out of her clothes." He carries the cup with the cloth out of the room.

After several minutes, he returns with another bowl of water. Anna's clothes lay on the floor at the foot of the bed. Looking everywhere except towards the bed, he places the bowl with the clean water on the side table.

He rolls the blood stained sheets into a ball and picks up Anna's clothes. Moving to the outer room, he opens the hall door and hands the laundry to the night staffer. "Please, have these wash as soon as possible."

The staffer's eyes widen as she muffles her expression behind her hand covering her lips. She stares at the dress and does not move.

"Please do as I ask and do what you need to do."

She takes the sheets and the dress and slowly walks down the hall.

He watches her glance back as she rounds the corner. Closing the door he returns to the bedroom. Elsa covers Anna with a blanket. He picks up the bloody pillow case. Pouring the water from the bowl and cup into the vase, he collects the containers under his arm. A slight moan comes from Anna and he looks back at them.

Elsa kisses her little sister's forehead.

He moves to the outer room. Elsa closes the door and follows him.

With a swirl of her hand, her evening clothes transform into a simple ankle length blue dress that covers her shoulders. Before he reaches the hall door, she asks as she points to the teeth marks on his arm, "How long will she sleep?"

"I would guess well past morning if you allow her. She has been having trouble sleeping lately. She will be sore from the muscle spasms over the last two or three hours." He continues out the door and sets the cup, bowls, and vase on the hall table, then places the bloody pillow case on top of the bowl.

Before he moves, Elsa purposefully places one hand over the bloody teeth marks on his arm. Her other hand covers the back of his arm. She takes a deep breath and parts her lips just enough to direct her breath towards the space between her hand and his arm.

He does not move, but watches her. A thin layer of ice forms under her hands and around his arm. She takes a second breath and exhales to form a thicker layer of ice. His eyes close and for a moment enjoys the sensation she is creating. After an unknown amount of time passes, he opens his eyes. Elsa smiles up at him. Not feeling the pain in his arm, the bite marks have disappeared. He does not recall showing her how to heal his wounds with ice.

He responds to her smile with one of his own. "You did a very good job, thank you. I apologize for waking you up. You can go lay down next to her and get some sleep. I need to change the sheets on their bed. Anna said she does not wish for Kristoff to know." He walks down the hall.

Elsa follows beside him. "Why did she not tell me?"

"Because she knows how important it is for you to run your Queendom and prepare for the next meeting."

"If she had talked to me, I would have taken the time for her."

"With your busy schedule how do you know she did not try to tell you?"

She places her hand on his arm. "Did she try to tell me and I did not hear her. What did she tell you?"

"It is not what she said, but what she did not say to you."

"Like what?"

"What is their marital status as you understand it?"

"Marital status? They are married."

They walk down the hall that leads to the Princess's room. "Did you know Kristoff is not happy here and that he has not been pleasant with Anna?"

"No, I did not know."

"And thus she tried to hide her condition until it became too painful for her to endure alone. Her husband is already upset with her. She knows how important you need your sleep and she knows, as I do, you have been going to bed later each night." They stop next to Anna's and Kristoff's bedroom.

"Why did she come to you?"

"Evidently your mother revealed my gift to her. She has nothing to lose from the stable boy."

She looks down the hall towards the royal bedroom. "I did not know. I want to help her anyway I can."

"When she wakes up tomorrow, that would be a good time to tell her." He sets the bowl with the pillowcase onto the floor. He steps closer to the door and lightly touches the door frame as his fingers begin to glow.

Elsa touches his arm. "What happened to her?"

"I believe the answer to that question is in here." The glow disappears.

He opens the door and steps in with Elsa following close behind him.

He leans close to her and whispers. "Don't talk until I can make sure he is asleep."

She nods and stands by the door.

He lightly walks to the bed. His right hand showers Kristoff with a rainbow of colorful sparks. Kristoff opens his sleepy eyes at him.

"Roll onto your left side and go back to sleep. Anna is waiting for you in the meadows. She has a surprise for you."

"She does?" Kristoff asks groggily,

"Yes, she does. You better get to her before she leaves."

"Ok," he rolls onto his left side and goes back to sleep.

His finger moves close behind Kristoff's eye and a tiny spark leaps from his finger. After several seconds he motions Elsa to come over as he walks to the other side of the bed.

She stands next to him and whispers, "Does he know we are here?"

"If he does, he will think we were in his dream, but I think he will be dreaming of Anna to be concerned about us." He points to the sheets. "There is her blood."

"There are just a few spots."

He lifts the edge of the sheet. Elsa gasps before she could cover her mouth and grips his arm. He scans the large area of blood on the bed and sees what he is looking for.

"Did all of that come from Anna?" Elsa whispers.

"Yes, it explains why she had trouble walking. She must have tried to get the sheets out from under Kristoff and when she could not, she changed clothes and went outside to find me."

"Are you going to get him up so I can pull the sheets off?"

"Are you kidding? That's a big boy."

A flick of his finger shoots a small icy shower at Kristoff's back, causing him to roll out of the bed with a thud onto the floor. He pulls the corners of the sheet together. In the hall, he places the sheet in the bowl on the table.

Elsa stares at the blood stain as he walks back into the room. "Anna bled a lot. If it went through to the mattress, she will have to get rid of it."

"Let me show you a trick." He stands next to her and sweeps his right hand over the blood stain. Tiny red crystals of ice form on the sheet. He takes a small cloth off the bedside table.

"Hold the sides just like this over the ice." He positions her hand with the cloth between them above the ice.

"This will be quick, so don't let go."

"Okay." Elsa extends her arms and leans back.

His left hand glows red near the ice. With a snap of his fingers, a small fire ball instantly vaporizes the ice and steam shoots up into the cloth. Elsa holds steady as the rising steam tries to lift the cloth. A second later the steam dissipates. Samuel takes the cloth from Elsa and turns it over. The underside of the cloth oozes with the blood. "If I did it right, there should be no blood, if not they will eventually smell what is left on the mattress."

"Nice trick. Have you always been able to clean messes like that?"

He rolls the cloth into a ball. "I have had moments where the flame was not hot enough and it left quite a smell. I have had my share of starting a fire with too much heat. It does take practice."

He walks around the bed and places the bloody cloth on the table. Kristoff lies face down on the floor.

She follows him. "Please explain something to me."

"If I can, what do you want to know?"

"I saw you lift a ship completely out of the fjord two years ago, so why did you not do the same thing to lift Kristoff off the bed?" She gives him a sneer.

He hesitates to give a good explanation. "Well, I could have, but he made a comment yesterday and I said I would get back at him."

Elsa puts her hands on her waist and tease him, "You rolled him out of the bed because he made a comment? That must have been some comment."

"I assured him I would get him and he would never know until I pointed it out to him."

"Is that why he has been staring at you when you come around lately?"

"Of course," he replies with a smile.

"I did not know you had a devious side to you." She gives him a slight smile.

"Absolutely."

Sam positions Kristoff's arms above his head. Stepping over his body, he reaches under his arms to grab his wrist. He lifts his upper body and maneuvers him around to drop him on the bed. He lifts the rest of his body onto the bed. Still asleep Kristoff rolls onto his back, smiling and mumbling.

Elsa inhales a short breath and her brows rise with her widened eyes as she covers her mouth.

He turns to her quickly, "What?"

She points to Kristoff's manhood standing in salute.

"I told you he is dreaming about Anna."

She glances at Samuel. Her voice rises several octal. "He used that on her? No wonder she was hurting. I will fix him." Ice crystals form around her hands as she raises them at Kristoff.

He steps in front of her. "No, no, no, you complained they were making too much noise right after they got married. They would sneak off and come back with a silly grin on both of their faces. Did Anna look or say that she was hurting?"

Elsa lowers her hands still staring, "No, but look how big it is."

He walks around to the other side of the bed and comments. "Yes and there are many human males who would envy him because of that."

"Are you envious?" She asks as her eyes quickly glance at his lower abdomen than back to his face. Her right brow rises slightly above the left brow.

He shakes his head. "No I am not and no, I'm not that big. I have skills."

Her right brow rises higher. "Like what skills."

"Only my bride will ever see those skills."

She watches Kristoff as he moans and a grin forms on his face.

Sam's left brow rises and he grins. "Do you want me to tell you why he is grinning?"

Her pale white face explodes into a brilliant red. She shifts into regal pose. "No, I do not wish to know why he is grinning." Her eyes glance at his manhood. "Are you going to leave him like that?"

His eyes narrow as he turns his head slightly. Sweeping one finger across the top of the other finger, he winks at her.

"Stop that." She runs around the bed and thumps his hand. "How do you think Anna is going to feel when he tells her about his dream and mentions we were there or here?"

"Perhaps later when Anna is feeling better he may say something, but after she tells him what happened this morning, he will most likely forget."

She glances and motions her hands towards Kristoff. "you are going to leave him like that?"

"I was planning to cover him with another sheet, but I think it will be more fun when he wakes up and tries to determine what happened."

She pinches his side. "See, you are devious." She places her hand on his arm, "You said Anna will sleep for several hours. Maybe I should have a late start tomorrow and have a little talk with her. Then we will have a heart to heart talk about their situation."

"Trying to get some tidbits before your wedding night?" He teases.

A small spot on his arm freezes where she touched him. She walks toward the door and comments from over her shoulder. "So what if I am?"

He hesitates to determine if he should take the obvious bait, but decides to take the cautious route. "Well, good luck with that." He grabs the bloody cloth off the table and follows her out of the room.

After a quick glance down the hall he drops the cloth into a cup and picks up the bloody sheet. His finger searches through the thick mass of blood.

She wrinkles her nose as she watches. "That is so disgusting. What are you doing?"

"I'm searching for." He does not complete his statement. His fingers wrap around a small mass of flesh. Dropping the sheet into the bowl, he holds the small mass into the palm of his hand.

"I have found it," he answers in a somber voice. He kneels and uses a small clean spot on the sheet to wipe away the blood from the small mass.

She kneels next to him and studies the mass. With a sharp inhale she covers her mouth. In an barely an audible voice she asks, "Is that a—"

"Yes," he swallows hard.

Tears swell up in her eyes. He fights to control his emotions.

She grips his arm. "Are you sure?" Her shaky voice gives way to a tear rolling down her cheeks.

He nods his head and in a quiet whisper he replies, "I'm sure."

More tears roll down her cheeks as she leans her head against his arm. She glances in the direction of her room. "Oh my God, Anna. Does she know?"

He fights to hold back his emotions. They will not break through this time. He almost gets the emotional door closed. "I think she does. That is why she came to me first." A tear slips past the door rolls down his face as his voice strains. "Now . . . she needs you." In a whisper as his voice begins to crackle. "Go to her. I'll clean up here."

She cups his chin, forcing him to turn towards her and lightly kisses his lips. She hurriedly walks back towards her room.

Upon hearing the royal bedroom door close, he wipes the tears from his eyes and inhales a sniffle. "Lord, she is a brave woman."

Tearing off a piece of cloth that is not bloodied, he wraps the small mass in the cloth and sets it in the cup. Rising to his feet, he holds the cup with both hands and walks down the hall. Rounding the corner as he heads towards the stairs, he stops in front of the door. Sadness sounds from the Queen's room. Pressing his palm against the door frame, his eyes close and he peeks into the room. On the Queen's bed, Anna lies on her side asleep. Tear lines glistens on her face below her puffy eyes. Elsa lies next to her little sister and tucks the blanket around Anna's shoulders. Elsa wipes away her own tears. She lightly brushes the red hair out of Anna's face and kisses her cheek.

Sam holds the cup with both hands and he walks down the stairs.

In the stable's side room, a lantern flickers to life above the small table and Sam closes the lanterns glass door. His right hand swirls over the table. A small block of ice with a cup shaped indentation forms on the table. He gently sits the cup on the ice. Ice crystals grow up the sides of the cup like a vine growing up the post.

From the shelf, he places two clean hand towels and a silk cloth onto the table. In the stable area, he fills a water bucket with water from a horse's trough. None of the horses make a sound. In their silence, several of the closest horses rest their heads over their stall gates as they watch him. He nods to them and returns to the service room. He sets the water bucket next to the cup and sits. As tenderly as possible he holds the baby in his frost covered right hand and opens the cloth. Dipping the corner of the towel in the water, it slides across the baby's face to reveal two eyes, a small nose, and a set of lips. With each dip in the water, the cloth reveals more of the baby's features.

After removing the last of the blood, he holds the baby in his hand. "You are a baby girl. Why did you not survive?"

His eyes do not detect any reason why she is not alive. He can only speculate a reason. The medical equipment from his ship could determine the cause of death. Pabbie will not reveal the location of his ship, but remind him, almost all human females will experience the death of a baby.

He wraps the baby girl in the silk cloth and places her on the ice stand. His hand sweep over her and the ice forms a frost cocoon.

Sam walks through the stable area collecting broken and scrap pieces of wood. At the table and with a knife made of ice, he carves the pieces of wood and constructs a small box. It is functional, but not the best for its intended purpose. He sets it aside and builds another box which is better than the first, but it is not the best. For the next several hours, he builds a box, then sets it aside to build another.

Twelve small wooden boxes sit on the table. Unless he removes a rail from a stall, he has used up the available wood. His eyes focuses on each box and glances at the baby. His mind wrestles with what to do next. He falls to his knees and places his arms on the edge of the table with one hand resting on top of the other hand. His chin rests on his hands.

A strong emotion like a heavy blanket falls across his shoulders. His forehead rest on his hands and dark spots of moisture form on the floor. In the scheme of life for this age, nature does its best to preserve the strong and quickly removes the suffering of the weak, but it does not satisfy his emotions.

His eyes close and he takes a deep breath. "Father in Heaven, I don't understand why this happened to such a sweet young lady. I am the monster. My hands and clothes are soaked with the blood of those I have killed, and yet you allow me to live. What was wrong with this child? What did it do that YOU had to remove its life before it was born."

More moisture create larger dark spots on the floor. "What am I to do? What can I do to comfort this land and Anna? I only know how to fight and to kill. I beg YOU, please dear Father, ease the burden and pain for Anna and her family. I know you have a plan for them and me, but it does not change my fears. When will you release me from this burden? When will you remove the thorn from my side? I have seen too many die in war and famine. Now you are forcing me to see the death of an innocent. Father, why?"

The door rattles from a gust of wind that blows the dust under the door. He wipes his eyes and stares at the boxes, but the third box stands out from the rest. He glances between the ice cup and the box. It is simple, not elegant. He carries the box and a pair of scissors into the horse's area. Stopping next to Aurora's stall he holds up the box and scissors. "For a worthy cause, will you donate a few locks?"

Aurora sniffs at the box. She stares at the service room. As if to understand, she leans against the gate and shakes her head to fluff her mane over the rail. With a couple snips of the scissors, the box is filled. He presses his head against Aurora's head. "Thank you."

Returning to the table, he completes his work. Pressing his thumb in the horse hair to create a small depression, he carves a wooden top. After a few adjustments the top fits snuggly on the box to create a seal. One final adjustment and he brushes the wood shavings out of the words 'God's Child'.

His hands shake as he warms the ice and holds the baby in his hands.

Gently he lays her in the box and folds the cloth over her. Loosely fitting the top on the box, he ties a string around it. His hand generates a thin layer of ice around the box and holds it next to his heart. Tossing the other boxes into the small fireplace, they burn.

The service door closes behind him and he walks across the courtyard. A meteor streaks over the western hills. A cool breeze from the north calms his emotions. The stars distract him for a moment. The castle door opens. Gerda sets a bucket and mop on the top step. She stares at him. He walks up the steps and hands her the small box.

She holds the box and tears build in the corner of her eyes. "The night staff woke me a short time ago. Does she know?"

With a nod, he dunks the mop in the bucket. Water splashes on the steps of the partially dried blood. His hands hold onto the mop, but as if by its own accord, the mop sweeps back and forth diluting the red. His eyes burn and his mind hurts. Death has always been around him. The Grim Reaper was his partner for many years. One death after another meant nothing. In most cases, he relieved their pain that life tortured them. The other Fleet Admiral called him, Admiral Death, behind his back. The Command Admiral said, "Don't worry about them. None volunteered for your missions. The war would be going on for many more years if it wasn't for you. Wear it proudly. The enemy fears you and they are coming to negotiate a peace. That is why I need you to go on one more mission. Show them the face of Admiral Death and crush their will to fight."

He went on that mission and everything changed. He saw his family die. Anna was not given the chance to see her baby. Why was she not given the chance? A snap breaks his thoughts. His arm extended out from his side. His hands hold the two pieces of the mop.

Kai holds the longest piece of the mop and rest his hand on his shoulder. "I just found out. This child is not the first, nor will they be the last to be still-born. Perhaps someday, science will save a few more of them, but not today."

Sam lets go of the mop. He hands the broken part to Kai. A torch light flickers in the water on the steps. No red or evidence from the night's event. He takes the small box and as he steps onto the yard, he says, "Keep warm. I believe it will snow tonight."

By morning, the cloudless sky allows the sun to shine on the steps. A thin layer of snow hides in the shadows waiting for the sunlight to melt it.

In an isolated area of the garden behind the castle, a small hole in the ground waits for the small wooden box. Next to the hole a capstone with the Christian cross etched in it glistens from the morning ice.

He whispers into the wind. "My Queen, at your convenience, the garden is prepared."

He sits on the garden bench where he had talked with Queen Iduna. Since that day of the wolf attack, Queen Iduna allowed him to call her by Ingrid. She would tell him about the future and the plan for her children, even though at the time there was only one child, Princess Elsa. The last time she talked to him on the bench was a month before Princess Anna was born, and then things changed. He sits with his feet apart, his hands resting on his thighs, and his back straight. As Queen Ingrid had taught him, he meditates with the rising sun.

Earlier a guard came upon him digging the hole and said he would have to report it to the Queen. Now the same guard approaches again. He steps to the side. Queen Elsa holds Anna's arm and hand. Kristoff follows. Gerda stops next to the guard. Kai whispers to the guard who walks back to the courtyard. Kai stands next to Gerda holding her hand.

After seeing them, Sam makes a mental note he should have changed into more appropriate clothing, but they probably will not notice his gray shirt, black pants and black boots. After all this time Kristoff finally wears the dark blue pants and jacket that Anna has been trying to get him to wear. Definitely a contrast with his blond hair, but he watches his wife. Elsa's braided hair drapes over her black cape which partially covers her black dress. Anna wears the black dress and cape she wore at her parent's funeral.

He stands and holds the small wooden box with both hands. Elsa struggles to hold up Anna and her own tears run down her cheeks.

Anna stops in front of him and stares at the wooden box. She looks up at him through her tear filled red eyes. "May I see my baby?"

He does not say anything except to nod. Dark spot form on his shirt. His hands shake, but he is able to untie the string and remove the top. He places the open box in Anna's hand and pulls back the silk cover.

With a whimper and the tears flowing, her head moves from side to side as she stares into the box. "Is it a boy or girl?"

His emotions choke him, but he whispers, "She is your Princess."

Anna falls to her knees, also pulling Elsa to the ground. He grabs Elsa's arm to steady her. Anna cries with a whisper, "My Princess . . . my baby girl."

Kristoff takes a step towards them and stops. His body strains and fights a losing battle. Stepping back, Sam motions for him to come over. "Your wife needs you buddy."

Wiping away his tears Kristoff kneels beside Anna. He puts his arm around her shoulders and places his hand under her hands holding her baby. She leans into him and together they both slowly rock back and forth sharing their pain.

Sam stands next to Elsa as she wraps her arms around his arm and lays her head on his shoulder where she can watch Anna and Kristoff.

He speaks to her with his mind. _You know they will have problems. One or the other will begin to blame themselves, thinking there is something wrong with them._

Elsa sniffles, _I know. Anna will put up a front for a while._

 _And when the wall falls?_

 _She will be devastated._

 _What will happen to her emotional state?_

 _I do not know. She has never been in this type of situation before._ Elsa uses his shirt sleeve to wipe a tear. _She did not come to me first. What do you think her emotional state will be?_

 _If there are other women here in Arendelle who have been through this, she could talk to them. A support structure of liked minded individuals will at least be able to help her through the difficult times when everything will remind her of this._

 _Nobody will talk to her. As long as there is a social separation and they see her as part of the royal family, traditions are very hard to break._

He nods. _I thought as much. It means she will be relying on you, mostly for the short time. I will be able to work with Kristoff, but if he feels it is a threat to his manhood, he may run._

Elsa looks up at him. Her brows wrinkle together. _That will crush Anna. We cannot let that happen. With all of your knowledge, is there nothing you can do to ease the pain for them._

Through his tears, for a moment he stares into her tear filled eyes. _Only time heals all wounds. If she is given sufficient time between each remembrances it will be easier, but it never completely go away. All I can do is hopefully create enough time between the remembrances that when it does happen, it will not overwhelm her._

 _I know you have done a lot for her already, but please do what you can. She sacrificed her life for me. Please help my sister and her husband._ With those thoughts new tears began to run down her face.

His hand cups her face. _I will do what I can._

Motion from the corner of his eyes draws his attention to Kristoff placing the cap over the hole covering the wooden box. Kristoff stands and helps Anna to her feet.

Sam kisses Elsa's cheek. "It's time. You take Kristoff and let him vent if he needs to until I get back. I'll take Anna to the shore. I'll do the best I can."

They walk up to Anna and Kristoff. "I need to take your wife for a short walk. Until we get back, please hold on to Elsa in case she needs to talk."

Kristoff wipes away his tears and nods.

Sam holds out his hand. "Anna, I want to help you to get through this."

She takes hold of his hand. "I know what you are going to say. I know what you wish to do for me." She forces a slight smile. "I want the same thing. What do I need to do?" She wraps her arm around his arm.

Choking back his emotions, he holds onto her hand. "Let's take a walk to the shore."

They walk through the garden gate. The trail leads down to the shore just outside the castle wall. Elsa holds Kristoff's arm and they follow through the gate and stop at the top of the trail.

The morning sun creates long shadows that reach across the fjord and onto the shore. The water makes music and playfully dances among the rocks and boulders. Shadows creates a noticeable cooler temperature between it and the warm sunlight.

Sam purposefully moves his hand as he speaks. In the shadows a visible blue mist follows his hand and disappears in the sunlight. The blue mist radiates from him as it slowly envelopes Anna.

When the mist has them fully surrounded. The air immediately next to his hand chills and forms a layer of frost. His hand sweeps in front and above them. For a moment the ice crystals float and create a rainbow of colors.

Anna smiles, "They are beautiful."

His hand sweeps again and shoots a cold blast into the air that creates more ice crystals. The air swirls aligning the ice crystals into the shape of a snowflake.

Anna gasps as she points at the ice crystals. "Does Elsa know you can create her snowflake?"

He glances over his shoulder. "I'm sure she does."

The snowflake floats on the thermal waves for a few moments, then it melts and rains onto the flowers above the water's edge.

His hand covers her hand. "These crystals formed and lasted just long enough for you to enjoy them. They are needed to give nourishing water to the flowers. The flowers will drop their seed to the ground to grow new flowers. Some seeds will just lay on the ground until a bird or rodent or some other animal comes along to eat it."

He leads her to the flowers and they kneel on a small boulder. A small patch of sandy soil holds the flowers. He leans close to one and sniff. Anna also inhales it's fragrant.

"If we had not come here to discover this flower, we would not have had the opportunity to enjoy its fragrance. Let's take a step back and watch."

They barely get back out of the way as the fjord's water splashes against the boulders and onto the flower. A second wave follows to splash the flower again. The water retreats back into the fjord. They step closer to sniff the flower again.

"See the flower's fragrance is gone. Just for a very brief moment in time, the flower shared its fragrant with us. By the time the sun sets this flower will no longer be here. How many," he chokes back the emotion, but several tears race down his cheeks. "How many of these small precious moments occur and we never see it."

Anna tightens her grip on his arm and rest her head against his shoulder. She smiles at him as a tear escapes her control. "Are you saying maybe we need to take time out of our lives to smell a flower?"

He wipes the tear from her cheek. "Yeah, we need to take time to see what we are missing. Even if it is just for a moment."

"A moment that is past, we will not get another opportunity to enjoy it, but if we can learn from the missed moment, it could teach us what to look for the next time it comes along."

"Yes, just like that." He smiles.

As she looks past him, she says, "I wish Elsa and Kristoff could have been here to enjoy the flower."

"Someday they will, and if you are with your husband when a moment happens again, you will have to show him, in case, he is not in tuned with the moment as you are."

She waves to Elsa and Kristoff. "They look sad."

He lightly touches her arm. "Yes, Kristoff has been concerned about you lately. Maybe you and he can spend a little more time together. Don't be surprised if he talks and maybe sheds a tear or two. He can be emotional, so take it easy on him, ok?" The blue mist withdraws from Anna and dissipates.

Anna giggles and wrinkles her nose at him. "Okay, I will take it easy on him, but not for too long." She stares straight into his eyes. "He cannot be too emotional. I do not want him to miss another opportunity. It will be our baby."

She pushes on his shoulder to stand and walks towards Kristoff. She takes his arm and they walk back through the gate.

He watches the water wash away the sand from around the flower. An emotionally friendly cold hand slides across his shoulder and rests against his neck.

"That seemed to have worked out well."

"I don't think it worked as I planned."

"What makes you think it did not work?"

He looks up. Her hair creates mini rainbows and flashes of light bouncing off her hair. "Like this flower, I can create a barrier to hold back the water, but eventually the water finds a way around the barrier and exposes the roots to the sun. I can only delay what will happen."

He slides her hand down and enjoys her cool touch to his face. "Anna is stronger than we think. She gave me an indication the mind block did not work. Later, I will try to determine if there is a partial block or nothing. I'll keep an eye on her to see if there are signs of a breakdown. The big test will be one year from today."

"When Anna approached him, I thought Kristoff was going to break down and cry. He said he will travel into the mountain to get some ice. It might be a good time for you to talk to him."

He snickers, "Sweet woman, you are reading my mind."

Elsa pulls her hand away from him. "I did not. I cannot hear anything from your mind."

Sam stands and offers his arm to her. With a nod, she wraps her arm around his arm and silently they walk back to the castle. They stop in the garden. "What do we tell her when she sees this again?"

 **End of Chapter**


	65. Chapter 64 Flowers and Pain

**Title: Chp-64 Flowers and Pain**

 **2 years, 7 months until correction**

A light fog covers the area with droplets of dew. Sam's horse, Aurora, nibbles on the moistened leaves. The round shape of the sun peaks above the mountains. As it rises, it becomes too bright. Rubbing his neck, Sam scans the area and finally looks over his shoulder. Four riders move along the road a distance back. He will be well off the road and out of sight when they pass his location. He encourages Aurora to cross the shallow stream.

"I'm sorry girl. It is only once a year we need to do this."

Aurora digs her hooves into the sandy dirt and climbs up the bank. At the top she shakes her head and body. He guides her through the thickets. Along the way she chomps more of the wet leaves. Several minutes later they break into a clearing. Sam slides off Aurora and tucks her reins under the saddle's leather straps. Blinking a long blink with his eyes partially closed, he scans the area again. He can only see the bend in the road where they crossed the stream. The four riders should have passed the bend.

"Well girl," he scratches under her chin. "I don't see anyone." He slips the cloth bag off the saddle. "This will not take long. Stay here and do not overeat."

Holding the bag loosely to his side, he walks across the small field and into a forest. Minutes later, he exits the forest near two large stones. The people of Arendelle erected the stones five years earlier. One last scan before he gets too far out into the open. His mind only detects Aurora. He marches across the meadow with purpose. Dead grass and seeds, collect on the tips of his boots. There is no need to look back. Anyone wanting to follow him will see the overturned grass minus the dew. Soon the sun will dry the grass and a light breeze will comb his path to blend with other grass.

The air around him becomes thick. His lung struggle to maintain the flow of air to the rest of his body. Suppressed memories break free of their bonds. Sam wills his body to continue as he approaches the two stone. It will be quick. Drop the flowers by each stone and bow. March back to Aurora and ride up into the mountains. Restrain the memories until next year. Simple?

His hand reaches into the bag and removes ten long stem flowers. The bag falls to his side.

He bows to the first stone. "Majesty." At the base of the stone he places the five white flowers. He reads the name. The air around him squeezes his body, but he bows again. "Majesty."

Sidestepping to the second stone, his eyes spots her name. His knees shake as though a great weight presses down on them. The sound of his heart pounds in his ears. His facial muscles tense as though it was trying to choke him. He gasps for air and his eyes squeeze out the moisture. Forcing himself to breathe deeply, he bows to the stone. "Majesty." He places five purple flowers at the base of the stone. He bows again. "Maj . . . Majesty."

Stepping back to the bag, he bows. "Charles, Ingrid, I will continue as you have asked." His heavy heart drops him to his knees. His hands stop his face from hitting the ground. His head hangs low. "I tried. I tried."

A sharp pain strikes the top of his neck, the world disappears except for himself and the two stones. A fire burns in the back of his mind.

A guard approaches her horse and bows his head. "Majesty, the area is secure. There are four short of the bend up the road, besides the six of us here." He motions with his head down the road. Ten more are back there. "We can proceed when you are ready."

Elsa and Anna slide off their horses. Anna fluffs her dress to cover her ankles. Elsa adjusts her tan trouser and sprinkles a few snowflakes on her long shirt that transforms into her summer dress. Elsa turns to Anna. "Ready?"

Anna hands her one of two bouquets of flowers.

Elsa sniffs the flowers. "These are pretty."

They start down the path. Before the sergeant protests, Elsa holds up her hand. "I know what you are going to say. We will be back at the castle before Samuel realizes we left." She and Anna walk past him. "If we are attacked, I can maneuver better on foot than to have my horse throw my aim off."

"That is something Sam would say." Anna slips her arm around her sister's arm. "You have been listening to him."

"He is correct. It is amazing what you will hear if you are willing to listen. I wish he would practice that statement around me."

"Do you think he is not committed to you?"

"I have no doubt he is committed to the Queen. Since the kiss every time I try to talk to him, other than for business, he makes an excuse to leave the area. I may have pushed him too far."

They continue a short distance in silence. Several twigs on the ground break. They look in the direction of a stomping on the ground. A whisper of a moan sounds in the direction of the stone.

Anna points. "I wonder if the horse belongs to the one who has left flowers every year."

A whispering moan sounds again followed by a voice.

"That looks like Sam's horse, Aurora."

"Shh, listen."

Anna strains to look towards the stones. "Sounds like someone is hurt."

"We are too far away for the guards to help us." Elsa pulls Anna behind a large tree.

They peak around the tree. The sun rises between the stones making it hard to see, but movement catches her eyes. A small gray boulder hides in the shadow of the two memorial stones. Elsa stares at the small stone. Anna, grabbing her arm, makes her flinch and she breaks a twig under her foot. She ducks behind the tree and pulls Anna closer to her. They do not move. To the side of them the horse crunches and munches. If the stone is a person, hopefully they will see the horse and not see them. A voice drifts by with the breeze.

Anna leans close to her. "Did you hear that?"

Shading her eyes, Elsa peeks around the tree. The gray boulder has not moved. She steps past the tree and motion for Anna to follow. The short path takes them closer. They hide behind a small tree. A somber whisper sounds. The gray boulder raises its arms.

His voice cracks as he calls out. "My beloved King and Queen, I did as you asked. I stayed away and watched from a distance, but it did not take my pain away." He looks to the heavens. "I know you can see your two beautiful girls all grown up. I think you would have approved of Kristoff. He is a very good anchor for Princess Anna. Each passing day Queen Elsa proves her ability to rule. One by one the obstacles are being removed, including the council that gave you so much trouble. She has Ingrid's heart and compassion. Majesty, she has your will and determination. Her stubbornness not to give up, even impresses me."

Aurora pulls ups grass near their tree and chomps as she watches them.

Elsa motions for the horse to go away, but it stares at her. She clenches her fist and opens her hand with frost on it. Aurora finally gets the message and begins walking back where she came.

Anna taps her shoulder. Elsa peeks around the tree.

Sam rocks back on his heels and stands. The sun reveals the pain in his face. He wipes away the moisture from his face and turns to the Kings stone. "Your Majesty, my intentions have always been to help your little girl to master her powers and that still stands.

"Despite my best efforts, the past year has been the most distracting year yet. Your little girl is a beautiful, compassionate, and intelligent young woman." He lowers his head. "I cannot deny it any longer."

He looks up. "She . . ."

His hand moves to his chest as his upper body sways. Tiny rainbows race down his clothes to disappear in the stone's shadow. Swirls of steam rise from his left hand. He peels his right hand off his shirt. Ice crystals glitter between his hand and shirt. His chest rises and his lips exhales a cold fog that dissipates in the sunlight. His right hand rubs the back of his neck. The color of his hands returns their normal color as they hang to his side. He stands tall.

"She has stolen my heart. I didn't mean for it to happen. I don't know when she took it, but my heart belongs to her. I pray she will be merciful and end my pain."

He bows to the King's stone, and then bows to the Queen's stone. "Please forgive me for betraying your trust."

Elsa leans against the tree as she holds her hands against her chest. Her head hangs down.

Anna wraps her arms around her sister's neck and gently offers her shoulder for Elsa to rest her head. She whispers. "Did you hear what he said?"

Elsa turns her blushing face towards her and nods. She whispers behind her hand. "Yes." She swallows hard.

"Did you know?"

She shakes her head and wraps her arms around her little sister.

A twig snaps to the side and behind them. Sam carries a cloth bag over his shoulder. They watch as he gets onto his horse and rides away from Arendelle.

Elsa wipes the moisture from her face. She grabs Anna's hand. "Let us go."

They walk the short distance to the monuments. Five white crocus flower leans against their father's stone and five purple crocus lean against their mother's stone.

"The same type of flower that showed up the last four years." Elsa tries to hold back her sob as her voice breaks.

"But now you know he is the one who left them."

Anna points at the ground. Two oblong layers of ice create two depressions in the grass. In front of the right depressions towards the stones, a small rectangular shaped layer of ice creates a smaller depression in the grass. To the left and in front of the left depression, a rectangular area has the grass burned to the ground.

Anna kneels and picks up a few blades of grass not burnt completely. She sniffs them. "They smell freshly burned. The grass in the shade still has moisture from the morning dew."

"He was kneeling here."

"Look." Anna rakes her fingers through the grass between the ice and burnt grass. She cups her hand and stands. Tiny sparkles of rainbow flash against her hand. She lifts several of the mostly round crystals and let them fall back into her hand. Rainbows dance on her dress.

Elsa catches her breath as she stares at the crystals. "They are his. He shed these for our parents."

Anna pours them out of her hand. The sun warms them and they splash on the grass. "I did not know they meant so much to him. Did you know?"

"No." Elsa looks towards the forest where they last saw him. "I did not know."

"They are pretty flowers. Maybe that is why mother said if anything happened, I was to run to the stable boy named Samuel. He would protect me."

She glances at Anna. "Mother told me the same thing."

Anna bumps her sister. "Are you going to do your magic for them?"

She rolls her hands around each. "Watch this." Throwing her hands up as she did in the ballroom, a white ball shoots up and explodes to rain down a flurry of snow. In a few minutes, a layer of snow covers the tops of the memorial stones.

Anna slips her arm around her sister's arm. "I know they would be proud of you, as I am." They walk back to the road.

The sergeant nods to them and guide his Queen to her horse. The other guard urges Anna onto her horse. The sergeant clears his throat. "Majesty, we have been here too long. We need to get you back to the castle."

"Are we in danger?" Elsa asks as she reaches up to the saddle and reins.

"No ma'am, as I have said, we have been here too long."

Staring at the sergeant, she steps away from her horse. "Why are you in a hurry to leave?"

He pulls his lips tight and appears not to be breathing.

She crosses her arm. "Sergeant?"

His shoulders slump. "Sam, came down the road. He said if anything happens to the two of you, we are not to come back to the castle and pray he does not find us." He glances down the road. "Please, Majesty, I have had my encounters with him before now. He was not smiling when he made the statement. I have not ever known him not to do as he threatens."

"That is sure." Anna snorts.

"Okay sergeant, let us get back to the castle before he decides to hunt you down." With a guards help she climbs onto her horse.

Sometime later, Elsa and Anna ride through the gates with their guard escorts. Next to the stables Aurora drinks at the water trough. Sam cups his hands together to scoop up water and splashes his face. He leans onto the trough and stares into the water.

Elsa and Anna's horses stop in front of the castle's main entranceway. A guard assists them off their horses as the rest of the guards ride their horse towards the stables.

Elsa slowly walks up the steps while watching Sam.

Anna catches up with her on the top step. "Did you see that? He usually stops what he is doing to watch you. He did not look in your direction."

Elsa turns towards the stables. What are you think, Samuel? What are you fighting? She glances at Anna. "What am I normally doing at this time of the morning?"

"Today, you would be reading yesterday's reports and letters. Or sleeping in late before you have to meet with the council."

Aurora dribbles water down her chin as she watches them. Sam continues to stare into the water.

"For today, when would I see him?"

Anna glances at her sister, then at Sam. She smiles and answers, "After your noon meal, so there is no reason for him to be looking for you if you are normally in the castle."

Aurora bumps Sam with her nose and neighs.

"I'm standing right here. I can see you" Sam yells. His hand covering his ear slips to the back of his neck and scratches. He leans his head against Aurora.

Elsa turns her head just enough to hear him.

"I'm ok, just thinking." He walks towards the stable door. "Come on, let's get the saddle off of you and I'll give you a good brushing."

"Lucky horse." Elsa grins at Anna and winks.

"Elsa, you are the Queen." Anna follows her into the castle

A grunt and groan sounds as the saddle slides off Aurora's back. Sam tosses it onto the stall rail and grabs the brush sitting on the rail post. He steps up to Aurora. "So where do you want me to start?" He fluffs the hair between her eyes.

Aurora lets out a long squeals.

"Well excuse me, I thought you wanted to try something different. Your neck it is." Aurora exposes her neck to him.

A short time later, Sam finishes brushing Aurora and hangs the brush on the post. He walks the length of the stables checking each stall. The side door opens. Three sets of boots march in and stop at the entrance to the stable area. Sam faces the three guards.

He inspects the two with bruised faces. "I know why you two are here." He inspects the clean-cut guard. "Have you ever shaved?"

The guard stiffens his body as he stands at attention. "I shaved this morning, sir."

"First time?"

The other two guards snicker.

A blush of red swells in the young guard's face. "No sir, I have been shaving over a year?"

His left brow rises, "Really?"

He glances at the two guards snickering again.

"How often do you shave?"

The two guards burst out laughing and lean against each other.

"Please answer my question."

"I shave once a week."

The guards fall to the floor laughing.

"Why are they laughing at you?"

"They are my brothers, sir."

With a shake of his head, Sam retrieves the wheel barrow along with the cleaning tools from the corner. He tosses the shovel and rake onto the brothers.

"Hey, you could have stabbed me with that." One brother struggles to his feet.

The other brother uses the shovel to get to his feet. "It would have been no great loss."

"Oh yeah." They begin to sword fight with the rake and shovel.

Sam grabs a hand full of their hair and slams their heads into each other. They fall to the floor and moan. He stomps outside and returns with two buckets of water. He pours one bucket of cold water on the face and head of one. The brother rolls onto his hands and knees. He coughs and wheezes. The other brother points to his brother and snickers, until Sam pours the second bucket of cold water on him.

After a few minutes, they begin to breathe normally, but with a wheeze.

"ATTENTION," Sam yells.

The two brothers scramble to their feet and stand shoulder to shoulder with their younger brother. With their feet together and clenched fist to the sides, they stare straight ahead.

Sam parks the wheel barrel in front of them and retrieves the shovel and rake. He pushes a bucket into the chest of the younger brother. "Fill it three-quarters full of water and bring the ladle. You will set it on this stool. Move."

The younger brother takes the bucket and runs out the side door.

His fist rest on his waist. Sam stands in front of the two brothers. "I don't have to guess what you two did last night and I don't care. What I do care about is the example you are teaching your younger brother by your actions." He walks behind them. Placing his hands on the back of their necks, he leans his head between them. Through his fingers, he scans their minds.

With a shake of his head, he does not have time for this nonsense. "That is too bad you feel that way about him, a burdensome, a bother. Your parents expected you to take care of your brother, but he is not like you. He interferes with your fun. Actually, I do understand. You should have prevented him from becoming a castle guard. Instead, you will destroy any chance he has for a successful life."

"Sir," one brother says.

"Speak."

"We tried to stop him."

"And you failed. He is here"

The other brother speaks. "We know. We told him to stay with the military. He had a better chance at becoming an officer with them than the guards."

Sam steps back and faces the side room. "Is that what he wants?"

"That is what mother wanted. He would earn respect and not be called the thief's boy."

The side door opens. "Mention none of this to him." He growls at the brothers. "Start with the last stall and clean all of the horse's deposits. Fail and your punishment will be doubled. NOW, move."

The brothers grab the wheelbarrow with the rake and shovel and race to the last stall.

The younger brother sets the bucket of water on the stool.

"What is your name?"

The young brother snaps to attention. "Private Anders, sir."

Sam walks around and inspects him. "Okay Private Anders, what is the policy on fighting between guards?"

"We are not to fight other guards."

"Has the policy changed," he growls.

"No Sir."

Standing to the Private's side where he can see the two brothers, Sam bends his knees and leans his head close to the Private. "You have stated the policy has not changed. You saw your brothers fighting, and yet you did not break it up. Why?"

Anders starts to roll his head towards him.

He yells, "Don't look at me." He extends his arm in front of the Private's face as he points to the two brothers. "Look at them."

Anders turns his head towards his brothers.

"Do you see the bruises on their faces?"

"Yes, sir."

He moves his face closer to Anders' face and yells, "Why did you not break up the fight?"

Anders' head flinches away from him. "They fight rough. They have beaten me up for getting in the way."

Sam presses the back of his hand against the back of the Private's hand. He sees Duty and Honor for a mother's last request, and Fear of two shadows hovering over him. He stands tall. "Private Anders, why are you here?"

Anders starts to glance towards him, but faces forward and repositions his body to the military attention posture. "I am here to protect Arendelle from invading armies."

"That is the military's job." Sam calmly asks, "Why are you here as a guard?"

"I am here to protect our Queen from everyone." Anders answers with his chin lifted a little higher.

"That is my job to protect my Queen. Your job is to protect the castle from any invaders." Sam grabs the back of his neck where it connects to his skull. Heat radiates into his hand. He turns expecting to see an attacker, but stares at the stable wall next to the side room.

His hand generates cold and cools the back of his neck. "Have you ever killed anyone?"

"No sir."

"If the need calls for it, will you kill your brothers to protect the castle?"

Sam looks over his shoulder. Anders looks at his brothers. With a shake of his head, he grabs Anders' shirt collar and drags him through the service room and out the door. He drops Anders on the ground. "One hundred pushups, NOW."

Anders rolls onto his hands and knees.

Sam walks several steps towards a sergeant and a group of guards watching the commotion. He stops. "I do not hear any pushups. If I turn around you will go into the fjord."

The sergeant comments, "Private, I have seen him throw people into the water. It will not be pretty."

Anders' huffs as he lowers his chest close to the ground and pushes up. "One."

"You don't have all day, faster," Sam growls. His hand generates cold as he rubs the top of his neck. Clenching his fist, his eyes close.

A gust of wind dives into the courtyard and stirs up the dust. A guard falls off the wall, but the wind catches him and carries him north. A loud thunder echoes and shakes the ground. The dust collects to form a fist that smashes into the castle doors. Guards with swords in hand charge the dust, but it picks them up and carries them north. Women scream as the fist-shaped dust pulls them out of the castle. A shadow covers the castle.

A shorter, blonde haired female wearing a tan uniform with brown boots stands in front with her back to him. The tips of her hair glows orange and yellow as they move like the flames of a fire. "Why are you standing there? They need your help." She points to the north. "She needs you."

His head turns to the north. A fountain of red shoots into the sky. His surrounding changes to the plateau of Lookout Hill. Heads and body parts scatter the ground where pools of red have collected. Blood drips from his ice sword.

"You are too late." The blonde female standing at the edge of the cliff and pointing to the fires burning Arendelle. "If you had only taken action sooner."

Sam stands at the cliff's edge. A fleet of ships anchor in the fjord. The flag on the mask of the ship firing cannon balls at the castle waves at him, then displays the owner of the ship. On the quarter deck. A short, gray hair man dances like a peacock, as he did at Elsa's coronation. On the bridge, Prince Hans on his white horse leads his troops towards the castle. A shadow passes overhead.

Sam stares at the red dripping from his hands. Underneath the blood shimmers of green sweeps across his hands. The shadow of a hand presses against his fingers. Red and yellow outline the fingers. His eyes open.

"Samuel, what are you doing?" Gerda asks.

He stares at her. "Why are you holding my hand?"

"A guard came to me. They said you closed your eyes and started chanting. What were you saying?"

Sam steps back. The shadow under him has moved out to a half meter in front of him. He faces the sun and holds his hand out to block part of the sun. He glances at the stable. "Where is Private Anders?"

A pair of boots run up behind him. He spins on his heels and the back of his hand connects into the Private's shoulder. The Private sails head first into the courtyard.

"Samuel, why on Gods Earth did you do that?" Gerda grabs his arm.

Sam pivots as he prepares to attack the one touching him. For a moment, everything has a green tint. The fear in her face holds his arm from moving towards her. A blue color surrounds her. His hand opens. The sergeant steps between him and her. A guard pulls her back. Two more guards approach with their hands on the hilts of their swords.

"That is a good idea." Grabbing the sword as he pushes the guard back. He smiles at the other guard. "I will take that sword from you."

The guard and the sergeant back away from him. Gerda runs to the castle.

Sam stabs the sword into the crack between two courtyard stones. He leaps at a guard standing too close and relieves him of his sword. The business end of the sword points at Anders. "Help him up."

The guards help Anders to his feet. Blood dribbles off his chin with a centimeter of skin hanging from it.

Sam flips the sword with the hilt towards Anders. "Take it and defend yourself."

Anders glances at the sword. His head moves from side to side.

In a blink the sword drops to his side. Sam's other hand slices through the air and slaps Anders off his feet. The sword clatters on the stones between Anders feet.

Sam yells, "Pick it up or I will rip your uniform off and you will run up the hill where I will meet you with your clothes."

Other guards run towards the commotion along with Captain Larsen.

"What will it take for you to defend yourself?"

"Admiral, what are you doing? He is injured. Do you see the blood on his face? It is on the back of your hand." Larsen approaches slowly.

Sam points to the two brothers. "You two get over here and drag your brother out of here, before I pick up the sword and run him through."

"Admiral Ryan." A strong, sweet voice calls from the castle.

He rubs the top of his neck. A pain shoots down his spine. As the two brothers reach Anders, Sam runs and lifts both of them off the ground by their necks. They claw at his hands gurgling little noise. Extreme cold slaps against his neck. The pain eases and he drops them to the ground.

They gasp for air. Anders tries to help one of his brother to his feet.

Sam grabs Anders shoulder and cups his hand on Anders' chin. A layer of ice forms. "Do not remove the ice for an hour. It will heal."

The heat in his neck increases past his normal temperature. He staggers towards the stable. His hand slides across several centimeters of ice on his neck. The cold releases the tension in his shoulders and back. "Captain, take your three flunkies back. If you cannot discipline them, get rid of them."

Sam walks to the stables and stumbles on the steps as he enters. Leaning his head against a pole, he holds onto the supporting rails of his horse's stall.

With her ear stiff and forward Aurora stares at him and emits a low rumble.

"I'm not feeling well. My head is killing me."

Aurora sniffs at him, then stomps the floor with another snort.

"The ice is easing the pain, but not enough." He peeks down the aisle. The other horses stare back at him. "Sorry ladies and gents. It will get a little colder in here."

Sam grabs the shovel. Two small blue orbs expand to one large orb and reflects off the horse's polished reins as he walks to the other end of the stables. He chants a song his mother sang to him.

Aurora sniffs at the two icy hand prints on the rails. Ice crackles and encircles a band around the post where Sam laid his head.

 **End of Chapter**


	66. Chapter 65 Ambush and Confusion

**Title:** **Chapter 65: Ambush and Confusion**

 **2 years, 7 months until correction**

Sam scratches behind Aurora's ear. "Did I not tell them we were going for a ride?" She nods her head and looks back at the two royalties getting onto their horses. Anna quickly adjusts her green dress with the yellow flowers and sits back into the saddle. After adjusting her light green summer dress for the third time, Elsa waves her hand extending her dress length to cover her exposed legs.

"Perhaps the next time I will suggest what attire she should wear, assuming I ask her to ride with me again."

Aurora nods and lays her head over his shoulder.

"Okay, do you want a good neck scratch before we leave?" Aurora emits a low rumble as Sam scratches her neck.

Anna nudges her horse alongside of Elsa's horse. "What is he waiting for?"

"I do not know. If he waits too long, I have work I could be doing. This is too close to the trade meeting. We can ride later." Elsa stares at Samuel smiling at her.

"Do you think good things will come to those who are patient?" Sam combs Aurora's mane. She looks back at Elsa and nods her head as her hoof taps the courtyard.

A guard carrying two leather satchels exits the castle doors. Kristoff climbs onto Sven's back. Sam lays the two satchels across Aurora's neck and climbs into the saddle.

"Now we are ready," he says and nudges Aurora with his heel. She slowly walks towards the main gates. As he passes through the gate, he holds out a small piece of parchment.

Captain Larsen takes the parchment. "I can still send a detachment of guards with you."

"No need, I will protect them."

"You will be held responsible if something happens." Larsen bows his head as Queen Elsa rides past him.

She glances towards Sam. "Captain, do you have a concern about our little adventure."

"No Majesty, we have a gentlemanly agreement. Enjoy yourself."

"I am sure she will," Anna snickers as she rides past.

Kristoff follows up the rear and shrugs his shoulders as Sven walks past the Captain.

They ride through Arendelle. Most of the adults bow their heads at the royal procession. The few adults, mostly councilmen's wives, continue about their business as if they did not see them.

Sam intentionally pointed to each of the disrespectful adults. The children wave and asked where they are going. He gives the same reply. "It is a surprise."

Behind them a young female's voice calls out to him, "Sam, good luck with that."

He peeks over his shoulder and points to Kristen pointing back at him.

They ride through the gates of the outer wall. Anna and Elsa comment to each other about the scenery and where they think he is taking them. They agree he is leading them to the meadow on the next hill with the flowing stream.

Sam does not look back. They reach a slight bend in the road that would take them towards the next hill. He nudges Aurora onto a narrow path.

The others stop on the road and stare in his direction. Sven moves to the edge of the road.

Kristoff pulls on Sven's harness. "Where are you going buddy?"

Sam holds up a carrot and waves it from side to side. Sven's head moves with the carrot.

Elsa looks past him at the forest. "What is through there?"

"Come with me and you will see."

"I do not have proper clothes to ride through there." Elsa glances down at her summer dress. "I will get dirty."

"If you get dirty, I will take you to the stream over there." He points the carrot at the other hill. Sven shifts his weight as if he is about to chase the carrot.

Elsa turns her horse around on the road that will lead back to Arendelle.

Anna glances between her sister and Sam. "What exactly is through the forest?"

He tosses the carrot to Sven. "There is a nice spot a little further up this hill that overlooks Arendelle. We could have a picnic."

Kristoff and Anna look at each other, but Kristoff asks, "Who is we, you are expecting?"

"Actually, I was hoping a certain Queen and a certain Princess would be joining us there." He angles his head down towards Sven. "Do you know of a beautiful Queen and beautiful Princess who may wish to have a picnic with two handsome men?"

Elsa pulls in the reigns turning her horse and stops next to Anna. "Do you think he is asking us to join him?"

Anna nudges her horse. "Whether he is talking about us or not, where Kristoff goes, I am going with him."

Sam points to the forest. "Stay on the path. It will lead you to a clearing."

Kristoff guides Sven into the forest. Anna's horse follows.

Elsa stops her horse a meter from him. "I am not aware of any other Queen, who lives around here, so I will assume you are referring to me." He nods to her. "You have a very peculiar way of asking me to go with you. Why did you not just ask?"

"Well, I thought I did, but to make sure there is no miss-understanding." He bows to her. "Your Majesty, I'm going a little further up the path. I would greatly enjoy your company, so would you care to join me on a picnic?"

She encourages her horse to side step next to Aurora. "Now, was that hard?" He shakes his head. "I would love to have a picnic with you, my sister and her husband. Do you go there often?"

Aurora begins to walk down the path. Sam slides his hand along Elsa's horse to encourage it to walk alongside.

"When I need to get away, I like to go up there and watch the sky. You should see it as the sun drops behind the mountains and it gets completely dark." Calming memories invade his mind and a partial smile forms on his face. "One by one the stars come out and Arendelle's lights shine. It has been a long time since I last came out here and stayed long enough to see Arendelle cover itself with darkness."

"I would like to see it."

Her sweet voice brings his mind back as he focuses on her blue eyes. "What?"

"I said I would like to see in the evening," Elsa smiles, "when I have time."

He blinks and breaks the trance. "Yes, when you have time. It is not far. We could come up here for a short break. It gives me a chance to clear my head and to get a perspective of where I am."

"And what is your perspective right now?"

He pulls on the reins and Aurora stops as does Elsa's horse. "If our gathering does not meet everyone's satisfaction, Gerda and Kai are to blame. They suggested then insisted on this picnic. I think it's a mistake due to this particular day and maybe, your thoughts would be focused on other things."

"Why would they insist on this day?"

"It has been barely three months for Anna. I let either Kai or Gerda know when I come up here, just in case, I'm needed. Gerda said I'm not the only one who needs to clear their heads for a new perspective as to where they are."

Elsa turns to face him. "Do I need a new perspective?"

With a slight upturn at the corner of his lips, he looks directly into her blue eyes again, "Sometimes a new perspective is learning something you did not know or reminding yourself of something you have forgotten. Have you forgotten anything in the past year?"

She stares at him for a longer length of time, before adjusting herself to face forwards in the saddle. "What if I had declined your offer for the picnic?"

At least she is interested. His lips curl up more. "We would be closer to your castle by now. Possibly, Kristoff would take Anna further up to one of the ice ponds or out to the meadow for a picnic. When she gets back to the castle she would tell you how much fun she had and you would wonder why you didn't go with them."

Her head turns slightly towards him to reveal a grin. "But I am here, if it is satisfactory to everyone, what then?"

Sam taps Aurora to walk and Elsa's horse stays alongside. "I'll have to apologize to Gerda and Kai for doubting their wisdom."

Stopped on her horse, Anna snickers. "Oh, that would be something to see." She taps her horse and continues up the path.

"Actually, it would be interesting to see." Elsa prods her horse to trot towards Anna.

Kristoff standing next to Sven waits at the edge of the plateau. "You know she will make a big issue of it. Probably, call the staff together just to see you admit you were wrong. Even I saw that one and you stepped into it." Sven trumpets and nods.

"Yes I did. If you watch closely, maybe we will all have a new perspective." Sam pulls a carrot out of the satchel and tosses it to Kristoff. Sven's eyes widen as his bubby catches it.

Sam stands in the stirrups. His eyes changes to a crystal blue as he scans the area. He has felt like they were being watched, but he does not detect anyone. Ditches and too many trees can hide a person. Only after they move would he be able to detect them. A deep scan would detect anyone but they still could be within an arrows range.

"What are you two conspiring?" Anna asks.

Kristoff wrinkles his nose with a slight shake of his head. "It is so weird to see your eyes doing that."

A large brown bird screeches overhead. Glancing up he comments, "Maybe, but I don't think you are the one I saw." Sam nudges Aurora into an open area of a lush green grassy plateau with a few small boulders scattered around.

Kristoff assists Anna off her horse. The gleam in her eyes says she likes the way he lifts her off the saddle and gently sets her on her feet.

Sam slides off Aurora's back and sets the two satchels on one of the small boulder. He trots over Elsa as she slides off her horse. Her feet touch the ground as he pins her against her horse. She stares up at him and he gazes into her blue eyes.

Anna walks past them and her hand sweeps his hair across his shoulders. "Ok you two, where is the food. I did not have much to eat at breakfast."

They both blink and he steps back. He grabs her hand. "Come, see what I see." He leads her to the edge of the plateau.

His hand sweeps in front of them. "Behold the beauty of your Queendom."

Arendelle flags flutter in the breeze atop the castle. His mind drifts as it collects the wonders of nature. Even the screech of the large brown bird overhead does not break his trance. A fragrance with a slight sweetness tickles his nose. It contrasts with the scents of the forest. The warmth of the sun and a light breeze from the ocean calms his mind.

Anna grabs his left hand and shakes it "Where are we looking?"

Her comment refocuses his mind to the now. A shift in the breeze tantalizes his nose with the fragrance. The sweetness reminds him of coconuts. A temperature difference between his left and right hand causes both hands of his hands to open.

Anna lets go. "Now that you're back, let's eat." She walks over and sits next to Kristoff on the blanket.

Sam draws his lips together and closes his hand around a small and soft hand. Slowly rotating his head, he stares at her hand and glimpses Elsa smiling at him. "My apologies for taking your hand, but why didn't you let go when I opened mine?"

"I like where my hand is." The tip of her tongue sweeps across her lips. "Do you object?"

Shaking his head he has no desire to fall into that trap. "No Majesty, it creates a very pleasant sensation that I haven't felt in a very long time."

She squeezes his hand and steps closer. Her other hand rests on his upper arm. "I have never had someone's big hand hold mine. It feels nice, but would you do me a small favor?"

"Of course, Majesty, if it is within my capabilities."

"When it's just you and me, Anna and Kristoff, please call me Elsa and save the Majesty when others are around."

He steps back and bows to her "Yes, it would be my pleasure, Elsa." Standing tall where he stood next to her, he glances down at his hand still holding his Queen's hand. A smile forces its way across his lips. Elsa leans her head against his shoulder. His body responds to her close proximity. His mind reminds them it only takes one trap to betray his first love, but for the moment, it is time to soak in the beauty of her Queendom and the fjord. In the distance Sam spots the mast of a ship cresting over the horizon. "Looks like tomorrow's appointment will be on time."

She squints her eyes at the horizon. "What are you seeing? How do you know I have an appointment in the morning?"

"I care enough about your wellbeing to find out who visits you. I will not divulge how I do it, but to say no one will remember they gave me the information."

She leans away from him. "Should I be concerned?"

"I have been collecting information the past five years. No one has been hurt. There have been times when I wanted to intervene, but I did not. Do you remember when the Russian Prince visited last month?"

Her right brow immediately shoots up.

"I had a little chat with one of his staff and their guard. When I visited later in the evening, I stood by the hall door with my hand on his assistance's shoulder. Kai said he looked like death was standing next to him."

She points her finger at him. "That would explain why he was in a hurry to leave the next morning."

"Well, I am glad he left early. I was feeling creepy all over the way he stared at me while he talked to you. But anyway, lunch is served if you are through feeling his muscles," Anna says as she walks back to the blanket.

Elsa watches Anna until she was out of ear shot. She turns her attention to him. "The next time you have an issue with one of my guests, please let me know before you do anything."

He nods as the muscles in his face pull up the corners of his lips. "I promise I will notify you before I interrogate them."

Releasing his hand she holds his arm as they walk towards the blanket. "No interrogating of my guest, I cannot have them feeling intimidated as they negotiate a treaty."

"Okay, no interrogating until after treaty signed."

"No!" She pinches his arm.

They walk to the blanket and sits. Little conversation occurs as they eat the meal. Anna and Kristoff sit very close together. Anna giggles as Kristoff whispers into her ear. Elsa and Sam do not sit as close, but smile at each other.

As Sam finishes his meal, he detects movement. He bows his head and closes his eyes.

"Are you feeling ok?" Elsa touches his hand.

He peeks up at her. "This is the second time I have detected a signal that should not be at the edge of my quick scan. It may be nothing."

With their hunger satisfied they stand by the edge of the plateau absorbing all nature has to offer. Elsa glances over to Anna and Kristoff with their arms around each other's waist. Anna appears content resting her head against his broad chest. She glances up at Sam. Though she has seen him many times working with the stable horses and using his strength to off-load the hay and other necessities from a wagon, today he seems to be different. Standing rigid with his hands clasped together behind his back, his shoulder and arm muscles appear larger than she remembers. Glancing back at Anna and Kristoff, who are focused on each other, she barely leans back and glimpses behind Sam. His left hand grasps his right wrist, leaving his right hand open. She watches him out of the corner of her eyes. Her hand sneaks around him and slips into his hand. The large size warms her hand. Her head turns enough to give her a better view. His lips slightly separate and he exhales a mist of ice droplets that sparkle as the sunlight evaporates them. His hand closes around her hand and the edges of his lips slowly curl. He stares at a distant site as if it has hypnotized me. Is it a site that she could see or is it in his mind?

 _What are you thinking?_

His head rotates down towards her with his light blue eyes. He blinks and the blue fades to reveal his Hazel colored eyes. They focus on her.

"To answer your question, our beloved Queen has placed her hand into my hand. It has created a tingling sensation I think I like."

With a grin she wrinkles her nose at him. "If that excites you then you're really going to like this." Pulling his hand to his side, she slides her hand under his arm and around his waist. Reaching behind her Elsa drapes his arm across her back and places his hand on her side.

After a moment his eyes partially close. A low rumble sounds in his chest that reminds her of a wolf's low growl.

In a whisper, he responds. "You're right. This does excite me more, but is it proper for a Queen to be this close to a commoner?"

"The Queen can do whatever she wishes." She squeezes his waist.

He nods to her. "God bless the Queen." His hand on her waist pulls her closer to him.

She glances at Anna and Kristoff watching as they smile at her.

Sam allows the sensation of his Queen touching his side to consume his desire. Only after seeing the droplets of water float up in front of his face does he see the mist. The peaks of Arendelle ride above the mist rolling across the fjord. The mist fills the valleys and moves towards them. He turns his head to the others. Before he can comment, from the hill behind them a sparkle flashes in his eyes. His eyes focus on the source of the flash.

Sven runs up to Kristoff with a grunt and looks back in the wooded area.

Sam looks over his shoulder, but Kristoff says it first, "Where are the horses?"

A twang from a broken string sounds in the forest. A second later a short arrow lands several meters from Sven. Sam peers deep into the forest as the mist rolls through it. Two individuals move from one tree to another. His senses jump to a high alert. Lifting Elsa off the ground, he quick steps her over to Sven as Anna peaks past them.

"Take Elsa back to the castle and return with the cavalry."

Kristoff jumps onto Sven's back and reaches down for Elsa, but she backs away from him.

"No, take you wife back," Elsa commands.

Anna starts to protest, but Sam tosses her up to Kristoff and squeezes her arm. "I'll protect your sister until they gets back." He slaps Sven's rump to run. Instead of taking the road, Sven runs down the narrow trail that leads away from the oncoming attackers.

Three sharp twangs from crossbows release their arrows and reveal the owners' locations. His keen eyes in attack mode see the arrows break free of the mist. Instinctively, his hand snaps up to shoot three balls of ice that change the course of the arrows into the ground. Pushing Elsa he backs her close to the edge of the plateau.

"Stand behind me and stay in physical contact with me at all times. You may feel a tingling sensation over your body, but it will pass." He moves his face close, "Elsa, listen to me. Look at my eyes."

Her eyes reflect emerald green orbs. "Please, whatever you do, do not reach out past me. If any part of your body is outside of my energy, you can be injured or worse, they can pull you away from me, okay?"

Elsa nods quickly and rubs the ice off her arm where he held her. He turns around and steps into his defensive stance with his feet shoulder width apart. She stands behind him and leans against his body.

Extending his arms out, they move in an arc above his head and touch. The air around his body begins to undulate and changes color with varying hues of blue. His arms arc down until his hands slap his legs. The undulation air vibrates faster. He raises his arms out to his side. The colors vividness and sharpness merge together.

Elsa belches and she lightly bounces her head against his back and then belches again.

Seven men methodically move out of the forest as if they had practiced the maneuver. Each attacker holds a crossbow pointed at them and a sword at their side.

Sam calls to her, "I know you feel sick. If you have to lose your lunch, it's ok as long as you do not lose contact with me. Hold onto my belt, but don't let go of me."

Elsa holds her head up. The nausea passes as quickly as it came upon her. Three rapid distinct pops ring in her ears. A sword bounces off the undulation above Sam's head. A louder popping sounds. The ripples drift out, and come back together. It reminds her of a rock dropped into a bucket and the ripples race back and forth across the water surface. A light popping turns into loud bangs. Arrows fly over their heads in different directions. She slides her head along his back and peeks under his arm. Four men in woodsy clothes stand close and take turns swinging their swords at them. The undulating air repels their attack. One spots her and swings his sword at her, BANG, but it bounces out of his hand.

Instinctually, Elsa holds her hand open and yells, "STOP."

A blast of ice shoots from her hand, BANG, and encases one attacker's leg in ice. He staggers back out of the fight. She looks at her hand, then feels a devilish smile form across her face. In four rapid blasts of cold air, BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG, four attacker's stagger back with parts of their body frozen. More attackers with swords run towards them. She alternately moves from one side to the other side of Sam's body. She attacks the closest attacker. Her shots freeze body parts or their weapons. Her ice shots create a reverberation in the energy barrier. The undulation in the barrier slows.

Sam calls to her, but the noise drowns his voice. "Elsa, stop, you're weakening the barrier."

She looks up, "What? I cannot hear you. Keep it up, we are pushing them back" BANG, BANG, BANG, more hits on the barrier. Elsa shoots again pushing the attackers back.

Sam yells, "STOP, you're weakening the barrier." BANG, BANG.

"What, I can't hear you". Her ice slows the undulation, BANG, BANG, BANG.

Her next rapid shots cause the colors at the edges of the barrier to separate.

"Elsa, you have to stop. I can't keep the energy up. If it totally collapses I can't defend you."

"What, we are winning." Her last shot sends the remaining few attackers back into the mist.

The energy barrier collapses. Sam wraps his arms around her and holds her tight. She slides her arms around his chest. A spark leaps from his finger and touches behind her ear. Her body collapses. He drops to his knees and cradles her in his arm. "I am so sorry my love, but you are in danger."

The attackers move in the mist and appear to be regrouping. A vibration radiates from the ground with the sound of horses racing up the path. The cavalry arrives kicking up the dirt.

He carries her over to Captain Larsen. "Take her back to the castle and keep her safe."

Cradling his Queen in his arms Larsen nods to him, "Get on a horse. We will take you back and come back here in force."

Sam shakes his head. "No, take her back to the castle and make sure she is safe before coming back here." His head turns in the direction of the attackers. Slapping one fist on top of his other fist and separating them to form an ice bow, he draws the ice strings back and yells from over his shoulder, "This will end now. Protect our Queen."

Larsen strongly urges his horse to run down the path with the twelve guards behind him.

Sam's vision shifts to the emerald green. The thermal heat from their body blazes against the background of the cool mist. An ice arrow flies and hits the chest of the closest attacker. A second later the next attacker falls with a arrow in his chest. He draws the bow with an ice arrow locked between his fingers and trots towards the attackers emerging from the mist. Kneeling on one knee, he lets the arrow fly followed by a second arrow. Two attackers lie on the ground with an arrow in their hearts. Running past the four attackers, he pulls the four arrows out of their motionless bodies and rapidly takes down four more.

Sam runs his hand across his bow transforming it into a broad sword. Two attackers charge him and swing widely as one sword misses his head. The other sword leaves a thin line of red across his lower back. His sword does not miss as two heads fall to the ground before their bodies collapse. He howls like a wolf and charges into the thick mist. In the distance several wolves howl a reply.

Standing over the last body to fall to the ground, Sam hears two horses running away through the mist. His eyes and ears narrow his focus. The sword transforms back into a bow. Drawing the ice string back as far as he can, he releases two arrows. The projectiles disappear in the mist. His ears track the sound of the air swirling around the arrow. A few seconds later the sound of two distinctive arrows hits the ground. If he had not lost so much energy from Elsa's ice bolts he would have taken down the two riders. His body needs to rest, but he needs to dispose of the battle. The bow changes into a shovel and he digs.

Twelve Royal Guards ride with Captain Larsen in the middle of the formation. Larsen holds Queen Elsa tight, trying not to bounce her too much. The formation rides through the town, scattering the people. As the returning Guards race across the bridge, the sentry calls down to the gate guards. The formation separates creating a corridor for Larsen to race to the castle entrance.

Anna, Kristoff, and a military Lieutenant run out the doors and down the steps. Larsen slides off his horse with the aid of two guards. Kristoff takes Elsa in his arms. Anna wraps Elsa's dress around her legs.

The Lieutenant asks, "What is going on? I was summoned here by Princess Anna. Why is Queen Elsa unconscious?"

Captain Larsen barks out commands. "Sergeant, get me a fresh horse. Lieutenant, how many soldiers do you have here?"

"Ten."

"I need them now." Larsen points to a group of guards bringing up their horse, "You six get your swords and get on your horses."

The sergeant brings up a fresh horse. "Sir, Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to get Admiral Ryan. He's up there alone on Lookout Hill. When they get these horses swapped I want you to charge the hill."

"Aye sir," the sergeant runs towards the armory barking at the guards.

"Lieutenant, get as many soldiers with crossbows as you can and follow to the hill. We will hold them until you get there." Larsen commands as he climbs onto the fresh horse.

"Aye sir, we will be there." The Lieutenant climbs onto his horse and races out the gates.

Larsen kicks his horse to run and leads the other six guards back towards Lookout Hill.

Elsa moans. Anna holds her sister's hand as Kristoff turns his body to pass through the doors.

"Elsa," Anna looks up at her husband, "What's wrong with her?"

"Sam may have put her to sleep."

"Why would he do that?" She asks following him.

"She was in danger and started to argue with him. He held the attackers off until Captain Larsen arrived to bring her back here. Now, Sam is up there alone against the attackers."

Elsa groans and moves her hand to her head as she opens her eyes. "What are you doing? Put me down."

With several military soldiers and guards on horse, Captain Larsen races towards him. Sam finishes covering the grave. Larsen pulls his horse up to Sam and looks around with his sword in hand, "Where are they?"

Sam points to the slight rise of freshly dug ground. "They are there in this mass grave. I placed a layer of ice over them to keep the animals from digging them up."

Larsen stares at the larger area of overturned earth. "Are all of them in there?"

Sam glances back in the direction he heard the horses running away. "No, two got away, but I know who they are." Folding the ice shovel into his hands, he looks up to Larsen, "Go back to the castle. I will walk back. I need time to drain the excess energy in my head."

Sheathing his sword, Larsen signals to the other guards to head back to Arendelle. He waits until they were out of hearing range, then climbs off his horse. He looks around and in a low voice asks, "May I ask you a question?"

"Before you do is our Queen safe?"

He nods. "Yes, when I left, Kristoff was carrying her to the castle."

Sam snorts. "Ask your questions. I'm sure she will have questions of her own about this incident." He looks directly into his eyes. "When she does ask you questions, tell the truth not your interpretation give her the facts."

Larsen nods again. "As a member of the Royal Guards I have and always will tell the truth no matter what."

"Good, that may be the only thing that will keep my head on my shoulders. Ask your question."

He hesitates, before asking. "When I rode a short distance and looked back I saw you take down six attackers."

"Yes!"

Shaking his head, Larsen looks everywhere except at Sam, then he looks directly at him, "I see how you look right now, but that person howling as it ran into the mist did not look like you."

Sam's left brow rises. "What did you see?"

"That person had long white flowing hair and his body shimmered different colors of green, blue, brown, and moments of white sparkles." He shakes his head again. "But that couldn't have been you."

Sam places his hand on Larsen's shoulder. "Why not?"

"Because I have never seen anything like that, was it you?"

Sam removes his hand from Larsen's shoulder. This time he will not influence his mind to forget. "To be a trusting agent of the Queen's service, you must be willing to tell the truth, no matter how it will make you look. I will answer your question, you saw me in my natural state. Later I will explain the how and why, but for now you will have to trust me."

Larsen narrows his eyes and looks back at the grave. "Natural state of what?"

"No more answers for you. I'll walk back to release the energy in my head. Reassure our Queen I will be back." He walks down the path.

Larsen climbs onto his horse and rides past him. Sam observes the short ridge off the path. A male wolf watches him. He speaks to it. "Do not dig them up."

" _You could have left them out for us. There would have been nothing by morning."_ The wolf growls and barks.

Glancing at the sun at slightly past midday, he peeks back at the wolf. "Come back when the light begins to fade. The ice will be gone."

The wolf howls and disappears behind the ridge. In the distant other wolves howl.

Moments of gusty wind slaps at him between the light breeze as he continues his walk back to Arendelle.

Setting her onto her feet, Kristoff holds her arm and starts to wrap his arm around her waist, when she pushes away from him. Elsa stumbles. Anna grabs her arm, but everything moves in a jerking motion. Her legs strain to keep her standing, but they give out. The floor rapidly rushes up to her face. Her arm prevents the impact. Her whole body wobbles as she struggles to stay upright on her hands and knees. She closes her eyes and allows gravity to pull her head down. Her abdomen tightens. The saliva glands begin to produce excessive moisture. A stabbing pain strikes her mind. She rolls onto her side as waves of convulsions create dry mouth heaves. After the second heave the pain in her head becomes tolerable. Her mind receives her body's sensor signals. She partially opens her eyes. A warm hand turns her face off the floor.

"Elsa, Elsa can you hear me?" Anna yells.

Strong hands turn her body up to a sitting position. A soft wool shirt covering a strong chest caresses the side of her face. She tries to smile up at Kristoff. A staffer hands Anna a wet cloth. She wipes Elsa's face. The cold cloth sends a chill down her neck. Everything stops moving. Elsa forces her eyes to look around. Everything has a shimmering effect around them. She glances up. A sunny, yellow halo surrounds Anna and Kristoff. A reddish-orange thermal wave floats above everyone, except for the one walking towards her.

As the person moves closer, the blue halo surrounding the person reveals the image of Gerda holding two dark blue containers in her hands.

Gerda kneels next to Anna. "Try to get Elsa to drink some of this. It will ease the convulsions."

Kristoff shifts her body so her head leans back. Anna wipes the cloth across her face and holds her chin. Gerda pours a small amount of water into her mouth. Elsa coughs it up.

Anna wipes the water off her chin and Kristoff's shirt. Anna takes the glass of water from Gerda. "Come on sister. This will help." She pours a little more water into Elsa's mouth.

This time she swallows. Anna continues to give Elsa's little sips of water until she takes the glass from her hand and guzzles it down.

Anna brushes her hair out of her face and sops up the water from her chin and neck.

Holding the glass in her hand, Elsa does not see the thermal waves and all appear normal.

Taking the glass from her, Gerda dabs her face with a damp rag. "Majesty, what happened to you?"

Elsa looks past them to the open door. A greenish hue surrounds everything outside of the door. A staffer with the greenish hue walks in. As soon as she enters the door the hue disappears.

Anna holds Elsa's arm and looks at the staffer. "How are you feeling?"

"Did you see that?" Elsa points to the door.

Glancing at Anna, Kristoff shrugs his shoulder.

Anna stares at her sister. "We do not see anything. What did you see?"

"You are a little tired from your adventure with Samuel."

Elsa snaps her head around and glares at Gerda. "Adventure with Sam, We were fighting the attackers. They were trying to kill us." Elsa shakes her head and stares at the floor. "But their swords and arrows bounced off his energy barrier. My ice froze their body parts and they retreated. We were winning. He grabs my arms, and then I wake up in Kristoff's arms."

She glares at them. "You tell me, was that an adventure?" Rolling to her knees, she taps the floor with her fist. Sparkles of ice collect around her hand. An ice pole rises from the floor. She adjusts her dress to get her foot underneath her.

Anna moves next to her and starts to help her up, but Elsa's low brows and glare stops her.

"Get away from me for YOUR safety," she growls. Ice particles of mist float up in front of her face. Exhaling a deep breath into a cone of mist, she sweeps her hand in the mist and the ice collects around her hand. She clenches her fist. Pivoting on her knees, she points at the doors. "You are doing this."

With the aid of the ice pole, she stands. A disrupted energy fills her body. Rehashing the events in her mind, she gains control of the anger that is about to explode outwards.

 _Why am I feeling this way? He stopped them. I pushed them._ She looks at her hand clenching and opening as ice particles fall to the floor. _Why do I want to hit something?_

"Elsa, what is happening to you," Anna asks outside of her reach.

Her head slowly turns as she focuses on her sister. Kristoff grabs Anna's arm and pulls her to him. Her eyes narrow as she targets Kristoff. _Or hit someone._

"Was this his plan?"

Anna steps back. "Elsa, you are scaring me. What is wrong with you?"

Kristoff pulls on Anna's arm. "Your sister is upset. We need to get out of her line of sight."

She snaps at him. "Sister? Not Majesty or Queen Elsa? Are you against me as well?" Her ice pole leans towards him.

Anna stands between Kristoff and her. "No, we are not against you."

Kristoff steps to Anna's side and holds his arm in front of her.

She clenches and releases her hands. Ice falls to the floor. "Then why did he knock me out?"

Kristoff moves Anna behind him. "It sounds like there was a lull in the fight. If the guards were approaching, he took the opportunity to get you to safety."

Elsa stares at the sheen of ice covering her hands. "Why would he do that? We were winning."

Gerda stands next to Kai as she answers, "Because you are the Queen, his mission is to protect the Queen of Arendelle."

Kai partially stands in front of Gerda. "Perhaps, he was doing more than just protecting our Queen. He was protecting Elsa."

She glances at each of them, before staring out the door. She leans on the ice pole. Her breathing returns to normal. "Why did he not come back?"

Wrapping his arms around Anna, Kristoff answers, "If someone attacked Anna and I knew she was safe, I would make sure they would not attack anyone again."

"As would I," Kai comments squeezing Gerda.

"He is protecting me by making sure the attackers do not come back." She leans her head against the ice pole and closes her eyes. "We were winning together. Sam, where are you?"

Her eyes partially open. A blue light flashes outside of the door. Everything radiates with blue sparkles.

"Yes Sam, where are you hiding?" Elsa lifts her chin and rolls her shoulders back. Tapping the floor with the ice pole, she marches through the doors. Standing on the top step with her hand on her waist and the ice pole leaning forward, she surveys the courtyard and purposefully looks at each individual.

 _Are you against me? What about you? You, the one turning away from me, are you planning to strike me down?_

"I froze it once. I'll do it again, permanently." Elsa sweeps her pole across the courtyard. "And not even he will stop me."

A guard approaches her. She shifts the end of the pole under her arm. The other end forms into a sharp point. The pole becomes an extension of her arm as she points it at the guard. "What do you want?"

The guard stops a meter from the steps. With his feet together and his arms at his side, he bows to her. "I'm Lieutenant Niles, officer in charge of the guards until Captain Larsen returns." The blue halo around him begins to fade.

"Are you here to ask for my surrender?" Elsa growls in a low voice.

Niles glances up at her. "No Majesty. You appeared to be looking for someone. I came over here to assist you if you will permit it."

The blue halo disappears and everything returns to their normal colors. She stares at the ice pole pointing at the chest of Niles. A tremor passes through her hand. She drops the pole and it shatters against the ground. She tries to catch her breath. Her eyes will not focus on anything. They constantly shift from one object to the next. The tremor moves down into her legs.

"Elsa?" asks a female's voice behind her.

The voice sounds familiar. _Why do I not know?_

With great effort Elsa forces her body to turn around. Her hand reaches for her. _I know you._ "Anna?"

Her head tilts back. Her eyes do not move, but her vision sweeps up the castle wall and into the sky.

"ELSA."

 _There is that sweet voice again._ The face of a uniformed guard appears above her. _I cannot hear you. What are you saying, Lieutenant Niles?_ In her peripheral a young lady moves her head over her face. _Anna?_

A male's voice speaks to her. _Elsa, I am so sorry. You need to rest. Go to sleep. I will be there soon, my love._

"Sam?" A hint of a smile forms and her world fades as her eyes close.

Kristoff gently lifts Elsa into his arms and walks up the steps.

"It was a good thing you were there to catch her. She could have seriously injured herself." Anna says.

"I am glad I could assist our Queen, but Princess, before she closed her eyes, did you see the whites of her eyes were blue. I have only seen Admiral Ryan with blue eyes like that," Niles says as he escorts Anna up the stairs.

Gerda leads Kristoff and Anna into the castle. "Take our Queen to her room."

A guard yells from the wall, "Lieutenant, Captain Larsen has returned with the other guards. Samuel is not with them."

After a few minutes Captain Larsen dismounts from his horse. "Well, Lieutenant has Queen Elsa awaken yet?"

"It is too bad you were not here several minutes ago."

"Oh? Something happened?"

Niles does not answer, but waits for the Captain to notice the top steps.

Walking up the steps he notices. "Queen Elsa is awake and she is the cause for the ice."

"If you go in there," Niles points over his shoulder. "Be careful where you walk and don't slip."

"She is a little upset?"

"For some reason, when I approached her, standing where you are, she asked if I was asking for her to surrender."

"Surrender?" Larsen looks at Niles then turns to face the gates.

"Do you think he knows?" After a moment Niles continues, "To answer your questions, our Queen is awake. She is angry and Samuel is not here. If you have no further need of me, I will go back to my duties."

"No, go ahead." He stares at the gates. Niles walks towards the guard's barracks. Under his breath he comments to himself, "I hope you get here soon. I'm next in line to face our Queen's wrath."

Larsen walks through the doors. A path from the door to the stairs glisten with a sheet of ice. He stops next the Kai. "Do I dare ask?"

"Queen Elsa's arm slipped out and with each of Kristoff's steps, her hand showered the floor. Princess Anna tucked her arm in front of Kristoff. It looked exactly like when Sam carelessly cares a pail of water and splashes it as he walks." Kai grabs Larsen's arm as he looks around the hall. "I am concerned for our Queen. I have never seen her so angry. She did not appear this angry with Hans. So what happened up there? Did Sam really hit her?"

"I don't know if he hit her or not, but I did see her collapse in his arms as we rode up to him. He lifted her up to me and told me to protect our Queen."

Anna bounces out the door and stops in front of Larsen. With her hands on her waist, she asks, "Did you see Samuel hit my sister?"

"Hit no, collapse into his arms, yes."

"I will assume when she wakes up, she will be very angry. She will want to talk to you. Do not try to hide anything from her." Anna glances at the doorway. "No one is above the law."

"I know. According to the law and if Sam is found guilty of treason, he will be sentenced to death."

"Can you tell me anything that would prove he did not hit her as she claims?"

Larsen shakes his head.

Kai stares at the doorway. "I hope he gets here before she wakes up and somebody gets injured."

The three stare at the door and nod in agreement.

 **End of Chapter**


	67. Chapter 66 The Queen's Anger

**Title:** **Chp-66 The Queen's Anger**

 **2 years, 7 months until correction**

A light breeze escorts Sam along the road. His shadow hides under his feet. The sun radiates its warmth into the boulders and trees and surrounding vegetation. He spots a single cloud drifting towards the ocean. He scans the area. Detecting no one, he releases a surge of energy. A layer of frost covers everything touched by his energy. A residue of the blue light radiates from the frost. He sits and waits for the sun to melt the ice. Several times along the road he stops and repeats the release of energy and frost. With each release, the power of anger and the lust of the kill diminishes. Low in the western sky the sun melts the last of his frost. He scans Arendelle and detects a hint of his energy in the castle. "Now why would that be there?"

He walks through the once quite fishing village. Most people stop what they are doing and stare. Few whisper and point at him. He nods to them, but they look away and escape through the nearest door.

Kristen pushes her way past several older boys. "If you think you can take him down, now would be the best chance before he focuses on you."

Sam focuses on each of the young males.

"Too late, he sees you. You should have rushed him when he was not looking. At least you would have had a chance." Kristen walks along side of Sam. The boys go about their business paying him no mind.

He slows his pace. "I hope you are continuing your defensive training. I hate to see one of those boys take a cheap shot at you."

She giggles. "One did and I made him eat dirt."

"Should I ask who it was?"

"He doesn't bother me. We have a mutual understanding. If he or his friends come at me, I will embarrass them into the ground in front of everyone."

Sam glances down at Kristen. "Mutual understanding! Sounds like something your mother would say."

"I may have heard it a couple of times." Kristen wrinkles her nose up at him.

They approach the bridge to the castle and Kristen stops.

"You don't want to escort me across?"

With a slight shake of her head, she points at the two guards passing through the gates. "It looks like they want to escort you into the castle, so what have you done this time?"

He stops and stares at the guards carrying chains. "What have you heard?"

"The Captain of the Guards carrying our unconscious Queen raced across the bridge. When he and many guards raced back, they closed the gates. Momma and I saw pretty blue waves radiating from the hills, but then a strange thing happened. The blue wave illuminated the castle for several minutes before it dissipated. It repeated several times. You show up shortly after the last one. Momma wondered out loud if you had something to do with it."

She grabs his hand. "Did you?" She lets go and stares at her hand. She looks up at him and steps back. "My hand tingles. Are you the cause of the blue waves?"

He glances at his hand. His energy should have stabilized, but there is enough of an imbalance that even Kristen felt it. He detects a slight charge in the bridge. She said the castle held his blue energy before it dissipated. It should have passed through the stones. Unless something prevented it from passing or someone.

He watches the guards. They are not in a hurry to cross. "Tell your mother what you felt. She will understand."

Kristen runs back up the street.

Sam walks across the bridge with purpose. At the mid span, he steps to the side to let them pass, but they stop in front of him. "Nice evening, wouldn't you say, gentlemen?"

The sergeant moves his hand holding the chains out from behind him. "We have orders to arrest you."

Sam narrows his eyes as he places his hands on his waist. "Whose orders?"

The sergeant glances at his partner's hand gripping the hilt of the sword. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle demanded these orders. I'm sorry, but we have to take you in. Please do not resist."

Sam holds his hands out. The sergeant shackles the chains around his wrists. Each guard stands beside him. He looks at both guards and starts to walk across the bridge. As they reach the majestic gates, he asks, "Where are you taking me?"

"To the castle."

"Since I have walked a long way from the hills, may I at least stop by the stables, so I can clean up from the dirt and sweat? It may be more favorable for me, if my scent does not offend our Queen."

As they pass through the gates, the sergeant motions with his head. They lead him to the stables and unchain his hands. He washes up and uses his ice to clean his shirt.

After several minutes, Kai barges through the stable side room door. "Sergeant, march Sam to the castle."

Sam slips his shirt over his head and extends his arms out.

Kai slaps his hand away from him. "No you will not touch me and change my mind. Queen Elsa knows you are here."

Sam tucks his shirt into his trousers. "If she knows I'm in the stables, then she knows I'm cleaning up to be more presentable to her instead of stinking up the room."

Kai opens the door. "How you smell is the least of your worries." He shakes his head. "Sam, I have never seen her this angry. Not even her father ever displayed this much anger." He stops him at the door. "Our Queen gave an order for you to report to her immediately. If you refuse," he points to the guards, "they're to arrest you and drag you in front of her in chains."

Sam looks back at the guards and holds out his hands. "There is no need for our Queen to be angry at you."

The sergeant shackles the chains around his wrists.

Kai leads the group across the courtyard. Clenching her fist to her side, Anna stands on the top steps. Kristoff stands on the next step down from her. He does not make eye contact with him.

Sam steps alongside of Kai. "Why the drama?"

Kai huffs, "Our Queen questioned Kristoff for carrying her into the castle. Which explains why he looks uncomfortable standing there. I'm sure Princess Anna is fighting her urge to punch you."

They walk up the steps.

Sam nods to them. "Princess Anna, Master Kristoff nice afternoon, wouldn't you say?"

Neither reply, but stare past him.

"Wow, it is chilly out here."

"Wait until you get inside. It is a lot colder." Kristoff comments.

"Shh," Anna rebuffs.

"I don't see why she is upset. He saved her life. Does that not mean anything to her?"

Anna clamps onto Kristoff's arm. "If she hears you, I do not want to find you in a block of ice. Sam did this. Let him received the blunt of her anger."

Sam glances at Kai and whispers, "If Anna is concerned, Our Queen must be upset."

Kai steps to the side and points inside the door. "The staff is still trying to mop up the ice where she paced back and forth."

"Did anyone tell her what happened?" He stares at the faint blue mist rising from the ice. Earlier his ice did the same thing. He controlled the release of his ice, but if Elsa cannot control her ice, it maybe controlling her. It would explain why the castle also radiated with the blue tint.

With Anna clinging to his arm, Kristoff walks up behind him. "Since we were not there, our reasonable suggestions did not help. What is that phrase I've heard you use? Oh yeah, 'they were not in a very receptive mood to hear your words'. She definitely was not listening to anything I had to say."

"Or anyone else," Anna comments looking through the doorway. "When Elsa woke up, she acted confused. After a moment she was fine then something changed and she acted possessed."

"Possessed?"

They and the guards stare at him.

Sam glances back at them. "How many times did this possession occur?"

"Three."

"Maybe four."

"Six times," Kai answers.

"Six times?" Sam narrows his eyes at him. "Specifically, did she say or do anything six times?"

"She stared out the door as though she was watching something," Anna answers.

"Or someone," Kristoff adds.

"Has Captain Larsen talked to her?" Sam glances at the others shaking their heads and murmuring to each other as they point in his direction.

Sam steps into the doorway. Several of the staff still mop the floor. "Her steps froze that large of an area?"

Kai answers, "She was pacing back and forth."

Kristoff slaps him on the back, but it was more of a shove to move him inside. "Go ahead buddy, she is waiting for you."

Sam walks past the staff. They turn their backs to him. He takes the first steps on the stairs and his boots crunch under his feet. He detects a miniscule amount of blue mist rising from the frozen footsteps on the stairs. Crunching step by crunching step, he moves up the stairs. The sergeant and a guard follow him. Halfway up, the guard slips and falls into him.

The sergeant helps the guard to his feet and takes the keys from him. "Wait for me at the bottom before you break your neck."

The guard hurries down the stairs despite slipping twice.

They reach the top step. A distinctive sound of tapping and ice cracking create the pattern of someone pacing. A heavier blue mist rises from the center of the hall floor.

The sergeant's foot slips off the top step and Sam grabs his arm to steady him. "There is no ice along the wall. It appears to be thicker in the center."

"It also appears to be getting thicker to the council room." The sergeant presses himself against the wall.

As they approach the door, the tapping and ice cracking stops. They stare at the door.

"I suspect she knows you are here."

"She knew I was here the moment I stepped into her castle."

Sam stares at the door. Does he dare to reach out to her? He detects a different energy. I saved your life and this is my thanks. A dull thump hits the door from the inside of the room. A sheen of ice seeps out from the spaces between the door and its frame. A quarter of the door's painted exterior changes to a thick white frost color.

The sergeant steps back. His hand shacks as he holds up the key.

"Not yet, she has to see first."

The chains rattle as Sam knocks three times.

A loud and pronounced word slams against the other side of the door. "ENTER."

He reaches for the door handle. There is no blue mist, but an intense cold radiates from it. The handle resists any movement. Snap and crackle reverberate against his hand as the handle turns. The door does not open. He pushes harder and it does not move. Taking a step back, Sam throws his weight against the door. A loud snap and pop sounds as the door opens with small chunks of ice sliding across the frozen floor. He stands inside of the room, but short of the table.

At the far end of the room Queen Elsa sits in the royal chair at the head of the council table. Her fingers entwined together rest on the table. The icy blue color of her eyes glows brighter than normal. Her stare focuses on him. He detects only cold from her. The chains rattle as he raises his hands.

She emits a low growl. "Remove them before they become a permanent fixture."

The sergeant's hands shake as he tries to insert the key into the lock.

"Take your time. She is angry at me, not you."

The lock clicks. The sergeant removes the chains and scurries out of the room.

With a wave of her hand a cold blast brushes past him and the door slam shut. Ice crackles and seals the door. Everything in the room sparkles with an icy sheen. His eyes lock onto the icy blue eyes staring at him.

He squares his shoulders towards her. The heels of his boot touch as his feet move apart. His hands hang to his side and form a fist. His knees bend in case he needs to stand where he is for some time.

His Queen reveals no emotions. A thin blue mist radiates around her as thermal waves rise from a flame.

On a side table a vase cracks. One of the flowers snaps off and lands on the table with a thud. The ice on the table merges with the flower. A vase on the other side of the room cracks and shatters, leaving the frozen water in the shape of the vase.

The cold will not intimidate him. Previous commanders yelled and screamed and one even threaten to execute him. He knew what the laws and rules said and knew what the commanders could and could not do. This situation is different. Queen Elsa could order his execution with no recourse on his part. He continues to stare at her and waits for her to make the first move.

Her right brow flicks up, as he blinks. Did it move or an illusion.

Her hand moves. The chair slides back from the right side of the table. Her eyes narrow. "Admiral Sit."

His fists clench tighter. "I would prefer to stand."

"ADMIRAL." The icy glow around her flares up. A cold arctic blast covers the room with another thin layer of ice including the front of his shirt. Sam opens his eyes and his breath floats in front of him. He continues to stare into the icy blue eyes of the Queen, but does not move.

Queen Elsa stands sliding her chair back from the table. The icy blue glow subsides as she walks towards him. She stops outside of his arm's reach. Her hands cross in front and she stands in her regal pose. Her eyes glance towards the floor. Her lips part to expel a column of fog that spreads across the floor.

He watches her eyes as they roll up to glare at him. "What do you have to say for yourself?"

For a moment he searches her face for deception. When he finds none, he answers. "Please clarify your question."

She does not break from her posture, but the glow intensifies around her. "Ok, you want to play this game, so let us play. I charge you with treason against your Queen. Now, what do you have to say for yourself?"

His head turns towards her. "What specifically have I done that you think is treasonous?"

The corners of her lips move ever so slightly. "You usurped my authority in front of the guards earlier Today. The punishment is the removal of your head from your shoulders, not to mention you lied to me."

His head moves from side to side once. "I still do not understand. I did exactly what we agreed upon for the circumstance that occurred this morning. How did I usurp your authority?"

The muscles at the back of her lower jaw tenses. Her eyes narrow and the icy mist shimmers around her. The blue glow around her hands intensifies as they draw energy from the room.

He will not fight her nor will he allow her to freeze him to death. Her lips part and he interrupts, "Is this how you treat the accused? Freeze them. Are you losing control of your anger or am I getting the special treatment for who I am?"

She takes a step towards him with her hands on her waist as her brow drops and the cold icy fire in her eyes flare up. "How dare you question me? I am the absolute ruler here. My words are law and you accuse me of torture. You diminished my authority in front of my guards. How dare you claim I am not in control of my powers?"

With a flick of her hand the ice falls off the door and it swings open, "GUARDS."

Two guards rush into the room. One slips and falls. The other slides into Sam. He steadies the guard, but does not take eyes off of her. She has mastered her expressions and one day she master the energy surrounding her, but not today. He exhales a stream of cold fog towards her. It dissipates and falls onto the table. "You have not answered my question."

"And you will not get an answer until you explain yourself before I pass judgment." She glares at him as she points her gloved finger at him. "Take him to a cell, so he can formulate an answer. Give him a good meal." She pivots on her heels and walks towards the other end of the table. "Then I will do what my father failed to do for touching my mother in the royal coach that day."

Holding the chains the guard steps in front of him. Sam watches Elsa. Since entering the room, her energy flairs. Is his presence overwhelming her control? Kristen gave him a clue and the ice in the foyer evaporated into a blue mist. Has the time arrived to step out of their lives? He speaks to the guards. "I will give you no trouble." They turn and Sam leads the guard out the room.

Peeking around a corner, Anna steps into the hall and starts to speak.

Sam motions to her with his finger across his lips. They walk down the stairs. Captain Larsen stops the procession at the bottom of the stairs. He questions his guards before running up the stairs.

Larsen stops at the door long enough to compose himself. He knocks on the door frame once.

Elsa peeks over her shoulder. "Come in Captain, I have instructions for you."

He carefully walks around the table trying not to fall. He bows to her. "Majesty, if I may ask a question for clarity, before you give me your instruction?"

She turns away and touches the corners of both her eyes, before facing him. "Please rise and ask your question."

Larsen slowly rises and takes a deep breath. "Majesty, what do you charge Admiral Ryan?"

Elsa purses her lips together. "Treason."

"Against you?"

"Yes, against me. He struck me."

"In here," he asks as his brows push together.

"No," she points her finger at the corner of the room, "Up in the hills just as you and your guards rode up. I turned around and he touched my face. The next thing I remember is Kristoff carrying me into the front room." Blue and white sparks flash from her hand. She clinches her hands into a fist.

Larsen steps back. "Majesty, I wish to give testimony of what I saw when we rode up to you."

Elsa places her hands under her arms. "Proceed."

"When we approached, I saw you reach your arms around his neck. I saw his hand touch your face and you collapsed in his arms. He lifted you to me and told me to take you back to the castle. He said I was to protect our Queen."

"So you did witness him strike me?"

"Majesty, I will testify to what I saw, if that is what you wish. Please allow me to express his actions immediately after we started down the path."

Elsa returns to her royal pose with her hands crossed in front. "Proceed."

"I told him to ride back with one of the guards. There was a rustle in the forest area. I saw movement. He told me he would make sure they never attacked you again. I saw two attackers with swords drawn and others in the mist moving towards us. He drew a shiny white bow out of his hands. Two white arrows struck two of the attackers. He charged towards the one coming out of the mist. I heard him call out, 'Protect Our Queen, Protect Our Queen'."

The tensing in her face releases. Elsa glances up. Moisture builds in the corner of her eyes.

"Majesty, when we stared down the path, I looked back. He had changed."

"How? Give me details." She focuses on him and dabs the corner of her eyes.

"I would swear his exposed flesh glistened with different shades of green colors. He charged them and I heard a wolf howl. It must have been on the other side of the attackers."

"A wolf howl, did you see the wolf?"

"No, I turned away and we rode down the hill. You were still passed out when I handed you down to Master Kristoff. I gathered all available guards and we raced back to the hills. By the time we arrived, Admiral Ryan was resting against a boulder and sniffing the air. He said the dirt mound near the forest contained the bodies of the attackers."

Larsen looks at the floor. "Before I could ask, Sam said he covered in a layer of ice, so the animals would not get to them." He glances at her. "He looked at me and for a moment, a band of green colors moved across his face. Majesty, he asked if you were safe. I nodded and it seemed like he wanted to smile. He started walking and said he needed time to dissipate his energy."

Anna eases past Larsen and slips her arm around Elsa's shoulder. "Are you ok?"

She turns her face away and wipes the corners of her eyes. "Anna, he cares for me and I charged him with treason because he saved me."

Anna pulls a kerchief from her sleeve and dabs the corner of Elsa's eye. "You did not know."

"I should have known. These past several years his actions have been nothing, but for the safety and the care of you and me. He has done nothing to warrant what I did to him." She shakes her head. "This started so wonderfully. I enjoyed his and your company. Even when we fought against the attackers, I felt a sense of power, then it changed." A layer of moisture rolls across her eyes. They reach the corners and ride over the edge.

Anna dabs her handkerchief across her face.

"A few minutes ago, I was angry at him. I wanted revenge. Now look at me. Blubbering like a baby." She rests her head on Anna's shoulder. "As much noise as I made, everyone in the castle knows how upset I was at him. No doubt word has gotten out that he is in a cell for treason." She wraps her arms around Anna's waist and whispers, "I have really messed this up."

Anna holds onto her big sister and whispers into her ear. "I admit you were acting strange. Perhaps his emotions influenced your behavior. If you talk to him, he will understand."

"Do you think he will . . . forgive me?"

Anna lifts Elsa's chin. "You are the Queen. You can order him to forgive you, but if you ask, he will."

Elsa smiles and feels the stinging in the corner of her eyes. She looks down at her dress. "A proper Queen would not see a prisoner in this." A sweep of her hand showers her riding clothes with blue and white sparkles. Her clothes transforms into the sparkling blue formal dress.

Elsa sits in the chair and asks, "Please redo my hair into the braid."

Anna giggles and skips to stand behind Elsa as she braids her hair. "I have this." She turns to the Captain. "Please clear the hallway and remove your men from the cell. Queen Elsa will be expecting you to let her in to see the Admiral."

Captain Larsen bows. "It will be done." He marches out the room. The door closes.

Larsen clears the hall and marches down the stairs. As he steps onto the bottom floor he nods to Gerda. With her smile she nods and returns to the kitchen. He dismisses the two guards standing to either side of Admiral Ryan's cell door. He tells one guard to stand by the main prison door and let Queen Elsa and Gerda pass through.

A short time later, with her hair in a single braid draped over her left shoulder, Queen Elsa walks into the cell area. She stops by the cell door where Captain Larsen stands. Peeking through the cell door window, she asks, "How is he doing in there?"

Larsen nods his head towards the door. "He has not said a word or made any sound once the door closed."

Gerda carries a bowl of soup and bread on a tray into the cell area. "Majesty, it is time for the prisoner to eat. You may wait until he finishes or come back later."

Elsa stands in front of the cell window. Kneeling on the cell floor, Sam faces the outer wall as the last of the sunlight fades from the window.

"Sam, will you cause trouble if I go in there?"

His head moves from side to side.

"Do you promise not to cause trouble?"

His head nods.

"Captain, please open the door. I take him at his word and honor that he will not cause trouble."

Gerda steps next to Elsa with the food tray as Larsen opens the door

She holds up her hand. "I will take it to him."

Gerda passes the food tray to her and whispers, "Get a little food in him. It will calm him down." With a smile she taps Larsen's arm and walks out of the cell area.

Elsa steps into the cell and sets the tray on the stone seat next to the door. She glances back at the Captain. "Please close the door and the door's window, but stand by just in case."

Larsen bows his head and closes the door.

With a click of the door latch the stone floor in front of Sam reflects a blue color. She searches the window for the source of the blue light, but only darkness fills the window. She stares at him. "Are you still angry?"

"How can you tell," whispers Sam.

"The color of your eyes is reflecting off the floor." She searches for any miniscule movement that could reveal his intentions. She does not move away from the door, but tightens and releases her hand in case he moves towards her.

After several long minutes, the glow on the floor changes to a light blue, then vanishes. Sam moves around the floor anchor that secures his wrist to less than a half meter from the floor. He lifts his head to reveal an abrasion over his right eye.

"I cannot stay upset at you. I would have done the same thing if I was in your position." He rattles the chains. "I made a promise I will keep. Does this cell look familiar?"

Not taking her eyes off of him, she replies, "This is where Hans locked me up."

He nods, "I like the last cell. I had some fond memories in there." He glances at the tray. "I requested no food. Why are you here?"

"After Captain Larsen gave his testimony of what he saw, I wish to hear your side before I pass judgment." She points to the food tray. "Gerda said it is time for you to eat so I thought I would bring it in, but if you do not want it, I will take it out." She reaches down to pick up the tray.

"Wait, since you did bring it in, there is no reason to waste it. Unless you have a key to unlock one of my hands, have Larsen or one of the guards set it on the floor, so I can reach it."

She snickers. "While that may be interesting to see, I do not have a key. If you promise not to attack, I will feed it to you."

"On my honor as the Admiral of my ship, I will not attack you."

Elsa picks up the tray and sets it next to him. She kneels in front of him and positions herself where their knees almost touch. Tearing off a piece of bread and dunking it in the soup, she holds it close to his lips. "Open up."

Sam opens his mouth, but she eats the bread.

She dips another piece of bread in the soup and touches the tip of his nose with it. "I said open up."

He moves his head to take the piece of bread, but she eats it. His left brow rises.

Her right brow rises as she dips a larger piece. She wiggles the piece in front of his face. "When you open up, you can have the bread."

He glances at the door.

"You think they cannot get in here in time to stop you."

"By the time they get here, one of them could accidentally injure you in such close quarters." He watches her hands as she eats the bread. "Why don't you tell me why you are upset?"

Elsa stares into his eyes, then sets the bread and soup on the tray. "I am not upset. But you are charged with treason for striking me as the guards approached. What do you have to say for yourself?"

The chains rattle as he leans closer and placing the tip of his nose within a few centimeters of her nose.

She does not move and continues to stare into his eyes.

He returns the favor, but sees a hazel color change to a light blue in her eyes.

She smiles. Her lips part. A cool mist with a hint of mint rises into his nose.

His nostrils flare to take as much of her mist as possible. A new fragrant assaults his sinuses. Coconut, his resolve crumbles from her assault. The light blue in her eyes returns to the hazel color.

The corner of her eyes tighten. She grins.

 _You are losing. Change the subject_. _CHANGE THE SUBJECT_ , his mind screams at him.

"Which part of your question do you want answered first, the lie, or the treasonous act?"

Her nose touches against his nose. "You admit to treason and lying to me?"

He leans back sitting on his feet. "I admit nothing, except to fulfill my promise and keep you safe from a dangerous situation."

"Ah-ha, you admit treason."

"What treason? I prevented you from dying. Once they saw you, the attackers focused their strikes at you. If my energy had held out a little longer. The cavalry would have arrived in time and you could have ridden back to the castle." He turns his head left then right then shakes his head. He leans towards her. "Is that what has made you upset? I didn't take the time to explain my reason for getting you out of the area?"

She leans back. "Do you think I do not have the capacity to determine the level of danger to myself?"

"You have the capacity to make very knowledgeable decisions, if you have the knowledge."

"You say I did not at that moment?"

"Let's review, Two Weselton goons almost killed you with their arrows."

"I stopped the arrow."

"By how much?" He leans closer as she leans back and places her hand on the floor behind her. "If you had hesitated a fraction of a second, we would not be having this conversation. Instead King Hans would be consoling Queen Anna on the anniversary of your death. Once you had control of the two goons, you should have killed them. Instead you return them to Weselton and they poison me."

Elsa slides a meter from him. She looks away.

He sits back on his feet. "You could have used the Ice chandelier to sweep the others out of your ice castle, but you didn't and they captured you." The chains rattle. His chin rest against his chest as he whispers, "You made poor choices due to your inexperience. Over time, I have no doubt your decisions will be far superior, but until that time comes, I need the flexibility to keep you safe."

He glances at her then stares at the floor. "I was not strong enough to protect her. I have to be strong enough to protect you. My purpose for living ceases if I lose you." They sit in silence.

Her soft hands turn his face towards her. "You need to trust my abilities and help me stretch them further. In case we find ourselves in a similar situation, our combined resources will defeat the attackers and not polarize against each other."

"If you are willing to learn, would we fight together, as one?"

Her hands slide down his arm as a coy smile crosses her lips. "We could create a partnership, if we are willing to learn from the other, but do not cross certain boundaries."

His hand tries to cover her hand, but the chains rattle and restrict his movement. "Majesty, I would never intentionally do anything to usurp your authority in private or public. If you truly believe I have done that, I request you do not hold the Captain responsible for his actions. He followed my command to bring you back here. I knew Larsen as a young boy. He knows I would never usurp the royal family's authority. He has seen me interject only for the safety of your parents, as I have done for you. If you must punish someone, I will take their punishment in their place."

Elsa lifts his chin and searches his eyes. "I know you were protecting me. Something happened between us." She stands and walks towards the door. "I can feel it happening now."

"Our energies are moving out of alignment." Sam looks up at her. "What are you feeling?" A sheen of ice forms around her hands. He already knows she is feeling the same as she did earlier, when he walked along the path and released his energy, but she needs to confront it.

Elsa sits on the stone bench facing the door and rubs her hands together. As fast as she rubs the ice off, it forms back. She slips her hands into her gloves and tucks them under her arms.

"Elsa?"

Her head snaps around. With her brows pushed together and her lips pulled tight, her body slowly rocks back and forth.

"Majesty, during the freeze you exhibited and felt the same as you are now. Is this not correct?"

She turns away from him and whispers, "In my ice castle."

"In both incidences, you were immediately distracted. First by your realization that you have hurt Anna. Second, when Hans told you 'Don't be the monster they fear you are'. Elsa you need a distraction and I'm not it. The longer you stay here; the worst it will get. Go to your room and take a bath with the coldest water you can stand. You will know when it has passed. Stay in the cold water thirty minutes more." He stares at the chains around his wrist. The tension against them releases.

Her soft voice pierces the white noise in his ears. "What about you?"

He glances at her. "I will make a decision. I will be alright. This will pass and you will continue with your life." He leans his body until his face is close to the floor. "I would stand and bow, but this is the best I can do. Please forgive me."

The door opens. Her shoes scuff across the stone floor. The door closes.

The service door opens and Brigit enters carrying a small basket on her arm.

"You made it. I was not sure if you received my message."

"You did say it involved Samuel." She sets the basket on the table. "I have the ingredients already mixed up. I need some boiling water to seep into the leaves."

Gerda looks into the basket. "The water is over the fire. How much do you need?"

Brigit touches Gerda's hand and waits until she looks at her. "If what you say is the truth about Sam, I have enough to make seven large cups of tea."

"Seven?" Gerda glances at the leaves again. "It looks like enough to make a whole kettle of tea."

She winks at her. "Samuel is a big boy. He needs the strong stuff."

Gerda walks around the table towards the short hallway. "Follow me. I will get you past the guards to see him."

Several minutes later, she stands in front of the cell area door. Gerda argues with the guard, but he does not look like he will let her through. "Gerda, it is okay. He is doing what he was told. Perhaps you should have Captain Larsen come here and explain to him. I will wait here for you."

Gerda stares at her for a moment. She slowly turns and at the last second, winks. "I will be back as soon as I can."

She watches Gerda walk around the corner, then she turns to the guard. "I don't have time for this."

Brigit's hand darts towards the guard's throat. A spark leaps from her hand. The guard's body stiffens. She pushes him back into the cell area and he crumples to the floor. She steps past him. "I will give you any tea Admiral Ryan does not drink. It will help your headache when you wake up."

She walks past the open door to the first cell and stops at the second cell door. A cold fog escapes from under the door. The key clicks the lock, but the door does not open. She steps back against the far wall and leaps. Both of her feet land against the door. It opens enough for her to slip into the cell. A gust of cold air slams the door shut.

Rubbing her hands together they begin to glow. Brigit pushes through the cold fog and bumps the chains anchored to the floor. The other end of the chains lead to a block of ice in the middle of the floor. A sharp snap against the chains and they break from the floor. She melts the ice from around his wrist and removes the chains. Her hands press against the ice as steam boils off of it. The ice breaks from the floor and falls off of him.

"Admiral, what are you doing?"

He tries to rise from his knees.

"Admiral," She pushes him into a sitting position. "You have gone too far into the snow. I don't know if I can bring you back." With a quick glance at the door, she unbuttons her shirt and sits against the wall. Pulling him to her, she rests the back of his neck against her breasts. "If I can't bring you back. I will go with you as I have promised."

Pressing her legs against his sides and her arms wrapped around his head, she generates as much heat as possible. Within a few seconds, steam rises to the top of the cell as water drips onto the floor.

He starts to move.

"Admiral relax. Let me help you as I did in our past. I can control the release of your energy." Their bodies radiate a yellow light that shines out of the cell window. He stops fighting and his arms fall to his side. Brigit touches four specific points on each side of his face and neck. "Show me what you see and what you are fighting."

She presses her forehead into the back of his head. His mind relaxes. "Oh, Admiral, they are gone. You cannot bring them back. If you do not let them go, you cannot save them in this timeline. There are two of you here. Don't let our Queen die alone.

Her head rotates to rests her cheek on his head. "You are doing a great job. The bridge between your world and my world is progressing, but you hesitate." Her fingers gradually move in a circular motion. "The Admiral, I knew, would have progressed further with our Queen. I need to push you over this obstacle."

She presses her other cheek against his head. Her fingers press deeper. "What is this? It seems you did not remove all the poison. You knew something like this could happen. That is why you gave me the order. I hoped I would not have to, but I am prepared to execute your final order."

She rotates her head again and presses her cheek against the side of his head. "I will follow your order after you have exhausted all your efforts to entice her to you."

She whispers into his ear. "Let me give you a little advice. I know something about love. Tell her your story. Tell her the truth. You treat her better and make sure to see it through. Don't be everything Elsa wants, but be everything she needs. When she says she loves you, tell her you love her too. Give her a reason to love you. If she tells you a secret, you tell her a secret. She will tell you her dreams and hopes. You tell her the same thing. When she tells you she loves you, don't run away. When you get tired, this will slip away. Start a fire that cannot be put out. Don't run away before you tell her you love her. When she says she needs you, tell her you need her too. Speak to her clearly. Speak what your heart wants you to say. Tell her she is lovely. Always tell her the truth. When she says she loves you, tell her you love her too."

A pounding comes from the door. "Brigit are you okay in there," asks Gerda.

Brigit slips out from behind him and lays his head against the stone seat. The lantern's light fills the cell as the yellow glow fades. "I'm okay. I had to persuade Samuel to listen to me." She buttons up her shirt and adjust her clothes. She walks to the door and sweeps her hand along the seam of the door frame. "Push harder."

The door burst open and a guard falls to his knees next to her.

"Aw, that is sweet of you, but my heart belongs to another." Brigit smiles at him.

The guard struggles to his feet. His face blossoms into a deep red. "My apologies, ma'am, but I'm here to protect you if he moves."

"Ma'am? I'm not that old?"

"Never mind the pup," Gerda says. She carries a tray with a hot kettle and two cups between them. "So will you hold him and I pour the tea down his throat?"

Brigit kneels next to Sam. "Let see if he will drink it himself."

Gerda pours the tea into a cup and hands it to her.

Brigit slides her arm around his neck and cups his chin. Sticking her thumb between his lips, she holds his mouth open and pours the tea in. Sam coughs. She pours more in and whispers, "drink it. It will make you feel better."

She hands the cup back and Gerda refills it. "Why are you smiling?"

A slit over his eyes open. "He called you Ma'am." He snickers.

"You think that is funny, you old goat?" Brigit pours the whole cup of tea into his mouth.

Sam gurgles as some of the tea runs down his chin. He sits up. "If you are trying to drown me, you are failing miserably."

Brigit holds a third cup of tea.

He takes the cup from her. "I can do it myself." After the fourth cup he comments. "This is your best tea. What did I do to deserve this?"

"Do you want more?"

"Yes, please."

Brigit hands him another cup full of tea. Sam guzzles it down. With a silly grin on his face, he holds the cup out for more. She looks in the kettle and pours him a half cup full. His lower lip protrudes as he stares at his cup.

"The rest is for the guard who let me in here."

"You mean the one sleeping on the hall floor," Gerda asks.

Brigit takes the cup from Sam and sets it on the tray. Grabbing his ears, she forces him to look at her. "You are responding too quickly to the tea. I may have given you too much." She leans closer searching his eyes. "Admiral, you need to tell her before it is too late. If you jump through the gate, there may not be any medicine to cure your headaches. Admiral, this is your best chance to save them in this timeline. You may not get another."

He grabs her hands.

A spark leaps from her hands to his face. His eyelids gradually droop then close. His arms fall to his side. Brigit lays his head against the stone shelf.

"I will always be here for you." She lightly brushes her lips across his lips, then glances up at Gerda. "What? I've always wanted to kiss him. Preferably while he is awake, but this way, if he gets out of hand, I can remind him of this moment since he did not try to stop me."

Gerda picks up the tray and follows her out the door. "You are such a she devil."

"Yes. If our Queen ever figures it out, she will have him wrapped around her little finger."

In a blue floor-length evening dress, Elsa asks, "Whose little finger."

Brigit bows to her. "Majesty, I gave Admiral Ryan some tea that will help him to sleep. He may not remember what transpired in there, so he will be attentive of whoever talks to him.

Flicking her loose hair over her shoulder, Elsa peaks through the cell door. "Did he say anything to you?"

"He laughed when he repeated what the guard called me."

Elsa glances back at her.

"The guard called me ma'am." She turns her head towards the door. "Majesty, if you have no need for me, I promised the guard on the floor a cup of tea, before Captain Larsen sees him."

Elsa leans against the door frame. "Is he safe to unchain him?"

Gerda motions for Brigit to leave. "Sam is asleep. Majesty, despite what you may think about him, he protected you and your sister. He may not know why he did what he did afterwards. All I ask is for you to give him a chance to tell you what happen up there."

Elsa rests her head against the door. "If he will explain, I will listen. Did Sam tell you anything?"

"No Majesty, he seemed to be fighting a demon in his head. May be he could not answer without losing control." She slips her arm around Elsa's arm. "It has been a long day for the both of you. A good night sleep will bring a better day."

They walk down the hall with Elsa holding her arm. "You are always right. Tomorrow is a different day."

 **End of Chapter**


	68. Chapter 67 The Accuse Defense

**Title:** **Chp-68 Accused Defense**

 **2 Year, 7 Month until correction.**

From the hills the sun leaps into the sky and warms the valley. A few clouds gather in the north. The long shadows crawl back under the boulders to protect them from the heat of the day. The valley of rocks come to life.

Anna begs, "Grand Pabbie, there has to be something we can do for him. It has been a week since Queen Elsa visited him in his cell. Members of the council are pushing to have him sentenced. He refuses to answer the charges against him. Today will be just a formality of recording the proceedings. If he is found guilty, she will have no choice but to execute him. He will listen to you."

"Princess Anna, while I do not understand all that he does. His magic is considerably different to the magic in this land. He draws his power from everything. I would not know what spell or if any magic would work on him. True, he has spent many seasons here, but he listens. Very rarely did he ever answer my questions without a question." Pabbie rolls a crystal between his stony fingers and stares at it. "I will tell you this. He is not afraid, but his heart is sad. There is another like him whom he thinks about. I believe he has a plan. If he does not speak, he is protecting someone."

"Grand Pabbie, do you have any idea who that person is? He acts the same way around everyone." Kristoff crosses his arms and stares at the distance. "He helped me to clear my head just before our wedding. I can't believe there is nothing we can do for him."

"Wait." Anna narrows her eyes and forces Kristoff to face her. "What do you mean 'he helped you to clear your head'?"

Kristoff clenches his fists before softly sliding his hands along Anna's arms. "I was under a lot of pressure. I wasn't sure if I could be the man you wanted me to be. You being a Princess and well—"

"You do not have a title to marry a Princess." Anna interrupts.

"Well . . . yes, I have heard Princess's marry into other kingdoms, and well if you haven't notice I don't exactly have a kingdom to share with you."

"Aw, you do have a kingdom." She steps closer and places her hand over his heart. "Right here."

"There must be one Sam conducts himself differently, even if it's hardly noticeable. What about your sister. He seems to shy away from her when I've mentioned her name," Pabbie says.

"Other than protecting her, he has shown no interest." Anna slightly shakes her head. "I'm not sure why, since he is not a part of the castle guards. It was a good thing he was with us when we were attacked."

Kristoff looks at Anna. "Are you sure? They were holding hands when the attack occurred."

"For how long, a few seconds before the attack? Sam literally threw me up to you when she refused to leave. Do you think that was unusual?" Anna asks.

Pabbie waddles over and grabs her hand. She kneels. "Anna, there is something strange to you." He touches her face. "Yes, Sam has touched you."

Anna glances at Kristoff before she stares at Pabbie. "Who has touched me?"

Pabbie pulls a sparkling black mass of energy from the side of her head. It disperses in the air. "Now you should remember."

She glances at Kristoff then back to Pabbie. "Remember what?"

"Did something unusual happen between Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan recently?"

Her head gradually moves from side to side. "I do not remember anything."

"Go further back, maybe something you would not have considered possible until you heard or saw it happen." Pabbie taps the top of her hand.

Confusion covers Anna until she watches two trolls hug and sit on a ledge. She stares then asks, "What was that you pulled out of my head?"

"He calls them a mental block. Do you remember something?"

She pulls her hand from him and stands. She draws her clenched hands to her face. "Oh no, he did not and I thought it was just a dream."

Kristoff asks, "What, what did he do?"

"On Christmas morning, I went into Elsa's room to get her up for breakfast. I did not see her and thought she had already gone downstairs. I was leaving the room, when I noticed white hair on the lounger, so I yanked it back and slapped his forehead. Elsa pulled the blanket off her face. I was sure I had caught her doing something in Sam's lap. I pulled the blanket off of them." She frowns. "They had their clothes on and claimed they had fallen asleep together on the lounger. I remember Elsa passing out in my arms. He placed an ice collar around her neck and said she had several vertebrates out of alignment." She lowers her head. "He touched my shoulder. The next thing I know I am waking up on the lounger. He is such a sneak." She punches the air. "I will get him for this."

"I told you Sam has strange magic." Pabbie turns to Kristoff. "You have your answer. He is protecting her. I can do nothing more, until he resolves his heart with her."

Kristoff holds Anna's hand. "Come on. We need to get back before she has to pass judgment."

She walks with Kristoff and looks back at Pabbie waving one of his lighted blue crystals at her. "Elsa must know what he is doing. She can stop it."

"Maybe she can't. Maybe the law is very specific and she can't surpass it."

"Then what is the point of being a Queen if you cannot change the laws." Anna wraps her arm around his arm.

"If changing the law was so easy," Kristoff lifts Anna onto Sven back, "what do you think would have happened if Prince Hans had taken over?" He climbs onto Sven behind her. "Take us back to the castle Sven." With a couple of grunts and a snort Sven trots back to Arendelle.

Midmorning Brigit carries her basket of bread she purchases every Tuesday. Walking back to her home, she encounters several ladies talking in front of a shop. They nod to her as she passes, but do not speak to her. Brigit nods back and after moving several feet up the street, she hears them talking, "The Queen will surely hang him."

Another lady speaks, "I knew he was trouble when I first arrived here. The way he walks around here as though he rules this kingdom."

Brigit starts to peek over her shoulder at the ladies when she bumps into the shopkeeper and almost spills the contents in her basket. "My apologies Mr. Vance, I was a little distracted by the noise back there."

"That's ok. Don't listen to them. If they are talking about it, it's nothing, but gossip."

"You're probably right." She checks the contents in her basket. "I better get home before Kristen arrives before I do." She starts up the street.

Mr. Vance points. "Speaking of your daughter, there she is."

"Momma," Kristen calls as she runs across the street. She bumps Brigit and nearly tilts the basket over. "Momma, Sam has been locked up in the castle."

Checking the contents in the basket again, she asks, "How do you know this?"

"I saw two guards put chains on Sam's hands and walked him across the bridge last Sunday. No one has seen him since." She pulls on her mother's arm. "Come on, we have to talk to Queen Elsa to let him out."

"Hold on. She isn't going to talk to us without an appointment and if we are granted one it could be a couple of weeks from now."

"But momma we have to help him. He's my friend," Kristen pleads.

"Yes, he is my friend too."

"You may wish to get a different friend. After today, no one will be able to see him," one of the gossiping lady interjects with a snooty smile.

Brigit narrows her eyes. "Why after today?"

"His trial is going on right now. After what he did to her, I would not be surprised if she hangs him this evening," the second gossiping lady states.

"What did Sam do, momma?" Kristen asks.

"He hit our Queen, is what he did. It's about time he got what he deserves." the first lady wrinkles her nose at Kristen.

Brigit hands the basket to Kristen. Mr. Vance steps in front of the two ladies, "Take your gossip up the street and leave Kristen alone." Waving his hand towards the third lady observing the interaction, "You too Mrs. Jensen, Move along." All three ladies turn their noses up as they walk back up the street.

"You didn't have to intervene. I would have taken care of it," Brigit grumbles.

With a slight snicker Mr. Vance replies, "And I'm sure you would have."

Brigit with her basket of bread walks up the street towards their up-stair apartment. She watches her little girl dance around her. Even in her dress Kristen jumps over the horse post with ease, but her movements are not random. Each step, each twirl, each stop, and each sprint to the next street or alley, Kristen is practicing the defense and attack movements. Her mother taught her the movements, so Brigit taught the same to her daughter.

Kristen sprints past her. With the lightest touch of her hand she brushes her mother's arm. A customer steps out of the shop. Without breaking stride she darts out into the street and around Sonja. Kristen stops at the street corner and observes all directions.

 _Well done_ , Brigit compliments her daughter.

Sonja comments, "I wish I had a cupful of Kristen's energy. I would have finished shopping by now."

"Me too. As long as she does not run anyone over, I'll let her run." Brigit slows her pace. While Sonja can be over talkative at times, her information has proven to be more accurate than the gossiping hens. She stops and glances at Kristen waving at her. She returns the wave with a nod to acknowledge the path is clear.

Kristen continues her dance on the street corner as she glances at everyone and everything.

Sonja touches her arm and looks up and down the street. She whispers, "I know Kristen and Erik go fishing with Samuel, but have you heard why he is locked up in the castle?"

 _Good, she knows something._ "I heard he would be locked up for a few days. I'm sure it was an altercation with a councilmen."

"How about with our Queen?"

"Why would she lock him up for a minor altercation?"

Sonja stares at her for a noticeable moment before glancing up and down the street. "Would striking our Queen be minor enough? Master Kristoff and Princess Anna raced back to the castle because they could not control him. The guards arrive just in time to save her from a beating and he ran into the forest. I heard she had to be carried into the castle."

"Do you believe that?"

"No, I do not, but certain councilmen's wives are making those statements to everyone." She looks towards the castle. "There is a lot of grumbling going on."

Now she touches Sonja arm. "Why do you think he would hit her?"

Sonja steps back and inhales a sharp breath. Her brows push together and her eyes narrow like she was offended. "If he did it, it had to have been an accident. Samuel loves her. He is always talking about her like he wishes he could do more to help her. It will be extremely sad if he did it on purpose."

"Don't let them convince you otherwise." Kristen motions to her and runs around the corner. "I need to go. Kristen wants me to meet her friend. Tomorrow is another day." She casually walks down the street, before reaching the corner she peeks over her shoulder. Sonja walks up the street. Brigit quickens her pace around the corner.

Kristen scratches behind Sven's ear. Brigit walks up to Anna and Kristoff. "Princess Anna, I hope Kristen is not holding you up from the castle. I hear Samuel is in a prison cell. Did he have an altercation with a councilman?"

"I bet he wished that altercation was with the councilmen." Kristoff snickers.

Anna pokes him in his side. "That is not funny. Queen Elsa has not passed judgement."

"What judgement? What did he do?" Brigit asks.

"Well, I really should not say anything," Anna answers.

"Does it have to do with the Captain carrying her to the castle? Did Sam hit Queen Elsa?"

"Why would you say that?" Kristoff stares at her.

"Lots of people come and go from the castle. Staff and Guards talk. People know what they saw or heard from someone visiting at the castle. Rumors start. If there is not an official announcement and the rumors are allowed to go unchecked, the people could be persuaded to follow the wrong conclusion."

Anna focuses on Brigit. "Why?"

Brigit steps closer. She looks around for anyone who may be too close and listening. As she lightly touches Anna's hand, she glances at Kristen who nods once. "Rumor says Sam hit our Queen as the guards approached and he ran away. Since he walked to the castle either he does not believe he did anything wrong or is very stupid. Samuel does not do anything without purpose." She holds her hands together after retrieving the information. Now, she needs to encourage them to act.

"You're right about that." Kristoff scratches behind Sven's other ear. With partially closed eyes and a reindeer smile, Sven enjoys the good scratch on both sides of his head at the same time.

"So he is doing it with a purpose." Anna stares at the castle. "What purpose does he have for not answering the charges? Does he not know these are serious charges?"

"What has he been charged with?"

Kristoff glances at Anna, then the castle. "Perhaps Grand Pabbie is correct. Whatever his reason he is protecting her."

Kristen stands next to Kristoff and touches his hand with her finger. "Who is he protecting?"

"Our Queen." He steps back to check Sven's harness.

"What are the charges?"

"Treason," Anna answers still focused on the castle.

"Treason?" She grabs Anna's arm. "Queen Elsa was there. She must know the truth. He would never hit her. Why did she charge him?"

Anna pulls her arm away and stares at her. "When Queen Elsa woke up, she was not acting herself and charged him."

Kristen comments, "If our Queen can charge him, she can un-charge him."

"Sam will not let her. He will confess in the court and she will have to find him guilty. What is the sentence for guilty?" Brigit asks.

"Death," Kristoff blurts out.

Kristen snaps her head around to Kristoff. "Death?" Her hair flows into her face. She darts past them and grabs her mother's arm. "Momma, we can't let him die. You have to do something."

Brigit wraps her arm around Kristen and pulls her head to her shoulder. "Did you hear what they said? Our Queen was acting differently. If she withdraws the charges, he will claim he tried to control her. There will be witnesses who will testify to our Queen's erratic behavior. She will have no choice and execute him."

"Momma we can't."

"If given the chance, I may be able to persuade Sam to speak the truth." She looks to Anna. "But only the Princess can get me in there. Will you?"

Anna stares back at her. "Are you sure you can make him speak?"

"Princess, it is not just our Queen, who will lose." She sweeps her hand towards Arendelle. "The children love him. He understands them. Over the years, he has helped most of the older folks." She shrugs her shoulders. "This is not the first time he has lost his way. He needs to be refocused. Unless you or Kristoff is willing to do something extraordinary, I am his only choice. If I fail he dies."

"If Brigit can get him to speak, she deserves a chance. We already know what will happen, if she can't." Kristoff walks towards the castle and Sven follows him.

With a gradual nod Anna strides her steps to catch up to Kristoff. "They should be breaking for lunch. I will get you in, but you better be right for my sister's sake."

Kai closes the door and bumps into Anna. "What are you doing here?" He glances at the note in her hand.

"I need you to get this message to Queen Elsa." She smiles.

He takes the note. "The two councilmen wanted to take an early break. The afternoon session has already started. It does not look good for him. Are you sure you wish to get involved?"

"Now it is important you take it to her before it is too late, for him and for her." Anna reaches around him and opens the door as she pushes him through it.

With stealth he passes through the two side rooms that lead to the Royal dais and walks behind his Queen's throne. He slides his hand next to the parchment in front of Elsa. Councilman Jensen continues to read from the law book.

Elsa's hand covers the note and slides it into her lap. She holds the note close to her face and taps it with her finger.

Kai bows his head next to the note.

With a slight smile she whispers, "Is she here now?"

Kai nods.

For several long minutes, Jensen continues to read the law and when he turns the page, Queen Elsa interrupts, "Mr. Jensen, Would you be kind as to hold that thought. A situation has occurred that needs my immediate attention. Let us pick up where you are in thirty minutes."

Elsa stands.

Jensen and Thorsen look at each other. They bow as Kai leads Elsa out the side door.

A few minutes later Kai opens the door to the library. Anna and Kristoff sit on the lounger with a chess board between them. As they stand Brigit curtsies. Elsa approaches them.

Anna steps past Kristoff, "Well, how is it going in there?"

"We are reading the letters of intent of the law and the law as it is written." She shakes her head as she looks down. "I am not seeing anything that addresses this specific case. If he does not answer, the court can answer for him."

"Maybe Brigit can help." Anna points to a shorter, older woman. "Elsa, this is Brigit."

"Brigit," Elsa's right brow slightly rises. "Do you know a young girl with light brown hair named Kristen?"

Hesitant to answer Brigit looks to Anna, then to their Queen. "I have a daughter named Kristen. Do you know her?"

Elsa starts to turn away, but snaps her fingers at Brigit. "Kristen runs around with Erik and Andreas. Sam said she caught more fish than both of the boys before the first snow last year. Is your Kristen the fishing Kristen?"

"She did catch more fish than her brother Erik and his friend Andreas last fall. Sam helped me to clean them. We had fish for several days in a row." She slightly turns her head towards the Queen, "How do you know this?"

"We have talked." She touches Brigit's arm. "He talks about your children every time." She leans close to her. "I think he is sweet on you."

Brigit gives a half smile and glances at Anna. "That's not what I hear."

"Me neither," Anna interjects.

Elsa rolls her shoulders back and lifts her chin. "What do you mean?"

Anna nods to Brigit. "You are on." She walks back to Kristoff still studying the chess board.

Brigit watches Anna and takes a deep breath. "Majesty, while Sam likes to entertain my children, I would not say he is sweet on me. I met him before you were born. He is the one who taught me and other children to show respect to the King and Queen. When the royal coach passed by us."

Anna points to Brigit. "Do you think she is the same little girl Mother was referring?" She smiles at her. "Did you call a group of children to bow as my father rode by?"

"I did that many times." Brigit glances to Elsa. "I also did it for your Queen Mother."

Thirty minutes later, Captain Larsen checks the chains around Sam's hands. He pulls on the chains around his ankles. They have enough length for him to walk, but not run. The connector between his hands and ankles will keep him from reaching up at anyone. If he runs, the chains would give his guards, perhaps an extra second to get out of the way. His final orders were simple. If he breaks free, get between him and our Queen.

Larsen taps his knuckle on Sam's hand. "Are you going to run?"

Sam holds his head down.

"If you choose to run, go out this door, down the stairs, out of the castle, and through the gates. We will not stop you. Make a move towards Queen Elsa and we will make sure your blood is shed. Do you understand?"

After another moment of silence Larsen says, "Guards at ready."

One at a time, the three guards remove the sword creating the metal on metal sound. The end of their swords points to three vital areas within a hand's width from Sam's back.

"Let's proceed."

Captain Larsen pushes the door open to the great hall. He counts his steps and listen. The chains rattle at approximate four meters behind him. He focuses on the dais.

Councilman Jensen grins with his superior complex of looking down at everyone. Councilman Thorsen watches them with no emotions. The court scribe moves his quill across his parchment.

He does not want to look at his Queen. His heart leaps into his throat upon seeing her dab the corner of her eye with a white handkerchief. He returns his focus to the bottom step of the dais.

Larsen stops at the dais and the rattle of the chains stop four meters behind him. He bows to his Queen. "Majesty."

Standing tall he nods to the two councilmen. "Gentlemen."

"Majesty, The prisoner is here as you have requested." He steps back to the scribes table.

For several minutes Elsa watches Sam. His gaze appears to be focused on the chains securing his wrists together. He shows little signs of breathing. Now would be a good time to run. Do not make her suffer anymore.

Councilman Jensen clears his throat. Queen Elsa nods to him.

Jensen steps down to the main floor and snaps his fingers. "Read the charges"

The scribe stands and holds up the court book. "Samuel Christopher Ryan, One, you are charged with treason against Arendelle. Two, you are charged with treason against the royal family. Three, you are charged with striking Queen Elsa of Arendelle. For your refusal to answer any questions posed to you, this court has found you guilty on all three charges. The prisoner will be given one opportunity to make a final statement."

One silent minute passes and then another. Sam makes no movement or sound. After the third minute, Jensen turns to Elsa. "Majesty, his disrespect to you and your court is his statement."

She lowers her head and nods.

The hall doors rattle. Elsa looks up as she dabs the moisture from the corner of her eyes. "Captain, please go see what is going on out there. We will wait for you."

"Majesty." Jensen starts to protest. Elsa holds up her hand. He stomps back to his table and ruffles his papers as though he is reading it.

Larsen watches Jensen's behavior and shakes his head. "Yes, Majesty." He nods to her. As he walks past his guards, he points to the closest guard who moves to scribe's table.

The door rattles again. Larsen slips through the door and closes it behind him. Two guards block Anna, Kristoff, and Brigit. "Gentleman, there is no need for this treatment of Princess Anna. Let her through. Both guards step aside and she pushes past them.

"Is she the one?"

"Yes, is it too late?" Anna's expression pleads.

"Almost, they have read the charges and found him guilty. He was given an opportunity to make a statement, but remained silent. Councilman Jensen is pushing Queen Elsa to sentence him."

"NO, she has to let me talk to him." Brigit grabs Anna's arm.

"Maybe this is the break our Queen needs. I will let her know you are here. If she wishes to see you, I'll come and get you." He steps back into the room and marches to the dais. He bows his head. "Majesty, Princess Anna, Master Kristoff, and Brigit Solberg are here to speak on the prisoners behalf."

Jensen stomps towards the dais. "It's too late for that, Majesty. He has been found guilty. No more delays, it's time to sentence him."

Elsa glares at him. "Why are you inpatient? Whether he dies today or tomorrow, the results are the same. He will be dead. I do not wish to rush to punish, if later I find I have made a mistake." She motions to the Captain. "Please bring them in."

Jensen moves to the scribes table with his back to Elsa. Larsen nods and marches back to the door.

He steps into the hall.

Anna presses him against the door. "Will she see us?"

He cautions her. "Make this as proper as possible. Don't give Jensen any excuse to interrupt our Queen. Now follow me." They follow behind him as he marches toward the dais.

Brigit slows her pace and waves to Sam. With no response she stands in front of him and searches his eyes. She waves again. Again he does not move. She pinches his arm.

A guard standing behind Sam moves towards Brigit, but looks past her and hesitates. He returns to his position.

Brigit reaches up and touches four specific points on the side of his face and neck. Closing her eyes, she reaches out to him and encounters an energy barrier. She steps back before the energy strikes at her. His stare never moved from the chains. He closed himself from even her. "Damn you Sam. Why do you have to do this now? I am your friend. You will not block me out."

Searching the room, she spots a platter on the serving cart. Removing the refreshments she taps the platter. A solid low ring sounds from it.

Brigit runs back in front of Sam. The guards glance back and forth between her and Larsen. They do not interfere.

Jensen grumbles, "Majesty, this woman is wasting the courts time."

"Again my earlier statement stands. Whether it is today or tomorrow, he will be dead." Elsa says.

She waves her hand in front of his face. She does not detect a flinch or slight pause in his breathing. "I'm sorry. This is for your own good." Brigit extends her arm as far back behind her as she can. With all of her strength and speed, she swings the platter up and forward into his head. A dull, loud BONG echoes in the room. The momentum causes her to stumble behind him.

Blinking his eyes as his head slowly turns, he fixates on Brigit. "That hurts." A trail of blood runs between his brows and down his nose. He stares at the blood splatter on his hand restraints. "If that is my blood, you will pay."

"Fine, you can collect after they hang you." She drops the platter and it rings against the floor.

He stares at the platter. His lips draw tight. "Why are you doing this?"

She points her open hand at him. "Sam, look at yourself, why are you doing this?"

The chains rattle as he turns to her. "I have been charged with a crime."

"I know that." She picks up the platter. "And you have been found guilty. Why did you not give a defense?"

"The facts are accurate. I am guilty."

"Guilty of what, being stupid?" She peeks past him. Queen Elsa stares intently at her, but her expression barely hides the pain. Brigit tilts her head towards Sam and narrows her eyes. "Is it because you are afraid . . . or just a coward?"

His brows scrunch together and with a low voice meant for her, he answers, "You're walking on thin ice. I have been called many things and those who know would never call me a coward. Why do you say it now?"

"Stop acting like one and I'll stop calling you a coward." She growls back at him.

A blood drop lands on his hand. He watches the next few drops splatter on the floor and his hand restraints. "What am I doing?"

Brigit sets the platter on the floor and grabs his arms. "That is what I want to know." Reaching up, she wipes his blood from his face with her sleeve. She stares into his eyes. "Sam, I'm here for you. Why are you afraid?"

His lips draw tight. His head lowers and his eyes close. She steps closer and cups his face in her hands. "You are warm. You have a fever?"

"I am expending a lot of energy to keep it under control."

"What do you need?" Brigit's fingers touch the four specific points on both sides of his head.

"I need to go north."

"Where there are no people?"

Sam nods

"Can you control the pain for now?"

He nods again.

"I will go with you, but unless you can get past this moment, they will end your pain permanently."

Sam mumbles.

Brigit moves her ear next to his mouth. "What did you say?"

He closes his mind to her.

"Let them. You are afraid, why?"

Slits between his eyelids open. Small ice crystals slide down to the tip of his nose and mixes with his blood. She wipes it away. "Please, tell me."

"I have betrayed those who I loved. I don't know if my heart can take it anymore."

"Who have you betrayed?"

"My love from long ago, and the King and Queen of Arendelle."

Brigit steps back and searches his eyes. She squints and points a crooked finger at him. "You failed dead people."

Her hand covers her lips as she turns away from him.

"I am mistaken. This is entertaining. She has provided more evidence he is a danger to our Queen and Arendelle," Jensen emphasizes with a snicker.

Brigit glares at Jensen. She will have to change her tactics. She turns back to Sam with her fists resting on her waist. Her voice increases in volume. "You are here because you failed dead people. What are they going to do? Come back and express their disapproval for your failures." She stomps the floor. "Is this a joke? I'm not laughing if it is you big baby."

"This is no joke. I made a promise to them and in the last year my actions have betrayed them."

"What actions, caring for the people of Arendelle. Protecting and caring for the royal family. Protecting our Queen?" Brigit shakes her head and massages the area behind her eyes. "Please explain to me how these good works have betrayed your former lover?"

He steps towards her. The chains rattle and pull tight. "She is not a former lover."

"Really, where is she now?" Brigit mocks and looks around. "Call her . . . contact her . . . tell her she needs to rescue you from yourself." She kicks at the floor as if she kicks dirt. "You said she was dead. I truly believe she doesn't have an opinion right now."

"Please don't make fun of her."

"Why, so you can? If you are trying to die to be with her, don't use us to do your dirty work. Be the man you think you are." She points to a guard. "Why don't you charge him? I sure he will hold out his sword so you can run into it and show everyone how big of a COWARD YOU ARE."

Frost builds around the hand restrains and moves along the chain. Clenching his teeth and with a growl Sam pulls the chains tight. A thick layer of ice surrounds his chains from the ankle shackles to the restraints around his hands. With a mighty snap he extends his arms out. With a loud crackle the chains to his hands shatter.

Brigit steps back as a link from the chain slides towards her feet.

Giving him a wide arc, the three guards run past Sam and stand between him and their Queen.

"What are you waiting for? Subdue him before he kills us," Jensen says as he backs towards the side room.

"NO," commands Elsa.

With his sword in hand Captain Larsen steps in front of his guards and motions for them to halt.

Sam stares at the frozen chains still attached to his ankles. "Do not call me a coward. My actions—"

"Your actions," Brigit interrupts. "I know your actions are honorable, so what has changed?" She glances past him.

Elsa steps down from the dais and stops next to the guards.

Brigit smiles, then chuckles. "You're right, you are a not a coward. This is an excuse. You made a promise to the King and Queen to protect their little girl or girls. Is that what you are doing, protecting them? But the question is . . . how will giving your life protect them?" She moves slightly to one side so Sam's focus would follow her. "What happened up there, that is worthy of your death?" She snaps her fingers several times to draw his attention to her. "Don't let that secret die with you. She deserves to know why you hit her."

"I DID NOT HIT HER. I would never intentionally hit her or do anything that would lower her stature."

"Was that the promise you made to the previous King and Queen, you would never hurt their little girl?"

"Yes, I would stay close enough to protect and not harm."

"And yet here you are causing her harm."

Sam shakes his head. Frost rapidly builds around his shackles.

Brigit pushes. "Yes, you are by not explaining what happened in the hills."

"I didn't hit her. I saved her life."

"By hitting her?"

"NO, I DID NOT."

Brigit interrupts, "If you didn't hit her, what caused her to be unconscious at your feet? How is that saving her life?"

Sam snaps his leg out and breaks the ankle chains. "I had to save what little energy I had left to charge them. They were forming for another attack. The energy frequency in Elsa's ice disrupted my energy barrier. She could not hear me from the noise. I had to stop her. Once my energy was gone, both of us would have died. The attackers retreated into the mist when they heard the horses. I touched the side of Elsa's face. She collapsed in my arms." He stares down at his hand. "Anger raged in my body for hurting her." Moisture below his brows mixes with the blood trail running down his face. "When Captain Larsen arrived, I lifted her up to him and told him to protect our Queen."

"What did he say?"

"He wanted me to ride back with them. I told him I had to finish it once and for all."

"Did you?"

"Yes, and I buried fifteen bodies in one grave. I encased them in the ice so the animals would not dig them up."

Brigit steps back and places her hand over her mouth. "Did anyone see you?"

"Captain Larsen arrived as I finished." He shakes his head. "Two got away. I used what little energy I had and shot two arrows in their direction, but both hit the ground. I told the good Captain I needed to walk back to get the energy out of my head."

"I thought you just said you used the last of your energy to shoot the arrows?"

"I did. The frustration and anger in my head would create negative energy if I didn't get it out."

"You were frustrated and angry at our Queen?" The clanging of his hand restrains causes her to jump.

"NO! I was not angry at her. If I had an alternate plan to protect her, we could have charged them. I'm glad she is not afraid to defend herself. It's just that the harmonics of her ice powers and my energy were not tune together. They were fighting against each other." The corner of his lips curls.

"What is so funny?"

Sam smiles. "If our powers were together, I would not have sent Anna and Kristoff back to the castle. We would have protected them and defeated the attackers."

"Unless I have fallen into the fjord and I'm dead, which I don't think I am, why did you not say this to the court?"

"Because I never should have allowed them to go there even though I invited them." He shakes his hands. "I saw the mist at a distance, when it was closer I could have looked into it to see what or who was hiding in it, but I didn't." His hands fall to his side. A drop of blood dives off his nose and splatters on the floor.

"Why didn't you look into it?"

"Because I enjoyed their company, she gave me a feeling I haven't felt in a long time. When I heard the crossbow string break and saw the arrow fall short, I knew I had made a serious mistake. Had that string not broken, we might have a different Queen in charge of this court. That is when I realize I had betrayed her parents."

"You saved their lives. How is that betraying them?"

Sam glances at her. "Because it was not supposed to happen. This is why her father sent me away."

"You're not making sense. What is not supposed to happen?"

"I promised I would protect them only, nothing more." He clenches his hands so hard they shake. "This year has gone well past the more and that's why I failed them."

Brigit steps closer to him and points an accusatory finger at him. "You know exactly why you failed. Does she know?"

He looks away from her. "I'm not sure."

"You're not sure." The pitch of her voice rises. "What do you mean you're not sure? I was right the first time, you are a coward."

"NO, I'm not." Ice forms on the outer surface of the restraint of his right hand and thermal swirls rise from his left restraint.

"If you don't say it, you are a coward."

"No."

"Say it to me or say it to yourself, but at least say it."

"I can't, I promised."

"You can't say it for the same reason a coward can't say it. If you are not a coward SAY IT."

He throws his hands downward and the restraints clatter on the floor. "He was afraid I would fall in love with her."

"Are you?"

"I loved Princess Elsa as I loved my own daughter."

"But she is a Queen." Brigit watches Sam's hand open and close until they clench and tremble. "That's it. You love her differently." She shakes her head and glances down. "This is what Kristen was trying to tell me."

The tremors in his hands stop.

She stares at him. "I'm not going to let you hurt her. YOU ARE A COWARD FOR NOT SAYING IT." The toe of her boot shoots up and hits his left fist. "SAY IT"

Sam jerks his hand up. "Yes, yes, I love her. Are you happy now?"

Brigit grins. "Yes, but I didn't need to hear it." She steps back and points to his right. "She needs to hear it."

Sam's right arm shivers from the touch of a cool hand, but he does not move.

"Is that true?"

He gradually turns and bows to her. "It is true. Your father knew this would happen and I tried to honor his wishes." He stands tall with his hands to his side. "But here I am, a failure because I fell in love with his little girl."

Queen Elsa places her hand over his heart. "You love me?"

No more hiding, no more pretending, the truth will set me free, no matter the consequences. As her blue eyes did as she was a child, her blue eyes as an adult captures his heart. They imprison his soul. She has his key.

He allows a smile to sit on his lips. "Yes, my actions of the past few days has proven, I can't hide it any more. Elsa, I love you. I always have. I always will."

Her hand slides up to his shoulder. "Please kneel."

With a thud he drops to his knees as he maintains contact with her blue eyes.

She steps closer to his side and places her hand over the cut on his forehead. She whispers as the cold transfers from her hand into his cut. "When did you know for sure?"

"I have always loved you." His nose entertains her fragrance with a hint of coconut as he inhales. "The past year changed all of that."

She leans closer and exhales her cold minty breath into his face. "When?"

He fights the urge to take her into his arms, to taste her red lips, and to inhale her breath, but not in front of the council, not ever as she is his Queen.

"Last Christmas, when you visited me in the corner turret. When you fell, I carried you back to your room. You asked me to stay with you. You had that terrible dream. You commented to Anna when she found you under the blanket. I massaged your vertebrae back into place." Sam looks down. "When you had your arms around me and I inhaled the spring fresh fragrance of your hair. A door opened and my senses focused on you. Your hair flowed through my fingers. I could hear you breathing, feel your heart beating, and felt the softness of your hands on my neck and shoulders." He looks up at her. "Like you are doing now. My body responded to your closeness. It was more than an intimate urge."

His smile fades and his eyes focus on the floor. "When I stood up and you didn't let go, Anna woke up. My intent has never, nor will it ever do anything to diminish your stature. If we were under different circumstances, I would not hesitate to ask."

Her hand slides down his face. She places her finger across his lips. "But you will not because I am the Queen and you are a commoner."

He nods as he presses his lips against her finger.

"The law is there to protect a Queen or King as there are laws to protect the people. The law says who I can marry will take a little longer to change, but I can correct a tragedy that was about to fall on you." Elsa faces the councilmen while resting her hand on his shoulder. "Gentlemen, we could proceed with the sentencing phase as is, but since the punishment is death, the law allows for additional evidence. Do you agree Councilman Jensen?"

Jensen stands next to the scribes table while rubbing the sides of his head. "I'm sure I will be voted down, we might as well."

"Good, Count One, Treason against Arendelle." Elsa walks towards the Captain and places her hand on his shoulder. "Had the Captain and his guards charged the attackers, we would have buried seven good men. Samuel's actions saved their lives by insisting they protect the Queen and return her to the castle. On count one I find him 'not guilty'. Any objections?"

Elsa stands between Anna and Kristoff. She places Anna's hand into Kristoff's hand and cover both of them. "Count Two, Treason against the Royal Family, Samuel's actions saved the lives of Princess Anna and Master Kristoff. This does not reflect an action to do harm to the royal family. On count two I find him 'not guilty'. Any objections?"

Anna nods and smiles at her sister.

Returning the nod, Elsa walks back to Sam. She adjusts her dress and stands over the back of his legs. Her hands rests on his shoulders. "Count Three, Charge with Striking the Queen of Arendelle, with the new evidence, had Sam not put me to sleep, this trial would be a moot point and Queen Anna would be mourning my death. His actions were in the intent of protecting me. The current law does not distinguish a definition as to what is considered as 'Striking the Queen'. Until we get further guidance to the meaning of the word 'strike', I suggest that Samuel Ryan be fined for the inconvenience he has caused this court, but the question is by how much."

Her hands radiate a cold that penetrates through his shirt and into his shoulders. His hands fall to his side. The pressure in his mind eases. His focus fights to keep his body from falling forward. Her cold effect had always been swift, but now, the effect is progressing slower.

Her fingers slide to four specific points along each side of his neck and face.

 _Your hands are more intoxicating than a barrel of grog. Are you trying to distract me?_

 _I am trying to save your life._

 _If my last moment of life is feeling your hands, I will die happy._

After a moment of silence, Brigit comments, "Majesty."

"Yes."

"I wish to make a suggestion about the fine that would be fair to everyone here?"

"I am listening." Elsa slides her thumbs in opposite directions along his neck.

Sam's eyes partially close as she releases the tension in his shoulders and neck.

Brigit continues, "I suggest he pays the equivalent of ten thousand gold coins at one coin per day."

Elsa's right brow rise as she grins. "That is reasonable."

"What?" Jensen chokes on the word.

Her cold hands grip his shoulders as her thumbs press into his neck. Elsa whispers in his ear. "Samuel, do you agree with the fine of paying one gold coin per day until you have paid ten thousand coins?"

His head barely moves, but he nods.

"With his agreement, we are done here. Any objections," Elsa asks as she stands next to Sam with her hand on his shoulder.

Jensen mumbles his reply.

Councilman Thorsen moves to the scribe's table and signs the court record. He holds the quill out to Jensen.

His mumbling becomes less vocal as Jensen also signs the document.

The scribe caries the table and sets it down in front of his Queen. Placing the document on the table, he dips the quill in the ink well and holds it up.

Queen Elsa signs the court parchment.

Thorsen and Jensen bow to her and exit the room.

The scribe adds his mark and date to the document. He bows. "Majesty, I will have the copies ready for your signature by this time next week." Collecting his court materials he departs the room.

Elsa walks towards the dais.

With a click of the door closing, he gradually tilts his head up to her. "Twenty-seven years, four months, and eighteen days, are you sure you want me around for a little less than twenty-seven and a half years?"

She nods once. "Yes."

"Can I pay it off sooner?"

She shakes her head once, "No."

"Should I get comfortable wearing these chains?"

"Only if you misbehave."

Anna asks, "Does it mean he is free?"

With a smile Elsa glances over her shoulder. "He gets to keep his head for the time being, at least until I can get a ruling on the definition of the word 'strike' in reference to the law."

Kristoff asks, "Who will determine that?"

"That is my next task and I better get the answer before Jensen does." Elsa stops at the bottom of the dais and looks back at Sam. "I do not understand why Jensen was so quick to convict you."

Brigit standing next to Sam slaps the back of his head. "I don't have to read your mind to know where your eyes were staring."

A flush of pink blossoms in his face.

"I was only guessing, but now I know for sure." Brigit steps out of his reach when his hand moves towards her. She walks towards the others. "I can answer your question."

Queen Elsa turns back to them and stands in her regal pose. The others face Brigit.

Anna asks, "What is the answer?"

"When you have two Alpha-males competing in the same arena, one has to back down or there will be a fight. Rest assured this is only the beginning," Brigit comments. "Three weeks ago, this Councilman's wife and a few of her friends forced my Kristen and her brother to step off the boardwalk into the mud. The following day Sam met the ladies in the exact same spot. Well, with his size and his hands on his waist, he completely blocked their path. The ladies demanded he move."

Anna chirps, "And he did not move, right?"

"That's correct. Since they refused to step off the boardwalk to get passed him, Mrs. Jensen said her husband will deal with him. They walked back up the street." She leans close to them, "You wish to get him upset, pick on one of the young children he considers his friend."

Kristoff glances towards Sam. "How many of Arendelle's young children does he consider his friend?"

With a half-smile Brigit winks at Elsa. "As far as I know, all of them."

"He loves children," Anna comments and glances wide eyed at her sister.

"Perhaps I need to keep him close so he will stay out of Jensen's way," Elsa replies.

Brigit points to Sam, "Idle hands will give him time to think, but he reads very fast. He may be able to assist you in finding your answer before Councilman Jensen does."

"Why is he staring at us?" Kristoff asks.

"In another time, you would be a great adversary." Sam nods. "In front of witnesses, you skillfully defeated me, and they thought you were showing your compassion. So Am I your slave or your indentured servant for the next twenty-seven years? You snap your fingers and I run to you like a dog."

Elsa flinches her head back as if he had thrown his physical words at her. She walks to him. "No, it will be nothing like that. You are not a slave or servant. As Queen, I expect you to pay your debt of ten thousand gold coins, one coin per day."

He gazes up at her when she stops in front of him.

Her hand touches his face. "If you run without paying, do not come back. I will not prevent you from leaving."

His hand covers her hand.

"I know you are hurting. Please let me help you. We will get through this if you will talk to me."

His arm starts to reach around her, but stops. His head lowers as he pulls her hand away from his face. For a long moment he does not move, then he stands. He takes a step back and bows to her. "I have been away from my duties in the stables for too long. Am I still under arrest?"

Elsa looks down shaking her head. She shifts back into her regal pose. "No Samuel Ryan, you are not under arrest. You are free to go."

"Please forgive me. I must check on the horses." He marches out of the room.

"What is wrong with him," Anna asks.

"I'll go talk to him," Kristoff states.

"He will not listen." Brigit taps the side of her head. "Majesty, he fights to keep the cloud contained in his mind. If he cannot control it, he will leave to save you. What you experience when you woke up and the time he returned will only get worse for the both of you.

 **End of Chapter**


	69. Chapter 68 Restitution

**Title:** **Chp-69 Accused Restitution**

 **2 Year, 7 Month until correction.**

A week passes, then another, and another. Each night Gerda walks the short distance into the shadow past the servant's door. She closes her eyes for a moment to adjust them to the darkness. The light peeking past the stable's service door finally goes out. Her eyes focuses on the small sliver of space between the boards next to the door. She waits.

A light breeze dips into the courtyard and send a shiver through her body. Gerda is determined to wait, then she sees it. A miniscule amount of blue light escapes from between the boards. It flares brighter and gradually decreases. The intensity oscillates until the tower clock begins to strike ten. The blue lights fade out completely.

"Your light stayed on longer tonight. What is going on with you?"

"That is what I would like to know."

A blue dress next to her flickers from the torch lights. Gerda steps deeper into the shadow as she raises her arm to defend against an attack.

Elsa moves into the light and holds up her hands. "I did not mean to frighten you."

Gerda lowers her arms. "Majesty, how long have you been standing there?"

With a gentle smile, Elsa steps into the shadow. "Long enough to see you staring at his blue light seeping through the wall. I have seen his light the past few nights. I came down to the kitchen to see if there was any bread and soup left. The night staff said you went outside and will be back soon. I came out here and heard someone chanting."

"I was praying for him."

"You pray in his language? Sounded like a chant."

"Maybe. Let's go inside and I'll get you the bread and soup." She walks past Elsa.

"What do you think he is doing? With his blue light?"

Gerda holds the door open and Elsa enters. "I don't know. I have asked him many times. Sam repeats the same answer." She removes a covered pot from the cold food box and sets it on the cast iron stove. "It is still warm. I will have to build a fire to heat the soup."

"I have had cold soup before." Elsa sits at the table. "Perhaps some hot tea, if you do not mind."

The night staff sets a small pot of water on the side stove and starts a fire in the fire box.

Gerda ladles the soup into a bowl and sets it in front of her Queen. "Here is the cold soup. The hot tea will take a few minutes." Grabbing the remains of the half loaf of bread, she whispers to the kitchen staff. "Take thirty minutes and check on the guards."

"Yes ma'am." The staffer exits the kitchen through the short hall.

With a small bowl of soup Gerda sits across from Elsa and slices two pieces of bread.

Elsa asks, "I'm not disrupting her nightly routine am I?" She dips the bread in the soup.

"No, she is an hour early checking on the guards. She will ask if they want a hot meal or just a sandwich after midnight."

Elsa dips another piece of bread in the soup and eats it. "Well, are you going to answer my question?"

Glancing up Gerda sets her spoon in the bowl and wipes the side of the bowl with a piece of bread. "Which question do you want me to answer?" She eats the bread.

Elsa's right brow rises. "Sam does that to me when he does not want to answer. Why do you not want to answer?"

The water in the pot boils. "Tea will be ready in a few minutes." Gerda moves to the stove and prepares the tea.

Elsa dips another piece of bread in the soup. "It has been several weeks. Has he told you anything?" She scoops up a carrot in the spoon and lays the bread over it. She consumes both.

Gerda places the tea leaves in the hot water to seep. "You know how he can be. If he does not want to talk, he is no going to. You have to ask the right question and have follow up questions. He will answer them."

Gerda sets the cup of tea on the table and sits. "I don't have time to interpret his answers, nor am I smart enough to ask the right question." She rips off a piece of bread from the loaf. Wiping her bowl with the bread and collecting little of the soup, she gnaws on the bread.

Elsa slides her bowl over to her.

She dips the bread in the soup and points at Elsa. "Sometimes he gets me upset when he acts like a pouting child."

"You think that is what he is doing now, pouting because of the trial?"

"It sure seems like it. I thought he would have gotten over it by now." She sops up more of the soup with the bread. "You could call him into a room with just the two of you. He may answer."

"If he thinks I am to blame. Why would he answer me?"

Gerda finishes the soup with the last of her bread. "Majesty, you misunderstand. Sam doesn't blame you for anything." She taps the side of her head. "Something is going on up there." She pops the last piece of bread and soup into her mouth.

Gerda's shoulders droop. Her eyes search the table. Her body faces the servant's door and stares past it. "Majesty, I don't want to tell you anything, you already know, but I need to make sure you do know." She continues to focus on the door. "Over the years, Sam did stuff like this with your mother. He gave short answers. Your father would talk to him. Kai talked to him. They said to let it go." She glances at Elsa. "It frustrated your mother. I believe she suffered as you are suffering now."

"So what did mother do?"

Gerda picks up the two cups and checks the hot water on the stove. "She tried many things until she found the one that broke down his barrier." She pours the tea into the cups.

"What was the one thing?"

She sets the two cups on the table and sits. Holding her cup with both hands, she blows the steam out of her cup. "It was you." Gerda sips the tea.

"What do you mean, me?"

"As a baby he held you." She peeks across her cup, "you calmed him down and he opened up. When your mother wanted information, she allowed him to hold you and he held nothing back to her surprise." She takes another sip and observes her. "I bet you still have the magic over him."

Elsa sips, then peers into her tea as she swirls it in the cup. "Magic?"

Gerda clinks her spoon in the cup as she stirs it. "But be for warned, when you use your magic on him, don't ask a question you are not prepared to hear the answer."

Elsa looks up and stares at her. With both hands she holds up her tea cup. "What did mother ask?" She sips her tea.

"A certain individual had been spreading rumors that Sam was your father. She asked if he knew who it was." She finishes her tea.

"And?"

"He did. Sam said he asked what it would take for the person to stop. They said for him to leave. He thanked the person and that they would have their answer soon. Sam confronted a councilman at the wharf and spoke a few words. He walked away and the rumors stopped."

Elsa finishes her tea. "What did he say to him?"

"He never revealed it, at least not to your mother."

"He revealed it to you?" Elsa's right brow rises.

Gerda shakes her head. "He says it does not make a difference since all of the people involved are gone."

"That is interesting."

Gerda tilts the soup bowl. "You must have been hungry. Do you want any more soup?" She picks up the two bowls and tea cups.

"No thank you."

She places the cups and bowls in a water bucket and pours the rest of the hot water over them.

"What question did mother asked that she should not have asked?"

Gerda washes a cup. "Does it matter? Other than Sam, all the people involved have passed."

The chair slides back. A shoe scuffles across a floor board. A cold hand grabs her wrist.

"Gerda?"

She focuses on Elsa's hand. "If I speak it, he will know I told you."

Her hand slides off her arm. "I promise not to tell him my source."

She face her Queen and holds her hand in a praying position. "Your mother did not withhold anything from your father. I believe her question gave your father enough reason to banish Sam."

"What did she ask?"

Gerda looks around the kitchen expecting to see the night staffer back from checking on the guards. She peeks down the short hall and listens, but hears nothing. Standing in front of her Queen she answers softly.

She points her thumb in the direction of the stables. "Sam had a knack of making you giggle. Your mother asked two questions. She asked if he missed holding a baby. He said there were times when he envied the couples taking a walk with their babies and toddlers. She told me there were times she wished your father responded to you as he did. Your mother said she wondered if his actions were to protect the King or more to protect her. She did not mean for the question to slip out, but it did. She thought he did not hear her, until he answered." Gerda looks towards the short hall.

Elsa grabs both of her hands. "What was the second question?"

She stares into her Queens blue eyes. "If circumstances were different, would he had wanted to be her husband?"

Elsa steps back and tightens the belt around her robe. She crosses her arms and steps towards the door. "What did he say?"

"If the circumstances were different, any healthy man would want to be her husband. I'm a healthy male. Since the circumstances are what they are, I don't think about such things."

Elsa glances over her shoulder. "Mother never told me that."

"She should have kept from your father. It was one of the few times he vocalized his anger towards her. She begged him to do nothing until some time had passed."

Elsa opens the door and peeks in the direction of the stables. "How long was it before they banished him?"

"I don't know. Your mother told me years after they closed the gates." She gently places her arm around her Queen. "Majesty, I may be going where I should not go, but I am. From the moment you were born, I had no doubts he loved you and he loves you more today, despite the noise he makes and the stupid stuff he does. Whether it is your shared abilities to make ice or the way you glow a blue tint around him, there is something more than just an emotional connection between the two of you."

"You said I glow blue when around him?"

"It is a faint blue. I don't think anyone else can see it. I see it when you are happy." Gerda points to the blue light radiating between two boards in the stable wall. "He is doing it now. Ask him, but don't ask if you do not want to hear the answer. Stand your ground. Don't let him run you over. Ask your question." Darkness returns to the stable. "He will answer you."

The following morning, Sam pushes the wheel-barrow into the corner. He uses his sleeve and wipes the sweat off his face. Aurora flares her nose at him.

He picks up the water bucket. "I know I smell. I will wash up before I take you for a ride." He opens the service door and his hand shoots out against the door frame to stop his momentum. He rocks back onto the flats of his feet.

With wide eyes and a half grin Queen Elsa watches him.

His eye stares too long at the yellow crocus flower in the center of her dark green bodice. The flower's petals accentuate the curves of her body. The collar of her light green blouse stops short of her neck. Her hands rest on her waist. His body begins to respond. Cold water will do him well, before he embarrasses himself. He tries the squeeze past her and the door frame, but the distant between her light green sleeve and the door is too narrow for his body. He tries to squeeze through the other side with the same results.

His body sways back and a bead of sweat runs down his cheek. His eyes stay focus on the crocus.

"Do you like what you see?"

Any other time he can easily defeat a frontal assault, but his body gathers to rebel. An evasive maneuver may save him from total defeat.

Sam steps back and bows to her. "Majesty, my apologies for my irrational behavior. Since you are motivated not to move, I will invite you in, if you do not mind the smell." He steps to the side.

Her legs covered in a black trouser with knee-high black boots extends through the slit in her green waist skirt. She walks past him and into the horse's area.

The door starts to close, but a guard bumps it open. "Excuse me sir." He carries two buckets of water.

"Place them there." Elsa points to the stumps Sam uses to clip the horse's hooves.

The guard sets the water buckets on the stumps.

"Thank you."

The guard bows and exits the stables. Sam starts to close the door and Gerda bumps the door. She enters and places a tray of food on the table.

He stops her from exiting and whispers, "What are you doing?"

"Doing as I'm told," she grabs his shirt and pulls him closer to her. Unlike a certain stable boy who should still be in a cell. It's too bad Brigit didn't hit you harder to clear out that stubbornness between your ears."

Before he could reply, she darts out the door.

"Sam, please come in here."

He glances at the food tray. Are they trying to bribe him? Other than some of the horse's oats, he has not had breakfast. His mind has hold out and control his body. They have to be professional. He enters the horse's area.

Elsa faces him. "It does not have to be this way. We can talk like two civilized people."

"Agreed."

"Take your shirt off."

"Why?"

"You have a strong pungent odor around you. If we are to communicate effectively, I do not wish to pass out. Please take your shirt off."

He watches her and pulls his shirt over his head. She points to the smalls bucket on the ground. He tosses it in the bucket.

"Please kneel."

His left brow rises. "Why?"

"Because you are too tall for me to wash your shoulders properly."

His brows push together. She pokes her finger into his chest and points down. He narrows his eyes and kneels.

Wringing the water out of a cloth, she holds the cloth in front of him. "Please allow me."

He nods as he pulls his long white hair over his shoulder.

She steps across the back of his legs and slides the cloth across his shoulder. Her hand generates cold on his neck. "Are you feeling well?"

His head rolls forward. "I have not been myself lately."

"Does your warm neck have anything to do with it?" She rinses the cloth and stands behind him.

He peeks over his shoulder. "If I have access to my ship, the medical equipment will determine if I missed any of the poison."

The cloth slides across his shoulders and water runs down his back. His muscles respond to her touch with tension.

"Relax." The cloth rest at the point where his neck connects to his skull.

His body shivers as his muscles relax. After a moment, the cloth moves again. In a methodic pattern the cloth wipes the sweat from his back. Her hand lightly grips the base of his neck. Images of more pleasant times invade his mind. Is she causing the memories to surface or the results of the tension leaving his body? He hears water raining into a bucket, but his eyes do not see. The cloth moves in a different pattern. Her hand grips the base on the other side of his neck. She must be causing it. His mind reins in his emotions. His ears hear the static crackle of two objects equalizing their energy potential. She is not behind him. She stands under the archway to the service room as she rubs her hands together.

He reaches for her.

"Do not move. I have not finished."

He glances at her hands. She rubs them the same way Kristen did after receiving a shock from him.

"Muscle cramp. It is doing better." She moves to the buckets and rinses the cloth.

"Majesty, why are you doing this?"

She stands across his legs and squeezes the water out of the cloth. It runs down his chest. Her hands caress his shoulders. Her body leans against his back. One hand wipes the sweat from his chest as the fingertips of her other hand press and rake across his chest muscles.

He does not fight and relaxes his muscles.

Elsa peeks over his shoulder. "I need you to trust me. I have questions that you need to answer honestly and directly." She blows in his face. "I need to get your attention."

Sam stares at her. So close, he could kiss her. Would she let him? Is that what she wants? If not, for a moment of pleasure all would be lost. But her eyes command him to stare into them. They draw on his life force. The hunger builds.

Her eyes look down his chest. "Oh, it looks like I have your attention saluting me."

His hand covers his salute.

"I meant no harm nor was I trying to embarrass you." She steps around in front of him.

"Why not just ask your question?"

Elsa rinses the cloth and wipes his chest. "Alright, the past few nights I have seen a blue light coming from here. What is it and why?"

He starts to look away, but instead, admires her blue eyes. She is making an effort. "Since I displayed my aggression on the plateau and as you have noticed the higher temperature at the base of my skull, it is taking more effort to keep the pain under control."

"The blue is the release of your energy?"

"Yes."

She points past him. "What about them? Are they affected by your energy?"

He glances over his shoulder. "I can control the amount and how fast the energy is released. I have released miniscule amounts of energy while riding Aurora. I think she may enjoy it. She hasn't complained. Releasing a small amount over time is preferable to releasing all of it at one time."

"Like pouring water slowly from one bucket to next. The water stays in the bucket. If you dump it, some will splash onto the floor."

"Very good analogy."

"You lost control and it splashed on me." Her eyes continue watch him.

"That is exactly what happened. By giving others a taste of my energy, I can feel their emotions. But, the one who is born with the energy is completely independent of mine. Everything in this world is new to me. I have not lived under these sets of circumstances." His hand covers her hand. "One day, you will equal my powers and I suspect shortly afterwards you will exceed my abilities."

She slides her other hand across his hand. "Does that frighten you?"

"Not to me, but you could do great damage to others. Should that happen, I will stop you."

She pulls her hands away. "And who will stop you?"

His hands fall to his side as he sits on his heels. His eyes sweep down her body, but he does not see. "You will. I have given you my key. You know how to kill me. I will give you all of my knowledge. You will become my worst enemy and the one who will save me. We are the same and we are different. Now that I know I can affect you from a distant, I can control it. I cannot guarantee something else like this will not happen."

Elsa kneels in front of him and wipes the cold water filled cloth across his chest. "As you learn, I will also learn to control my powers and to know when you need to release your energy. It could be an excellent opportunity to spend some quality time together. You teach me and I will teach you."

The corner of her lips gradually curl up. He watches the cloth slide across his belly.

"I have decided to allow another to pay your fine in full."

He narrows his eyes. "Who?"

"Princess Anna."

"That's okay. I will honor my agreement. I will have to get a job that pays me money."

"I am glad to hear that. I will pay you."

"For working in the stable?"

"No, I get very little when you work out here. I think you will be more useful to me in the castle."

"Castle?"

She slides the cloth under his neck and squeezes the water out. With a wide grin she glances down. "Uh-oh, your salute is wet. What do you think the guards will say?"

"Does it matter?"

"To you it should." Before he could stop her, she grabs his salute through his trousers. He grips her wrist with two fingers. Her hand releases. "I could scream."

He releases her wrist. She holds her hand to her heart.

"You don't play fair."

"I am the Queen. I do not have to play fair."

He crosses his arms. "Your mother said the same thing many times."

"She only did it when you pushed."

"You mean when she had no logical arguments to counter my arguments." He rises to his knees and starts to get up.

She grabs his arm and her expression pleads. "Wait, I still wish to make a deal for your payment."

Sam sits back on his heels. "I'm listening."

Elsa presses her knee between his knees and leans closer. "If you will escort me to my council meetings and escort me back to my room or study and give me advice, I will pay you one gold coin." She leans closer and exhales cool air into his face.

He inhales her minty mist. A fire builds as his body responds. "What else?"

She whispers in his ear. "When I meet others," she nibbles his neck. "You will escort me to and from the meetings." She nibbles again.

The mint and coconut of her fragrance assaults his sinuses. "You have . . ."

She nibbles his neck up to his ear.

His lips part to intake more air. Her fragrance tantalizes his senses.

"What were you saying?" She nibbles his ear and drags her nails across his shoulder.

"You have more meetings during the day." His hand slides along her thigh. Reaching to quench the fire, his blood moves with urgency.

Her nibbles follow his jaw line.

His head lifts to give her access. "Do I get paid for each meeting?"

"Yesss." She nibbles then bites his chin. "Do you accept?"

His eyes close. His head gradually nods. His hand slides along both of her firm thighs, squeezing and releasing. His desire roars like a forest fire to touch her softness underneath her clothes.

She blows a puff into his nose. "Do you agree?"

"Yes, I agree." His lips eagerly find hers. The tip of his tongue penetrates past her lips and brushes across her teeth. His hands move up her sides and around to draw her closer.

She applies a negative pressure against his lips. Her hand squeezes and moves along his salute. "Do you want more?"

"More," he barely whispers.

Her hands massage his salute. She drags her teeth across his neck. "To get more, you have to give to me. I need you."

 _What did she say?_ His mind fights through the hormonal chaos. _Shut up, what did she say?_

"Need?"

His ears hear. His mind pushes back the lustful desires of his body. His hands are the last to receive the message after they eagerly slide under her breasts and squeeze. Finally, his mind understands her statement and gets control. His hands slide to her arms and pushes her away. His eyes open. "Elsa, NO."

The glaze in her eyes fades as the hunger passes. Her face blossoms in pink then red. She crosses her arms as though covering her modesty. He rocks to his feet. Stuffing his shirt in the water bucket, he makes sure it is thoroughly soaked. Slipping his shirt over his head, the water smothers his desire and leaves it splashing on the floor. His mind reins in the heat from his body. Too close to the edge and they would have fallen over. The water in his clothes freezes including the water dripped on his trousers.

 _How can you betray her?_ Asks the older voice. _She is my wife._

 _Like the rest of us, you already know she died to save us._ Says a younger voice.

 _As long as the green dragon exists, there is a chance we can save her and our child. You want to give up? I will fight all of you._

Sam rubs the back of his head.

A whimper sounds behind him.

 _And what about her? You are causing her pain._ The young voice rebukes.

 _No one will replace my LadyCat,_ answers the older voice.

 _She will not replace your wife. She is the only one like us. Don't destroy her because of what you did._

Sam looks at the small bundle shivering. "You are right." His shirt crackles. He kneels on one knee and offers his hand shimmering a metallic green with the light. "Majesty."

Her body flinches and her head snap up. She glances at his hand and pushes herself across the floor until her back presses against the stalls post. Drawing her legs to her chest, she hides her face hides against her knees.

"Majesty, please do not condemn yourself. As you responded with anger under the influence of my energy several weeks ago, today, my energy took you to the other end of the spectrum. It enhanced both of our desires. I apologize for not accessing the possibilities."

Her head jolts up. Moisture trails run down her cheeks. "I lost control. I wanted you. I needed you. I was not going to take a no."

"And yet, you describe what I felt just a moment ago." The heat of desire flares up. A thin layer of frost covers his body. The cold quenches the fire.

Elsa stops another tear with the corner of her sleeve. "We cannot let this happen. The council will demand I step down. I do not know if they will allow Anna to become Queen."

"I agree. I am sure Jensen will use the opportunity to complete his, however many Greats, Grand Pappy's goal of removing your family from ever reigning again."

Aurora pokes her head through the rails and sniffs at her knees.

"She is concerned about you, as am I. I will go to the hills. Pabbie has a special blend of herbs that helps to control my emotions." He crawls to her and offers his hand as shimmering bands of metallic green sweeps across his arm.

Elsa stares at his hand. Aurora sniffs then lifts his hand with her nose.

"She is not afraid. She has seen this many times. This is what Captain Larsen saw when I charged into the mist. I understand it disturbed him enough that he hesitated to report it to you."

"That would explain why he appeared nervous." She tries to smile.

Sam gently touches her hand. "The first time this happened, I did not hold back. Afterwards, I wonder if LadyCat stayed with me because of the event or if she truly loved me. Every so often, I would tell her I could change course and drop her off at any port."

"What did she say?"

"She stopped talking to me for a couple of days. We had a meeting. I confessed when she complains the thought would pop into my head. If she complained enough I asked her what port. She agreed to stop complaining so much and I agreed to stop asking. She agreed to let me know when she needed to vent her frustrations."

"So what happened?"

"I asked one time too many. She kicked my butt and we had one of the best sexual encounters." He looks away.

"Your smile says it was an important event for you."

He glances to see if she is still watching him. Her infectious smile holds his attention long enough for her blue eyes to capture him again. "Due to our missions we had little time together. We took our moments, even if it meant holding each other for a few minute before she went on a patrol."

"Please forgive me." Her hand grips around his thumb and pulls.

"There is nothing to forgive. That is in the past." Sam pulls her to her feet and the green shimmers across his arm.

She holds on to his hand. "Now I know why people are afraid of you. If I saw you running through the mist looking green," she taps the back of his hand, "I would hide under my bed."

His hand closes around her hand. "It is a defense mechanism to make an attacker hesitate while I close in for the kill. It also focuses my thoughts. I have used it to clear my head. It brings order to the chaos in my mind, but as you can see, I have to be discrete when I allow it to happen."

"An interesting trick." She walks into the service room. "Do not disappoint Gerda. She made this meal for us."

Aurora sniffs in his direction and emits a low rumble. "I agree. The spider calls me to her web." Aurora stomps the ground and nods her head. He enters the service room.

Elsa drops a gold coin onto the table. "This will be your first meeting."

He picks up the coin. One side has the Crocus flower. On the other side his thumb feels the raised surface of the Queen's profile. The edge is marked with the year and the monarch's name.

"Have you forgotten your manners? Do I need to retrain you?"

Dropping the coin onto the table, he assists Elsa into her chair. Removing the cloth covering the food, he sets a plate in front of her and a fork next to the plate. He stands next to the table.

"Gerda brought food for the both of us." She motions to the chair across from her.

He sits and bows his head with his hands clasp together. After a moment he looks up to an expression of calm and wonderment. "Did I forget something?"

"Do you still agree to my proposal of escorting me?"

Without hesitation he answers, "Yes, I do."

"When you get back from the hills, you will receive a second coin after the council meeting." She takes a bite of the steamed vegetables.

He follows her action.

"I wish to amend our agreement." She tears off a piece of bread and lays a slice of chicken on it.

He watches her. When she eats, there are no extra movements only what is necessary to maintain the image of a Queen. She does it with elegance and pose.

"After the meeting, you will uses your blue energy to reduce the strains of the meeting." She takes another bite. "No objections or conditions?"

The confusion leaves his mind. A smile brings back the memories of LadyCat snuggled in his arms after a long mission. His blue energy removed her stresses. His head moves from side to side. "No objections." He focuses on her eyes. "Your request is logical. Perhaps, I should trust you more and get out of the way. Allow you to lead." His head bows. "It will be my honor to be there for you."

He lifts his cup. "A toast."

"To whom?"

"To my Queen, who I love dearly. May she achieve her heart's desire with humility and courage, and allow her strength and wisdom to lead her down the path of prosperity."

Their cups touch.

Elsa brings the cup to her lips. "I believe it has begun." She peaks over the rim of her cup and drinks as her right brow rises.

Sam's left brow rises as he drinks.

 **End of Chapter**


	70. Chapter 69 Council Trusted

Title: Chp-69 Council Trusted

2 years, 2 months until correction.

A cool breeze flows through the opened balcony door into his room. A sharpness in the breeze hints of an early snow. Sam counts the gold coins. Forty-three, woefully short of the ten thousand he needs to pay off his debt for saving the Queen's life. How many gold coins are equal to the joy he found being with her? Can you put a price on joy? A twinge in his eye tells him Elsa's meeting with the council is not going as planned. The clock on the mantel chimes two-quarters. Their meeting should be ending. They will spend the next quarter time bickering on the next meeting's agenda. He slides the coins back into the leather bag and ties the coin bag to the loop in his gray trousers. Slipping the dark blue jacket over his green shirt, he adjusts the collar and leaves the top button open. As Queen Elsa exits the meeting he will button it. With a quick glance in the mirror for any obvious errors of adjustments, he sees none and proceeds to the intersection down the hall that leads to the council room.

Elsa rubs her temples and argues the same point for the fourth time with Senior Councilman Arnfred. She has had enough of the constant bickering to change for change sake. She stares at Arnfred and finally puts a stop to the argument. "Enough, for the last time I will not change the law because you are inconvenienced. If my father thought it was a good law, it will stand until you can prove its detriment to Arendelle."

Gerda knocks on the door as she steps into the council chambers. "Majesty, lunch is served if you are ready."

"Yes please, and thank you." Elsa slides her chair back and closes the book. Tucking it under her arm, she walks around the table and passes the councilmen before anyone could object. "One hour gentleman," she speaks over her shoulder. Passing Gerda, she whispers, "Thank you for your prompt timing."

Gerda smiles and closes the door behind her.

On cue, Sam rounds the corner. She walks swiftly towards him. Dropping the book on a hall table, she reaches for him. His arms wrap around her and a cool effect surrounds them. He kisses the top of her head and rests the side of his cheek on her head. Her teeth unclench. Slowly, but surely, the tension in her neck and face melts away. Even her shoulders have begun to relax. Just a little longer and the pain behind her eyes should stop as it has done every time he cloaks her in his blue energy.

After several minutes she looks up to him with a smile. "What would I do if you were not here to help me through these idiotic meetings?"

"You would get sick and incapacitated for several days or a week, or you give into to Councilman Arnfred. I would gladly go in there and give them a good talking to if you will permit me."

"I do not think you would have to say much. Just being in the room with your stare would get them to back off. Most still remember what happened the last time you talked to the council." She lays her head against his chest and continues to smile.

"What are they afraid of? The people finding out the lies they tell about supporting Arendelle with their hands in the money bags." He lightly strokes her hair.

"And that attitude is why you cannot go in there. I have to work with them whether I agree with them or not."

"I know. I wish circumstances were different so I could be in there to support you."

"You are supporting me now, when I need you the most." She hugs him tighter.

"And to the best of my abilities, I will be here for you." His arms squeeze her.

She looks up at him, "I can get you in there to watch if you promise not to say anything verbally or mentally."

He cocks his head to one side. "And in what universe do you see me not saying anything?"

"The invitation is there if you want it?"

Gerda walks past them. "Will you two icicles have lunch in your room or shall I bring it here?"

She holds onto his arm as they walk up the stairs and mentions the subject again. "We can change the circumstances of your status and they would have no say in it."

"And they would fight you until you advocated the throne. Where would you be then? A former Queen without a Queendom married to a commoner. How long do you think Anna would be Queen before they forced her out? Kai had them over a legal barrel until you turned twenty-one. When you are truly ready to give up your reign here and I cannot convince you not to, I will marry you."

She groans. "Sometimes you make things too hard on yourself. I bet where ever you come from, you are a ruler or a leader of people."

He beams and pats her hand as they reach the door. She steps in front of him. "Do you think I am weak and cannot handle them?"

"This is the same group who gave your father a hard time. The last couple of years they were pushing him to give up some of his powers to them." He shakes his head. "Wait, I trust you. I don't trust them. Your father endorsed Councilman Arnfred, until he turned against him. Yes, you are strong. You just don't have the experience to curtail their conduct. This is why if you will stand and say no, even get into their face the others will have respect for you, until they respect you they will fight you. I will be here to give you advice if you ask, okay?" He gives her a hug and opens the door to her study room.

Gerda pours two drinks for the two place settings at the table.

Sam helps Elsa to her seat. He sits and bows his head. She places her hand in his hands as he prays.

A minute later they begin to eat. Gerda departs the room.

He asks, "So how is Anna doing?"

"Everything is well between her and Kristoff. They are still trying." She answers and breaks off a piece of bread.

"It's been seven months. Has Anna given any signs of? You know. Since she lost her child?"

Elsa holds up her hand and looks past him.

"Gerda?" He glances at the door. "She is not by the door, besides, she already knows."

"You told her?"

"I didn't tell her anything. She asked me about it and I thought you told her. Gerda met me at the steps with a bucket of water. She said it was nice thing I did for her baby, but if it happens again, I better wake her up." He places a slice of meat between the bread. "Anyone who walks into the garden will see the marker." He bites his sandwich.

"You are right. As far as I know, Anna has not been in the garden. She has not said or given me any indications that she remembers the event."

He holds his cup between his hands. "I can scan her to see if the mental block is still there?"

"NO," Elsa snaps. "No, please do not scan her. If she knows, she will let me know, and then we can talk to her." Her hand covers his hand. "Okay."

He nods. "I will do as you say."

The two sit in silence as they finish their meal, until a knock sounds on the door.

"Enter," Elsa commands.

A maid brings in a letter and hands it to her. The indentations on the letter cast a shadow of a partial symbol. The edge of the letter touches the table and the symbol of the Trinity Knot momentarily holds her attention as if to say 'here I am'. She turns it face down. Picking up her cup of tea, she tries to see his eyes in her peripheral vision. She does not want to look, but she needs to know if he saw the symbol. As the cup touches her lips, she glances across the cup's rim. Sam uses the piece of bread to soak up the liquid in his plate. She sips her tea and sets the cup on the table.

If he did not see the symbol, she will not have to explain. Now if she can get out of the room without creating suspicion, she will be able to read the letter without having to hide it from him. The moment does not pass fast enough.

"Well?"

Her finger jiggles the cup as her hand reaches for it. Does she dare to look at him? Tilting the cup, she sees some tea at the bottom. She does not wish to look, but before the cup meets her lips, she glances directly into his eyes.

His raise left brow gives him away. He knows and he is grinning at her, but she will ignore him.

Only a few seconds pass. "Are you going to read it?"

"Read what?" She finishes her tea.

"The letter with the Trinity symbol on the table," he answers.

"I will, just not right now."

"Okay. You have several minutes before going back into the meeting. I'll leave you to read your letter." He stands and kisses the back of her hand. With a nod, he departs the room.

She waits.

A staffer enters and begins to collect the plates.

"Did you see Sam in the hall?"

"No ma'am. I saw him half way up the stairs."

The staffer exits the room. As the door closes, she carefully breaks the seal and reads the letter.

Sam stands at the intersection leading to the council chamber door. Three of the councilmen glances in his direction before entering their room. He continues to wait. A few minutes later, councilman Arnfred glares at him. He grins. The councilman snaps his nose up and enters the room. The council is ready and Queen Elsa is not as punctual as she normally has been.

He slides his hand along the wall and finds a support beam. Pressing his hand against the wall, he lowers his head and closes his eyes. His mind searches the hall back to Elsa's study. She reads her letter. It will take her a few minutes to get the council chamber. His eyes open. His lips grin. He marches into the room and walks past the old men of Arendelle's council. Stopping next to the Queen's chair, he stares at each member of the council. Knowing that one councilman will be the first to comment, he glares at him longer than he did to the others.

On cue Arnfred makes a snide comment. "Is our beloved Queen too sick to finish the meeting and instead sent the stable boy to speak for her?"

"You seem to have a nasty bit caught in your throat, Arnfred. What is really bothering you?"

He barks at him. "I am Councilman Arnfred to you, peasant. You better get out before I call the guards and have you arrested for intimidating this council."

He sneers back at him. "Since you brought up intimidation, how many others have you bribed to keep your seat, and what is so valuable about the Valley of the Stones?"

"I don't bribe people and it's none of your business I'm interested in the thermal vents, you nave."

 _I'm sure Pabbie will have a say in this. What else are you after?_

"Really, would anyone care to refute the accusation of intimidation, I'm accused?"

His eyes search the member for the signs of nervousness. Two fake a smile and lower their heads as they sit. One immediately looks away. One walks away with his head low mumbling to himself. One sits down and shuffles the parchment pages, but one stands out.

With confidence Arnfred maintains eye contact and crosses his arms. He does not blink.

"No takers, seems everyone has been browbeaten into submission." He moves to the same side of the table as Arnfred.

Councilman Helmar speaks up, "we speak for ourselves."

"I'm sure you do. Right after Arnfred tells you what to say or vote." Sam calmly retorts and detects Elsa outside of the door.

Helmar starts to rise. "He does not tell me how to vote. I vote my own mind."

Arnfred places his hand on Helmar's shoulder to encourage him to sit back down. "That's right everyone here votes their own conscience."

Elsa sneaks into the room and no one notices.

"Does that include purposefully pushing the Queen around?" He places his hands on his waist. "Does it make you feel manly pushing around a young woman and teaming up against her without allowing her to discuss her proposals?"

"We give her a chance. I can't help it if she chooses not to stay late to present her proposals." Arnfred smiles.

His left brow rises as he smiles back. "King Agnarr should have gotten rid of you the moment you betrayed him."

The veins in Arnfred's neck begin to visibly pulse. The pale complexion in his face changes to a bright red as he attacks. "You sniveling little inbred horse's rear, I save the kingdom from the tyrant. We had an agreement that I would keep him in power if he gave me the Valley of the Stones, but No that whore of a Queen influenced him to back out. So it was my duty to remove the tyrant. It's too bad I did not get the chance to see the last moments of their life as the sea did the job for me."

"GUARDS, GUARDS."

All heads snap around to the door as two guards burst into the room.

Arnfred changes his demeanor. "Queen Elsa, it's not what you think. I'm repeating what Sam said to me just before you entered the room."

"Arrest Arnfred for treason against my father," Elsa commands with no inflection in her voice.

"You can't arrest me as your father could not arrest me. I have more than enough information to be released to the citizens of Arendelle. Your entire staff will gladly hand you over to the crowds to protect their miserable lives. They will burn down your castle. Hang you and your sister for treason. And . . ." Arnfred stops.

A bump from behind causes him to turn around. He takes a step back and points his shaking finger at him. "When she is removed, I will enjoy seeing you whipped until every scrap of flesh has been removed from your body." He takes another step back. "It will be the council's word against you and I know the court will rule in my favor."

Sam squeezes his finger with force.

Arnfred's eyes widen with fear. His mouth opens, but no sounds come out.

Sam presses his finger to his lips. "Shh, be the man you think you are."

The other councilmen move to the other side of the table away from them. The two guards start to move along the table, but Elsa raises her hand and they stop. She focuses intently at Sam and Arnfred.

"We know you have been under stress. You are trying to do your duty to protect the citizens of Arendelle. It's just too much for you. You are having a hard time understanding Queen Elsa's wishes. Perhaps it is time to pass your seat on to a younger council member so you can enjoy the last few years of life with your family."

Arnfred slowly nods his head. "Yes . . . The stress has been too much for me."

Sam lets go of his finger and places his arm around Arnfred's shoulder as they begin walking towards the door. "I don't know what happened to me. I have been having these headaches lately." They stop and Arnfred bows to Elsa. "Majesty, my humblest apologies, Sam is correct, your father should have removed me a long time ago. Whatever punishment you deem for me, I will accept."

"You said some harsh words to our Queen. Go home to give her time to cool down. I'm sure she will call you when she is ready." He nods to the guards and they lead Arnfred out the room.

Elsa nods to Sam and turns to the other five council members. "Do any of you wish to say anything to me?"

Four of the five bows to her and in unison say, "No Majesty." They move back to their seats, but one does not move.

With her right brow raised, Elsa glares at Jensen. "Is there something you wish to say?"

Jensen drops to his knees and bows his head. His hands cover his face as he muffles his reply. "My Lady, please forgive me. I do not wish to go down the path my father and brothers took. I ask that you will allow me to take my family away from here and never to return. In exchange, I ask for a fair market value for my properties or I can sign it over to you or Arendelle."

Elsa glances at Sam and then back to Jensen. "In two days I will decide about your property."

Jensen stands and bows to her. He removes the council pendent from his collar. With his eyes looking down, he holds it out to her.

"If you are still here in seven days or if I find out you are a co-conspirator with Arnrfred –"

He interrupts, "I understand completely. My family has no knowledge of my business practices, despite the wife's arrogance. Please do not punish them for my error in judgment." He looks up at Sam. "My father told me not to cross the stable boy's path. Now I know." He hurries out the room.

Elsa slowly walks to her chair at the front of the table. She glances at the four remaining councilmen. "Gentleman, I think we need to reschedule this afternoon's meeting for another day."

Councilman Helmar states, "I second the motion to reschedule this meeting. Say 'aye' for all who agree."

"Aye," they speak in unison.

"Any nays? Motion passes. Your Majesty, at your convenience, you can schedule the next meeting and we will be here. Any further questions or discussions?" All four looks to Elsa. She waves her hand as if to sweep them away as she shakes her head. They pick up their papers and scurry out the room.

With the closing of the door, Sam beams at Elsa. "I'm impressed. You cleared the room in less than ten minutes, impressed indeed."

She narrows her eyes at him. "I have to work with them."

"And you will, in two days there will be two vacancies on the council and an opening for a judge."

"What vacancies? I cannot make Arnfred leave. As soon as he gets his wits about himself, he will convince the council, I acted irrationally. If not now, soon, he will press me to give more power to the council." She picks up her meeting documents.

He squints towards the window. "No, I don't think so."

"I ask you again, what do you mean?"

"Arnfred has a severe condition in his brain."

She drops her papers and places her hands on her waist. "You did not?"

"No, I didn't do anything to his brain. I detected a mass that is applying pressure to his brain. Unless you have someone here who can do an autopsy on the body, I may have saved him and his family undue stress and pain. He will become very confrontational, not just to you, but to everyone, especially his family. He will die within a year. I know there will be no treatments for another ninety years. He should pass in his sleep. Word will get out that the two big dogs on the council are gone. Hopefully, the judge will get the message to either leave or just leave."

She collects the papers from the table and stands next to him. "What if he decides to stick around? What will you do?"

"I'll keep an eye out for any unusual transfers or movement of goods out of the ordinary." He takes the papers from her and lays them on the table. Gently lifting her by her waist, he sets her on the table as she lets out a small squeal. "But first things are first." He adjusts her dress and steps between her knees to hug her.

"What if Anna comes in here and sees us?" She hugs him tight.

"I would guess after getting over her embarrassment she would make a comment."

"Like what is a man doing between our un-married Queen's legs," interrupts Gerda.

"Yes, something like that." He hesitates until Gerda narrows her eyes and holds up her fist as she marches towards them. As gently as before, he assists his Queen off the table.

Elsa's cheeks glow a slight blush as she picks up the papers.

"Your mother also had a cunning way of sneaking up on me." He reaches for the papers. "I'll gather these up and bring them to you. So what was in the letter from Ireland?"

Elsa's eyes widen. As she steps back, she glances between the table and the floor. "Leave the papers here. Gerda will bring them to me, later. Do not come to my room until I call you. It is a surprise." She pivots on her heels and hurries out the room.

He stops next to Gerda handing her the papers. "A surprise, huh, will I like it?"

"I don't know. If it is a surprise for you I don't want her to tell me." She grabs a chunk of his side and twist. "If I see you doing anything like that to her again, Kai will crack your skull with a board. Do you hear me?"

He does not move or give her the satisfaction of knowing her grip will leave marks, so he grins. "I can't say I will never do it again, but I will say you or Kai will not catch me doing it again."

Gerda swats him with the papers as he leaves the room.

Elsa writes a quick note informing the King of the Southern Isle that she will be visiting to meet a representative of Ireland concerning a sword. She presses the Arendelle seal on a drop of wax sealing the note. She writes a second note requesting passage to the Southern Isle and hands both notes to the courier waiting outside of her room.

Since it will take some time before receiving a response from the Harbor Master, she sits at her desk and again, reads the letter from Daniel O'Connell in Ireland. If Daniel is correct, she will have taken away every excuse Sam has used that they should not be together.

She sits back in the chair holding the letter and in her heart, hopes it is true about his sword. The moment Samuel passed through the open gates, her heart told her there was some hidden history between them. Piece by piece the layers were removed. All was going well until he was poisoned the first time. He struggled for life. His body revealed the weapon he was designed to be, even to kill to survive. He warned her. He could lose some memories and he believed it had already happened before. He would try to hold on for as long as he could, but if he could not, he asked for forgiveness for anything he may say or do to her or anyone in Arendelle.

How does he live knowing there are missing parts of his memories? Does he wonder if we were more? Does he know I was afraid for him when his inner child came out? She tried to keep him safe, but was accidentally hurt. He protected her, almost by instinct. It drew fond memories when someone else held her close when she was a child. He also surprised her when he asked her if she wanted a husband and then asked if he could be her husband. Anna did not help by telling everyone. She tried to caution her, but Anna said she would remind him until he remembered.

Elsa looks at her hand and imagines a wedding ring on her finger. How cruel can faith be to tease her with a man she thought about most of the time. How many times did he massage the stiffness out of her neck, patiently listened to her complaints, and gave her valid advised when she asked. By his actions, she knew deep in his heart he loved her. There were too many times he looked as if he wanted to say something, but instead gave her a hug and turned away. When he came out of the ice, she was not going to push him. She feared she could chase him away. Each time he sniffs her hair, or strokes the side of her face, or appears absent minded to run his fingertips lightly across the back of her hand and fingers, she wondered if he would ever get those feelings for her. The thought of his light touch on the back of her hand sends a little shutter down her back as she smiles. She wanted to tell him what he had said. More thoughts extend the moment. She feels safe when she is with him. Holding his hand, the world around her disappears. Is he influencing her the way he influences the council and others? Perhaps that is why she feels comfortable falling asleep in his arms or leaning against him.

Just as she smiles again a knock sounds against the door. It must not be Anna. She would have walked in as she knocked. Back to work. She opens the door. The winded courier holds a reply note from the Harbor Master. He could hold a transport for a half hour, but no more, so it could sail with the tide to the Southern Isle. The next ship scheduled for the Isle is in three days.

"Tell the Captain if I'm not there in twenty minutes to sail without me." The courier bows and runs back to the Port Captain. Twenty minutes is not enough time to pack properly. Elsa hurries to her room and stuffs a few clothes into a canvas bag. If she needed extra clothing, her magic would provide them. She writes a few instructions for Kai. He had to know where she was going and when to expect her back. He and Gerda could keep a secret, but she was not sure about Anna. She needs Sam to be in the dark until she knows the history of his sword. She wonders if Sam remembers he allowed the Irish ambassador to borrow it after her coronation.

The door closes. Sweeping her hand across her dress, it transforms into a pair of dark green trouser tucked into black boots, a lighter green blouse tucked into a dark green skirt that stop below her ankles. More ice magic creates a mid-calf, gray cape with a hood covers her shoulders. She glances in the mirror. Her braid has to go. Brushing her hair, she flips it over her shoulder and stuffs the brush into her bag. With the bag over her shoulder, she walks out and meets Kai at the bottom of the stairs. She informs Kai of her plans.

Kai nods as he hands her a small pouch of coins. "Good luck, I hope it works out for you."

"What works out," Anna asks as walks she up behind her.

Elsa grabs Anna's arm. "Walk with me."

Together they walk on the pier towards the ship. An officer shouts commands. The crew scurries across the deck as they prepare the ship for departure. Like a well-practiced team, some crewmen climb the masks and riggings to set the sails as others stand by the lines to release the ship from its mooring. Even a crewman offers to take Elsa's bag, but she refuses.

"He is not going to like this. Are you sure he will not go crazy not knowing where you are?" Anna asks.

"You and the others will have to convince him to trust me. If I get into trouble, he will be the first to know."

"Do you think this Daniel will have good news?" Anna gives her a hug.

"I sure hope so. Whatever you do, do not let Sam touch you while he is asking you questions. Stay away from him. Maybe this would be a good time for him to help Kristoff on one of his harvesting. I will be back in a couple of weeks with his sword." She kisses Anna's forehead and boards the ship.

The ship's Captain barks orders to the crew. They pull the gangplank aboard the ship. The shore men release the mooring lines and the crew pulls in the ropes. High atop the masks the upper sails unfurl and open to catch the wind.

Elsa waves to Anna before she disappears into the cabin area.

Anna watches the ship move away from the pier. As it enters the center of the fjord, the main sails unfurl to drive the ship towards the ocean. A comforting arm wraps around her waist. She looks up at her husband. "Where is Sam?"

"He was in the stables brushing Aurora when I left there a few minutes ago," Kristoff answers. "Where is Queen Elsa going?"

Anna leans her head against his shoulder. "She is taking a short trip and we need to keep it a secret from Sam. She has some news."

"Stop, I don't want to know what she is hiding from him. I'm not going to be a part of your plan. Don't tell me." He hugs Anna and walks back towards the castle. Anna continues to watch the ship until she is not able to distinguish individual crewmen on the ship.

A short time later, Kristoff meets Sam exiting a horse's gate. "Would you do me a small favor?"

Sam stares at him with hesitation. "This is not like you, but sure."

"I'll be heading out before sunset to harvest some ice and will be getting back late. Would you come along to keep Sven and myself safe from the wolves?"

"Wolves?" Sam glances up at the castle, then towards the fjord. "I guess I can." He looks back at the castle. "Let me tell Elsa I will be out this evening." He trots off toward the castle's main door.

Kristoff enters the stables and brings out Sven.

Anna walks up to him. "Did you ask him?"

"I don't like deceiving anyone, especially him." He glances towards the castle doors. "He has done nothing to deserve this treatment from you or Elsa. Whatever you do, keep me in the dark. Just tell me when and where I have to be. I will not be asking why."

Kai steps out the door as Sam approaches. "I thought you were going with Kristoff to get some ice?"

Sam's left brow rises.

"Oh please, Kristoff asked where you and Anna were. Queen Elsa thinks it is a good idea for you boys to spend some time together. Despite what others have said about Kristoff, he is quite intelligent." Kai looks past him. "Queen Elsa does not wish to be bothered at the moment. She is studying her letter from Ireland. Go on, your friend is ready." He points towards the stables.

"Okay." Sam turns. "Kai, I don't have to read your mind to know it is a lie. You need more practice. Elsa needs her space and I will respect her."

Gerda waits until Sam enters the stable. "I hope your story does not come back to bite you."

"Me too. Most of the story is the truth and I'm sure Elsa will be studying the letter at some point on her voyage," Kai replies.

They continue to watch as Kristoff rides in the wagon pulled by Sven. Sam taps his head and points to Kai and Gerda as he rides past them towards the gates.

End of Chapter 


	71. Chapter 70 A Chance to Trust

Title: Chp-70 Chance to Trust

2 years, 2 months until correction.

The ship's Captain graciously allows his Queen to stay in his quarters while he shared a hammock with the first mate. Elsa stayed in the quarters most of the whole three days of the voyage. With her cape and the hood over her head, she came out onto the deck in the late evening, twice during the voyage. The Captain stayed by her side both times. The first mate brought meals to her twice a day. He brought stew, biscuits, pastry, a shot of wine, and a sweet tea. Elsa enjoyed her meals and the first mates' company. She asked lots of questions about the crew and the ship's life, but paid particular attention to the first mate when he talked about Ireland.

On the morning of the third day the Captain brings Elsa a pail of water and two cloths to wash. She was very thankful for the water. After a quick cleaning and a change into of clean clothes, she walks onto the deck as the ship ties up to the docks. The first mate jumps on to the dock and speaks with the Port Captain. A few seconds later the Port Captain sends a runner to the Castle. The Captain guides Elsa, with her canvas bag on her shoulder, to the Quarterdeck. The crew unloads their cargo and make ready to load additional cargo for the second leg of their trip.

A warm breeze inflates her hood. She catches it before it reveals her to the workers on the docks and the others watching the ship from the upper level. The harbor appears to be carved out of the island. Stone stairs in several locations lead up to the upper level where anyone could watch the harbor's activities. Two pavilions, both larger than the one in Arendelle's town square, had many stands for the shop owners to sell their wares. In a short time more people arrive at the pavilions to shop. Another ship docks at the next pier. She watches the dock workers and the ship's crew unload crates and barrels. One of the crates displays the Weselton symbols.

"I guess they trade with them," she comments to herself.

"Aye, they do. On the upper level, you will find products from many nations, some as far away as the Americas. Occasionally, a ship from the Orient will arrive and most of their goods are sold before the day is out," The Captain says.

"How much would we benefit if Arendelle had a harbor like this?"

"This port is a transfer point for goods going to and from the north along the sea lanes. Arendelle could be a transfer point for goods going inland. Lots of money exchanges hands. Arendelle would explode to twice its size, if not three times, to accommodate the port workers." He leans back against the rail and glances at his crew unloading several crates. "You would have to make room for the new shop keepers, warehouse space, and the entertainment area for the workers to spend their money."

He looks at her and sweeps his hand across the port. "Majesty, while this looks enticing to grow Arendelle, there is a seedy side of this port. The military has its presence on the upper level."

She searches for the military uniform. "I do not see them."

"Then they are doing their job. The people, who live here, know who they are. The newcomers do not. The seamen are not here long enough to discover who they are. But if a ship is here over night, you will see the uniformed men patrolling the harbor and streets. The locals stay away from the harbor. This island pays a heavy price to keep everyone and the goods safe. It is definitely a balancing act to keep the peace and not hinder the trade."

A commotion on the upper level interrupts their conversation as a contingency of guards and a royal carriage arrives. A distinguish gentleman dressed in a uniform with the Southern Isles crest, steps out of the carriage. Two guards lead the gentleman down the stairs and towards the ship.

The Captain points to the upper level. "It looks like your carriage is here. I'll send your belongings to shore."

"That is ok. I have my belongings in my bag." She pats the canvas bag on her shoulder.

"Then allow me to escort you to shore." He walks ahead of her and down the gangplank.

The gentleman arrives as Elsa steps onto the wooden pier covering the rocky shore underneath. "We will have your belongings taken to the castle as soon as they are offloaded from the ship."

"My belongings are here." She pats her bag.

"That is all you brought?"

With a grin she nods.

He holds out his hand. "Please Majesty, let me take this for you. My King will be very upset at me if he sees you carrying your own bag."

She hands him her bag. "Well then, we do not wish to upset your King on my behalf. Which brother are you?"

"My name is Sten, third brother of King Frederick." He bows. "I would have been here when the ship docked, but we were not aware of your arrival."

"Nice to meet you Sten. My apology for not sending a notice ahead of the ship, but once I received the letter from Ireland. I had to make this trip to discover the secret about a certain individual's sword."

"Ah yes, how is Admiral Ryan doing these days since he was poisoned?" Sten asks as he leads her up the stairs to the carriage.

"He is quite well. Sam still has his moments when he is not able to control his stress. He has started to open up more. When it is just the two of us, he will hold my hand. Not long ago, he voluntarily gave me a hug."

Sten opens the carriage's door and helps her in. "Oh, I am sure King Frederick is going to love hearing that."

Silence accompanies them back to the castle. Elsa watches the passing scenery. Once they moved away from the harbor, most of the shops and homes appear similar to Arendelle. Her mind drifts. Sam was very upset she had not taken him with her when she came to King Frederick's coronation. The unfortunate death of his father caught Frederick by surprise. Only the strength of his wife helped him to honor his father's wish for him to be the King.

Despite Han's personal actions, her presence was meant to show she would continue the economic relations both of their parents forge many years earlier. Sam's presence could have damaged that relationship. He can check out any prospects who might fancy her eyes, but he cannot interfere with running her Queendom. While King Frederick is an attractive man, he is married, but if Prince George is available that would tweaks Sam's nose if she was interested in him.

She lets out an audible giggle.

"Majesty?"

She looks up. "Please forgive me. I was remembering what Sam said about meeting a man in a uniform."

"Based upon what George said about him, King Frederick may be concerned for your safety. You may wish to limit what information you reveal about Sam."

"Should I be concerned?"

"Sam and Frederick appear to be cut from the same stone in their mannerisms. Frederick said his brothers were free to marry whoever they wanted, but before the marriage he insisted he be allowed to talk one on one with the future bride."

"Were any turned down?" She smiles.

"No. But he did send his Queen to talk to one bride and she backed out of the marriage. It seems the Queen's instincts were correct. The bride had," his eyes roll up, "excess financial baggage that my brother would have been obligated to pay. My brother decided to stick to the military. More than one mistress is not healthy."

Sten glances at her. "Perhaps your Sam has better instincts than you give him credit."

She looks out the window. "Because of who he is, I know his instincts for people are better than mine."

As the carriage turns down a tree lined stone road Elsa catches a glimpse of an archway in the reddish gray stone wall. She lowers her head. Her lips move. "There is only one for me, if you would just see."

The carriage rolls to a stop in front of the castle's main entrance way. "Majesty, are you all right?"

The doorman opens the coach's door and offers his hand to her.

She answers, "I will be, but for right now, I have work to do." She steps out of the carriage followed by Sten. The doorman carrying her bag leads them into the great hall.

At the far end of the room, three gentleman bow to a fourth sitting at the table. They depart through a side door. The fourth stands and slips on his military jacket ordained with the symbols of a kingship. He marches towards her with purpose. A gentle smile, wavy brown hair, clean cut, uniform tailored to his broad shoulders and slightly narrow waist, too many traits similar to Sam, including his height. A warmth sweep across her face and reminds her she is here on business. She pushes her hood back.

Sten bows. "Majesty, I would like to present Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

"I know who she is, brother. Who could possibly mistaken this beautiful woman for anyone other than the Queen of Arendelle." He bows his head and offers his hand.

"Queen Elsa, I present King Frederick of the Southern Isles." Sten continues the introductions.

She places her hand inside of the King's large hand.

Frederick lightly kisses the back of her hand. "Welcome to my Kingdom. Is this for pleasure or business?"

She does not respond immediately, but remembers the first time Samuel kissed the back of her hand.

"Well, what has your mind occupied?" Frederick asks.

She blinks. "My apology, your brother is correct. You have similar mannerism of Samuel Ryan."

His brows flick together as he stands tall. "Are you saying I am a commoner like your Admiral Ryan?"

With a sharp breath, her hand covers her mouth as if to prevent another insult from passing across her lips. "I apologize. Let me rephrase my statement. Samuel Ryan has similar mannerism as King Frederick of the Southern Isles."

He gently smiles. "It seems this Samuel has more than a little influence over you."

Another warm wave sweeps across her face. Determined to take control, she crosses her hands in front and shifts her stance to the regal posture. "I will not apologize again, Majesty. I am here on business."

"As you wish." He motions to a side room.

She follows Frederick into a small room dominated by a large desk. To one side sits a table with three chairs. On the other side hangs an ocean map of the sea surrounding the Southern Isles. To the Isles northwest, on the coast of Norway, a dot marks Arendelle. A curved line connects Arendelle and the Isles. Several other lines connect the Island to the north, the east, and several to the south. A thicker line starts on the Isles and curves around the land masses and continues east. Another thick line travels south through the straits and into the Baltic Sea.

"It is a map of the trade routes. We are lucky to be here. Whoever controls these islands controls the trade from the Atlantic to Russia and in between." Frederick stands next to her. "But I do not think you came here to look at my map."

"You are correct." She faces him and holds up a sealed letter.

"What is this, a love letter to one of my brothers? Arendelle and the Southern Isle would make a powerful family." He grins. "Prince George has mentioned your name several times, but always in the same sentence with your stable boy."

Her right brow twitches upwards as she waves the letter in front of him. "My announcement that I will be arriving on the next ship to your Isles."

Sten sets a tray with three cups and a wine carafe onto the table. "So much for the courier system."

Frederick reads the letter. Sten pours wine in the cups. Frederick hands the letter to Sten and he reads it.

"What do you think, brother?" Frederick hands Elsa a cup. Taking the letter, he hands his brother a cup.

"It seems Queen Elsa is on a mission. Maybe we can help," Sten answers.

"Agreed." Frederick holds out his cup. "To Queen Elsa of Arendelle, may she complete her mission and heart's desire? Despite what little Hans did, I and my brothers are here to assist you in any way we can."

"Agreed," chimes Sten

"Thank You." Elsa touches her cups to the brother's cups.

After the toast, Frederick taps his ring on his cup. "I do not see a ring on your finger. Does Ryan still think he is a commoner?"

"Unfortunately, he does." She gulps down the wine.

Frederick and Sten glance at each other and finish their drinks.

"And your mission will do what for him?" Sten pours a small amount of wine in their cups.

"If I am correct I will take away his reason for calling himself a commoner." She gulps the wine.

The brothers swallow their drinks.

"Obviously, you love him enough to take this trip without guards. What if you succeed and he creates another reason to say no," Frederick asks.

"I believe he is hiding something." She taps her heart. "All the stresses he endured with my parents and being poisoned twice, he could have walked away." Her head lowers and she whispers, "Even with the strange behavior this year, he could have walked away."

"Why did he not?"

She looks at Frederick. "A short time ago he expressed," she looks down then continues. "I should say we expressed our desires for each other."

"Then what is the problem?" Sten asks.

"We were too close to the edge. Had we stepped over, I would not be Queen."

"Oh, and you are sure it was not a moment of passion?"

She steps to the table and pours herself a half cup of wine. She watches the wine settle in the cup. "He refuses to let me step down. It is his pledge to my parents." The wine disappears in one swallow. "I believe if I can prove to him, he meets the requirements of Arendelle's law, we would marry."

"He sounds like an honorable man." Sten takes the wine carafe and her cup.

Elsa sits at the table. "He is. The things he tells me before they happen and the way he explains it. Any woman should be honored to be his wife. His suggestions for running my Queendom and staff, I cannot find any arguments against it. In my heart I know has commanded or ruled many people."

"I believe Georg has heard Admiral Ryan say he was a Fleet Admiral." Sten says,

His brother nods, "Depending on the size of the fleet, it could be tens of thousands of military people. The British could use someone like him.

She touches Frederick's arm. "The day I boarded the ship to come here, do you know what he did before I went back into the council meeting?"

Frederick grins at her. "I cannot imagine."

"I read this letter from Ireland and was late getting back to the council meeting. I saw the guards with their ears against the door. One said Sam entered the room five minutes before I arrived and they were screaming at each other. When the guard opened the door quietly and the argument stopped. It was rather funny to see Sam grinning on one side of the table and the six council members on the other side scowling back at him. Sam needled the senior member and he blew up screaming. The thing the councilman said was treasonous."

The smile slides off Frederick's face. "Really, treasonous?"

"My intent was to arrest the councilman, but Sam motioned for me to stop. After a minute they were all calm. In less than ten minutes, the two senior council members had resigned and Sam said by the end of two weeks he suspected there will be a vacancy for a judge."

"So you put the two members in prison?"

"No, Sam said the senior member probably would not live to see another year. Evidently he will be getting worse and confrontational, just before he dies. He was surprised the councilman was still alive. The other member said he would leave Arendelle in two days. He begged me not to harm his family."

"Sounds like you should have Sam in all of your meetings. Just do not let him run the meetings or do anything to usurp your authority." Sten grins.

"I think that is why he does not wish to be in the meetings. I think he is afraid he will have an outburst." Sshe looks away as though a revelation has been opened to her.

Frederick leans towards her. "You know what it also sounds like?"

"What?"

"He cares enough to know, he may be a liability to you," he answers as he sits back.

She stares at him. "I have never heard him say or do anything that might be interpreted as challenging my authority."

Frederick cocks his head. "And yet in ten minutes he got two councilmen to resign and possibly a judge. I would love to see what he could do if he put a little effort into it. He might get the whole council to resign." He shakes his head. "Maybe I can get him to come to one of my meetings. Perhaps he would get all of the council to resign. That would remove my pains."

"He will not come here to work."

"Why not? I would pay him."

"No, he would not leave his adopted family in Arendelle."

"Adopted? What family?" Sten asks before Frederick does.

She smiles and glances down. "The children of Arendelle like him and quite a few adults as well. I have heard so many stories of Sam helping families or entertaining their children." Her smile vanishes with a sniffle.

Frederick touches her arm. "Is that what you want, to be part of his adopted family?"

Elsa places her hand over her mouth and swallows hard as she nods.

Finally, an admission passes across her lips. She has come all this way, despite making an impulsive decision to leave the way she did. Sam will be furious at her for not bring some guards. Up until now, no one had asked her if she wanted to be a part of his family. Everyone expected the Queen to enter a marriage with royalty. Is it wrong to put one's desires above the duties of the monarch? If she can take away his argument that he is a commoner, would he relent?

"Am I making a mistake? Is this a fool's journey," she whispers.

Sten answers a knock on the door and steps out.

Frederick taps her arm and she looks up. "I have heard a lot of strange things about you and Sam. Just because you are the Queen does not mean you do not have feelings. Is it a mistake for wanting, especially if it will benefit Arendelle? You said it yourself. It sounds like the children and a few adults like him. I have seen too many monarchies marry for the sake of the Kingdom or an ally. Their kingdom is either taken away from them or their people suffer. I do not see that for you and Sam. It would be his fool's journey, if he turns you down."

She smiles at him. How is it Hans turned out to be the opposite of Frederick?

"I believe a ship from the Great Britain will be arriving tomorrow or the next day. If it is good news, I would like to meet this Prince of yours that hides as a commoner. I would definitely be interested in the history of his sword. Until then, you are my guest and accommodations will be provided."

Sten walks back into the room. "I hope your plans were to stay for a while. A storm is coming in from the ocean and the clouds look very mean. I also received a report your transport has already departed to get past the storm. I took the liberty to place your bag in the guest room down the hall from the King's chambers."

"How long do you think the storm will last," she asks Sten.

He shrugs his shoulder. "It may pass through the night. This time of the season it could last all week."

"A week, I was planning to leave tomorrow." She asks, "So I guess it could take a week for the Irish Ambassador to get here?"

"The next ship will be a day or two behind the storm." Frederick slightly smiles.

Elsa places her head in her hands. "How long does it take to get to Ireland from here?"

"Five days, assuming the headwinds are not that strong. Seven days with headwinds," Sten answers.

"Great, could I have planned the timing of this trip any worse?"

Frederick taps her arm. "He will be alright. He knows you are here."

She shakes her head.

"You did tell him you were coming here?"

Her hands cover her face as her head shakes more.

Frederick leans back in his chair. Sten exits the room. "Does he trust you?"

She nods.

"But perhaps not after today?"

She barely nods.

"If he truly loves you, he will understand." Frederick stands next to her chair. "The evening meal will be served in an hour. You can eat with my family or your meal can be served in your room."

She places her hands in her lap. "Well, there is nothing I can do about it now." She looks up at him. "I would like to have a meal with your family, but I need to go to my room to freshen up before the meal."

He offers his arm. She places her hand in the crux of his arm and he escorts her to her room.

For three days the storm batters the island. The morning of the fourth day, Sten escorts Queen Elsa to the castle's foyer. A moment later, King Frederick and Prince Georg step out of a side room. Both wear a military uniform with swords at their sides. A blue sash loops over King Frederick's right shoulder and down to his left side.

Prince Georg offers his arm. "In public our King must present the honor to his wife and Queen while she is away."

"A good rule." She takes his arm. "I am honored."

A short time later they arrive at the upper level to the harbor. When she steps out of the carriage, she notes four guards in front and four guards behind them. She places her hand on Georg's arm again and they walk through several shops, then stop at the rail near a ship flying the British flag.

"There is the ambassador walking down the gangplank." Georg points.

Sten greets the gentleman with a leather satchel and motions to the upper level.

Elsa remembers the ambassador from her coronation. He waves up at her. She watches him walk up the stairs and approach her.

She shifts her position so Frederick will be a half step in front of her.

The ambassador bows to the King. "Majesty." And bows to the Queen. "Majesty, you may not remember me, but I am Shaun O'Brady, ambassador for Ireland."

"I do remember you," Elsa nods.

"Greetings, how was your trip," Frederick asks.

"It started bright and shining until we entered the straits. Our good Captain, despite the complaints of a few guests, stopped at a port to let the storm pass," the ambassador replies.

He steps to the side and bows his head. "Queen Elsa, so good to see you again. I must apologize for my delay arriving here."

She smiles. "It is quite understandable for the weather delay. You really did not have to come all this way to deliver a letter. You could have sent it by a courier."

The ambassador removes the letter from his satchel. "On no, my lady. Daniel O'Connell said to place this letter in your hand personally. It is very important that you receive the letter only. After you meet with Daniel, you will understand the precautions of delivering it personally."

Elsa holds the bulky letter and stares at it. What is in it that Daniel is taking such precautions? If the sword is nothing more than a decoration for ceremonies, a single piece of paper would suffice with the answer. Why send the ambassador, unless it is meant to fool someone watching them.

The ambassador interrupts her thoughts. "Please excuse me." He bows to them. "I need to get a gift for Daniel's niece before I head back to Ireland."

She watches him walk up the street and vanish into a shop. Sand crunches under Frederick's boots as he walks several steps away and speaks with Georg. She glances at the guards. They create an arc around her to prevent the shoppers from getting too close. She breaks the seal and reads the letter.

After reading it a second time and looking for something she missed, she walks over to Frederick and slaps the letter into his hand.

"Good news, I hope," Frederick asks.

"This lawyer Daniel O'Connell says he has an answer about the sword. He wishes to meet me in a fishing village near Ennin, Ireland, but it is important enough that I come to speak to him in person due to the significance of the sword."

Frederick scans the letter. "At least he did not come out and say it is a forgery."

She nudges him with her shoulder. "Do you have time to go with me to Ireland or I can book passage on a ship."

"No, no, no," Frederick replies. "I will get a ship and we will go to Ireland." Do you wish to sail back to Arendelle and verify everything is okay between the two of you?"

"My heart's desire is to go back to see him, but I need to keep him in the dark long enough for this to be a surprise that even he cannot argue his way out. I need to be home long enough to give instructions to the staff. Afterwards to Ireland."

"Then that is what we will do." He hands the letter back to her and nods.

Two days later with the sun well above the horizon, the Southern Isle ship sails up the fjord towards Arendelle. Elsa stares at the castle. The green and purple flag with the yellow Crocus flower welcomes her home. For a moment she closes her eyes and tries to reach out to him. She does not sense him. It would have been sheer luck to detect him at this distance. Could he detect her? If he can, will there a disturbance once the ship dock? In several minutes she will know.

An unusual warm breeze blows in from the south as the Southern Isle ship docks. The harbor men tie up the ship to the pier. The gangplank lowers with a thud and several sailors line up along the ship side of the pier. Captain Larsen, Princess Anna, and Master Kristoff stand at the end of the gangplank.

As soon as she sees her sister, Anna waves.

Elsa smiles and nods to her.

Dressed in their uniforms Prince Georg and three brothers disembark first, followed by Queen Elsa, and within less than an arm's length of her, King Frederick.

Captain Larsen and Master Kristoff bow to their Queen and the King.

Anna glances at each brother as they pass. Her smile broadens as her sister approaches. Not waiting for the agreed upon signal, she wraps her arms around her sister. "Welcome home."

"It is good to be home." Elsa welcomes her sister's warm hug, but still expects a disturbance to erupt any second.

"He is not here." Anna says as she steps back and bows her head towards King Frederick.

Elsa hands her bag to Kristoff and searches past the dock area. She glances up at the castle and does not sense his presence.

"See, Sam is smart enough not to embarrass you in public."

"Luck is with you. As Princess Anna said, he is not here. If he was, your brothers would be fishing you out of the water. Majesty." Kristoff bows to him.

A wide eyed Princess Anna steps in front of her husband.

Prince Georg turns to Kristoff. "Is that a threat to my King?"

"Hold on brother," says Frederick motioning to his brother to wait. "Let us hear what he has to say. Why would Sam throw me into the water?"

Kristoff catches Elsa slight head motion of no, but he continues. "You were too close to my Queen coming down the plank. He would have seen it as a threat to Queen Elsa and would have removed the threat."

"Fascinating. I did not know you were an oracle who sees a future after the event. Too bad you did not see Prince Nick's failed assassination." Prince Georg states and clenches the hilt of his sword.

Anna wraps her arms around Kristoff. "King Frederick and his brothers are our guest. Behave yourself."

Frederick places his hand on Georg's shoulder. "Princess Anna, my brother does his job well. Unfortunately, after our father's death, he has a hard time distinguishing between friends and foes."

Elsa steps into Georg's line of sight. "I know some things are hard to overcome, but we cannot let it hold us back."

"I quite agree, Majesty." He looks past her. "But if he is not a prophet, how does he know your Samuel would have thrown me into the water?"

Elsa stares at Frederick and glances at the anger in Georg's eyes. She hopes Kristoff does not take the bait. As she starts to speak, Kristoff answers.

"Because if one of your brother did to Princess Anna what you did to Queen Elsa, I would throw your brother in the fjord."

The two brothers move to either side of Georg. Each grip the hilts of their swords.

"Calm yourselves, brothers. Which one of you would have done the same as he, if someone was too close to our Queen?" Frederick stares at each brother until they move their hand from their sword.

Elsa glances back at Captain Larsen. He encourages Kristoff and Anna to walk up the pier.

Elsa says, "I apologize for Master Kristoff's comment. You have been a wonderful host for bringing me back here."

"No need to apologize. Actually, I need to apologize for my brother's behavior." He points at each of them. "Back to the ship and send Seth to me." They nod to their King and march to their ship. He walks with Elsa. "I would have been suspicious if he had not acted the way he did. Obviously, they love you and perhaps it was a good thing Sam was not here."

"Why is that?"

He smiles. "I did not bring an extra uniform and I'm sure these would have been soaking wet by now."

Elsa walks towards the castle with Captain Larsen several steps behind them.

Anna locks onto Kristoff's arm as they stroll across the bridge. She peeks over her shoulder and estimates no one will hear them. She stares at her husband. "Are you not happy Elsa arrived home safely?"

He grunts before answering. "Yes, I am glad she is safe." But his movements are rigid like he is thinking too hard.

She tries to nuzzle against him. His arm stiffens. Before they reach the mid span, she lets go of his arm. "Why are you upset? Elsa can take care of herself."

Kristoff glances over his shoulder. "He was practically standing on Elsa dress."

"He was not that close. He was there just in case she starts to fall –"

Kristoff interrupts, "That is not the point." He motions back across the bridge. "Did you see the people watching?" He grabs her arm and continues towards the gates. "Tell me rumors will not run through Arendelle. If Sam was here, Hans' older brother, King or not, would not have been that close to her."

She jerks her arm free. "What rumors?"

"Queen Elsa leaves Arendelle in a hurry and without guards. She arrives home with the King of the Southern Isle and four of his brothers. Perhaps they are here to finish what their brother Hans failed to do."

"That is not funny."

"It wasn't meant to be. What announcement will she tell her Queendom?" He stops and allows Anna to pass through the gates first.

They walk a short distance past the gate guards, before she answers. "That is crazy talk. I doubt Elsa would have allowed them to enter the fjord without freezing them, if they were a threat."

"Unless they have a spy watching you at this moment."

Anna glances at a few of the faces in the courtyard. Could Kristoff be right? Is Elsa under duress? She did not appears to be. If she is, why did she not give me the signal? Now he has me doing it. "You have been listening to Sam's wild conspiracy stories."

"Really? Prove me wrong."

"I will." She pushes him towards the stables. "Go check on Sven and the other horses, before you get yourself into trouble. I will talk to Elsa to prove you wrong."

Seth catches up with Elsa and Frederick. "Majesty, the Harbor Master says the tide will turn soon. Shortly after sunset will be the best time for us to depart."

Frederick looks to Elsa. "Will sunset be too soon for you to complete your task?"

Without breaking her stride or looking in his direction, she answers, "I will be ready to depart at sunset." That should be more than enough time to convince Sam, I am right about his lineage. The question is will he act against my wishes. He should have seen the ship and met me at the harbor. Where is he?

Elsa sees Anna push Kristoff towards the stables. Looks like he still has issues with King Frederick. Need to keep them apart. Kai meets her at the top of the steps and nods to the both of them. She asks, "Please find Sam and send him to my study room. Escort King Frederick and Prince Seth to the Council room. Bring refreshments and anything they request." She turns to Frederick. "Please excuse me while I go and freshen up. Princess Anna and I will join you shortly."

Kai motions to the brothers. "Gentlemen, please follow me."

From the short hall Gerda watches the procession pass by and curtsies to the King and Prince. Returning to the kitchen, she spots Anna sitting at the table and resting her head in her hands. "What is troubling you my dear?"

Anna looks up, "Kristoff may have expressed an inappropriate comment to our guest. I have tried to tell him he cannot make comments without considering a possible misunderstanding, especially to a King."

"So what did he say?"

"He thought King Frederick was too close to Elsa as she walked down the gangplank. He said, Sam would have thrown him into the water." Anna rest her head in her hands. "I never thought I would have to worry about what my husband say that might start a war."

"So Sam's behavior is rubbing off onto him. I don't think the King and his brother will be here long. If you are concerned about Kristoff expressing himself, tell him to check on the ice on the upper mountain. That will keep him busy until they leave."

Anna stands and tucks a few strands of her hair back into their proper places. "Has Sam returned?"

"Unless he sneaked into the stables, he has not come back." Gerda shrugs.

"It may be for the best the King and his brothers do not encounter Sam in his mood."

Gerda holds the service door open and waits until Anna is half way to the stables. She looks towards the northern hills. "Hopefully there will be no blood."

Elsa finishes writing her letter as a staffer steps out of the Queen bathroom.

"Majesty, you water is ready."

"Good. Takes this letter to Kai and to Captain Larsen."

The staffer curtsies and exits with the letter. Elsa removes her robe and sits in the warm water. She rest her head against the back of the tub. Closing her eyes she open her mind. Frederick and Seth are in the Council room studying the Arendelle map. Anna and Kristoff are hugging in the stables. At least they are still talking to each other. She pushes past the castle walls. After a few minutes, she opens her eyes and sees two blue orbs fade in the water. "Perhaps it is the best you are not here."

End of Chapter


	72. Chapter 71 Trust Fades

Title: Chp-71 Earned Trust

2 years, 2 months until correction.

"Gentlemen, your refreshments, is there anything you need at the moment?" Kai asks.

"No thank you, kind sir. This will do." King Frederick answers.

A rapid knocking sounds against the door. Kai opens it. "What on earth are you doing with guest in here?"

"He is here."

Kai pushes her into the hall and closes the door. "Where exactly is he?"

"A guard in the round tower saw him passing through the outer wall a few minutes ago."

"Go fine Princess Anna and tell her Sam is on the way. She needs to let Queen Elsa know. I will fine Captain Larsen to delay Sam for several hours." Kai enters the council room.

"Is there anything wrong?" Frederick asks.

"No Majesty, but there is a situation at the gates, that needs to be addressed. If you excuse me, Queen Elsa and Princess Anna will be here soon." Kai exits the room.

Several minutes later, Prince Georg and two of his brothers enter the council room. Frederick demands, "I told you to stay on the ship. What are you doing here?"

Georg nods. "I thought I saw Samuel Ryan walking down the street near the wall. Several guard rider's race towards the outer wall. I made the decision to come. If it is Sam, it will take all of us to stop him."

A side door opens. "Gentlemen, are you conspiring against Sam," Anna asks.

"Princess, I have heard several disturbing events about Sam. Are you not concerned about him," Frederick asks.

"Sam will not hurt us, but if you show hostility towards him, he will defend us." Anna wags her finger at them. "All of you behave and do not threaten him. We just have to delay him until Queen Elsa is ready." She gracefully walks out of the room.

Prince Georg stares at the door. "Majesty, Samuel is an excellent swordsman. He disarmed Russian Ambassadors Igor and his aid with the minimal amount of force. If we do not get a jump on him, the window may be your only escape."

The tower clock strikes the half hour. Sam walks into the front door of the castle. Every staff member clears a path for him to pass. He walks up the stairs to the second floor. With his hand out, Kai stands in the middle of the hall. Sam stops a few centimeters from Kai's hand and asks, "Why?"

Kai is slow to answer, but does not move. "Our Queen is allowed to change her mind."

"About what?"

Three castle guards and two others with the Southern Isles crest stand by the Council room door.

He measures the distance between himself and the guards. He tries to give Kai the 'please forgive me for what I'm about to do' look. "You are a loyal friend and I have no desire to hurt you, but I will get past you."

"Sam, I will do my best to stop you." Kai starts to step back, but Sam's hand lands on the back of his neck.

"I know you will, that is why it's time to sleep." A spark leaps from his thumb to Kai's temple. Sam guides the unconscious Kai to the floor.

Sam glances at the five guards by the door and slowly walks towards them. "Let's dance."

He points to the closest castle guard. "You have seen me fight and be the last one standing. I will allow you to walk away. But the other two and the two visitors behind you, the question is how much pain are you willing to endure before you back away or pass out?"

With a grin he throws out the bait. "I will even let you strike first."

The castle guards move as one and draw their swords, but Sam moves faster. A fist to the closest jaw, an elbow to the side of a head, and a push into the chest of the third sends all of them bouncing off the wall and onto the floor.

The two Southern Isle guards step forward with their swords ready. One swings high for his head as the other swings low towards his legs.

Sam jumps inside of their swing and drives his thumb into the shoulder nerve bundle. Both men drop their swords and grab at his hands. He tosses one onto the pile of guards on the floor and slams the other against the door rattling it. He needs to make sure everyone in the room knows he is coming if they did not already know.

Checking the door handle, he would have been disappointed if it had been unlocked, but since it was locked, he rolls his fingers together and creates a sliver of ice. Inserting the ice into the locking mechanism, it unlocks. The handle turns and the door opens slowly.

Halfway across the room on one side of the council table, King Frederick of the Southern Isles moves towards him with two Southern guards marching behind him.

Sam charges into the room and slams the door close. He grabs the guard hiding behind the door and tosses him into the other guard charging from the other side of the door. With both guards on the floor, King Frederick and two guards stop. Sam searches each of the three men and recognizes one behind the King.

"Georg, were the two in the hall your brothers," Sam asks.

Narrowing his eyes, Georg steps beside his King. "Yes, they are my brothers." His hand grips the hilt of his sword. "Did you injury them?"

"They will have a slight headache, but they will be fine."

"Good, you know you don't have to do this." Georg steps in front of his King.

Sam takes a long glance at Georg's hand on the sword. None of the blade is exposed. A partial smile forms on his lips. "Go ahead."

Frederick grabs Georg's arm.

"And what is it, I don't have to do Georg? Queen Elsa disappears for a week. Everyone around here is acting like I have the plague and yet you are trying to stop me from seeing her. Why is that Georg?" His eyes shift the spectrum color and everything has a green tint. The pulse in Georg's neck rapidly increases. Sam yells, "WHY?"

King Frederick steps past Georg.

Sam lurches towards them. Before Frederick could respond, Sam leaves an imprint of his knuckles on the King's forehead. Frederick stumbles past Georg and into his other two brothers, where they fall to the floor. Sam grabs Georg's sword hand and bends it down as he stops next to him. "Why Georg? Warrior to warrior what have I done to deserve this treatment?"

Georg turns his head and his eyes reflect two green orbs. Georg looks away for a few seconds before looking back at him. "Warrior to warrior sometimes it is best to follow orders, even if you do not understand them."

"Is that what you are doing Georg, following orders? Do the orders, make sense to you or do you follow blindly?" Sam's vision sees all in normal colors.

Georg takes a step back as he jerks his hand free. With his other hand, he draws his sword and points it at Sam's chest. "The orders, make sense and I will follow my King's commands."

"As we all will," carols the two brothers near the door and the one brother helping his King to his feet.

Sam's eyes change back to the emerald green vision. "You have seen what I can do. Do you wish for me to wait until the rest of the guards arrive?"

"We will do what is necessary to follow our orders," Georg replies as he thrust his sword into Sam's left shoulder.

Sam's fist instantly freezes the sword and it snaps into several pieces. He staggers back and pulls the broken blade tip out of his shoulder. Ice fills the wound and seals the blood.

"No," screams a red head running down the table and jumps onto Sam as she wraps her arms around his neck. Anna looks over her shoulder at the Southern Isle's King. "This was not the agreement. Now all of you back away from him."

King Frederick points to the knot swelling in the middle of his forehead. "He attacked me."

"And I told you if you were aggressive, he would fight back and you would lose. All you had to do is delay him. Not try to kill him," Anna growls.

Sam's vision returns to normal when he glimpses Anna. "Why would you risk yourself? I can take care of myself."

She wrinkles her nose at the blood on his shirt. "Yes, you were doing such a great job at it."

He smiles. "You understand if one of them had not seen you, they could easily have stabbed you by mistake. And Queen Elsa would be very upset."

"She will be just as mad when she finds out this got out of hand and you were stabbed." She peeks over her shoulder at Georg. "Especially for the one who did it."

Sam peeks at the others and back to Frederick. "Looks like your orders have been changed, a three minute truce?"

Frederick nods, holding up three fingers and waves for his brothers to back away.

"Anna, I have given them a three minute truce. You can let go of me now. I will walk over to the balcony and wait for Elsa unless you think I should go elsewhere." Sam lifts Anna by her waist as she lets go of his neck and sets her down. "You know, if you had slipped on the table, you could have been seriously injured."

"But I did not." She replies with a smirk and wraps her arms around his arm. "Come on." She leads him to the balcony door.

"So why were they supposed to delay me?"

"Oh, it will not be long. Elsa has a surprise for you and I agree with her. I think you will like it." She smiles up at him.

"So you know what it is?"

Anna stops and removes his hand from her shoulder. "Do not even try to read my mind." She points to the balcony door with her other hand on her waist.

"Okay, I hope the trip was worth it. The stress was getting to me for not knowing where she was, so when will she be here?"

Anna pokes her finger into his chest and points to the door.

Sam walks onto the balcony. The door's lock clicks behind him. He glances back at her.

Anna wags her finger at him and her voice muffles through the door. "You behave yourself. Elsa will be here soon." She pulls the drapes over the doors.

He nods to himself, at least the sun is shining. He leans against the rail and observes the castle's normal routines for this time of day. A screech sounds above him. A gray sea eagle floats on the thermal waves and a slight breeze pushes it over the fjord. It banks into a circle and screeches again. With a mighty flap of its wings, it flies across the fjord and over the forest. Sam watches it until it disappears behind the trees. The eagle screeches again.

Sam answers it. "Good luck in finding her."

"Finding who?"

Sam looks over the rail at the guard below the balcony. "That was a male eagle looking for its mate."

The guard searches in the direction Sam had been looking. "How do you know it was a male?"

A half grin forms. "The eagle had deployed its rudder."

"What?" The young guard clearly did not know certain things about life.

"Go ask Captain Larsen. He likes explaining the wonders of nature.

 _The eagle had deployed its rudder. Shame on you, Samuel Ryan._

His half grin forms into a full grin as he searches the castle. Into the bedroom and into the washroom, he finds Elsa bathing in the marbled tub. She slides, fully into the tub and pulls her robe over her. She peeks over the edge of the tub and looks directly into his eyes.

 _Get out. Wait until I come to you._

More embarrassed than surprised to see her in her room, he quickly opens his eyes feeling a little flushed in his face. "I apologize. I was not trying to invade your privacy. I just wanted to see that you were safe." He stares at a fluffy cloud passing overhead.

 _I sense you have more to say._

"I was worried about you. No, I was greatly concerned for your safety."

 _Really? You are concerned as a protector or a friend._

He sits in the chair and rests his head against the wall. "My heart will break if something happens to you."

 _You will be okay. I need some time to finish then I will meet you._

He feels her mind pulling back into the castle. Several small birds fly past the balcony and over the wall. His eyes close and he listens.

Several minutes later, he hears her again. _Sam, I know this is a tough time for you right now, but I need you to do me a small favor._

 _If I can what is it?_

 _Excluding safety. Do not read anyone's thoughts, until I tell you it is okay to do so. Do you understand?_

He does not reply, but tension slowly builds in his neck and shoulders. He glances at the door glass. Two emerald green orbs reflect back at him.

 _Sam, please stop. You will have to trust me on this one, okay?_ _Please?_

The green orbs change back to the hazel color and he answers. _On my honor, I will not read anyone's mind until you tell me it is ok to do so, excluding safety._

 _Thank you, this will not take long, I promise._

He closes the connection between himself and Elsa. Standing by the rail he listens and watches the birds fly in the air. After an hour or so, he sits in the chair and rest his head against the wall. The warmth of the sun melts his stresses. His eyes close.

Elsa glances at the water as two solid blue orbs fade into her blue eyes. "At least he knows I am safe."

Anna meets her in her bedroom. "Have a seat. I will brush your hair." Elsa sits and drapes her robe back. Anna works on the first tangle section of her sister's hair. "Sam is on the balcony, in case, you did not know."

"I know."

"Of course you know. You have already talked to him, right?" She continues to brush her hair.

"Yes, I talked to him." Anna's expression in the mirror appears more concerned than convinced. Kristoff's comment to King Frederick did not help her concerns. "Don't worry about Sam. He will be alright."

"I know he will, but what about you? Every time he is nearby, I question if he is reading my mind and already knows what you are doing."

Elsa holds Anna's hands and watches her in the mirror. "I have heard what many say about Sam. And yes I have questioned his motives, but the one thing I do know, if I can get him to commit to a course of action, he will follow through. Anna, I talked to him while he was on a balcony. Was he tensed? Yes. Did he calm down? Yes. Was he worried about me? Yes. He has shown no hostilities towards you or me or Kristoff, after the one incident. Unless you know differently."

Anna shakes her head.

"I did ask him to do one thing for me, while I am gone. Excluding for safety reasons, he will not read anyone's mind. He agreed so I believe him and you should also."

Anna pulls her hands free. "I need to finish brushing your hair, before you go to Ireland. I Queen must look her best."

Elsa turns around and pulls her sister down to her as she cups her face. "He will not hurt you. Please believe that. He is in a lot of pain. When it gets too much for him, he will leave. Do not let anyone stop him. If he leaves for good, I will deal with the circumstance when I get back."

"If he is in pain, why are you leaving?"

"It is because of his pain. I have to go in any direction that a clue may lead me. Do you remember when I froze the courtyard for our citizens to skate?"

"Yes."

"Remember when he and his little friends nearly slid into us."

With a nod Anna answers, "I remember. He was sliding fast, but at the last second stopped."

"And I said he looked familiar."

"Later you said he was the stable boy and he let you ride the horses before father banished him."

"Yes. I followed him and he fell at the planter. Anna, as I leaned closer to him, I remembered mother saying do not just listen to him, but listen to the words he uses." Elsa stands and points in Sam's direction. "I know why his mind is in conflict. He had a wife and daughter. He feels he should have died with them."

"Died? He told you that." Anna looks towards the wall.

Else quick-steps to the door and places her hand on it. Blocking out the castle noises, she focuses her mind past the door. No sounds or vibrations echo in the hall. Ever so slowly her mind stretches out further down the hall. It continues to stretch and stops short of the balcony. She senses his energy past the balcony wall. If she pushes too far, will he detect her? If he reaches out to her, he will know of her mission. Her mind pulls back. She rest her head on the door.

Anna touches her arm. "What happened? The room got cold. A cloud must have passed over and played a trick on the light in the room. But it looked like you had a blue glow surrounding you. Kind of like what Sam does."

Elsa wraps her arm around her sister and leads her to the bed. "Sam said I should practice, but do not push too far."

Anna sits. "Like you did last time? Boy was he mad."

"Okay, I learned my lesson. I asked him to show me how he does it. He did. When he is away, I lay my head down where no one can see my eyes and I searched. Do you know what I found?"

"No."

"I found his mind and heart are in a conflict. His heart grieves for his family. His mind is lonely. It wants another friend."

"So he does not want to give up on his family which causes him to be alone. If he allows you to get close, he feels he is betraying his family, but they are dead."

Elsa steps behind a wall screen. "And yet he still feels he can save them."

"But they are dead. How is that possible?"

"Yes, thus his conflict."

"And I thought Kristoff has problems associating with others."

Elsa steps out from behind the screen. Her slightly tight white shirt tucks into her black trousers. The knee-high boots form to her legs. "But they are our suiters, we have a similar problem and yet different, because of who they are as individuals."

Anna brushes a strand of blonde hair behind her sister's ear. "Nice outfit, are you trying to get Sam upset."

She looks at her clothes. "What is wrong with what I am wearing?"

"Well, let me say it like this. Your clothes will be a distraction and the men will pay you a lot of attention. Is that what you want?"

Elsa looks at herself in the mirror. With a turn to the left and then the right, she shakes her head. "You are quite right. I should wear this for Sam, but not for King Frederick."

"And his brothers and the guards I hope you will be taking with you this time." Anna grins at her in the mirror.

"I get it." Elsa sweeps her hands and the white shirt loosens.

"Much better. Sam owes me for looking after his interest."

Elsa grabs her hands. "Anna, I wish you could have gone with me. While my impulse to leave did cause Sam some extreme anxiety, I learned two things on the trip. One, if I have to go it alone, I can." She wraps her arm around Anna's arm and leads her towards the door. "Two, the wind is constantly blowing on the Southern Isle. I will show King Frederick the peacefulness of Arendelle at Lookout Plateau."

They walk down the hall. Anna asks, "And three?"

"Economically, The Southern Isle could help Arendelle prosper. We could expand our harbor, not as large as theirs, but large enough that we could be a transfer point for goods inland."

"Does the King know about that?"

"That is why I am taking him to the plateau. He can see for himself the potential of Arendelle.

The day passes quicker than she wanted. Kai and Gerda will assist Anna in running her Queendom. Captain Larsen will keep an eye on Sam. Kristoff may be the smart one for not getting involved as long a he does not stress Anna. Together they will keep Sam distracted until I get back or at least that is the plan.

She detects a presence behind her. "What are you doing?"

Frederick steps out from behind her. "You were staring intently out the door. I was trying to see what had your attention."

"Running down my list. I want to make sure everyone has their instructions," Elsa answers. The stable boys walk the horses to the front steps. "You ready? Our horses are here." She motions towards the doorway.

Elsa, Frederick and his brothers mount their horses. Captain Larsen commands the Royal Guards to their assigned escort positions.

A horse neighs followed by several whinnies. Elsa spots the lead horse looking back towards the castle. Two horses move next to the first horse and look in the same direction. Their ears twitch then face the castle. "Captain, time to go."

Frederick nudges his horse next to Elsa. "Are we in a hurry?"

"He is awake after being on the balcony all afternoon," she answers.

Larsen motions to the four lead guards to move out. Two of the Southern Isle riders follow them. He bows his head to King Frederick and Queen Elsa as they ride pass. The last two Southern Isle riders follow them. Four more guard follow in the rear.

"Queen Elsa."

She considers looking back. A gate guard signals the lead riders. The procession picks up the pace. The clatter of the hooves on the courtyard stones echo inside of the walls.

"Queen Elsa, look up here."

A few more seconds and they will pass through the gates. She will not stop once they are on the bridge. They have to hurry before he contacts her, but it is too late as she hears him.

 _Elsa, please hear me._

Does she pretend not to hear him? Will he understand her explanation of ignoring him? I have to give him something. She pulls on her horse's reins. The others stop their horses and look back at her.

 _Look to your left._

She purposefully turns in the wrong direction.

 _Turn to your other left._

Frederick nudges his horse next to her. "What are you looking for?"

She turns in Sam's direction and searches the ground level.

 _Look up . . . a little higher . . . Please tell me you see me waving from the balcony._

She has no choice and sees him.

Frederick also glances up and shakes his head. "You should not have stopped. Another second or two and we would have been out the gate."

"I know." She waves.

Sam asks, "Where are you going?"

"I am taking King Frederick to the Plateau. I want him to see all the elegance Arendelle has to offer. I will be back soon." Elsa taps her horse with her boot.

Fourteen horses trot through the gates.

An emotional spear stabs Sam's heart as he sees through her eyes staring at Lookout plateau.

"No . . . that is our special place." The pain intensifies in Sam's chest. He has not felt this pain in many years. His eyes close and he listens to the horses ride through the town. After a few minutes, he does not hear them or her. He tries to open the door, but of course, it is still locked. He sits in the chair next to the table.

His mind wanders and memories entertain his thoughts. The chair and table's arrangement are the same as the night he encounters the new Queen at her coronation ball. Her napkin had fallen off the table and she bent down to pick it up, just as he had stepped onto the balcony. He did not sense her until she was standing next to him. She did not recognize Samuel Ryan, but the innocent simpleton or fool from earlier that evening.

He was there when she froze the courtyard. She appeared to remember him. Why is she standing off, especially with the King of the Southern Isles? She must have a reason for getting him out of the way. He tries to think about everything that has happened in the last year. She wanted space. He gave her space. When she needed him, he was there for her, but since coming back from her trip, she has changed and acts very unwelcoming to him. Sadness touches his mind and his heart aches. She left and did not say goodbye. With his head resting in his hands, his eyes close to block out the surrounding noise.

Later in the day, a screech startles him awake. The eagle leans past the rails and flaps his wings. With each downward thrust, the eagle flies upward and over the wall. He watches it soar towards the open sea. Stars flicker in the sky as the last rays of the sun reflect off the clouds. A small sliver of the moon peeks through the clouds as if it is grinning at him. The sound of several seamen arguing drifts over the castle wall. Earlier in the afternoon, the flag of the Southern Isle's ship snapped in the breeze. The ship's mask that held the flag is gone.

"Maybe she needs more space. I did say if she found someone else, I would step aside. How stupid of me to say that." He glances at the door and rubs the back of his neck. "Why do I do these things? Maybe this is not the right timeline."

He checks the still locked door and sees no lights in the room. He shakes his head. "Anna, how can this be a good thing?"

He looks over the rail for anyone standing directly below the balcony. Climbing onto the rail, he jumps. He lands with a cloud of dust rising from where his body impacts the ground. The courtyard collects payment by removing the top layer of skin off his arm and tearing the seam in the sleeve. With a moan he rolls to his knees and brushes the dust off his clothes.

Kai glances up at the balcony before looking at him. "Where have you been?"

Sam stands and brushes the dirt off his pants. "Why don't you ask Anna? She locked me out onto the balcony."

"Oh, I did see her with Kristoff in the library a couple of hours ago. She must have forgotten." Kai tries not to look at him.

Pain aches in his knees as Sam walks towards him. "You're not a very good liar. Did Elsa get back from her ride with the brothers?"

Kai stares at him and hesitates. "I know they needed to leave with the tide and the ship is not at the pier. Queen Elsa said she would be on the ship when it departed. She left Anna in charge. Did she tell you she would be gone for several weeks?"

His head shakes as his eyes close. "Several weeks, how many weeks are in several?" He takes a step back and clutches the back of his head. "Has she left already?"

Sam clinches his hands and taps his forehead as he speaks through his clenched teeth, "She said she would be back soon." His body rotates towards the gate, but his feet are slow to shift under his weight and he stumbles. "I didn't know soon meant several weeks."

Despite only slits across his eyes, the torches blind his sight. His heart blinded him to miss the signs. Now, conflict and confusion reigns in his mind. The pain in the back of his head chokes his neck. There might as well be real hands choking the life out of him, but it is his heart that has breached his mind. The battle of logic and emotions fight for control. One thought after another jumps to the forefront of his mind as they question his heart. He stumbles and falls to the ground as his body waits for a winner.

In rapid succession his mind throws logic at his heart. _Has his trust been betrayed again? Your emotions allowed an enemy inside of his wall only to turn against him? Why did you throw his emotions at his cautionary logic, when he first saw her as a young woman? For God's sake, he is older than her grandfather,_ his mind screams.

His heart answers with logic. Y _our brain may be old, but this body is the same age as Frederick._ It counters with another emotional strike. _If we are as old as you claim, why did you give the essences of our life to her? You say she should have died. What is your reason for saving her?_

After a noticeable hesitation, his mind answers. _She was innocent. You know as well as I, she is the builder and I am the cornerstone. Our future depends on her._

 _Therefore, we agree, we have to find her._

 _Yes._

Kai rolls him onto his hands and knees. He grabs Sam's arm. "Keep your hand over your eyes and look down." He helps Sam to his feet. "There is no reason to scare the staff with your eyes. Walk slowly, I will get you inside." Up the step and through the door, they enter the castle.

Gerda runs over to them. "What's wrong with him?"

Kai ignores the question and instead asks, "Is the side room open?"

"Yes, it's open. I have to clear out some stuff, but his cot is still in there." She walks ahead of them and opens the door.

Kai guides Sam into the room and onto the cot. Gerda removes his boots. "Your clothes smell like you have not washed them in a week or so. I'll see if I can find something you can wear if you will get out of these clothes." She places his boots at the end of the cot and walks out.

Kai stands in front of him. "You are a big boy. Get your clothes off so they can be washed."

"Why bother? They will get dirty again."

"That is a true statement. Despite what our Queen is doing, that does not give you the right to stink up the place. Right now my nose is very offended."

Sam staggers to his feet, but is able to stand. "I remember this room." He points to the side wall with a shelf holding different vegetables and sacks of grains. "The former King and Queen sat there when I revealed my true self." He sits and pulls off his shirt and trousers. "That was the worst mistake I made since coming here. Then I made the King's decision for him. I showed them the future of their Princess Elsa. I saved her life and condemned her to a world of isolation."

Holding Sam's clothes out at arm's length, he exits the room and hands them to the laundry woman. "Please get these cleaned as soon as possible."

"Yes sir." She wrinkles her nose and holds them in front of her as she walks down the hall.

Waving her hand in front of her face Gerda walks up to him. "I did not find any clothes that will fit him, so are you going to tell me what's wrong with him."

He pulls her into a big hug. "His heart is being crushed and his mind is trying to restore order. He remembers the day all changed in that room. The sad part is she doesn't know she's doing it."

"Our beloved Queen?"

"Her sister didn't help the matter by locking him out on the balcony all afternoon." He looks down at his wife. "Maybe you should talk to Anna in the morning and when Elsa returns find out what Sam's position is in her life if at all."

"Are you kidding? I have caught Elsa daydreaming. She has confessed on some days she can't think of anything other than Sam. He has become a distraction."

"Sounds like they are trying too hard not to bother the other, but they can't see how miserable they are making themselves. I do recall a certain young man who had a fancy to a certain strong independent woman. The two would not have officially met, if we didn't give them a little push towards each other." Kai smiles down at Gerda. "Do you think we still have some of that magic left?"

Gerda grins. "I bet we do. We should try."

"They are on the verge of going their separate ways. We can't make it worse."

"So you talk to Sam and I'll talk to Elsa?" Gerda giggles.

Kai bends down and kisses Gerda's forehead. "Absolutely."

"I think Ingrid and Charles would be proud of their girl's choices, if we can just get Elsa to choose."

End of Chapter


	73. Chapter 72 Trust Again

Title: Chp-72 Trust Again

2 years, 2 months until correction.

The morning sun breaks through the low level clouds and clears the fog from the fjord. A warm gust of air blows in from the ocean. The sun pushes the clouds further north. The day appears fresh and clean, but northern clouds fight to move south and bring a hint of cold weather.

Sam walks his gray mare out of the stables. He spots Kai motioning to someone, as he climbs onto his horse. He nudges Aurora towards the main gates.

Standing next to Kai, Gerda smiles and waves at him.

Sam nods to the both of them. Normally they are too busy with maintaining the orderly function of the castle to see him leave for his weekly ride into the hills. So why are they watching him now? What are they conspiring.

As he is about to pass them, Gerda starts to speak, but Anna runs out of the castle doors and down the steps. "Sam wait." She grabs the reins and Aurora stops. "So where are you going?"

He narrows his eyes at Gerda. She shrugs her shoulders.

Aurora side steps and turns her head towards Anna. Sam pushes Aurora's head forward. "You better not. I will put you back in the stables and get another horse." Aurora snorts and stomps the ground.

Anna steps back. "What did she do?"

"She was going to pull your hair."

Anna walks up the step and watches his horse. "Why would she do that? Has she done this to Elsa?"

He scratches Aurora's neck. "She becomes possessive of me when someone interferes with our planned ride together." He shakes his fist at Kai and Gerda. "And yes, to date, I have successfully prevented the same thing from happening to your sister."

"Oh, she would not like that." Anna points her finger at Aurora. "In case you have not heard, my sister can make it extremely cold for you." She snickers.

He stares at her, no smile.

Anna tries to smile, but vocalizes a sigh. She asks, "By chance are you going near where Kristoff is harvesting ice?"

He continues to stare at her as his body gradually turns towards the castle and glances at Kai and Gerda. "If Kristoff wanted you to be with him why did he not take you with him yesterday?"

Anna glances around sheepishly and touches his knee before looking up at him. "We had a disagreement yesterday." She looks around again, but hesitantly continues. "I wish to make it up to him. It was a silly disagreement. I did not hear what he was saying. I may have said something to hurt his feelings." She peeks up at him.

"I know that trick, so you tuck your bottom lip back in before Aurora steps on it."

"Please."

Sam looks towards the mountains. Depending on which lake Kristoff is harvesting, it could take all day to find him or they could miss him all together. This is supposed to be a casual ride. Aurora is going to need a lot of brushing to make up for this detour.

Another hand touches his leg. Gerda leans towards Anna. "If he refuses to help, go ask Kai to take you to Kristoff. I know he is a kind gentleman and will help you."

Sam nudges Aurora towards the steps.

Kai shakes his head and points to Anna then to him.

He sighs at Gerda's smile. "Nothing like starting the day with my plans changed for me." Sam nods to Anna. "Okay, Princess, I will take you to Kristoff." He leans down and offers his hand.

Anna squeals as she claps her hands. "Thank you, I'll be right back." She runs back into the castle.

Gerda walks up the steps.

"Why didn't you let me go?"

Gerda glances over her shoulder. "You need a distraction to help you to figure things out. Anna will give you a perspective to think about."

Kai stands by the door and grins at him

Sam guides Aurora over to the steps and scratches her neck. "Do you think she will be long?"

Aurora looks at the castle door and shakes her head.

Anna runs out and tosses a picnic basket up at him. As he catches it, she steps on his foot, grabs his arm, and pulls herself onto the back of his horse.

He peeks over his shoulder. "Are you comfortable back there?"

"Yes, I am fine." She wraps her arms around his waist.

"Well, I'm not." He taps her hands. "Let go."

She drops her arms to her side.

He slides off Aurora's back. He motions to Anna. "Move into the saddle."

"Okay." She wiggles herself into the saddle and prevents her dress from exposing too much of herself.

He hands the picnic basket up to her.

As his boot steps into the stirrup, Aurora moves forward. Sam pushes away and falls to his knees. Anna looks away with a smile. He tries again and swings his leg up, but Aurora moves her rear. He pushes away so he does not fall under her. Brushing the dirt off his pants he grabs the reins and touches his head to her head. "I know this was not our plan. We will continue on a later date." On the third try he swings up behind Anna.

Anna snickers, "And you did not have a dress to control."

After making an adjustment, he peeks over her shoulder. "Are you okay to ride?"

She takes the reigns. "I am fine. Hold on." With a light snap of the reins, she kicks her heals back.

Aurora does not move.

"What is wrong with your horse? Why is she not moving?" She jiggles the reins again and kicks her heels back harder.

Sam reaches around her and grabs the reins before she could snap them again. "You must not have had someone ride a horse with you. You have been kicking me."

She shifts in the saddle to look back at him. "Why did you not say something the first time?"

"I was about to when you kicked me again." He draws his legs up. "Try it again, more gently and talk to her."

Anna smiles at him and faces forward. "Okay Aurora, take it slow." She taps the reins against Aurora's neck and softly kicks back.

Aurora snorts and walks towards the gates.

A minute later and munching on a carrot Kristoff stands next to Kai. "Where are they going?"

Kai does not turn, but continues watching the two ride through the gates. "They are going where you were harvesting ice."

"Where I went, the ice is too thin to be harvested. I'll get Sven, and we can stop them before they get too far."

Kai grabs Kristoff's arm. "There is no need. Anna wishes to talk to Sam. I'm sure they will be back in a couple of hours."

"Does he know the Southern ship is hiding in the shadows of the mountain in the fjord?"

"No and I highly recommend you do not mention it to him or Anna."

"Anna already knows."

Kai turns to the door as he shakes his head. "Well, they may come back sooner than expect."

Kristoff walks down the steps and towards the stables. "There is too much deceit going on that could blow up in everyone's face. Queen Elsa should have been honest with him. I know how I would feel if it was Anna traveling and everyone acted deceitful around me.

Most women say hello and comment to Anna. Few men comment directly to Sam, but wait until he passes. One is brave enough and says, "While our Queen is away, the monster will play with the little sister."

Sam snaps his head around at the old man pointing his cane at him. "We will talk when I get back."

"You don't frighten me."

Sam grins. "Good."

Anna taps his leg. "Leave him alone, before you give him a heart attack." They ride in silence well past Arendelle's walls. She glances towards the castle. "So, where were you going if I had not come along? Do not touch my neck to read my mind."

He responds with a puff of air past her ear.

She shrugs and wipes her ear against her shoulder. "Did you spit on me? You better not have spit on me. In case you have not heard, I have a strong right jab."

He whispers, "I can freeze you into a solid block of ice and slide you back to the castle front doors."

"Elsa would not like that."

"Then don't try to intimidate someone who spent his entire life intimidating others with words and violence."

She lowers her head and mumbles, "I was just trying to talk to you. I meant no harm. I am sorry."

They ride a little further in silence before Sam commands, "Aurora stop." His horse stops and munches on a bush.

Sam wraps his arms around her and feels her body tense. As he leans forward he draws her close. "While I was on the balcony, Elsa told me not to scan anyone until she returned. I know she traveled to the Southern Isle and she did not have any guards with her. That is a careless decision on her part. I suspect she is under great stress and she does not want me to help." He rests his head on her shoulder before continuing. "I love your sister. I will do anything to protect her and I will do whatever she commands. I am in a conflict. I cannot protect her if she commands me to wait. So I'm pleading with you, IS SHE SAFE?"

She looks back at him. "Yes, she is safe. That is why King Fredrick and his brothers were here."

Her eyes look past him long enough for him to notice. He lets go of her and turns his body to see where she was looking. The flags on the castle reflect in the sunlight. The terrain hides most of the castle. He searches along the tree line across the fjord.

Anna lightly fluffs the hairs on his arm. He watches her. "What are you doing?"

"The hair on your arm is coarser than Kristoff's."

"You have touched my arm before now."

"I know." She runs her small fingers through his arm's hair. "Before Kristoff and I had our disagreement last night, I was thinking he had finer hair on his arm, but later, I did not remember if all men had fine hair or if some men had coarser hair. Well, I know, now." She points to a narrow path several meters ahead of them. "Let us go that way. We took the path looking for Elsa when she mistakenly froze everything. That is a shortcut to the pond."

Anna guides Aurora to the incline path. At the top, Aurora's hooves clop on the large plateau that looks more like a large section of the mountain rock broken off. Across the way another path leads up. A cool breeze sweeps down from the north. Anna shutters and her exposed skin responds to the cold.

Sam pulls on the reins. Aurora stops.

She looks back at him. "Why did we stop?"

"How much higher is Kristoff?"

"Not far."

He stares at her.

"What?"

"Have you been on a harvest with Kristoff?"

"Yes, I have." She looks away with her chin up and crosses her arms. The chilly bumps rise on her arms and the back of her neck.

"The last time you harvest with Kristoff, what outer garments did you wear?"

She looks back at him. "I believe I had a wool cape with me. Why do you ask?"

He grins. "I bet that cape was nice and toasty as it kept you warm."

"Oh yes, I was very warm." With a forced smile she hugs herself as another breeze sweeps across the plateau.

He stares at her. Anna is always prepared, but not this time. What was the distraction? Was it a mistake on her own part or did two individuals help her to make this decision? Does Kristoff know? He slides off Aurora. He takes the picnic basket and sets it on an elevated section of the plateau.

Anna points towards the mountain. "We have to keep going. I want to get there before Kristoff delivers his load of ice."

"If you knew to bring a cape the last time you were up here, how is it you happen to forget this time?"

"Okay." She slides off Aurora and prances over to the picnic basket. Taking out a large cloth from the basket, she spreads it out onto the ground and sets out two sandwiches.

Sam watches. "Are you expecting Kristoff to come down and eat with you?"

She pats the cloth in front of her. He does not move and Aurora places her head over his shoulder.

Sam leans his head against her. "Do you think so?" Aurora nods her head and neighs. He reaches up and removes the reins. "Okay, don't go far." Aurora shakes her head and eats the grass growing in the cracks of the plateau.

Anna stares at their interaction. "Were you talking to the horse?"

He cocks his head. "Did you hear me neigh back at her? No, I did not talk to her. I communicated with Aurora. She said she thinks you are up to something."

Anna's eyes widened. She looks down. "Please come and sit with me."

"Why?"

"I do not wish for anyone to hear my apology."

"Unless Kristoff walks out from the bushes, no one will hear us up here. No one would have heard you outside of the wall."

She lightly pats the cloth. "Please."

After a moment he sits across from her. "Apologize for what?"

She sheepishly peeks up. "When I locked you out on the balcony, it is not entirely my fault." She perks up. "Kristoff and I sneaked into the library and . . . well . . . one thing leads to another and I lost track of time. I meant to keep you out there just for an hour."

"An hour," his eyes narrow, "that would mean if you had let me in at the one hour point I would not have seen Elsa, Frederick, and his brothers ride away." His facial muscles tense and his teeth clench together.

"Please do not look at me like that. I can see the hate in your eyes."

"Not hate, disappointment."

She flinches as though he threw a snowball at her. Anna holds her hands close to her heart.

Before he could speak, Aurora neighs. At the edge of the cliff, she looks back at him and neighs again. Sam walks towards her. She walks down a path hidden by a large boulder and tall shrubbery. He follows the short path slightly wider than a horse. The path opens to a flat secluded area pressed against the sheared off rock face. The area is large enough for Aurora to turn around comfortably. She munches on a bush growing near the edge.

Sam notes the ground with many cracks. He looks over the edge. A hundred meters down a large flat rock with similar grain structures as the cliff, creates an opening in the vegetation below.

"Don't know how safe this is."

Aurora stops next to him and stomps the ground as she neighs.

He pats her neck. "No stomping. Do not test the safety load of this ledge."

She nickers. Her ears and nose points towards the fjord.

Aurora neighs again and nods her head as though she is pointing to something. He sees the tops of the castle and the trees lining the shore, but not the fjord's water. In his peripheral he sees movement, but every time he tries to focus on it, he does not see anything out of the ordinary. He sees it. The movement brings his focus to a bare tree branch. The tree sways, while the other trees behind it do not move. Red, blue and white swings out from the tree. The mostly blue field and white bars surrounded by red trims reveals the flag of a Southern Isle ship.

His fist clinches to his side as he watches the flag. A small rock bounces and slides to a stop next to his foot. Aurora turns her head to look behind them. Sam's fist tightens. Through his clenched teeth he asks, "Anna freeze. . . Is she on that ship?"

Anna's boot crunch against the hard ground. She places her hand above her eyes to block the sunlight. "What ship? Where are you looking?"

He slowly turns his head to observe her actions. Is this the reason she wanted me up here? Is this why Elsa commended me not to scan them? They all knew. Is Kristoff in on their plan? Is he even up here?

"Let me show you what I can do by pointing it out." He holds his right hand out to measure the distance and projected arc. His hand reveals a fist size snowball. Leaning back, he throws the snowball. As it travels to the peak of the arc, the snowball grows in size. If it is a ship and his Queen is not on the ship, the crew will be drenched with a cold downpour of rain.

As the snowball travels on the down side of the arc, it disintegrates well above the height of the ships mask. An emerald green tint surrounds Anna. "That ship."

Anna watches in horror and slowly turns to him.

Sam quickly walks back to the picnic blanket. Aurora follows close behind him. He places the reins over her head.

Anna walks up to him. "Are you trying to kill them?"

"They are fine and so is she." He aggressively tosses her on to Aurora's back and pushes the reins into her hands. His head touches Aurora's neck. "Take the Princess back to the castle. Do not stop. I'll have a treat for you when I get there."

Anna starts to speak, "I didn't know. I thought—"

"It doesn't matter, now," he interrupts. His heart pounds in his chest. "I trusted you."

With a solid swat, Aurora races back towards the castle. He climbs to the top of the boulder. The snow glistens in the sunlight on the parts of the ship caught under the remnant of the snowball.

King Frederick stands on the quarter deck searching where his crew is pointing.

Elsa walks up the stairs to stand next to him. She rubs the thin layer of ice off her hands.

He glances at her. "Was he trying to sink this ship?"

She shakes her head. "No, he was trying to determine if I was on this ship."

"Well, I guess he knows for sure." Frederick peeks through a spyglass towards the cliffs. Just as quickly, he lowers the spy glass.

"What do you see," Elsa asks.

"There is a horse with a red head rider." He peeks through the spyglass. "But towards the edge of the cliff, it looks like a man with vivid green eyes."

Elsa takes the spyglass. "Let me see." A gray horse running carries a red head rider with two ponytails. Following the cliff edge, she sees someone walking away, and then he turns to reveal his crystal green eyes. "That is him."

"Do you wish to disembark the ship before we get too far?"

"No, we will continue to Ireland as planned."

Frederick issues commands and the crew set the sails.

Elsa watches the cliff for as long as she can. "I beg you to hold on for a little longer."

Sam sits on the boulder and watches the ship sail over the horizon. He lies back. The boulder radiates the sun's heat into his body. _Why didn't I scan the ship? A miscalculation and many would be dead._ An eastern star winks as if to answer him.

Despite the events of the past year, he has to focus on the now, not what might or might not be. She said she needed him to trust her. She has not given him any reason not to trust. Her actions in the past few days have tested his resolve. The night's coolness creeps up on him. More stars wink at him. A meteor passes through the atmosphere and blazes across the sky for a few seconds.

"Is that your way of saying it will be alright? Is it an omen of death as the local folks believe?"

 _Elsa, I do not understand._

Sometime later, the night drapes its dark hand over his closed eyes, but his hearing and mind stays alert. A family of foxes eats near his feet with one jumping on his chest. It sniffs his face. His mind determines the fox is no threat to him, so he does not move. They run as a wolf howls. Moments later two adults and two younger wolves trot up to him. They take turns sniffing at him and the adult male licks his hand. The younger pups also lick his hand. They stay around until the eastern sky changes to a lighter blue. A cool breeze blows in from the north.

His senses tingle with the movement of a large animal. The cool air around him gives way to a flickering heat above his head. His eyes snap open.

"I was wondering if you were alive." A blonde male leans over him.

"Did Anna arrive safely and why are you here?"

Kristoff sets the lantern on a smaller boulder and looks out into the valley. "She arrived physically ok, but was very upset."

"Why?"

"She thinks you hate her because you threw her on your horse, roughly." Kristoff glances back. "Aurora trotted up to the steps and stomped the stones until I came out and helped Anna down. She kept saying you hated her because she deceived you."

"So I am being deceived?"

"Not intentionally, they are trying to keep a secret. They are going about it the wrong way." He walks to the other side of the boulder and peers at the fjord and the distant ocean. "I told them it could blow up in their faces if they were not careful. Before you ask, I don't know what the secret is. I told them not to tell me if they wanted to keep the secret." Kristoff points to the horizon. "Is that the mask of a ship out there?"

Sam raises his head and looks to where Kristoff is pointing. "Yes, it is. It looks like it is flying a British flag. Maybe it's going to Christiania." He lowers his head back onto the boulder. "Are you going to answer my second question?"

"Why am I here? It seems you had a bad day yesterday, so I'm seeing how you are feeling."

Sam snorts. "Feeling, why do I not believe you?"

"Okay, Anna is concerned about you and doesn't want you to hate her."

"I do not hate Anna. At least she is concerned about my wellbeing." Sam sits up to face the rising sunlight.

"You don't think Elsa is concerned about your wellbeing?"

"I know she does."

"That didn't sound too convincing. How do you know?" Kristoff peeks back at him.

Sam stares at his boots to focus his thoughts before answering. "It's the way she conducts herself when I am near."

"What do you mean?" Kristoff turns to him.

"She smiles a lot more when I'm near. She seems to talk a lot more than when she is around others. Before she left for the Southern Isles, she was in the weekly council meeting. I could feel her stress building. She was getting a headache and I think she was forming snowflakes under the table."

"How did you know she was stressing?"

"When Anna rode back yesterday did you think she just had a fun time?"

"No."

"How did you know something was wrong?"

"She was crying. Her face was puffy and red."

Sam plants his feet onto the ground. Leaning against the boulder, he crosses his arms and bows his back for a good stretch. "Other than the visual clues of the tears and the puffiness and color of her face, how did you know something was wrong?"

"When she got off your horse, she hugged me and put her face into my chest. She was shaking. Not a lot, but I could feel her shaking and her body felt tense."

Sam nods. "When I sense others pain, it is as though I am holding them as you felts Anna's pain. With Elsa, it's different. The tensing, the clutching of her hands, the increase heartbeat, the constriction of her blood vessels due to her body tensing causes her headaches, I felt every bit of her pain as though it was happening to me. Except because I was sensing her mind, her pain is amplified." He shakes his head as he looks to the rising sun. "I asked her to let me talk to the council members, but she said she can handle it. I think they are pushing her on purpose."

"I didn't know you were able to sense Elsa's pain." Kristoff says.

"It also has its good side. I met her at her door when they stopped for the noon meal. She did pretty much what Anna did to you yesterday. She just wanted a hug, so I just held her not saying anything. After a few minutes she smiled up at me and said thank you. Her headache was gone. Her body released the tension. Elsa said she was glad she hired me."

Kristoff frowns. "Wait, she pays you to be there?"

Sam smiles. "Just seeing if you were listening to me. Elsa does not pay me anything except the privilege of holding her."

"So what do your senses say about her now?"

"I don't know."

Kristoff frowns again, "I thought you said you could sense Elsa's emotions?"

"I can. When Anna locked me out on the balcony, I scanned for her and found Elsa taking a bath. She was a little upset and asked me not to read anyone's thoughts until she said it was okay to do so."

"How is it she saw you if you were on the balcony?"

"That's a little harder to explain," he replies. "She has a lot of my abilities and more. One day she will use every one of them in her daily life."

"If your senses cannot detect her, are you afraid?"

Sam faces the western sky as the darkness retreats from the coming light. He points towards it. "Do you see those stars?"

Kristoff looks at the blue sky. "I see one and it will be gone soon."

"A half hour ago, you would have seen a thousand stars and yet now, you see only the one. What happened to the other nine-hundred and ninety-nine stars?" He stands next to Kristoff.

"They are still there. I know because when the sun sets they will come back."

"You are correct. I pray you will never have to experience what I'm about to tell you." He bumps his shoulder into Kristoff. "Do you want to know the secret to a great marriage?"

Kristoff turns to him.

"You and Anna may not be able to read each other's mind, but you can create the allusion that you can. And it is very simple, just watch her. Both of you have the habits of doing the same thing around the same time every day. Learn what she does. Learn what she likes and better still, learn what she does not like. And the secret? Since she cannot read your mind, you have to tell her and she needs to tell you. Walk in each other's shoes. See from the other's perspective." Sam shakes his head as he looks at his hands. "Don't let the business of the day keep you from talking to her and holding her and passionately kissing her."

A vision of his lover creeps into his mind. So many battles from so many wars, they found the time to be together. They shared the same fear, but it did not stop them from performing their missions. It became a ritual to a moment together. His mind allows his heart to yearn for her. After each fighter operation, he personally debriefed Captain Ladycat in a warm bath.

"Are you okay?" Kristoff asks.

Sam opens his eyes. A dark spot on his shirt gradually increases in size. As he turns his head away, his hand wipes the corner of his eye. "Some dust must have gotten into my eyes." He steps closer to the edge of the cliff and holds his arms open to the sky. "Where I come from, men and women fight side by side. On my command ship, the two strongest and bravest fighters were women and I was married to one of them. Before each mission, I met LadyCat after she briefed her team. We would walk. When either of us found a moment of solitude behind a container, their equipment, or in a short hallway, we hugged and one of us passionately kissed the other."

He holds his clasped hands to his chest. "But on her last mission, we had an opportunity and she walked away. I don't blame her. I blame the Sariphan ship that open the green dragon's mouth and flew in, three years prior." He looks to Kristoff and blinks the excess moisture out of his eyes. "That is when I lost my way. The same dragon swallowed me as my lover and our little girl died with my ship."

He pulls the sleeve on his shirt to wipe his face. "Even if there is one minuscule possibility of saving them, I must take it."

Kristoff rests his hand on Sam's shoulder. "Does Elsa know?"

"I thought she did, but the way I feel right now, I'm not sure. Do you know where she has gone?"

"No, I do not. If I did I would tell you."

"I know you would." He steps closer to the cliff's edge and points towards the castle. "Do you know how many times I sat right here and watched her grow up, particularly the years following her parent's death?" His voice wavers. "I watched and could do nothing to help her or Anna. Just as it was then, if anything happens to her now, I cannot help."

"Do you miss her?"

 _Why do you hesitate? Where is the courage that helped you to survive until LadyCat returned from her missions? Your heart and mind fight for control. Both are right and both are wrong. To me,_ says the 17 year old Samuel, _both of you fight for the same cause. Both of you are causing Queen Elsa's pain. Other than LadyCat, Elsa has been very kind and generous to us. She deserves better and the truth._

"Did you hear what I said? Do you miss her?"

Sam looks back at him. "Where is this going?"

"A moment ago, you told me she appears happiest when you are around. Do you feel the same way about her?"

 _There, even he knows. You are breaking our heart and Elsa's heart. If you will not listen to us, listen to them. Give them a fair analysis of their evidence and words._

Kristoff does not wait for his answer. "Someone once asked me a question not long ago. I will ask you

. Can you see living your life without her?"

He face him. "I knew that question would come back at me. I just didn't think it would be so soon." He pauses for a moment and then smiles. "The answer is no. I mean, if she turns me down I would move on, but with a great heartache."

"Do you trust her?"

His left brow rise slightly. "Of course I trust her. What are you implying?"

Kristoff shakes his head as he picks up the lantern. "You trusted her when you were in contact with her. Now that you can't or will not contact her at her request, why do you have doubts? What has changed to create these doubts?"

Sam looks at the fjord, then the sun, back to the fjord, to the horizon and finally back at Kristoff walking towards Sven. "You are right. Nothing has changed between us. Maybe I should give her some leeway. It doesn't change the fact that I miss her."

Nodding his head, Sven looks at him. Kristoff waves his hand not looking back, but continues to walk down the path.

Several hours later, Kristoff returns Sven to his stall. Anna meets him as he closes the stable gate. "Well, what did he say? Does he hate me for deceiving him?"

Kristoff takes Anna in his arms and passionately kisses her before he replies. "No, he does not hate you, a little disappointed, but does not hate you."

"Is he coming back?" she asks still holding on to him.

"Probably not." They walk to the castle.

She pulls him to a stop. "Why not?"

He pulls her to walk with him. "Because he misses her."

Anna stops, but Kristoff keeps walking. "Misses her?" She looks to the hills and grins. "Do you think?"

"Yes, he does," Kristoff replies before she can answer her own question. "I just hope he will survive the ordeal, until she gets back."

She catches up to her husband and holds his hand. "So do I."

Two snowflakes dance around each other as they ride the cold breeze from the north. They pass close, but do not touch. The breeze lifts one, then the other. One passes close to the exhaust vent of a lantern. It falls onto the bridge's rail. Its shape is not that of a snowflake, but a ball of ice with a tiny spike as if it was reaching up. The second snowflake glitters from the lantern's light and flows over the rail. Finally, the breeze stops. The snowflake flows down. At the last moment the front edge lifts up to carry it the last few centimeters. It lands on the ice ball and gently covers it as if to say, I will protect you. In a matter of seconds, their individuality merges to become one and will be one as they melt with the rising sun.

End of Chapter


	74. Chapter 73 The Sword

Title: Chp-73, The Sword

2 Years and 2 Months until Correction

For a moment the sun light breakers through the clouds and reveals the small village. The Southern Isle ship's Captain walks up to the First Officer next to the rail and looks through a spyglass. "Is that the Ballyvaghan?"

"Aye Captain, the village has a few more buildings and boats, since the last time I was here," answers the first officer with a noticeable Irish accent.

A strong breeze sweeps across the ship and the Southern Isle flag snaps to attention for all to see. The Captain turns into the wind. "Clouds are building in the east. I hope this will be a quick visit. I don't think we can make it to a safe harbor if that is a big storm." He glances back at the first officer. "Get ashore as soon as you can."

The first officer hands the spyglass to the Captain as he walks past him. "Aye." He yells at the crew. "Lower the longboat. You four are going with me."

The crew hurries to lower the longboat into the water. The officer and the four crewmen climb down the ladder. They row feverishly to the fishing port and tie up to a pier. The officer is met by a local official who hands him a letter. The officer tucks the letter into his jacket and steps back into the boat.

A short time later, the first officer climbs back aboard the ship and marches to the quarter deck. As he hands the letter to the Captain, he says, "The official is on the dock waiting for a reply before the tide changes and the seas get a little rough." The officer points to the east. "He said with the wind blowing this way and the lightning in the storm will cross after dark."

The Captain stuffs the letter in his coat pocket. "Well, I hope they are ready. They will be safer on shore than on this ship when the storm hits." He walks down the stairs and disappears below deck. Stopping in front of the first mate's cabin, he knocks on the door and hands the letter to King Frederick.

Frederick inspects the seal on the letter and walks the short corridor to knock on the Captains quarters. A latch clicks as Queen Elsa opens the door.

"Are you feeling better?" Frederick asks as he steps into the cabin.

"I guess I may never get my sea legs. I did not think last night's rain was going to bother me after I got so sick on the first night. I have improved."

He holds up the letter.

Elsa smiles upon seeing the name on the letter, Daniel O'Connell. She lets out an emotional "yes" and reads the letter. She looks up at Frederick. "Daniel O'Connell says he has interesting information about the sword provided to him by the Irish ambassador, Shaun Brady. He will meet us at the tavern on the east side of the village. His local contact will send for him, once we are ashore. We are to be his guest."

Frederick frowns, "I don't like this if he is not already there. Why not meet us at a village with a proper port where the ship can dock, instead of having to take a longboat to shore?"

Elsa folds the letter as she smiles up at him. "If this sword is the Irish sword of their old kings, I can understand the secrecy."

"I hope you are right, but I'm going with you along with three others, No arguments," Frederick states.

"Agree," Elsa replies.

The Captain says, "There is a storm heading our way. If you take too long, you may get caught on shore."

"It will take me a moment to get ready." Elsa replies as Frederick steps out and closes the door.

Several minutes later, Elsa and Frederick walk onto the deck as several men climb into the longboat. Frederick calls out, "Captain, we are ready to go ashore?"

"You need to hurry. There is a sand bar that is creating waves with the outgoing tide."

"Good, time to go." Elsa drapes a hooded cape over her shoulders as she walks past them towards the longboat.

The First Officer and the ship's crew assist Queen Elsa and King Frederick into the longboat and lower it into the water. The crew struggles to get the longboat past the sandbar, but they do arrive at the dock with little water splashing their passengers. The First Officer disembarks and meets the local official.

The official escorts Elsa, Frederick, the First Officer, and three crewmen to waiting carriages. The short ride takes them past the central buildings and few homes. The carriages stop in front of the tavern. The inn keeper greets them and shows Elsa and Frederick to an upstairs room. Before leaving the inn, the keeper informs Elsa a rider has been dispatched to the town of Ennin and does not expect a reply for several days. The First Officer and two crewmen stand guard outside of the room. For three days it rains continuously. A thunderstorm blows in off the sea and rattles the windows follow by heavy and light showers. King Frederick would only allow one maid into the room. Each time Queen Elsa protests, King Frederick reminds her, Ireland is a subject of English rule.

On the afternoon of the third day while Elsa and Frederick eat a late meal, the Inn Keeper enters. "Majesties, your host has arrived. If you are finished with your meal, I will take you to him. Afterwards, I will bring your dessert and a bottle of wine to your room."

Elsa says, "No dessert for me, but the wine will help me to sleep."

Frederick pats his abdomen. "I do not need it, but dessert and wine will do me good."

"Very good Majesties, please follow me." The Keeper escorts them down the stairs and into a back room.

The Keeper closes the door. Daniel O'Connell steps out of a small room. He bows to the both of them. "Queen Elsa, King Frederick, I hope your trip was uneventful and pleasant."

"Once we got past the storms, we had smooth sailing. The people here have been very generous and we thank them for their hospitality," Frederick replies.

"Good, I apologize for my delay. I had to make sure the British were not watching you. The Queen may forgive you, but I'm not one of their favorite subjects right now. Let me get to the point as to why you're here." Daniel places a long rectangle, narrow box on the table. Unlashing the hook, he opens the box and removes a green cloth covering a highly polished sword.

"I have been informed, you wish to determine if this sword belonged to the last Irish King to unite Ireland. There are two markings on this sword that would imply an Irish King and possibly a British King owned this sword." Daniel turns the sword and points to a symbol. "This symbol represents an Irish family, and in this case, it belongs to Toirdhealbhach Ua Conchobair or as historian's state, (Turlough the Great). While there were other kings after his death in 1156, the Irish High Kingship ceased to exist in 1171 when the British King Henry II appointed his youngest son John as 'Lord of Ireland."

Daniel flips the sword over. "We have no means to determine the age of this sword or if it belonged to Turlough the Great. Family records describe a sword similar to this one. An old document listing the King's sword, also gives a description of Turlough's sword that matches most of this sword. History tells us only the King would engrave their symbol on their swords. Please understand if this is the Turlough's sword, it is close to eight-hundred years old. I have never heard of any sword surviving in this immaculate condition."

Daniel turns the sword and points to the second symbol. "This symbol is believed to be of English origins. Again, we do not have the means to determine the accuracy. Even if the British agrees this symbol is of English origins, they would never tell us. If anything they would take the sword and hide it in their King's collection. In the letter you sent me, you asked if the English symbol refers to the legendary King Arthur," he shrugs, "only the British crown would know. If this is King Arthur's sword, Excalibur, it would make this sword 1300 years old."

He points to another symbol. "But there is a third symbol that appears to indicate a sun or ball of fire. We have no information what the sun would mean." Daniel hands the sword to Queen Elsa. He turns and picks up a book from the table. "Your majesty, it is possible that there could have been one sword used by King Author and by Turlough the Great. There is enough time between the two events to have one sword."

Elsa focuses on the sun symbol and sweeps her thumb across it. "Are you the Sariphan star?"

Daniel watches her and asks, "Why is it important to determine this is a King's sword?

Her fingers slide along the fuller of the blade. "This sword could prove the owner may have royal blood."

"I see. Does the owner think he is a King?" Daniel asks.

"No, the sword has been in his family, but he states he is a commoner."

"Why would you not believe him?"

"There have been other signs that would indicate he is of royal blood. If he truly is a commoner as he believes, our relationship will be lost," Elsa speaks with sadness.

"Aye, and the law say royal blood is not to be polluted with commoner's blood. As Queen, do you not have the authority to change the law?"

"Exactly my point." Frederick comments.

"I do have the final authority, but he argues against it. He can be very stubborn. I was hoping his sword would convince him." Elsa replies.

"Does he love you?" Daniel asks.

"Aye, he does. I have seen and felt it for myself." Frederick answers as he rubs his forehead.

Placing the book on the table, Daniel walks to the other side of the room and stares at a lantern hanging on the wall. He gradually turns back to them. "Queen Elsa, not long ago a group of individuals wished to expel the English from Ireland. With the English defeat in America, they were not in the mood to let this group start another rebellion. Over a hundred Irishman died at the hands of the English army. If word got out that this sword is Turlough the Great's sword, many Irish men and women would rally around it. Do you think the English would allow that to happen? They would send a sizable force to defeat the rebellion. If the British knew there was an Irish King with this sword, do you think they would allow him to return here?"

"If I were the British King, I would do whatever was necessary to make sure that King never arrived in Ireland, or send someone to eliminate him," Frederick answers.

Elsa snaps her head around towards Fredrick. "Assassination? Why?"

"If you capture a land and do not suppress the people's will, they could rise up against you or worse kill you."

"King Frederick is correct. After losing the Americas, the English will do whatever they need to keep Ireland under their influence. If it means killing a hundred thousand or more Irish men and women, that is what they will do. How many people would voluntarily die on a maybe?" Daniel leans against the edge of the table and watches the door as if he was expecting someone.

He takes the sword and places it back into the box as he speaks with a somber voice. "Queen Elsa, along the western coast of Ireland, pockets of farms have reported a blight in some of the vegetables received from America." The lid of the box snaps closed. "I will investigate these reports. If they are true, we will do what we can to stop it from moving to other farms. The British will do nothing to help us as long as they continue to receive their food shipments from Ireland."

Daniel looks back at her. "There will be a famine if it is not contained. Word of this sword could trigger a rebellion. If your friend were to show up here a hundred years from now, we might be able to break away from Britain. As of today, too many Irish would die for no cause. My advice to your friend, do not come here, especially with this sword in hand. The British have spies all over the place. They may already know about this meeting. Do me a favor," Daniel asks as he hands the box to her. "Take this sword and never bring it back. I am sorry you came on this trip needlessly. I cannot certify this sword belongs to Turlough the Great, let alone King Arthur."

Daniel removes a letter from the inside of his jacket pocket. "I offer you one circumstantial evidence. This is a copy of a letter sent to a nearby monastery. Turlough sent his sword to the monastery by his trusted friend, A Lord from the O'Tierney clan." Daniel glance at Frederick and nods to him as he continues. "Another letter sent to the monastery by Turlough's wife described Lord O'Tierney with white hair and a head taller than all the local men, a giant of a man with the Celtic symbol for fire and snow as birthmarks on the back of his hands."

"Queen Elsa, on the back of your gloves, I noticed an inlay of a flower or snowflake. Does your friend have gloves that have symbols on the back of them, perhaps a birthmark, tattoo, or a symbol on the back of his hands for fire and ice?" Daniel opens his book to the page showing the Celtic symbols for fire and ice.

Elsa studies the symbols, but after a moment, she shakes her head, no.

"It is just as well." Daniel tucks the book under his arm and opens the door. The local official sitting at a table stands. "My assistant will escort you back to your longboat." Daniel nods his head to them. "Good luck in your endeavors. I pray you will find your answers. Have a safe trip home."

Elsa nods to Daniel and holds the sword case with her arms wrapped around it. The official nods to them and motions towards the outer door. Frederick follows Elsa to the waiting carriage. As they turn onto the road to the harbor, two horses race out from behind the tavern along a trail leading into the hills.

"It seems our guests are in a hurry to leave the area." Elsa nods as she watches the riders crest a hill.

At the pier, Frederick lowers the sword box down to Elsa sitting in the boat. She pulls her hood over her head and wraps the sword inside of her cape. Frederick sits next to her.

The First Officer stands on the bow and pushes the longboat away from the pier. The four crewmen lower their oars into the water and row in practice unison. As they pass the sandbar, three horses with riders race through the village and take the same path as the two riders earlier.

The First Officer comments, "I hope your friends are not in trouble the way those horses are being pushed."

Frederick looks back at the shore to catch a glimpse of the riders cresting a hill.

As Frederick turns back, Elsa looks at him and says, "We are being watched behind me, half way up from the shoreline."

Frederick barely moves his head to see past her.

"I think they saw my face and my gloves when I pulled on the hood."

"I see him. He has a spyglass." A moment passes. "He is definitely watching us."

The First Officer looking through his own spyglass remarks, "He is an older man with light colored hair. I do not see a uniform." He commands, "Steer us to the ocean side of the ship."

The longboat navigates around the stern of their ship and comes along side. A seat is lowered to lift Elsa out of the boat. By the time her feet touch the deck, Frederick assists her out of the seat. With efficiency the crew latches the boat to the deck. The Captain with a spyglass watches the stranger on the hill watching them. The First Officer commands for sails. Frederick escorts Elsa to her cabin.

Moments later, Fredrick stands next to the Captain spying an object on the horizon. "Who do you see out there?"

"A British flag on the ship's mask," the Captain answers. He hands the spyglass to Frederick. "Earlier, I saw three British riders chase after two other riders leaving the village in a hurry. And someone watched the longboat from the shore to the ship. Should I be concerned? The British ship may have a friend waiting for us up the coast line?"

Frederick lowers the spyglass. "Continue as planned. I would rather the British stop us than a French ship."

"Aye, sir. Unless that storm forces us into a port, we should get home as scheduled."

Frederick stands at the rail and watches his pursuers. Several hours later, the British ship turns away from them. A seagull squawks as it rides the winds off the stern of the ship. It dips then floats up without a single flapping of its wings. The wind carries it high above the ships mask. The ship leans to port. The sun above the horizon drifts to the ships starboard side. Frederick watches until the sun's peak drops below the horizon. With one last scan along the horizon back to where they came, he walks to the lower deck. Frederick hands the spyglass to the Captain and walks into the cabin area.

He follows the crewman carrying a tray of food to the Captain's quarters. He waits for the crewman to leave and stands in the doorway.

Elsa motions him to come in. "There is more food than I will eat. Please join me."

Frederick steps in and the door closes.

Elsa closes the ink well and watches him. Frederick sits and serves himself a chunk of corned beef with carrots and greens with bacon. He asks, "Why did you not tell Daniel, Samuel has those symbols?"

"Would it do any good? Because of those symbols on his hands, Sam refuses to acknowledge he could be of royal blood. I suspect he already knows there will be needless deaths and he does not wish to be responsible for it."

He cuts off a small piece of meat. "Will you tell Samuel about O'Tierney's hands?"

She sits at the table. "At the right time I will." She folds her hand together and closes her eyes as her head bows. After a minute she looks up at Frederick watching her.

He asks, "When did you become a Lutheran?"

She breaks a piece of bread and dips it into a bowl of barley broth with bacon. "I am not."

He turns his nose up. "Are you Catholic?"

She shakes her head as she eats.

"Is it a new religion?" He bites off a piece of corn beef.

"Sam says it is at least 1800 years old." She dips another piece of bread in the broth.

"1800 years old," Frederick chomps on two small carrots and points his fork at her. Swallowing, he says, "My mother was religious and made sure her sons knew of the world religions. My Queen is the religion in my family." He picks up another piece of corned beef. "I have heard of religious zealots use God as an excuse to terrorize and control people."

"Sam has also encountered them. He says their blood is on his hands. You should listen to what he has to say. What other God forgives you of your sins?"

"I have no idea. Speaking of zealots, how is Samuel doing with his emotions?" He finishes the last piece of beef.

Elsa places her fork beside her plate and looks away with a sigh.

After several moments of silence, Fredrick says, "Evidently, using zealot and Samuel in the same sentence was not appreciated. I apologize for my comment. Elsa?" She looks at him. "Samuel's irrational behavior that changes from one minute to the next is causing everyone a great concern."

"Irrational?" Her brows push together as she looks down at the table. Could he be that insensitive?

Frederick continues as if he did not hear her. "Yes, irrational people who say what he says and does what he does are locked up for the kingdom's safety."

"Locked up?"

Frederick looks at her. "Those who cannot control themselves should be locked away. I am not the only one thinking it. Everyone says it."

"And who is everyone?" Under the table, a thin layer of ice covers her hands.

Sitting back in his chair, Frederick runs his fingers through his hair and then looks at her. "I should have said most everyone I know have stated similar comments about your Samuel. If he is irrational and erratic as I have heard, he is a danger to you. You can take that for whatever it is worth. It does not change the facts. He has attacked Georg, Prince Nick and his guard detail, delegates from France, and I heard he threw one of your own castle guards into the water. He is a dangerous person for whatever reason. What if he hurts someone close to you?"

Her jaw aches from clenching them tight. At this moment, she wants to freeze King Frederick and throw him into the water, but the windows do not look wide enough to push him through them. Besides the splash would alert someone on the deck and they would know she did it.

She lowers her head to think of a response. Sam did say there would be times when she will have doubts against her allies. A thought enters her mind. Is this what Anna faced with Prince Hans. He was nice to her at first, but he changed when he was not getting his way. Is Frederick more like Hans or is it the other way around. If Frederick and Hans are one of the same, her folly has trapped her. Does he see her as weak? What would Samuel do?

"Queen Elsa, I must apologize again. My intent is not to make you feel bad. You are one of the few monarchs, who I can tolerate and I do not mean that in a bad way. I deal with people who are constantly trying to take from the Southern Isle. Unlike the British and their fleet of warships, I have to be very careful as to what I say and to whom. Most of the countries around us, would not hesitate to invade if they thought they could get away with it."

The ice around Elsa's hands melt.

"I would hate to see anyone take advantage of you or put you in a compromised position, because Samuel has an outburst." He looks towards the door. "I spoke what I felt was the truth. I speak to you as I speak to my brothers. It appears that was a mistake."

What did Sam say? Admit your errors and stand on your own two feet. Always tell the truth. How many times did he say that?

She looks up at him. "I do not know what you have heard, but let me tell you what I know." She pours wine into their glasses. "The truth is you and Sam have a common goal. I admit, if my mother and father had lived, I would be better prepared to meet the challenges of our neighbors. I know I have made mistakes. The truth is if Sam was not in the background covering my mistakes, I would not be here and probably nor would Anna. Someone else would be sitting on Arendelle's throne. And I appreciate your concerns for me."

Elsa takes a sip of the wine. "Sam was there for my parents. He gave them a warning they chose to ignore and it cost them their lives. He has done nothing to harm me or Anna. Everything you said about Georg, Nick, the French delegates, and throwing a guard into the fjord is true. In every situation, I agreed with his explanations and actions."

She leans over the table and takes another sip from her glass. "Did Georg explain how Sam disabled Nick's assassin? Anna or your brother could have died from poisoning and the other countries would still be under Nick's thumb and Arendelle ripe for an invasion?"

Frederick takes a large swallow of his wine. "Georg did not give a lot of details. I knew there was a change in the trade atmosphere after they left Arendelle. They seem to be more willing to negotiate." He takes a sip. "What if Sam's action slips at the wrong time? Will you be able to control him and repair the damage?"

Elsa finishes her wine. "Sam has already considered that possibility. There is a contingency plan if it happens. I will be more than a little sad should that day happen."

Frederick pours wine in both of their glasses. He holds up his glass. "A toast to Samuel Ryan and may the sad day never occurs."

Elsa lifts her glass and clinks it against his glass. They drink.

Frederick finishes his wine and sets the glass on the table. He stares at the sword box, then glances at her and asks, "What are you going to tell him about his sword?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "He let me take it, because he already knew no one could validate my claim."

"Did you know this before coming here?"

She slides her chair back and walks over to the sword box on the side table. "I knew there was a small chance and expected to receive a letter from Daniel saying it was a copy of the original." She lifts the lid of the box. "But when Ambassador O'Brady hand delivered the letter, my chances increased."

"It is too bad nothing came of it."

She lifts the sword out of the box. "But something did come of it." Turning the blade down, she holds the hand guards with both hands and focuses on the meticulous details of the star.

"But Daniel said he had no means of validating the sword's age or if Turlough the Great or if King Arthur ever held the sword. I believe if this was a failure, you would not be studying the sword. So what did you find interesting about Daniels conversation?"

For several minutes, only the sounds of a living ship answer him. Elsa counts eight circles around the sun with a dot on each circle. She whispers, "Is this the Sariphan star as he saw it? How would you have known? For a second the star flashes a metallic green color."

"What did you say?"

Elsa turns to him. The sword's tip rests on the deck and she holds the hilt centered to her body. "I heard what you and he said, but it is what he did not say that is of interest, especially, after he held the letter and nodded to you. Why did he reveal Turlough's wife's letter describing Lord O'Tierney? The description could describe Samuel."

"That description could describe many tall men. It could have been a description of a relative of mine." He shrugs. "I think father said we had some relatives on the British island."

"And how many TALL men have the symbols of fire and ice on the back of their hands?" she smirks.

Frederick bows his head. "At last count zero. So are you going to use Lord O'Tierney as leverage against Samuel?"

"I will bring it up to him and watch his response. If not I will ask him directly if there is a connection between him and the Lord." Her right brow rises. "Why are you staring at me?"

His grin widens. "Georg was right. Anyone who captures your heart is a very lucky man. Personally, I hope Samuel does not understand and walks away from you."

"So Prince Georg can court me or you send one of your other brothers?"

"No, you are too good for my brothers, but you and I together, we could be a dominant economic force in the area." He wrinkles his nose at her. "The way the light dances through your hair and creates a glow about you, makes my heart pitter-patter for you."

The tip of the sword levels up towards his face and holds steady.

"Impressive. Do you know to use the sword if needed?"

She grins. "Come over here and find out."

"My luck Samuel taught you how to end the duel before it gets started." King Frederick bows with his hand over his heart. "It is time for me to return to my cabin and allow you to think of wonderful things about his sword."

When the door to her cabin closes, Elsa places the sword in the box. Before the lid closes, The Sariphan star winks its metallic green at her. "Yes, I can feel your energy in this sword, Samuel Ryan. I have a few options left, but I will defeat you."

End of Chapter


	75. Chapter 74 The Queen Has Arrived

**Title: Chp-74 The Queen Has Arrived**

 **2 years, 1 months until correction.**

Gray clouds hovering near the mouth of the fjord. A light flurry of snow greets the Southern Isle ship. Elsa takes her glove off. The snow drifts around her, but one flake finally lands on her finger, as if the other snowflakes were waiting to see if it is safe. The one does not melt. Another lands on her finger near the first, then another, and another. Soon the snowflakes cover her hand.

"The only other place I have seen snow not melt on a human hand, it was attached to a dead body or the hand was covered with frost bites. I am quite confident you are not dead." Frederick leans against the ship's rail.

A puff of air sweeps the snow off her hand. Elsa places her glove back on. "He can see you from where he is hiding."

Frederick looks towards the cliff that leads to Arendelle. "Do you see him?"

"No."

"How do you know he is there?"

"The snowflakes landed on my hand and not the rail." A light powder of snow collects on the ship's rails, except for a meter to either side of Elsa.

"He has that much control?"

"A large snowball almost landed on your ship when we left. He is seeking my emotional state."

"And what is your emotional state." Frederick peeks at her.

She glances back as he turns his head away. "He is watching you."

Frederick slides two steps along the rail away from her.

She grins and steps closer to him.

He steps away.

"He will not hurt you or your crew as long as I am on your ship."

"What about when we leave? Should I be expecting a snowball to capsize us?"

"No. I have given him no reason to attack you. Since he has not sensed my mind, my actions have proven to him, you are not a threat."

Frederick searches the eastern hills. "You came on deck, so he can see you, just in case he had other ideas. I certainly hope he got the message." He walks to the quarterdeck and converses with the Captain.

 _So do I._ Elsa stares at the Lookout Plateau. She could narrow her focus, but King Frederick may not understand her eyes changing colors. Arendelle needs the economic alliance with the Southern Isle despite Hans and Sam. A flash of green on a hill shines for a second. _Are you there?_

Sam watches the Southern ship dock in the harbor. The royal coach stops at the end of the pier. Princess Anna and Master Kristoff step out. They greet Queen Elsa. A crewman hands a long rectangle box to one of the coach's footmen. No other members of the ship's crew or royal staff depart the ship. After the royal coach departs the wharf with the royal family, the dock workers load several large crates marked with Arendelle's symbols onto the ship.

A horse neighs as the royal coach stops on the bridge and the door flings open. Elsa stands on the steps. Her head moves as though she is searching the hill he is on. With a flash of her blue eyes, she points her finger in his direction.

Has she spotted him? Anyone with a spyglass could find him if they were patient and knew where to search. Sam changes his vision and sees a green halo around everything. Elsa's blue eyes look directly at him. She motions with her finger for him to come to her. He stares back at her.

Elsa gets back into the coach and it proceeds across the bridge.

Anna asks, "Did you see him?"

"I saw him."

"Did he see you?"

"Through his green eyes, yes, he did."

Kristoff points to the hill. "You saw his green eyes all the way up there?"

"It is like he says. If you know what you are looking for, you will see it." Elsa catches a glimpse of the hill before the coach passes through the gates.

The coach rolls to a stop in front of the castle. Kai opens the door and offers his hand to her. As Elsa steps out, Kai leans close to her. "He is not here."

"I know. I saw him on the hill."

Kai whispers, "He has not been here since you left."

She looks towards the hill where she last saw him. "What are you doing, Samuel?" Anna touches her arm. Elsa continues into the castle. "I have been away too long and I am sure the work is falling off my desk. He will have to wait."

Two weeks have passed and the castle returns to its normal routines. In the study room down the short hall, Queen Elsa hands a signed document to the British representative. If the Queen of England accepts the proposed terms, Arendelle could be a transfer point for goods and people on their way to and from Russia and north. They would also be a safe harbor for British ships. She was concerned how the Council would take her suggestion, but after exerting her authority, their bickering stopped. She extended the timetable for the former Councilman Jensen's departure. Despite his disrespect to her in the meetings, Jensen was very sociable and knowledgeable about the commerce's of trade. Perhaps she should put him on probation, at least until she can find someone else with his knowledge.

Kai enters. "Majesty that was your last morning appointment. Captain Larsen will be your only afternoon appointment at two o'clock."

She looks at the mantel clock on the shelf. An early lunch might help calm her mind if it is ready, then her afternoon would be free to spend time with Anna. Or she could wait an hour and have her meal by herself. "What is on the good Captains agenda?"

Kai opens his ledger. "Review supply expenditures and replenishments. He is asking for a few minutes afterwards to discuss sending more guards to help maintain the royal horses."

Her brows push together. "He does not need my permission. They are his horses. I thought there were two stable boys working them."

"You are correct on all three accounts."

"But?"

"The horses are not responding as when Sam took care of them. As for permission, no one walks in to get their horses without Sam's permission."

"And no one has seen him since I left?"

"Yes, Majesty."

Her fingers tap the desk as she stares at the clock. "Tell the Captain I will see him in the next ten minutes if he is available. I need to run upstairs. I will be back by then."

"Yes, Majesty, anything else?"

"No, that will be it." Kai holds the door open as she exits the room.

Ten minutes later, in her loosely fitted forest green shirt and ocean blue ankle length dress, Elsa returns to her study room. Captain Larsen snaps to attention as she enters the room. "At ease, Captain. Sam is not here."

"I know, but if I do not show respect to you. I am one hundred percent confident he will hear about it."

She smiles. "I am sure he will. Even when he is not here, his influence is present."

He offers her the guard report and requisition form. "Despite his absence and behavior, the guards and horses are in better shape than before he came here."

Elsa reads the reports as she walks to her desk. She starts to sign the paper and stops. "Captain, Are your numbers correct about the guards and horses?" She signs the form.

"Yes, Majesty, there was a larger number of injuries in the past two weeks as compared to the three previous weeks. The trend started when you departed for the Southern Isle. There were two more injuries this morning. I was working on the report when Kai sent for me."

She hands the report back to him. "Do you have an explanation for the injuries?"

"Almost all were inflicted by the rider's own horses."

"Why would they do that?"

Larsen shakes his head and glances towards the window behind the desk. "The reports of injury started right after you returned from your ride with King Frederick."

She looks towards the window. So it was not my imagination, the horses were acting out, except for my and Frederick horses. Did he give them instruction to act out? They were hesitant to leave after I talked to him. I cannot come out and accuse him. "Excluding my and Frederick's horses, the other horses seemed to take turns not responding to their riders. Why would they act out?"

"Majesty, I would not accuse or imply anything without evidence, but we both know when Sam is near, expect the unexpected. If Sam influenced the horses, I would suspect the King's brothers had the greatest difficulty with their horses."

"Your suspicions are correct. The horses for the brothers kept walking off the trail and under low branches."

Larsen nods. "That would explain why the stable boys received inappropriate comments from the brothers. Do you think Sam did it on purpose or maybe he was not aware he was doing it?"

Elsa scowls. "Like when he influenced me?"

The door opens and Gerda enters. She sets a small kettle on the table and prepares a cup of tea.

Larsen asks, "Majesty, if you do not need me, I need to get back and pass out assignments to the guards."

"Actually, I do. I have a few more questions. This will not take long. Gerda, please get the good Captain something to eat and drink." She picks up the cup of tea.

"So does the Captain want a sandwich?" Gerda grins.

"Oh no, I finished the delicious sandwich you provided before coming here, but I could use a cup of coffee if it is available," Larsen answers.

"There is always a cup of coffee for our Captain."

"Good, we can get started." Elsa sits at the table. "Gerda, when you return, please knock on the door and wait for me to reply before entering."

"Yes, Majesty." She curtsies and exits the room.

"Captain, tell me what Sam was doing the past few weeks," Elsa asks.

The clock strikes four quarters since Captain Larsen entered the Queen's study. He hands the empty cup to Gerda. By the servant's door, he adjusts his uniform. He glances back at Kai and Gerda. "Just to forewarn everyone, those of us who remember Queen Iduna, her little Princess has grown up and taken her place as our Queen." The door closes behind him.

Several more days pass with light snow flurries. Late in the evening, the clouds break and the moon peeks through. Elsa holds another report of guard's injuries as she walks up the stairs. There are not going to be enough guards to protect the castle if the injuries continue. She greets each guard as she passes by them. All show signs of injuries. In her room, she does not bother lighting a candle. Her eyes automatically adjust to the darkness with a faint blue halo around everything. Not quite as blue the way Sam does, but enough that she can move around a room at night without a candle to light her way. Anna did say the whites of her eye had a bluish tint to them.

"So you have influenced me as you have done to the others." A bright spot on the floor near the balcony door draws her attention to a beam of moonlight peeking into her room. Snow crunches under her shoes as she steps onto the balcony. With a deep breath, the cold air refreshes her mind and causes her body to tingle. The open air reminds her of the enjoyment she had building her ice castle. She smiles.

The sound of snow crunching near the stables causes her eyes to focus on the movement. She watches him take one step and look around. He takes another step and looks, then another, and another. She waits until he is in the open. "What are you doing out this late at night . . . stable boy?"

Sam stands motionless for several seconds. _There is not enough light. Did she see me walk through the gates? Did I get careless? I know no one was out here._ Gradually his head turns toward the castle. His vision shifts to the blue spectrum. As he looks into her eyes, an intense bright blue light shines back at him. Closing his eyes for a second, his vision returns to normal. On the Queen's balcony, she stands in her regal pose.

He stands at attention and bows. He waits.

"Please stand."

He looks up at her. The smile that captured his heart so long ago still radiates with her beauty, but now things are different. "You look well, Majesty."

"I have not been gone that long. Why the formality?"

"You stand as the Queen."

Elsa shifts her stance and rest her hands on the rail. "Is this better?"

Sam relaxes. His feet separate to shoulder width apart. His hands clasp behind his back. "Obviously you had a safe trip. Did you find your answers?"

"I found a few, but not all. Hopefully, you will be able to answer the rest." She tilts her head ever so slightly.

"I will answer any questions you have." She looks at the stars. "Majesty, I was greatly concerned for your safety. I did as you asked." A bird screeches across the fjord. "I missed you."

Her head snaps down to stare at him. "I do not feel very sleepy. I will come down there and speak with you. Do not move." She disappears into her room.

Sam notes the guard at the main entrance and the guard on the wall watching him. He counts the number of steps to the stables and the number of steps to the gates. The servant's side creaks open. By the time he turns his head to see who it is. Queen Elsa has already marched half the distance to him. He waited too long. The pain in the back of his head and the heartache crushing his heart from watching her does not encourage his feet to move. Time is running out.

Sam bows to her. "Majesty."

Queen Elsa stops less than a meter in front of him. The position of her shoes and her hands crossed in front signals for him to wait. And he waits in the bow position. She counts to sixty. He has not moved. "Stable boy, why do you bow to me?"

Without hesitation he answers, "You are Queen of Arendelle and you deserve the most respect. I bow to show my subordinate position to you."

Her hand touches the back of his neck and feels the heat. Her other hand also feels the heat from his face. She generates a cold in her hands, but the heat does not subside. She generates more cold. An ordinary person would be agonizing in pain from her touch. Her thoughts reach for him, but she hears nothing.

He moans, "That feels so good." His body wobbles.

She shifts back into her regal pose. "Please stand."

Sam rises to his full height. A blue light sparkles in his eyes. The torches carried by the guards and the light from the castle are yellow. The light is not being reflected against his eyes, but must be generated internally. Are blue sparkles and heat from his face a sign that he truly is not well?

She glances at the three guards watching them. "Is this the first time you have come back since I left?"

With a nod, he answers, "Yes."

"Why were you sneaking around the courtyard?"

"The other day, I saw a horse pass under a low branch and wipe the rider off its back. I sensed the other horses were rebelling. I came to put a stop to it before anyone gets hurt."

"Too late," she chides. "The list of the injured guards on the Captain's report are getting longer." Elsa breaks from her stance. "The guards cannot focus on their drills. They are more concerned with which horse will act out. So I understand why none of them wish to work in the stables."

Why this childish game? Is it another test to measure her response? She rubs her hands together. His neck radiated more heat than she remembers. Is he losing control? Movement catches her eye from the guard standing in the middle of the courtyard and watching her. She looks down at the worn path in the snow. Relaxing her hands the frost slips off her fingers.

 _You did it again and my response is not that of a Queen._

Pivoting on her heels, she holds her fist close to his face. "The day Frederick and I rode to the plateau. Every horse was acting out except for Frederick's and my horse." She shakes her fist. "You did this. Just before we departed, all the horses neighed at you. You will fix it."

Her hand lowers. The blue sparkle is not in his eyes. Has he closed the connection between them? She detects no energy from him. She looks around the yard. More guards watch them and she notes their hands rest on their swords. Sam's eyes remained focused on her as she moves.

"Come with me." She walks towards the stables. Not hearing the snow crunch behind her, she peeks over her shoulder. "That was not a request. I order you to follow me into the stables."

Sam follows his Queen and steps around her to open the door. He follows her into the stable area. Elsa stops next to the first stall and twirls around to face him.

"Why are you smiling?" she demands.

His smile grows into a grin. "My job here is almost done."

Her hands rest on her waist as she frowns. "Are you making fun of me?"

"No Majesty, I would never intentionally make fun of you," he leans back against the stall's rail, "but my statement is correct. Despite your reckless behavior of running to the Southern Isle without guards, you survived the trip. If your advisers allow you to do that again, I will hold them personally responsible for anything that happens to you."

"Do not threaten my staff. I had my reason and I do not have to explain it to you."

"Okay, why did you want to talk to me in here and not outside?"

"If I wanted the guards to know my business, I will tell them." She frowns again. "I did not come in here to talk about me. I want to know where you were hiding since I left. Were you pouting?"

He snickers. "No Majesty, I was not pouting. I was actually concerned for you—"

Elsa interrupts, "You do not think I can take care of my Queendom or I need you around to save me from myself or others?"

He glances at the horses peaking over their gates.

"Well? Why are you grinning?"

"Are you through thumping your chest at me?"

"I was not thumping my chest. YOU WERE NOT TALKING."

He waits until she focuses on him. "I was in the process of answering, when you interrupted me."

Her frown returns with her frost covered fist ready to strike. She flicks the frost off her hand as she half-twirls away from him. "Continue."

"As I was saying, I was concerned for you. If something happened, there was no way I could get to you. Those who cause your demised would have paid with their lives. You were completely on your own. I was concerned you had not considered it. Not that I had doubts, I believed you could, if you were properly motivated."

Elsa steps to the center of the horse's aisle.

"The last two weeks have proven my belief in you. You command as a Queen with confidence."

Sam's horse Aurora rests her head over his shoulder.

Elsa points down the aisle. "Why are they watching us?"

He glances down the aisle as he scratches under Aurora's chin. "They are not looking at us. They are looking at you." His mind hears his horse and he steps away from her. He glances down the aisle, again. Sam grabs Elsa's hand and drags her over to the stall. Holding her hand against Aurora's face, he says, "I will teach you a new trick."

She glares at him, but the whites of her eyes change to a faint blue. She breaks from his grip and steps back. Staring at Aurora Elsa places both of her hands on Aurora's face. A blue energy field envelopes her hands and the horse's head. She closes her eyes and touches her forehead to Aurora.

Aurora emits a low rumble.

"Is this what you hear from her?" Elsa smiles. "She is happy I am safe and I can understand her."

"All of them wish to speak to you." He takes her hand and leads her to each horse.

One by one Elsa shares her energy with each horse and they emit a low rumble. They return to the stallion Sam saved for last. Only the strongest riders are able to control the stallion, but lately even they had too many problems controlling this horse.

Sam takes a chance. "This is the alpha. He is the one who instigated the others to miss behave. You have to take control. Be strong when needed, but be gentle so as not to take away his pride."

Elsa squares her body to the stallion. With quick reflexes her cold hands grab the horse's jaw. It starts to pull away, but she holds on and gently combs the hair between its eyes. "It is okay. I am not going to hurt you."

After a moment the stallion lowers his head over the rail and emits a low rumble.

Elsa touches her forehead to his head. "I like you, too." She steps back and glances down the aisle. The other horses watch her. "So does this mean they will behave?"

"Ask them," Sam answers.

She wags her finger at them. "No more trying to injure the guards. You will follow their instructions?"

In unison, all the horses whinny and stomp the ground as they nod their heads, except one.

Elsa points to Aurora. "Why is she not agreeing?"

"She is very possessive of me. You are her competition. Give her a little time to know you. She will come around."

Elsa walks past him and flicks some ice onto Aurora causing her to get as far back in the stall. "If the horses act accordingly, including the two of you, I will forgive your disruptive behaviors." She stops at the service door. "Why are you not two meters behind me?"

After a moment the floor creaks in the service room. "Your secret alarm will be fixed by tomorrow." She steps into the stall area. She searches for him. "Did you run away? I see you hiding in there. Come out and that is an order."

His green eyes stare at her. "Why are you doing this?"

"You do not like me being strong?"

"Strength without compassion can lead to cruelty. Is that what Frederick taught you, Queen Elsa of Arendelle?" He stares at her.

She turns her back to him. "Obviously, you are not happy. You do not want me strong. You are one of a thousand in my Queendom. I cannot spend a lot of my energy focusing on you alone."

"And I did not ask you to."

"If you are going to run, run. I will pay off your debt to the court. If you run never come back." Not hearing any movement, she walks towards the door. Footsteps sound followed by a thud where she had been standing.

"Majesty, command me as your loyal soldier."

She pushes the door open.

"Majesty, Please."

Elsa glances into the dark and closes her eyes. A guard walks along the top of the far wall. She detects no one else, except, the energy signature of Sam has an unusual shape. She returns to the horse's area. Down on one knee with his arm resting on his other knee, he bows his head. She stops a half meter in front of him. She has never seen him bend the knee to anyone. Is this a game, another test? "Why are you doing this?"

Without hesitation he answers. "You are my Queen. I am your soldier, or stable boy, or anything else you want me to be. I do not wish to leave. I will serve you in any capacity."

Is this all I needed to do? Push you away and you would stop running. "Can you hear my thoughts?"

"Your last instructions said I will not scan anyone's mind without your permission. If you believe I failed you instructions, touch my face to see the truth."

She considers doing that, but he has never lied to her. If she has doubts now, will it push him too far? "I believe you are truthful in this. Will you follow my instructions without question?"

"Excluding safety, yes."

Her hand slides across his head. "Your neck is warm. Are you feeling well?"

"I am working on it, but it will not hinder me from doing any task you assign to me."

"You are the Master stable boy. Take care of the horses. Throughout the day I may assign you a task. Is this satisfactory?"

"Yes, Majesty."

She slides her hand under his hair and onto the back of his neck. Cold radiates off her hand. "If I had not stopped you, what were you going to do?" She waits and begins to think he did not hear her when he answers.

"I was going to tell the horses to knock off their behavior. If they did not, they would be sent to the military and a new batch of horses would be trained for the guards. Instead, I was right to let you speak to them. I am confident they will work with the guards." He does not lift his head.

"What about you? Why did you stay away?"

"You came back in one piece. I detected no stress from you or King Frederick. I observed the guards and the castle staff. They were back in their normal routines. The way it should be. My job here was done."

Elsa kneels in front of him and lifts his head up. No blue sparkles or life appears in his eyes. He constantly looks down. Has he given up? Did I push him past his limit? "Again, I ask, If I had not stopped you, would you have left without saying anything to me?"

"Yes, I was leaving. I would have left a message that I would return in the spring."

She turns his head and forces him to look at her. "Why?"

His eyes lock onto her eyes. "Because the new year will bring danger. The Green Dragon will pass very close. If I am here when it happens, you may not be able to control me. I cannot predict my behavior with any certainty." His fingertips brush against her cheek. "I do not wish to hurt you. It will be better for you if I am on the other side of the planet when the dragon passes."

"We can do this together."

"You do not understand. All the other times the dragon swallowed me, I was ready to go. Because of its elliptical orbit, I could pinpoint the exact moment it would pass a specific point on the Earth. I never stayed in a location more than four years. I am coming up on 25 years here. Without my ship I cannot reach it, but something has happened. Since crashing here, the orbit time is getting shorter and closer to the Earth. After sixty calculations, twenty pinpoint the fjord as its path. The other forty had no consistent pattern. I calculate the dragon will pass within a hundred meters of the earth's surface, plus or minus five kilometers to either side of the fjord. In a stable orbit, it should pass approximately a year from now. With the change my best guess is four to eight months from now."

"But you would know if it was close? I cannot help you if you are on the other side of the planet." Moisture builds near the corner of her eyes.

"And now you have an idea as to what I felt when you kept me in the dark. The dragon will call me again. I cannot control it. When it does, you may not wish to be near me."

She places her hand over his heart. "What if you were in your ice?"

Sam cups her face. "Could you catch me completely unaware and cause significant injuries without killing me?"

"I wish to end your pain. If that is what it will take, I love you enough to take that chance."

Sam closes the space between them. Elsa wraps her arm around him as she rests her head against his chest. He pulls her closer. "Then we shall see."

 **End of Chapter**


	76. Chapter 75 Elsa's Plan

**Title: Chp-75 Elsa's Plan**

 **1 years, 9 months until correction.**

With his arm wrapped around the flag pole, Sam stands on the roof of the corner turret. The clouds break in the western sky. A sliver of the moon smiles at him. The temptation pulls at his mind. Is it there waiting to catch him unaware? Like the attraction of two magnetic poles of opposite polarities, he seeks the dragon as it searches for him. Unless the dragon has made a dramatic turn towards the Earth, he will not sense it for several more months.

A light breeze snaps the Arendelle flag to its full glory for all to see if they were out of their beds to see it. Sam scans the many ships in the harbor and those anchored in the fjord. A lone sailor on the British ship watches him. He salutes the sailor in the British tradition. The seaman goes back to his duties guarding the ship. It would be too bad for the ship if they were in a hostile port. As long as the poor lad watched him, an assassin would have cut his throat and dumped the body overboard.

The warmth of the sunlight kisses his cheek. Sam greets the sun, but glances back and does not see the moon. Another night has passed. He has protected Arendelle from the dragon. A bright and sunny day will greet the delegates on their last day. It is time for him to help the kitchen staff set the tables in the Great Hall.

Sam turns as he steps off the roof. Grabbing the embrasure of the turret, he pulls himself into the turret and stops less than an arm's length from Queen Elsa standing in her regal pose. He backs to the wall and bows to her.

"Please stand."

He stands and stares into her blue eyes. "Majesty, why are you here and not greeting the guest?"

Elsa's right brow slowly rises. "I can ask you the same thing. Why are you still here?"

"I still have several minutes before the clock tower rings its bells."

"You think so." She looks past him. "I do not see the moon. Were you looking for the dragon?"

He returns a half-smile. "I hope my calculations are off, but if they are not, I will be leaving soon."

She steps out of her Queen's role and grabs his hand. "You will come back, right?"

Her small hands hold onto his hand. "There will be a danger to you and Arendelle. At the first sign of the dragon, I will go north. I do not know what state my mind will be in. I do not wish to take a chance of hurting anyone."

She kisses the back of his hand and rests it over her heart. Her eyes glisten. "Do what you have to do."

He did not have to read her mind. Her breathing became shallow. The clock tower's hammer began striking the bell. After it stops, she breathes normally. Her mind takes control of her emotions. Her body shifts as she lets go of his hand. He did not let go.

The Queen has taken control. "What are you doing? Did you hear the clock? We are late."

"I did hear and you did not have to come up here, but you did." His left brow rises with his smile. "Let us make a spectacular entrance."

"What do you mean?"

He leads her to the castle side of the turret's wall. "Do you remember when I carried you over the wall?"

She peeks over the edge. "I am in a dress."

"If we had a ramp, we could skate down the wall and over to the steps."

The Queen steps back and a smile creeps onto her face. "Who will create the ramp?"

"If you have an Idea for one, make sure it will hold both of our weights."

"I suspect you already have an idea. You do it"

Sam stands on the wall and motions for two guards in the courtyard to move. Ice forms around his right hand as it moves in a counter clockwise motion. The ice crackles as the end of the ramp connects to the wall. He yells down at the guards. "Don't stand there. Get out of the way. We will be right down."

He offers his hand to her.

Elsa performs her own magic and creates stairs from the floor up to the wall's edge. She stands next to him. "A circular staircase without steps. I am not going to sit and slide down. That would be undignified for a Queen to slide to the steps in front of guest."

He stares at her long enough for his lips to grin. "You imply if there were no one to see you, you would slide down."

She shrugs. "Under different circumstances, perhaps."

His imagination takes over and sees an image of Elsa giggling as she slides on ice. Her touch brings him back. "Okay, bend your knees. Keep your weight over your feet at all times and do not be stiff. Allow your legs to flex with the imperfection of the ice."

"You think I have never done this before? You should have told me this is what you wanted. My ice would have been smooth all the way down."

Before he could reply, she steps onto the ramp and pushes away from him. "See you at the bottom."

"You will have to extend the ice to the steps." He pushes against the wall and lowers his center of gravity as he slides down the ramp.

After sliding through the third loop to the bottom, Elsa points at the end of the ramp. The ice extends along the courtyard and up the top step. She easily glides to the end and with grace walks off the ice.

Sam rounds the third loop and hears two guests commenting. "See, she is an ice witch. Her magic enslaves the people here. Why else would they obey her?"

"Yea, they should burn the witch."

Elsa's eyes widen and her head starts to turn towards the two guests.

Sam barely shakes his head and Elsa watches him. He shifts his balance and starts to fall forward. Elsa flicks her hand and the ice ramp on the steps transforms into snow where Sam's face impacts.

"When you are through impressing our guest, you are needed inside." Her shoes click against the stones and into the foyer.

Sam lifts his face out of the snow.

One guest wears the emblem for the French delegates. A tall, slender man with gold embroidery around the collar and cuffs of his dark blue jackets and a gold embroidered stripe down the outside of his matching color trousers. His hands glitter with gold rings covered in red and green jewels. "See, her magic changed his face to be as white as his hair."

"Oh, yeah." The Belgium delegate nods. His diplomatic uniform is similar to the French delegate except for a red stripe down his trousers and the red cord along the edges of the jacket makes his chest area stand out for an assassin's weapon.

They snicker and walk towards the castle doors.

Sam waits until they pass him. He leaps to his feet and startles the two guests as he stops in front of the door. "Gentlemen, you need to apologize to my Queen for calling her a witch."

"Get out of my way peasant. You don't know who we are."

"Don't care, meat."

The Frenchman speaks up. "We have diplomatic immunity. You cannot touch us."

"You are correct as long as the diplomacy is going on, but since you are keeping me from my duties, I will let my friends' escort you back to your ships." He cups his hands around his mouth and howls. He steps to the side and motions for them to pass.

As they start to enter, several howls answer from the hills. The Belgian turns around. "What was that?"

The French points in the direction of the howls. "That sounds like wolves." They both glance at him.

Sam grins with his open hand pointed to the gates. "You are correct. There are lots of shadows for my friends to hide and wait between the castle and your ships. I invited my wolf pack from the hills to have a late night meal."

"Is that why he calls us meat?" The Belgian stumbles with his word to the Frenchman. The two mumble about needing a guard escort as they scurry into the castle.

Sam lets out a long howl. The wolves in the hills reply. A sharp snap followed by a sting strikes his bottom.

"Do not call those dirty dogs down here while the trade negotiations are going on. I will beat you then Queen Elsa can freeze the rest of you for the fish." Gerda growls. "You are late. You need to wash up and change your clothes. We will be serving the breakfast in a few minutes." She holds two ends of a wash cloth and twists it into a tight rope.

Sam quickly walks into the castle with his hands covering his bottom. He does not move fast enough to get out of the range of the washcloth and a sharp sting strikes in the one area not covered by his hands.

Kai grins at him and says as Sam passes. "She has had a lot of practice with that cloth."

Anna ties off a purple and green ribbon interwoven in Sam's hair. Kristoff holds open the green jacket with gold trim and buttons as Sam slips his arms into it. Anna buttons the jacket and pulls the sleeves down. She inspects him and pulls his hair out of the jacket.

"I have to go. I do not wish to get on the Queen's bad side on the last day," Sam says.

"You don't think anyone will pull on the white rope," Kristoff jokes.

"Let them try and I will see if they can swim." Sam answers as he admires himself in the mirror. "Do you think the blue pants clash with the green jacket?"

"Your white hair clashes with all of it." Kristoff grins.

Sam pulls his hair over his shoulder. The white definitely stands out with everything he wears.

Anna flicks it back over his shoulder. "Even if it did, which it does not, there is nothing you can do about it now. Elsa is waiting for you."

Sam hurries out of the room and knocks on the monarch's door. Queen Elsa steps out and moves three steps down the hall. He stands to her right and offers her his arm.

She slips her hands into her teal gloves. "And where are your gloves?"

Sam touches his belt where he normally would have kept them. A pair of teal gloves slaps onto his shoulders. He slips the glove with the symbol for fire on the left hand and the symbol of their snowflake onto his right hand. He starts to trace the snowflake when she covers his glove.

"Soon," she says, "very soon it will be over."

He stares into her blue eyes.

She glances back. "Thank you, Princess Anna. I was about to leave without him." She hooks her hand in the crux of his arm.

Several minutes later, they stand in front of the line. Queen Elsa nods to Kai. The doors open and Sam escorts her to her chair at the head of the table. Queen Victoria stands behind the chair of honor to the Queen's right followed by Princess Anna and Master Kristoff. King Frederick stands behind the chair to the Queen's left with his brother Prince Seth next to him. The other delegates stand behind the rest of the chairs.

Elsa taps Sam's shoe. He pulls the Queens chair back and she sits. After making adjustments she touches his hand. He stands tall and nods. The staff pulls the chairs back and each guest sits. Sam nods again and a second group of staffers roll the food carts into the room.

With the meal served Elsa takes the first bite and the others follow. A low rumble of conversation emerges across the table. She watches her guest and tries to focus on the French delegate. She does not hear his thoughts. She tries again, but this time the delegate flinches his head. He looks around as he rubs his face. She looks towards Queen Victoria. A warm finger touches the back of her arm.

 _Majesty, are you feeling well?_

She glances up at him.

"Yes Majesty?" He bends down with his head slightly turned towards her. _Now is not the time to test your skills. If you have a concern, please let me know?_

How long has it been since she last heard him speak in her thoughts? He sounds different like he is at a distance. She looks at him. "Did you say anything to them?"

"I expressed they need to apologize for their comment towards you."

She grabs his hand. "Or?"

"Or my family will have a late meal tonight."

"You threatened them?"

He shakes his head. "No Majesty, I expressed a concern for their safety. Especially due to the distance between the castle and their ships."

"Samuel you promised."

"Majesty, I have fulfilled my promise to you even in the concerns for your safety."

She looks into his eyes. "Get out."

Sam nods, "Yes, Majesty." He bows to her and marches out of the room.

When the door closes, Anna glances back at her. Her expression was not the approval she expected, but it was not a rejection. Kristoff must have touched her leg. Her left hand slips under the table. Anna whispers to him, but he shakes his head once and continues to eat. They eat in silence. Great, now they are having issues.

A glass clinks to her right. Victoria smiles.

Yes, back to her duties. "So how do you like Arendelle?"

"It is a quiet and tranquil place. It reminds me of Winsor castle, but not quite as cold. The air is refreshing. My old joints are very stiff when I get up." She smiles to Frederick. "I suspect your harbor will have an increase in shipping if it has not already done so."

"More than twice as many ships pass through here since our trade negotiations. We are building a new harbor further up the fjord that should accommodate the increase flow of ships. It will help reduce the congestion around the castle." Elsa replies.

"With British ships stopping along the way, I am sure someone up the coast will be keeping an eye on you." Frederick comments.

"You think the King in Christiania will come after you?" Victoria asks.

"For the time being no, but things do change. I hope after Today, he will be discouraged from interfering. I have no desire to rule a fractured nation," Elsa answers and eats the chunk of fish with her fork.

"And what about your dog?" Frederick asks.

"What about him?"

He sweeps his hand towards the others. "Everyone here knows Samuel is not to be taken likely. If you cannot account for him, your forces will be lost before the battle begins."

Elsa looks at the faces staring at her. Are they here because of Samuel? "Who has told you this?"

Frederick whispers to his brother. After a moment he nods.

"Majesty, may I speak?"

Elsa glances to Frederick, but he does not look at her. "Yes, Prince Seth."

Seth stands and taps his glass with the knife. "Gentlemen, Gentlemen." The room becomes silent. "Thank you Gentlemen and Majesty," he nods to Queen Victoria, "and Majesty," nods to Queen Elsa, "and Majesty," nods to his brother.

He holds up his glass. "Let us toast our honored host for allowing us to be here." Chairs slide back as everyone stands and holds up their glasses.

For a second, Elsa wonders why Kai is assisting her chair back. She remembers telling Sam to get out. It is disappointing he does not see her accomplishment and she did it without him. Kai offers her the glass.

Seth turns to her. "Queen Elsa, we are honored. You invited us and held these negotiations here. May the three monarchs rule their domain with honor, courage, wisdom, and mercy. May each live long life and may there be peace for as long as you rule."

"Here here," the delegates proclaim, and all drink.

Elsa sips her drink and watches the others. "I also wish to honor you."

They hold up their glasses.

She looks around the room and stop at the Belgian and French delegates. "Before I give my toast, I wish to hear any complaints about the conduct of my staff or myself while my guests were here."

Several delegates look at each other, but no one says anything. All eventually focus on the Belgian and Frenchman.

Elsa continues, "Do either of you wish to speak?"

The Belgian rapidly shakes his head. The Frenchman hesitates long enough for the Belgian to poke his side. The Frenchman says, "No Majesty, you have been a gracious host and we are honored to represent our countries."

"Good, I will try to finish these proceedings before sunset. After dark, if anyone wishes to return to their ship, an armed escort will be provided for their protection. It would not be the first time a delegate did not return to their ship only to have their remains found on a hill." She glances around the room. "Just a fair warning to all."

Frederick smiles.

"Back to my toast, I wish to thank everyone for being here. Without you, there would be no negotiations."

"Here here," all carol together and drink.

She turns to her left. "I wish to give a special thanks to King Frederick for showing me the possibilities for Arendelles' economic growth. We may not be able to match the Southern Isles cargo capacity. We will cut the inland travel down by half if not more."

Frederick touches his glass to her glass as the others carol their agreement. "Here here," they drink.

She turns to her right. "I wish to give a special thanks to Queen Victoria for giving Arendelle the economic boost we will need to get the flow of goods moving through our port."

Victoria winks and touches her glass. The others carol, "Here here."

Elsa nods to Kai. He says, "Please follow me. I will escort you to the meeting room and take your request for a beverage and snacks.

"Queen Victoria and King Frederick, would you be so kind to stay here for a few more minutes," Elsa asks.

Frederick motions to his brother to continue without him. Victoria stands by her chair. With the last guest exiting the room the guard closes the door.

She snaps her body around to face Frederick. Her finger points towards his face. "Who told you not to take Samuel likely if they could not account for him?"

"Majesty," Queen Victoria intervenes. "The Southern Isle is an economic force that exceeds the British Empire. If they were attacked, they could call on the neighbors to defend them. Do you know why?"

Elsa stares at her.

"They have enough military ships and soldiers to keep the invader at bay long enough for their economic partners to gather their forces. The British Empire has the greatest war fleet ever to sail the seas. We control many places on this planet. A long time ago, a certain prophet of yours told me a time would come when the sun would never set on the British Empire. I thought he was referring to the empire outlasting me by centuries. The week before I left my home a guest stated that no matter where the sun shined on the Earth, it was shining on a part of the British Empire.

"If we wished to attack, we would have to round up enough forces to overwhelm the Southern Isle, but that would leave the empire vulnerable to attack and we could collapse. It is in the best interest of the British people the Southern Isle survives." Victoria takes a sip from her glass.

Frederick continues the analysis. "As for Arendelle, Samuel has demonstrated his ability to sink a ship without us ever knowing he was near. On the ship, he clearly demonstrated his control of snow on your hand and the lack of ice and snow out to a meter around you." He holds up his hand before she can comment. "You can control the ice when you are emotional, unless you have been practicing. The two Southern guards who followed Hans should have killed you in your ice castle. Arendelle sits on a precipice. Lean too far one way and it falls to its death. Lean the other way and you will prosper far beyond your dreams and there will be someone waiting to take it away from you."

"Are you saying I cannot do it myself and I need Sam for Arendelle to prosper?" Elsa narrows her eyes at him.

"Exactly the opposite, my dear." Victoria pats her hand. "If you had the Southern Isle's economics and the British military, Arendelle would surpass all other countries and become the wealthiest nation on the planet."

"And everyone would be trying to take over. Excluding the two of us, which countries could take over Arendelle?" Frederick says.

"Just about everyone could. Even if we had the number of men, we could not build a military force fast enough. Who knows when someone would feel we are an economic threat to them.

Victoria says, "And that is why you need Samuel to balance your powers, so you do not appear to be a threat."

Frederick points to her. "You need Samuel to protect your back when you push your economics. He is the key to balance in the area."

"Individually, we have our strengths and our weaknesses, but together with everyone in the room, no one could stand up to us. Not Russia, Germany, Norway, Sweden, Europe, the far East, and not even the colonialist in America would dare to take us on." Victoria watches her before sitting back in her chair. "She does not understand?"

Frederick taps her hand and she turns to him. "Samuel is the glue that will hold all of us together. Without him we would fall into bickering and back stabbing each other. We would all suffer for our failures."

"And what prevents Sam from choosing a side or leaving?" Elsa asks

"You, of course. You have to make him stay in Arendelle," Victoria says.

"I do not control him."

"But you do," Victoria grins, "You asked him to leave and he did so without hesitation. That is what I would expect from my staff. What little I know his actions are very uncharacteristic of him." She crosses her arms and shifts her weight back as though she is setting a trap. "Tell me my dear. Other than the incident in the courtyard this morning, how many times have you had to put your foot down to get Samuel to comply with your orders?"

Elsa stares at the table as she searches her recent memories. Is Queen Victoria correct? Are they seeing something that she is not? "The horses," she answers.

"What about the horses," Frederick asks.

"When I took you and your brothers to Lookout Plateau, before we departed, Sam encouraged Prince Georg's horse to give him a hard time. Sam said the stallion encouraged the other horses to act out. Their rebellion injured several castle guards." She stares at the door. "What did he say that morning? It is time for the Queen to lead her people without distractions." She smiles and sighs as she glances at both of them.

Victoria hands her a handkerchief.

Elsa dabs the corner of her eyes. "You are correct. I did not see it. That early morning I caught him sneaking into the stables. He took my hand and forced me to touch each horse's head. Their attitudes changed. No more injured guards. But what he did afterwards, I never imagined he would bend a knee to me. Other than this morning, I did not have to argue with him. He obeyed my request."

Frederick offers his arm to Victoria and they walk towards the door. "We probably should get back to the others before they think we are conspiring against them."

Victoria says, "But we are." She looks back at Elsa. "Do you think she understands now?"

He looks back. "I sure hope so. Whoever controls Samuel will have a powerful resource."

"And a weapon if the need arises." Victoria states.

Elsa watches them leave the room. Were they trying to manipulate her? They speak as if Samuel is a horse or a tool to be used, then hung up on the wall until the next time he is needed. They dare to speak about him in that manner in my presence.

She sits and rest her head in her hands as she closes her eyes. "But if he chooses to leave, I will not stop him." Why did they have to bring him up? Everything was moving on schedule."

She tries to reach out to him, but does not detect his presence in the castle or in the stables. Has he left me? She sniffles. "Where are you? I do not wish for you to leave."

"So do not let him."

She snaps her head up. Anna gives her a hug. "I assume you are referring to Samuel, so do not let him leave."

"I cannot force him to stay."

"So ask him to stay. I have a strong impression if you ask. He would happily stay." Anna reassures her sister. "It is time to get back to work before they leave us out of the signing."

Elsa tries to smile as they exit the room, but her thoughts return to what Frederick and Victoria said about Arendelle.

The clock tower strikes twelve times. Princess Anna enters the stables. An unusual fragrance assaults her nose. She peeks into the stable area. A wheeled cart holds a stall gate open at the far end of the stables. She starts down the aisle, when she hears a grumble.

"Really, the gate was open. You could have back out instead of dumping on me." Sam says. "You better let go of me. Your Queen is not here to protect you."

Anna stops. A flash of light and a crackling sound snaps in the last stall followed by a horse's squeal.

Sam runs out of the stall, knocks over the cart, and slams the gate closed. The horse squeals again. "When you behave, I will put you back in the first stall and not a minute sooner." He turns around and stares at the horse deposits spilt out of the cart.

A barely audible rumble comes from the last stall. Sam shakes his fist at the horse. "I don't want to hear it. You chose to ignore her. I do not know when she will come back in here." He sets the cart back onto its wheels and picks up a shovel. Another rumble sounds from the stall. "We go through this about the same time every year."

A board creaks in the service room. Anna continues to listen.

"We will go when I get the chance." Sam says. The horse sighs. "I'm sorry you feel that way, but you brought it on yourself."

"Who is he talking to?"

"Shush, he is talking to his horse." Anna answers.

"I do not see a horse down there."

Anna looks back. "What do you think left the deposits on the floor? I would expect a Prince from the Southern Isle to know such things."

"For the Princess's information, all of the Southern Isle Princes are required to take care of their horse including the removal of their horse's deposits. What about you, Princess?" He winks at her.

A horse in the last stall with her ears cupped towards them emits a loud rumble. In an elevated voice Sam says, "I agree. With all of the noise at the other end of the stables interrupting us, perhaps Princess Anna and Prince Seth could take their conversation back into the castle."

Sven bugles and slams his antlers into the gate.

Seth nudges Anna away from the reindeer. "What is wrong with the deer?"

Sven slams the gate again. They both back further away.

"I have never seen Sven act like that," Anna answers.

"And they say I'm slow." Sam turns to face them. "It is bad enough Sven saw you wink at Princess Anna, but now you have your hands on the Princess."

Sven strikes the gate and a crack echoes throughout the stables. Seth pushes Anna towards Sam. Two stalls down Seth takes a stand with his sword drawn.

"Princess Anna, please go back to the castle and tell Kai what is happening here. He will do the rest." Sam pushes her out the door.

Another crack echoes and the top rail of Sven's gate bows outwards. Seth gradually backs up with the sword up and angled down in a position to stab the reindeer. Sam wraps his hand around the blade above the hand guard. A layer of frost covers his hand and shoots into Seth's hand. The Prince lets go of his blade and gasp as he clutches his ice covered fist to his chest.

Sam returns the sword to its scabbard attached to the Prince's belt. "That was very stupid of you to endanger the Princess like that." He pushes Seth to the stall next to Sven's gate. "Put your hand in the water. You shouldn't feel anything."

Prince Seth pulls up the sleeve of his jacket. Ice covers a third of his forearm. He plunges his hand into the water.

"After a few minutes when the cold water touches your flesh, it will feel like your hand is on fire." He pinches the Prince's cheek. "Be the good Prince you think you are and tough it out until the ice melts."

Sam takes a carrot out of his pocket and feeds it to Sven. "Feel better? I will have to tell Kristoff how you defended the Princess from the Southern Isle Prince." He taps his forehead. "You know Sven. I recall there was another Prince from the Southern Isle who tried to take Princess Anna. I wonder if he is related to this Prince."

Seth glances at Sven. "Why is he looking at me like that?"

"Because he remembers your brother Hans and what he did."

Sven slams his antlers into the side rail.

Seth flinches and takes his hand out of the water. His face distorts and grimaces as he grabs his wrist.

"I told you not to take it out." Sam walks over to Seth and forces his hand back into the water. He partially submerges his left hand and generates heat to warm the water. "You delayed the process by a few minutes. Now tell me, why did the King send you out here?"

Seth hesitates. Being a few inches shorter, he has to look up at Sam. "King Frederick did not send me in here."

"Lie, that's one."

Seth stands tall and rests his hand on the sword's hilt. "Before we departed the ship, my King asked me to speak to you if an opportunity presented itself."

Sam glances at his sword. "At this close range do you think you could get that out before Sven gores you?"

Seth peeks around him and towards Sven.

Sam rolls his eyes up and shakes his head. "You have lost two of three chances. Lose the third and you can tell your King why I'm declaring the Southern Isle an enemy of Arendelle." He walks past Seth. "If you take your hand out of the water before it is completely thawed, it may be crippled for as long as you live. Don't say anything stupid about the Princess and Master Kristoff. I will not stop Sven if he gets out of his stall."

Sam continues to the other end of the stables. Opening the end doors, he pushes the cart out to the waiting wagon. He twirls his hand. Ice forms under the cart. It lifts and dumps the contents into the wagon. The driver nods to him.

Wheeling the cart back into the stables, he sees Queen Victoria speaking to Prince Seth still holding his hand in the water. Sam glances at his horse Aurora in the stall he had problems cleaning up. "Are you feeling better?"

She nods her head and stomps the ground.

"Okay, I'll let you out, but behave and go into your stall." He opens the gate and yells. "Get out of the way of the first stall or she will run you over." Aurora walks down the aisle. He follows her and grabs his shirt.

Victoria moves into the service room. Seth presses against the rail as the horse passes him. Aurora enters her stall; turns around and closes her gate.

"That is a smart horse." Victoria comments. She opens her fan and blocks her face.

"Man, cover up your nakedness," Seth snaps at him, "Queen Victoria is standing over there.

With his shirt over his shoulder, Sam walks past him. "I didn't invite her in here. I don't recall inviting you either." He bows to Victoria. "Please pardon my nakedness. Since someone has his hand in my water bucket, I need to get that bucket and get more water outside."

He slips pass her. She waves her fan. No doubt she is not as acquainted with such strong manly odors. Anna and Kai march towards the gate. Time is running out. He returns with the water and slips past Victoria again.

She asks, "You have two scars. It looks like something was dragged across your back."

"They are the first scars inflicted on me by those who claimed to be my friends."

"They look deep."

"You should have seen them when I was a young child. The bone was exposed. I should have died, but I'm still here." He dunks his shirt into the water. "I'm sure you are not here to talk about my scars."

He wipes his upper body and arms. Dunking the shirt again, he wrings the water over his head and ice forms a sheen everywhere the water touches his body. He pours the water bucket over his head and all of his exposed body turns white from the ice.

He grins at her. "I suspect you are here for the same reason the Prince is here."

"I do not know why he is here, but I am here to see you."

"As well as I." Seth says.

Sam flexes his muscles and the ice cracks. He sweeps his hands a finger length over his body, the ice collects into a ball. The ball flows over the water bucket. Plop drops the ice ball. Seth yanks his hand out.

"Why did you do that?"

"Does your hand hurt?" Sam slides his shirt through his finger and thumb making a circle.

Seth flexes his hand. "No, it does not hurt."

With a snap of his shirt, the ice particles fly onto the wall. "Impressed? Now let me tell you why the both of you are here." He slips his shirt over his head. "You have heard strange reports about me. You wish to validate those reports. Correct?"

Seth and Victoria glance at each other. "So what if we are."

Sam leans against Aurora's stall and scratches under her chin. "I think you are verifying the reports before you entice me to your country." He rubs the back of his neck.

Aurora touches her head against his forehead. She emits a low rumble and noses his chin up. Two blue orbs reflect in her eyes. The blue fades.

He wraps his arms around her neck. "It makes no difference where we go. Time will pass and they will use my powers for their selfish gains."

"King Frederic will not diplomatically manipulate you or Queen Elsa OR FORCE you to leave. He invites you to visit our Island," Seth says.

"And I can offer the same thing," Victoria says. She stands next to him and rest her hand on his arm. "What about Queen Elsa? Does she want you to stay?"

He steps away from her and rubs the back of his neck. "Majesty, a month ago I would not have hesitated to answer with 'yes'. Today I'm not sure."

"I thought you knew what people were thinking," Seth asks.

Sam glances towards the door and rubs his neck. "I will make this quick before we are interrupted."

He stands in the center of the aisle with his feet shoulder with apart and his hands clasped behind his back. "If Queen Elsa asks me to leave, I will and never return. You can't buy me." He looks to Seth. "You can't use any method to force me to choose you." He looks to Victoria. "If both of your countries will sign a defensive agreement with Arendelle, whether I'm here, on the Southern Isle, or in The British Empire, I will help to defend all of you. But I warn you now, if you start it, you can finish it without my help." He glances at both of them. "Do you agree?"

Seth shakes his head. "I cannot make any agreements without King Frederick's permission."

"I can say yes now, but if I cannot convince the British Parliament and they vote no." Victoria shrugs.

"Yes and both have shown to the weakness of a constitutional monarch and a pure monarch. It is because of these weaknesses that will plunge both of your countries into a war of survival." Holding his neck, he glances back at the door again. He holds his hands out to them and says, "I will offer you a proof of my abilities. Take my hand and I will show you what happens to your countries in my timeline."

Victoria grabs his hand. Seth looks at his own hands, then grips Sam's hand. He closes his eyes. They both squeeze his hands. He shows them their futures.

The service room floor board creaks. Sam recognizes her sweet voice. "I thought I told them to fix that board."

Sam senses several individuals behind him and releases the hands. Victoria's shaking hand grabs for the rail. Seth stumbles back. Falling to his knees, he catches himself as his hands prevent his face from hitting the floor.

"Samuel, what have you done?" Elsa asks, staring at the back of his head.

Frederick runs past her and lifts his brother back onto his knees. "What did he do to you?"

Two British officers run past her and holds their Queen up against the rail. One asks, "Majesty, are you okay?"

The other asks, "Did he attack you?"

Seth barely moves his head from side to side and mumbles, "No, no."

Frederick asks, "NO about what?"

Victoria holds a handkerchief to her face and shakes her head, but tremors run through both of her hands. The younger officer starts to remove his sword from his scabbard when Victoria's hand grips his arm. She snarls at him. "You will not provoke him. He did as we asked."

Seth nods. "Yes, we did."

Elsa grabs Sam's arm and pulls him around to face her. The light blue in his eyes fades to the normal Hazel color. "This is not acceptable. You promised me you would not do this."

"I have kept my promise."

She clenches her hands. "I caught you in the act." She points to Seth and Victoria. "Their actions tell me this is the first time they have encountered your energy. I did not give permission to scan their minds."

"I did not scan them."

"You lie." Why did I say that? Why am I getting angry?

"No." Frost covers his hands as his eyes narrow. "I showed them what they wanted to see. Nothing more."

The temperature in the area begins to drop. I have to protect the others. _Sam, are you doing this? Please speak to me._ "You are causing them pain. Deny it."

Sam raises his ice covered hands as if he is about to throw a punch.

Victoria yells over an officer's shoulder. "If Queen Elsa has doubts, what can you do to show her the truth?"

His green eyes glance back at her. "Truth?" Confusion sweeps across his face.

"Sam show Queen Elsa what you showed us."

He stares at her. The green in his eyes washes away. He falls to his knee and bows his head. "Majesty, if I am lying. You will know the truth. Read my mind."

She kneels in front of him. Her fingers touch four specific points on his neck and face. Her left hand slips under his hair and onto his neck. She generates cold to gradually lower the heat radiating off the back of his neck. "What did you show them?"

"In less than a hundred years, the southern kingdom will cease to exist. Their island will be invaded by Germany. Twenty years later the British war machine will make the island unlivable."

Seth nods and Frederick stares at the British officers.

Elsa speaks in a quiet voice. "What did you show Queen Victoria?"

"The British, French and Germans will sacrifice millions of their soldier and millions more of the civilian population will die. Europe will burn in two wars.

Sam looks over to Victoria. "The British Island will be the only lands left of the great Empire. The leading nations will be replaced with two superpowers on the opposite sides of the world. They will fight proxy wars in other countries to save their own people."

Elsa lifts his chin. "What happens to Arendelle?"

Sam tries to look away, but she holds his chin, so he would have to look at her. "Sam?" Her voice wavers.

A tear runs from the corner of his eye and disappears into his hair. "In my timeline, Arendelle does not exist. There is an Arundel Norway that I believe could have been the Arendelle as you know it." He blinks and another tear runs down his face. "In the time line before coming here, your Arendelle is incorporated into Norway. It is nothing more than a large fishing village that will suffer through hard times."

"You said your time line. What does that mean?" Frederick asks.

"Those events which you have seen occurred in his time. They could be in your future. I am sure you have guessed. He is not from here." Elsa answers.

Seth asks, "If he is from our future, what is to prevent us from changing those events before they happen?"

"I believe that is why he showed it to you." She stands with her hand still generating cold onto his neck. "If you are able to walk back to the castle, please do so."

Frederick helps Seth and the two British officers help their Queen Victoria walk out of the stables.

When the door closes, she kneels in front of him and holds his face. "I know you are fighting to control your pain that has increased, but why show them?" She waits several seconds before blowing a cool mist into his face. His eyes focus on her lips. She blows another cold mist into his face.

A smile tries to form. He suppresses it and stares into her eyes. "Each wants me to work for them. If they continue down the path they have chosen, their fate may end the same as it had happened in my time line."

"You gave them a chance to see their future?"

"Yes, and for selfish reasons as well. I gave them a glimpse of the monster's abilities. The dragon will pass close this year. If I am with either of them and I lose control, every government on this planet will come after me," his smile squeezes a tear, "and you."

His fingers lightly brush her cheek. A tingling sensation travels down her body. "If I have made a mistake by showing them. You and Arendelle are in danger. You will have to make it appear that I hurt you and you have to send me away."

She shakes her head vigorously. "NO, I cannot."

"For Arendelle, you must."

She slides closer and rest her knees on his thighs. She pulls him closer and caresses his head against her shoulder. The comfort of his arms wraps around her. She detects a miniscule tremor pass through his body. "There is still time."

"Do you know what you are going to do?"

"I have an idea."

He pushes her to her feet. The floor board in the service room creaks. "For them you're on."

She steps back and into her regal pose. Anna peeks around the corner. Sam bows his head.

"If the negotiations fall apart because of what you have done." Else grabs his hair and twist. "I will banish you from Arendelle forever."

Throwing his hair on his face, she twists around and walks out. "Come Anna. We have to prepare for this evening's ball. If the stable boy can get his emotions under control, I will let him serve drinks to the guest."

The service door slams shut.

 **End of Chapter**


	77. Chapter 76 Elsa's Plan Part-2

Title: Chp-76 Elsa's Plan part-2

1 years, 9 months until correction.

The sunny and warm breeze reminds Elsa of how cold the stables had become from Sam's radiating energy. She stops and looks back.

Anna glances back and asks, "What is wrong? Did you forget something?"

"There is a significant temperature difference between the stables and out here." Elsa tries to reach out to him, but receives nothing. "He is using a lot of energy to keep it under control." She turns to Anna. "Where is Kristoff?"

"He left before everyone went into the stables."

"When he gets back, no matter what I am doing, meeting or not, send him to me. It is imperative he takes my message to Pabbie."

"That is where he is going. They were in a hurry.

"Perhaps Pabbie already knows." Elsa watch King Frederick step through the castle doors and buttons the top collar of his royal jacket.

"Knows what?" Anna asks.

Frederick's sword rattles at his side as he walks with long steps. As his boots touch the courtyard, he slams his hands into the gloves with the Southern Isle emblems. He glance at the stables and her.

Elsa does not see Prince Seth. "I will explain later. Do as I ask." She walks across the courtyard with the elegance of a Queen.

Anna delays a half step and walks slightly behind her. "Yes, Majesty."

Queen Victoria stands to the side of the castle's door. She appears to be looking past her and towards the stables. The two officers behind her constantly look at everyone and fidget with the hilts of their swords. In those few moments with Sam, did something happen.

Frederick slows and stops. He watches her. His hand grips his sword's hilt.

Elsa shortens her steps. "We do not wish to be late. I need five minutes to freshen up, before we finish and sign the documents."

Frederick turns and steps in line with her. "Is everything to your satisfaction?"

She peeks at him from the corner of her eye. "It will be soon."

"I was talking about Samuel."

"So am I," the corners of her lip curl upwards, "and the trade documents."

She stops at the top of the steps and motions. "Queen Victoria, you are my honored guest. Please proceed."

Victoria shakes her head. "This is your home. You should lead us." As Elsa takes a step towards the door she continues. "Besides, the comments from the other delegates have been floating out of the door, so you will need to address them when you enter." With the aid of her officers, she falls in line behind Frederick.

A flurry of questions assaults Elsa as she steps into the foyer.

"Queen Elsa, Queen Elsa," sounds the whiny voice of the Belgian.

"Queen Elsa, did you negotiate a separate deal?" ask the Frenchman.

"Did you void the treaty with us?" asks the German.

Elsa holds up her hands. "Wait. I will answer all of your questions."

It does not hold back their questions except to allow them to move closer.

The German says, "I did not come all the way here to be insulted while you create a separate deal with them.

"That's right," comments the Belgian. "You can't do that to us."

The Frenchman starts to speak, but Elsa interrupts. "Enough. If there is anything in the treaty you do not like, let us go back into the room and discuss it with proper accords."

The Frenchman waves his hand towards the monarchs. "We saw Prince Seth and Queen Victoria go to the stables and you followed a few minutes afterwards. What treaty did you give them?"

"The same as you. Please follow me back to the room." Elsa walks up the stairs with the delegates behind her.

Anna turns down the short hall leading to the kitchen. King Frederick allows Victoria to pass in front of him. The Frenchman grumbles, but a comment from another calms him down. They walk in silence up the stairs to the council room. As soon as the door closes, the bickering begins.

Anna runs past the kitchen staff, but Gerda spots her and asks, "What is the hurry, my dear."

"Several of the delegates think Elsa has made a side deal without them. She will need a distraction in a few minutes. Tea and cakes would be nice or something along those lines." Anna continues towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

Anna stops long enough to glance back. "Elsa needs to speak to Kristoff as soon as he gets back. I am keeping a watch out for him."

Gerda goes about her duties and comments. "It sounds like Sven running in the courtyard now."

Anna opens the door. As if Gerda could see through the walls, Sven runs pass the kitchen door. She points out the door and with wide eyes, she asks, "How did you know?"

Gerda pushes her out the door. "There is Kristoff. Go speak to him."

Sven skids to a stop in front of the stables. She runs towards them and calls out. "Kristoff wait. Queen Elsa needs to speak to you."

He blows her a kiss and runs into the stables.

Kristoff has never done that to her, nor has he walked away from Elsa's commands. What is he up to? Is Sam influencing him as well? Anna runs to the stables and expects the door to be locked, but it opens when she pulls on it.

"I know there are berries near their home." A stranger's voice grumbles.

"Drink up. Pabbie said you should drink two cups full of his herbs." Kristoff says. A slurping sound follows.

The stranger's voice growls, "He is doing this on purpose. Is it too hard to add a few berries?"

Anna looks at the floor. Which one did Elsa say not to step on or it would squeak? If she extends her normal length of step, would she miss it? Taking a chance she quietly lifts her dress and takes a longer step. Her foot starts to slide as her weight shifts forward. Standing with her feet together, she slowly inhales.

A laughing growl sounds followed by the stranger's voice. "Now that is funny."

"What is?" Kristoff asks.

"Wait, I am sure there will be more." The stranger's voice sounds like part animal and part man.

She moves closer to the horse's area. The hairs on her arms and the back of her neck rise just like before a lightning bolt strikes the castle. Her body tingles with the charge. She peeks around the corner. Kristoff focuses on stirring something in a wooden bowl. The back of the stranger appears to be Sam without his shirt, but his white hair does not lie flat and covers all of his back. His hair inflates then shrinks like it is alive. He turns his head enough for Anna to see the green of his skin. The head turns more and a flash of light metallic green sweeps across his face.

Anna inhales and her hands try to cover the sound, but the chirp passes across her lips.

The growling laughter returns and the stranger says, "Princess Anna, please come out. I will not bite. You need more meat on your bones before I would do that." His laughter morphs into a howl.

A few horse's neigh while the others whinny.

She peeks around the corner.

Sam slips his shirt over his head. "Come out. It is time for you to see what I am."

Kristoff motions for her to come to him. Anna keeps her eyes on Sam as she sidesteps along the rails to get pass him. His skin appears to be one big bruise with a dark shade of green. His muscles flex and the metallic green sweeps across his exposed skin. She bumps into Kristoff.

"I thought it was weird the way he can change his eye color," Kristoff points the wooden spoon at Sam, "until I saw his arms and face change to different shades of green."

Still watching Sam, she grabs Kristoff's arm. "You have seen him do that before?"

"At least once before now." He returns to stirring the liquid in the bowl.

She looks into the bowl. "What is this?" The herbal fragrance leaps up her nose. She steps back. "Ewe, is that what he was growling about? It smells like fish left out in the sun."

"I like dried fish. It is very healthy if it is seasoned well enough to keep the bugs out." Sam comments.

Kristoff smells the spoon before taking a sip. "Taste fine to me. If you don't like the bugs, pick them out or fry up the whole thing, then it does not matter."

"Ew, gross." Anna pinches him. "Wash your mouth out with soap before you kiss me again."

Sam stares at the ceiling. His head continuously nods. "I haven't had fried fish in what seems like forever." He stands tall. "Is it ready?"

"Where is your tanker with the lid?"

Sam holds it out.

Kristoff pours the herbs in water into the tanker. "Pabbie said to wait two days before drinking the rest of it." Anna slowly taps his arm, but he continues. "It would give the herbs time to merge together."

Her eyes widen and the tapping becomes rapid. Kristoff turns around. She points.

Sam staggers back against Sven stall. His arm over the top rail prevents him from falling. The tanker falls to the ground and a tiny amount of liquid pours out. The green color in his skin fades to his normal tan color and gradually shifts to an ocean blue. His arm loosens its support and he slides down to the ground. The back of his head rests on the bottom rail.

Sven sniffs him. His upper lip quivers as he backs to the corner of the stall.

Kristoff grins. "Pabbie did say that might happen. He also said he may become very agitated."

"What if he does," Anna watches Sam.

"Then we better not be here if he does."

The delegates for France, Belgium, and Germany stand on one side of the table. England and the Southern Isle stand on the other side with Arendelle sitting at the head of the table. Elsa watches the four men throw accusations at each other. Victoria glances back at her and nods her head towards them.

Elsa grins. She thought the next part of her plan would take longer, but they fell under her influence too easily, except for Victoria. Sam had warned her it may not work at all. The conditions would have to be ideal and under specific circumstances with the targets distracted, it could possibly work. She motions for the British Queen to come closer to her.

Standing next to her Victoria asks, "Why are they acting up? And why are you smiling?"

"I should ask. Why are you not yelling with the rest of them?"

"Answer my question first."

"They have been given a suggestion. I am smiling because I did not think they would be so acceptable to the idea the others were getting a better deal. I came up with the idea to see how they would react." She continues to watch them and shakes her head.

Victoria stares down at her and lightly touches her arm. She whispers, "You mean Sam?"

She sweeps her hand at the others. "Now you see why governments who know of his abilities want him on their staff."

"I have seen arguments start like this. It usually ends with blood, but no one is moving towards the others. So how is he doing it?"

The side door opens and Gerda wheels in a cart of beverages. She watches the men argue and glances at the two Queens. She offers Elsa a cup of her tea. "Why are the two of you not in the middle of this?"

"They are making my point." Elsa stands and sips her tea.

Gerda asks, "But they are repeating themselves."

Victoria stares at them. She snickers, "They sure are. So why is that?"

Elsa places her cup on the table. "When you answer my question, why are you not over there arguing with them, I will answer."

"While I did have the urge to argue with them when we came in, once they started, the urge went away." She sips her tea. "As for the specifics why I did not, I do not know."

"Shall I call the guards?" Gerda asks.

"No, it is time for them to stop." She flicks her hand and the service door slams shut. The men stop talking and stare at the door. Elsa taps her cup as she sips her tea again. They stare at her.

The Frenchman sits and holds his head. "What just happened? My head is killing me."

"Me too," says the Belgian as he sits.

"I feel like the morning after drinking most of the night away." The drops into his chair with a thud.

Frederick narrows his eyes at her and sits.

"Please continue to pass the beverages to my guest."

"Yes, ma'am." Gerda pushes the cart around the table.

"And Gerda, get them anything else they may need.

"Yes, Majesty." Gerda continues.

Queen Victoria sitting to her right nods. "So are you going to tell me how he did it?"

The hall door swings open with a loud bang. Anna quicksteps towards her with the grace that does not allow to her bounce, but to glide across the floor. "Majesty, Master Kristoff has returned."

"Good, lady and gentlemen, please continue with your refreshments. I need to speak with Kristoff before he departs again." Elsa exits the room with Anna behind her. Halfway down the hall to make sure none of the delegates or their staff can hear her, she asks, "Did he see Grand Pabbie?"

"He did and brought back herbs for Sam to drink."

"Good. Did he drink it?"

"Yes?"

A single word answer and not talking. Elsa looks at her little sister as they continue down the hall. Anna's expression of doubt or confusion and not looking at her signals an alarm of concern. "Then he should be feeling better?"

"He is definitely different." Anna glances up at her sister and quickly looks away.

"So Kristoff brought back enough in case Sam needs more?"

"Yes, I believe he brought enough to fill four cups full."

She stops at the landing before the stairs and faces her. "You said he is different. How much did he drink?

Anna does not look at her. "I definitely saw him drink a cup full from his large tanker."

"Good." Elsa walks to the stairs. "A double dose should calm his pain. The other two should help him to control it for the next few weeks." She stops at the stairs and looks back. "The herbs did calm his pain, right."

Anna smiles. "It definitely calmed his pain." As Elsa takes the first two steps. Anna continues. "All the way down to the ground."

"What do you mean to the ground?"

"Well," Anna appears to be looking for an escape.

"Anna," Elsa barks.

She walks to her. "It is possible he had drank more before I peeked around the corner."

Pabbie said if Sam drank more than his body could process, it could cause strange things to happen to his mind. It happened once, but the trolls held him down until he pour the counter herbs into him to neutralize the effects.

Elsa grabs her arms. "How much?"

"Possibly all of it. Kristoff said he had enough for four cups full."

She shakes her head and steps back to the rail. "Four time? What was he doing when you left him?"

"He was on the ground in front of Sven stall. His eyes were half open. His body had a pretty shade of blue."

"Blue, What shade of blue?"

"Like your ice dress." Anna holds Elsa's arm. "It should be all right. He will sleep it off. Right?"

"I do not know. The one time I saw him drink Pabbie's herbs. He slept for three days. I do not know if it is a simple multiplication times four for twelve days. He did not turn blue." She starts down the stairs. "Is Kristoff still with him?"

Anna follows her. "He was trying to move Sam. Sven kept sniffing at him for some reason. I was nearly run over by Brigit."

Elsa spins around and asks loudly. "Brigit?"

"Yes, she ran into the stables as I came out."

"If she is there then something is wrong." She starts down the stairs and notices two staff members of the delegates. She stops and takes a breath.

Painfully slow, they make their way down the stairs. The two delegate's staff members continue their conversations as they turn down the hall to the kitchen. Elsa lands on the bottom step, she lifts her dress off the floor and runs out the castle door. Down the front steps she sprints to the stables and into the service room. She stops short of the horse's area. Elsa blinks and her eyes see the blue glow filling the stables. The blue wavers in intensity. A second later, behind her Anna steps on the squeaky board.

From the horse's area, a low growl gradually increases.

"Yes, I know they are there. No. Stop." A series of barks of varying pitch sounds and a yip follows. "That's it. Calm down." The blue glow fades. "I'm getting too old for this. Queen Elsa of Arendelle, why are you not in here instead of me?"

Elsa peeks around the corner. With both hands on Sam's chest, Brigit leans against him. Her hands glow blue. With his eyes closed, Sam's arms hang to his side. She steps into the horse's area.

Sam turns his head to her and opens his eyes. She has seen his eyes either blue or green, but not one eye blue and the other dark green.

"Queen Elsa, please come over here." Brigit motions. "My aching bones are too old to be doing this for him again. You should be doing it, not me."

Elsa whispers to Anna, "Please stay here, just in case." Anna nods and peeks around the corner of the service area.

She stands next to Brigit. "What do I do?"

Brigit takes her hand and places it over her hand. It immediately glows the same blue. Brigit slips her hand out and Elsa's hand glows brighter.

"You have done this with him before now," Brigit states.

"We have shared the experience of his blue glow several times," she answers.

"His glow? In his current state, he is not the one glowing. You are sharing your energy with him. It is you who is glowing blue." Brigit walks around her and stops next to Sven's stall. "It is safe to come out."

"Are you sure," Kristoff moves pass Sven. "I thought he was going to rip the gate off if you had not come in here."

Anna runs up to him. "Did he hurt you?"

"The Admiral was not trying to hurt you. He was trying to get you to leave." Brigit scratches behind Sven's ear.

Anna asks, "Why did he not ask him to leave?"

"Speech is a higher function of the brain. He is losing control." Brigit stares at Kristoff. "Did you give Sam the herbal plants from the troll?"

"From Grand Pabbie, yes," Kristoff answers. Anna glares at Brigit and wraps her arm around him.

"How much?"

"I stirred the crushed leaves in a cup of water. Sam drank two cups full."

"That will help him for a week or two." Brigit holds out her hand. "Let me see what is left."

Kristoff removes a small leaf pouch. Sven sniffs at it and backs away.

Brigit opens the pouch and glances at him. "It is empty." Both Anna and Kristoff stare at each other. "Fascinating." She licks her finger and sweeps the inside of the pouch. The tastes causes her to clench her eyes close as she shakes her head. "Why didn't Pabbie add some berries to sweeten it?"

"Sam said the same thing," Kristoff says.

"If that is all he took, he will be alright." Brigit says as she stands next to Elsa. "I know he has taken the herbs before and did not have this reaction." She taps Sam's chest. "So what pushed you over the edge?"

Elsa gradually turns her head. "Anna, tell her what you saw."

With wide eyes Anna asks, "Your eyes are a crystal blue. I have never seen your eyes do that."

"I do not know what you are talking about. Everything has a blue halo around it, including you," Elsa answers.

"Don't mind them Majesty. Sam's eyes also turned crystal blue when he transfers his energy to another." She bumps her with her elbow. You were probably enjoying yourself not to have noticed." She turns to Anna. "Please tell me what you saw."

She looks around then lets out a sigh. "Kristoff was not facing him, but Sam drank the second tanker full. He staggered back and slid down the rails."

"So he has had four doses of the herbs. That is not good." With her head down and eyes closed, she rubs behind her eyes. She turns to him and rest her head on his arm. "You don't get stupid unless the dragon is near. Sam, why would you do this?"

Elsa answers, "Because the dragon has changed course."

"Explain changed course?" Brigit focuses on her.

"Some time ago, He stated something has changed the dragon's course. He said he calculated a projected course that will take it closer than any previous time."

"How close?"

"It will pass within six kilometers to either side of the fjord." Elsa answers.

"WHAT?" Brigit paces around them. She glances at the horses. "I can't go. I have children. What am I supposed to do with them? I can't rip them from the only home they know." She grabs Sam's arm. "I'm too old. I don't know if I will survive." She rests her head on his arm for a moment, before looking at Anna. She stands and wipes a tear from her eyes. "If Princess Anna and Master Kristoff were willing to adopt my children, I will go with you one more time."

"Why would you give up your children to go with him?" Anna asks.

Two times Brigit tries to speak, but does not. Elsa's blue hand touches her. "He says it is okay to tell them."

Brigit nods several times. "The dragon has been a curse for the both of us. When we first met, my mission was to kill him; instead he saved me from my team leader about to crush my head with a large rock. At that moment I was ready to die." She looks at Sam and smiles. "He saved me. I owe my life to him and I have been traveling through the dragon with him." She looks at Elsa. "I pass through with scrapes and bruises, but for several months he does not remember. During those times, I protect him from himself and others."

She holds Elsa's and Sam's arms. "He has been here for so long and if the dragon is early, he will walk right into its mouth. If I'm not there to go with him, he will be lost forever." She whispers, "Majesty, if you have any sway with him, Get him to leave or commit to you." She shakes her head. "There is no middle ground."

Elsa steps back. The glow in her hands fades. Her eyes return to normal. She nods and walks to the service area. "I know what I have to do." She glances at Brigit. "I have to get back to my guest. Will he sleep?"

"As much herbs as he drank, I am surprised he is still standing. He will sleep for a couple of weeks unless he loses control again, then no one is safe," Brigit answers.

Elsa opens a stall gate and with all of her weight she pushes him partly into the stall. "Kristoff, if you will please make sure he does not leave until after the guest have departed." She marches towards the exit. "I do not need any more missteps. Anna, please come with me." They exit the stables.

Brigit asks, "Can you stay with him until I get back. If he starts to get up, knock him back down. If he starts to swing his fist, run." She marches out of the stables.

Kristoff stares at Sam. "I hope you don't move. I would like to go to the ball tonight with Anna." He starts to walk away but looks back. Before speaking, he glances around the area to determine if someone is listening. Sure that no one will hear him, he says, "Buddy, I know Elsa would love for you to be there, but not in your state. If you cannot control yourself, at least, sleep to morning."

An hour later, Brigit returns to the stables with a flask of purple liquid and a glass cup. Kristoff walks towards her from the far end of the stables. She waits until he stands next to her. "Did you mean what you said about Queen Elsa wanting him at the ball tonight?"

"You heard me?"

"I didn't." She points to Sam. "He did. I can hear his thoughts"

He leans over Sam. "I thought he was asleep."

"He is. The funny thing about humans, even they are asleep, your ears still function and responds to sounds. His brain processes the information differently than the way you do. Sit him up."

Kristoff struggles, but he is able to move Sam to a sitting position. "Does he hear and understand animals?"

"They just speak another language. With enough time you could actually speak to Sven and understand his replies." She pours the purple liquid into the cup.

"What is that?" He leans close to the cup until the fragrance assaults his nose and he steps back holding his nose. "That smells worse than Grand Pabbies herbs."

"Could be, but it has berries in it to cut the bitterness, so perhaps he will drink it without a fight." She sips the liquid. "Good the flavors have merged as one. It will counter several of Pabbie's herbs and allow most of these to do what the troll was trying to do."

"And what was that?"

She opens Sam's eyes. Neither pupil change diameters. "The herbs are supposed to suppress his pain, but it took them down too far. My herbs will bring him up to consciousness and hold the pain down for a few days. It should get him past the delegate's departure." She touches the four specific points on his face and neck. "And he could be ready for the Ball tonight." She looks past him. "I don't think he has ever been to a ball. Have you?"

"To get dressed up the way they do, I guess my wedding was the closest to it."

"Sounds like you don't like balls."

"I don't like wearing the formal clothes. If they would let me wear what I have on, I would go." Sven snorts. "Don't laugh at me, I would go." Sven snorts twice.

Brigit glances at Sven. "He does not believe you. You sound a lot like Sam."

He stands tall with his hands on his waist. "How do you know what Sven said?"

She backhands a sharp snap at his abdomen, causing him to exhale his pride. "Anna is correct. You do not listen. I said their sounds are their language and I have been around long enough to learn their language."

The pupils in Sam's eyes change sizes as he blinks.

"There you are." She priors his mouth open and pours in the purple liquid. His throat moves as though he swallows. "Pour me another cup full."

Three cups later, Kristoff holds the flask up to the light. "You have maybe a half cup left."

"He has had enough." The whites in his eye show a tint of blue in them.

Sam belches. "All right, who kicked my head this time?" He rolls onto his side and cover his face with the straw. "Who turned the light on so bright?" He belches again.

Brigit motions for Kristoff to follow her. They walk out the service door and stand in the sun.

Kristoff asks, "Why are we out here?"

She snickers. "Because in five to ten minutes, you will not be able to breathe in there."

"What about Sven and the horses?"

"They are accustomed to it, especially when one of them gets sick." Brigit nods towards the castle. "You better intercept your sweetie pie before she gets too close when the gas bomb goes off. I think she will pass out."

Kristoff trots over to Anna. She waves at her. They walk back to the castle.

A soft crunch sounds behind her. She closes her eyes for several seconds. "You are in the danger zone if he passes gas, Majesty." The soft crunch becomes a hard crunch rapidly approaching her.

"How did you know it was me?" Elsa stands next to her.

Brigit winks at her. "The guards normally march, so their boots make a rolling crunch sound. The staff has a softer sole on their shoes and do not walk in a straight line as compared to the guards. Kristoff's shoes are the best for sneaking around, but he murmurs when he steps on a sharp stone. The delegates and royalty wear slick sole which forces them to limit the spacing between their steps and they walk slower for the slightest slipping of the shoes on smooth surfaces. Anyone who wishes to sneak up on someone in those shoes have either overestimated their skills or is not aware of the noise."

Elsa looks at her shoes. "Is that how Sam knows when I approach him?"

"It is not that his hearing is better than mine, but he interprets the sounds differently. I believe that is what has kept him one step ahead of those who tried to kill him."

"Kill him?" Elsa stares at the stable's door. "You mean someone purposefully tried to kill him?"

"Over the years, yes. His skills surpassed all that I have ever seen. He is still here and they are not." Brigit shakes her head as she looks at the ground. "Majesty, he fell under the other's control because he forgot who he was. You have to entice him to stay. Please do not let one of the other monarchs take him. He will be sent to settle the score with others. On the British ship is one like me. He was on the ship's deck when I detected him. When I got a clear line of sight, he looked me in the eye and ran below the decks."

Elsa stares at the castle gates. "Is he one of the assassins you talk about?"

"I do not believe so, but he has tried a few times to search the castle as Sam does."

"Is he a danger to Sam or us?"

"That I am not sure. Sam would know."

Elsa starts to walk towards the stable door, but Brigit steps in front of her. "Majesty, The herbs I gave him should have worked their magic by now. If you are in there when the herbs flush his system, stop breathing and get out the best way you can." She glances towards the castle. "What will you tell your guest as to why you passed out in the stables?"

"Is someone watching?"

Brigit steps closer and turns her body to block their view as she touches the back of Elsa's hand. "I don't know his name. See as I see."

Elsa takes a sharp breath. "Prince Seth is watching us."

"What do you see surrounding him?"

"A blue halo? Is he like you?"

"No, the halo is too weak. It is the residual effect of Sam's energy." Brigit peeks past her.

Seth constantly wrings his hands and wipes them on his trousers. A guard approaches and speaks to him. He looks around the courtyard and replies to the guard.

"He appears confused." She looks at Elsa. "Are you doing anything to him?"

"No."

"Without further examination, the halo will probably disappear once he leaves Arendelle."

A low rumble sounds from the stables and she glances at the door. "Majesty, you need to protect Sam from himself and others. I will take care of him while you celebrate the treaty."

Elsa stares at her. "You are correct. I will do what I can." She walks back to the castle and greets Seth. They walk through the door.

"That is all he asks of you, Majesty." Another low rumble of a longer duration sounds in the stables. Several horses squeal loud enough that the guards at the gate look towards the stables. Brigit waves to them, then touches her finger to her lips. She takes a deep breath and enters through the service door.

End of chapter.


	78. Chapter 77 Elsa's Plan: I Choose

Title: Chp-76 Elsa's Plan: I choose

1 years, 9 months until correction.

Elsa watches the sliver of the moon sink behind the mountains. She tries to narrow her focus. If he can see it, she should see a glimpse of it. Is that it? She does not see green, but stares at it, in case it opens its red mouth. After a few minutes, she looks at another dark spot. "Did you see it or did you not?"

"Elsa?" A warm hand holds her arm.

Her vision does not adjust as quickly and for a brief second she sees the thermal differences on Anna's exposed skin. Her eyes close.

"Are you okay?" Anna steps in front of her.

She smiles and blinks her eyes open. "I was just thinking about today."

"It has been a stressful day for you, even with Sam's issues." Anna says as she looks out the window. "Are you looking for his dragon?"

She stares at the moon and the stars. "I have seen it with his help. I was hoping I could see it without him."

Anna looks at the stars. "If it is not close, would you see it?"

Elsa exhales and her breath creates a frost on the window. "He would see it long before I would, even if it was close. I had to try." She notices Anna's dress. "You look beautiful. Will Kristoff be by your side to keep the wolves away from you?" She gives her a long hug, then kisses her cheek. "I guess I better get back to my room and get ready. After this week, I do not wish to be late to the ball." Arm in arm they walk to the Queen's room.

An hour later, Anna exits the room. Around the corner, Kristoff, wearing a dark blue trousers and jacket with a lighter blue shirt underneath, stands at the landing before the stairs. "What are you doing here?"

He points to the main floor where the guests have gathered. The sound of laughter rises up to them.

She searches the guest. All the delegates and their staffs are there. Arendelle's council members were making the rounds to the delegates and to the local business owners. Then she sees him standing in the hall to the kitchen. With his fist on his waist and his arms out, he blocks the entire hall. One of the councilmen points at him. She does not hear what he is saying, but it is loud enough to draw the attention of a few guests. He stares at the councilman.

"I thought he would sleep for a week."

"So did I."

"Then why is he here?"

Kristoff shrugs. "He is just standing there."

"Where are the guards?" Anna asks.

Kristoff motions to the foyer. "There are four by the doors. They are watching him."

"Do something before he ruins the ball."

"I am doing something. I'm staying out of his way, along with the guards."

Sam steps to the side and the kitchen staffer passes with the alcoholic beverage cart. He follows her around the room. The guests are kind to the staffer. A few make comments behind his back. He does not turn to them. The guests give him and the cart a large area to pass.

"I will tell Elsa. He is here." Anna walks back down the hall.

"Is this what you tried to warn me? I must have all of the facts before making any decision. Papa, Sam thinks the same way you do. He said I would encounter a moment when I will have to set aside my emotions and choose what is right for Arendelle. This should be easy, but it is not." Elsa looks in the mirror and carefully dabs the corner of her eyes without disrupting her makeup.

"Momma, you did say to be careful of the stable boy. What do I do?" Another tear tries to ruin her makeup.

A knock sounds on the outer door. Elsa stares at herself in the mirror. "I have no choice."

"No choice about what and why are you not ready?" Anna enters the bedroom.

"Why hurry? I still have thirty minutes." She brushes the end of her braided hair.

Anna stands behind her and watches her in the mirror. "He is downstairs.

"Who?"

"Sam. That is who. He is not wearing Arendelle colors."

Elsa looks at her sister in the mirror. "Is he wearing green trousers with a purplish red shirt under his blue jacket and father's red sash?"

"Yes."

"Is he wearing anything else?"

Anna waits, then narrow her eyes at her. "You knew he was there."

"Please, what else was he wearing?" Elsa stares intently with a hint of blue in her eyes.

"He has five stars on his right collar. A small gold chain with the ends disappearing into the jacket holds a yellow crocus in a silver circle." Anna glances at her gloves on her desk. "He also wears his gloves with the symbol of fire and your snowflake."

Elsa leaps out of her chair. "Thank you Admiral." She runs behind the changing screen and sprinkles her magic over her clothes."

"Elsa, did you know he was there"

"He asked for my permission to come to the ball. I said yes, if he would wear his admiralty uniform." She walks out from behind the screen. "I guess he did."

"Um, Elsa, do you think that is a little too revealing for the guest."

She admires herself in the mirror by turning one way then the other way. "I think the Admiral will like it."

"He and all the men there." She grins. "I did not think you had it in you to be that risqué."

"Risqué," She stares at the mirror. "You are probably correct. Her hand swirls and the magical sparkles fall onto her dress and the hem lengthens from above her ankle to cover her shoes. "Is that better?"

"Um, that is a nice adjustment. I was thinking more of the top end of the dress. If you dance you do not want anything to spill out."

"Maybe you are right. Only after he commits, will he see the rest of me." More sparkles land on her dress. The collar moves up and stops snugly around her neck. The dress changes to the traditional colors with a form fitting long sleeve, black shirt interwoven into the green bodice in front and a green wrap around dress trimmed with the crocus vines and flowers.

"Is this better?" Elsa asks as she picks up her gloves.

"This is a formal occasion." Anna picks up a small vial of perfume marked with the word '4Sam'. "Who do you think will commit tonight?"

Elsa shakes her head as she walks out. From the outer room, she says. "The important part is we have a treaty with two of the most powerful allies in this region. Are you coming?"

Anna slips the vile into her pocket. "Right behind you."

They exit the monarch's suite.

Sam has only one task. Make sure no one consumes too much alcohol and becomes a nuisance to the other guest. Most of the guests understand his positions since they would be eating soon, but the French assistance declares the people of France consumes alcohol at a far greater rate than any other country and demands more. He does not relent and follows the cart around the room. No one gives the kitchen staffer any trouble. When the cart reaches the short hall to the kitchen, another staffer pushes a fruit and mini sweet and salty snack cart as the alcohol cart turns down the hall. Sam follows the second cart.

The presumptuous guest expresses his miss-treatment by the stable boy. Even as the snack cart passes him. He makes sure the others hear him. "In my country, this rudeness would not be tolerated from a peasant, let alone a stable boy. If I had my sword, I would teach him a lesson for disrespecting me. I would rip that white mane of hair out of his head and wipe the brown from between my cheeks.

The staffer glances up at him.

He shakes his head once. "Please continue and ignore him."

"Ignore me will you." The guest rips off his glove and slaps the side of Sam's face. The conversations stop and all turn to the noisy little man at the base of the stairs. The glove snaps through the air again. This time it lands several meters towards the center of the room. The guest in a bent over position with his nose bleeding on his own knee and his arms to his side whispers, "I get you, assassin come."

Sam releases his grip and the guest falls to the floor. Three guards run over to them. The sergeant says, "What happened here?"

"He attacked Sam," says the staffer.

Sam holds up his hand to silence her. "This gentleman has had too much to drink. Before he hurt any of the guests, I persuaded him to stop. Please escort him back to his ship."

"Get him up," commands the sergeant, "and take him to the French ship." He follows his guards out of the hall.

Sam motions to the others. "Please do not let this incident spoil your moods. We are here to celebrate the treaty between our great people."

Prince Seth stands next to him. "He got a good hit on your face."

"This is minor as compared to what he will get back in his country."

"He will be hailed as a hero for challenging the mighty stable boy of the north." Seth snickers.

Sam glares at him. "There will be no hero's welcome for him."

"Why is that?"

"What good is a failed assassin who cannot complete their mission? If he has a friend on the ship, they will make sure his body will never be found."

"If he does not have a friend?"

Sam stares at the French delegate. With a breath, he looks at the foyer door. "He will be taken back and used as an example to warn the others not to fail."

"Probably, but you did have the right to accept his challenge for slapping you with his glove. No one would have faulted you," Seth says.

"I don't care what the others say except the one and she watched the whole event. If you will excuse me, I am being called to the kitchen." Sam nods to Seth and marches across the room. As he reaches the hall he stops and stares at the foyer doors. Kai announces the arrival of Queen Victoria and her two escorting officers. His mind senses someone strange outside of the doors, but they do not enter.

Gerda grabs his hands. "Let's get to the kitchen and put some ice on the bruise forming on your face before it gets too big." They walk down the short hall.

"What was that all about?" Anna asks, watching the guest below.

"Sam said others may not wish for this treaty not to be signed. Now that it has. Are there others like the French assistant?" Elsa starts down the stairs. "Come, dear sister. We have a ball to attend and I need to make him commit."

Sam allows Gerda to lead him into the kitchen. He tries to focus on the person outside of the door. They had a familiar energy signature, but he cannot place who or what they are. Are they the second assassin and who is the target? Were they waiting for the combatants and the guest to exit the castle? Are they one of the castle guards? In this age, are sophisticated enough to commit a terrorist and kill three monarchs? Someone taps his arm.

"Have a seat," Gerda says. "You had the right to punch that Frenchman." She holds a small cloth filled with ice against his face. "Why did you not take him outside and teach him a lesson."

"Because that is what he wanted. I fear he was meant to be the distraction while another did their job." Sam closes his eyes. A cold drop of water runs down his face.

"An Assassin? The Frenchman's assistant? I think he is more of an embarrassment to the French Ambassador. He smelled of alcohol when they arrived." Gerda sweeps his hair from his face and touches the back of his neck. "Are you feeling well? Your neck is very warm."

He rubs his neck without opening his eyes. "I guess it is. Please send a runner to get Brigit and ask her to bring her healing herbs. I'm not feeling well."

With a snap of her fingers the service door open and closes.

His eyes open as he grabs Gerda's arm. "Please give Brigit a chance before you tell our Queen."

"Why would she not already know?"

He holds the ice over his eyes. "I blocked our connection on my end. She can still sense my presence, but she cannot hear my thoughts." He pulls the ice away and stares directly at Kai standing in the hallway.

"What's wrong with you?" Kai asks, staring back at him, but his voice does not have the sarcasm that it normally has.

"I'm not feeling well. At the current rate I'm going down, I will not be attending the ball."

"Queen Elsa is expecting you to be there."

"And I could be a danger to the guest." He holds the ice to his eyes. "I need to go where I will be safe until this passes."

Kai turns as he says, "I have to tell our Queen of your condition."

"SAM NO," sounds a scream from the service doorway. Kai hesitates enough to miss being struck by three spikes impacting the wall in front of him. The ice expands and partially blocks the hallway. Kai steps back, rubbing his face and looks at Sam.

"I'm sorry. I will not stop you from telling her. Please delay it for an hour. Give Brigit a chance. If I am not there in an hour, by all means let her know of my condition. I will be responsible for all of this." Sam allows his head to roll back and rest on the counter. "Please forgive me."

Brigit runs to Sam and sets a cloth bag on the counter by his head. "Sam, open your eyes. Open your eyes." The palm of her hand impacts his cheeks with a loud pop. Her fingers touch four specific points on his face and neck as her thumb slides across his cheek.

His eyes open to slits. "You hit me."

"And you are awake. What is going on with you?"

"I would like to know as well," Elsa asks from the hallway. She taps the ice and it shatters into tiny pieces. The ice floats over to an empty bucket on the floor and melts.

"This bruise on your face," Brigit taps his left cheek, "Did this come from the man the guards dragged to the French ship?"

"You should have hit him harder. That nose bleed was not enough for coming here drunk."

Elsa motions for Gerda to backup. "I saw what happened." She slips her hand under his hand. "He used the minimum amount of force necessary to control the situation." His fingers curl around her hand.

Brigit looks to her. "Majesty, he says your hand is cold."

Elsa squeezes his hand. "He feels hot. Why did he not answer?" She slips her hand behind his head. "His neck is burning up." She pulls out her bright red hand. "I cannot hear him, even this close."

"Nor can I." Brigit pulls three glass flasks out of her cloth bag. "I need a cup." A staffer places the cup on the counter. She pours a small amount of the red and green liquids into the cup. "We need to get him up."

"Majesty, please let me," Kai says as he steps around her. He and Brigit lift Sam to a sitting position.

Elsa takes the cup and slowly pours it into his mouth.

Sam moves as she pours more in. He takes a deep breath and his eyes slowly open. A smile leaps onto his face. "Majesty, do you need anything."

"Yes, what happened to you?"

He sits on his own. "I don't understand. I just sat for a moment to rest."

"You practically passed out and through ice at Kai." Brigit says as she pours red and blue liquids into the cup.

"I don't remember that."

"Do you remember holding my hand?" Elsa asks. He shakes his head and looks down.

"Wish I could remember." He whispers softly, "I bet it was nice."

She watches him. His movement appears incomplete as if he changes the movement before it is complete. She runs her hand along his cheek. "He still feels hot."

"Sam, drink this." He gulps it down. Brigit prepares another dose. "Sam, look at me."

His head bounces up and down and his body gradually rock forward and back, but eventually he looks at her.

Brigit lifts his head and pours the second cup into his mouth. A moment passes and she looks at the bright red spots on her hand that was in contact with his flesh. "How much energy are you using?" He looks away. She turns his head towards her. "Sam, how much energy are you using?"

"A lot." He leans back against the counter.

"What is a lot?" Elsa asks.

"Sam. Queen Elsa asked you a question. What percentage of your energy are you using to control your pain?"

His breathing slows, "five, eight."

"Five, eight, does he mean fifty-eight percent?" Elsa asks.

Brigit steps away from him. Pain distorts her face. "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"What does it mean?"

"He should not be awake. That is why Pabbie and my herbs were not working. His body will shut down soon." She looks to Elsa. "Majesty, you have to place him into an ice cocoon."

"NO," His head barely moves from side to side. "They have to see." His breathing becomes shallow and he swallows continuously.

"Who needs to see?"

He reaches for her, but Elsa steps back. His arms fall to his side. "Arendelle is more important. The people need to see," his head begins to nod. He speaks with less than a whisper. "They have to see I did not help." Elsa starts to touch his face and he says just loud enough for only she can hear. "The student must surpass the teacher."

Elsa stands in her regal pose. "If you believe that, you must follow me. To show them, they have to see you following me up the stairs. In the shape you are in, you cannot stand." She turns from him and walks towards the hall.

"Majesty, I can stand."

She continues down the hall and speaks loud for others to hear. "Prove it. I will be waiting out here."

Sam rolls his head to look at Brigit. "Mix all three colors in equal portions, two cups."

"That is not advisable at the moment."

"My time is running out." He growls, "Mix it. That is an order."

Brigit nods and moves to the counter. As fast as she opens one colored bottle and pours, she closes it and starts on the next. He drinks and hands the cup back. In less time, she hands him the second cup. Setting the empty cup on the counter, he stands and has to hold the counter to steady himself.

"You have to give it time to work or you will fall." Brigit collects her herbs into the cloth bag.

"Then I better not fall in front of them. I have no choice. She is on the stairs. I can do this. Follow us." Clenching his fist to his side, everything in the room emits a blue halo. The pain subsides and his body relaxes. He marches into the lower room. Queen Elsa is half way up the stairs. He marches past everyone and Anna. Up the stairs, he walks and finally slows at his station two meters behind her.

She leads him to his room and the door closes behind them. Her body presses against him and his arms wrap around her.

"We have a few seconds. Say what you will say."

"I can feel our energies are slightly out of sync." With moisture building in her eyes, she stares up at him. "Take some of mine, please."

"I cannot. You will need every bit of it this evening. As it was for me when I could not protect my mother, you will have to choose. I will accept your decision one way or the other. I am one. Arendelle is many."

"No, Anna can rule. We can be by her side." Moisture overflows the corner of her eye.

His sleeve captures the tear. "It would not be fair for her. She does not have your training. Would you dishonor your parents for not fulfilling their wishes?"

She pinches his side. "Now who is being unfair?"

"Your time is up." Sam pushes her away as the door opens.

Elsa walks towards the balcony and drains the other tears with her handkerchief.

"My apology, Majesty, Admiral, you have five seconds before a Princess enters." Brigit steps to the side of the door when it swings open.

"Majesty?" He asks.

From the window, she waves her hand towards him. As if on cue the door opens and Anna rushes in.

"Hey, the party is downstairs." She stops next to him. "Elsa?" She pinches his arm and a snap of static pops. "What did you do to her?"

Sam uses the chair to maintain an upright stance.

"We had a heart to heart talk." Elsa whirls around and strides across the room. "Come Anna. He needs to learn his rightful position here." She latches onto Anna's arm and they exit the room.

Brigit closes the door. "Are you okay?" He slumps into the chair. She touches his forehead. "You are burning up. Allow the ice to form around you. If you allow this to go too far, I may not be able to bring you back." She places her four fingers on his face.

He half-smiles and holds her hand to his chest. "My energy is down to thirty-one percent."

"Admiral," she tries to pull her hand free, but he holds tight. "You have to go now. Queen Elsa will understand."

"No, this is her golden hour. History will change and their future will improve. Do what you have to do to keep me awake until midnight. After that it will make no difference. Tonight, history will be written in stone." He kisses the back of her hand. "You have always been here for me when the dragon passes. The pull is overwhelming. I suspect this will be the last time for you." He touches her finger to the four specific points on his neck and face. "I'm sorry for your loss. Please, please do as I ask. Do whatever you need to do to get me past midnight."

Brigit touches her head to his forehead. "I will do my best."

Two hours later, music, laughter, and conversations, meet Sam as he enters the great hall. Several ladies closest to the door eye him. With a smile he replies in French, then German, "Good evening madam. Is all well with you?"

"Now that you are here, the evening just got better." They huddle together and giggle behind their fans.

He glances around the room. Three councilmen speak to the top richest men of Arendelle and their wives. The other three councilmen group together near the food table. The Irish ambassador Shaun O'Brady and Prince Seth watch him. He nods to them. A few more British uniforms stand at the base of the dais. The castle guards still outnumber them, but for Queen Victoria's protection, those British soldiers would be from their elite forces.

He starts to look at the other side of the room and a twinge strikes his eye. The energy came from the dais. Three British officers have their backs to him. None appear any different from the guards in front. Was it his imagination? Is Brigit's herb failing so soon? His eye twinges again. "Where are you?"

"Where is who?"

His body flinches. His fists clench as he turns to the voice. Releasing his fist, he bows. "Princess Anna, I did not expect you to sneak up on me."

"Sneak? You stared right at me as I walked up to you from the dais."

"You did. I didn't see you."

Anna slips her hand under his arm. "Perhaps you did not see me because of your blue eyes. Well, they were more like a dark crystal blue. Queen Elsa noticed them."

He glances towards the dais.

"Actually, everyone noticed them."

His head turns to her. "Look at me." He focuses on his image in her eyes. "I don't see the blue."

Anna urges him to walk with her. "They are not blue now." She nods to a guest. "How are you feeling?"

"I have felt better." He looks around the room. King Frederick, Prince Seth and Shaun O'Brady drink champagne and point at him. "Where is Queen Elsa?"

"She stepped out for a few minutes. She will be back." The music band plays. Anna pulls him towards the center of the floor. "Dance with me."

"I do not know how to dance."

Her right hand holds up his left hand and she tries to get him to hold her side. "That is no problem. I am skilled in a number of ballroom dance steps." He does not move. "All you have to do is step. I will lead." She leans back and steps, but he does not move. "Come on. Everyone is watching us. Just move."

He steps back and bows to her. "I said I do not dance."

Prince Seth offers his hand. "If he will not dance with the most beautiful Princess here, May I." Anna takes his hand and they dance around the room.

Another twinge flicks Sam's eye. Whoever it is, they hide near the dais, but he does not see them. He searches.

"Sam, what are you staring at?"

He glances at the faces watching him, but stops at the one with the blue eyes. She does motions him to her. He reaches out to her with his thoughts, but does not hear her. Who are they staring at?

"Samuel, if you do not move, please come with me." Captain Larsen says.

"I will go."

"You cannot handle it?" King Frederick asks. "She had faith in you and you failed her when she needed you the most."

Sam faces Frederick. His mind not as fast as it was six months ago finally formulates a response. "I am sorry for your loss, but I did warn him."

Frederick looks to his brother Seth. "What is he talking about?"

With a cold stare Sam steps closer to Frederick. "I will tell you. Your father came here years ago and made a treaty with Arendelle. As they were boarding their ship, I told your father to keep an eye on one of the councilmen who accompanied him on his trip. Your father said he would. Evidently he took his eyes off of him at the wrong time." He takes another step closer to Frederick and whispers, "Your father should be standing here not you. That is the life of a monarch. Do you trust all of your brothers to turn your back to them?"

Seth grips his sword and steps between his brother and Sam. "You crossed a line. I will die to protect Frederick as will all of my brothers."

Sam snaps his focus to Seth. "Does that include Hans?"

The sword begins to slide against the inside of the scabbard. Frederick pushes Seth back. "Hold on Brother. We did not come to disrupt Queen Elsa's moment of glory. Everything he said is correct. Our father would have been here if it was not for the treasonous act of the councilman.

Seth continues to stare at Sam. Frederick steps into his line of sight. "Brother, I am thirsty. Please get me a drink and one for yourself." Seth glances towards the beverage table. "Do not worry. Samuel may be a lot of things, but he is not stupid to do anything in front of all of these witnesses."

Queen Victoria bumps Elsa's arm. "It looks like your stable boy is picking a fight with King Frederick. Elsa looks across the room where she is pointing.

A few minutes after Sam entered the room, he looked into her eyes. His cheerful smile gave her encouragement. He spoke to all he passed. She thought perhaps he had overcome his pain, but his mannerisms says he is losing control. He stares into nothing could be explained to his exhaustion and stress of not participating in the meeting. She knew he worried about her. He made his appearance and he should have left. Whatever he said has Seth on edge. "Sam, what are you doing?"

"Your guests do not appear to be enjoying themselves, except for those three over there laughing and pointing to your stable boy." Victoria comments, before sipping her champagne.

She can't show favoritism and run over to his rescue, but she can't let him get out of hand. "Excuse me for a moment. I wish to hear their conversation." Elsa takes her time stepping down from the dais. Her guests create a corridor of two meters to either side of her as she glides across the floor.

Frederick sips his drink and nods to her as she approaches them. Sam appears not to notice her. He says, "I hear all the noise you are making. It does not change the fact that you and Queen Elsa could be together."

"It's not going to happen in any universe that I know of." Sam shoots back.

As If he had shot an arrow into her heart, could the physical pain be just as unbearable? She touches his arm. "Sam, what are you saying?"

His whole body jerks around to her. His clenched fist starts to move up. His stern expression was bad enough, but his eyes seem to bore a hole through her. For a fraction of a moment fear begins to creep into her mind. If he attacks, she would be dead before anyone could stop him. Is that the stare he gave to those who died by his hands? Was it a mistake to let him come here? Is this the result of his pain or the herbs in his body? The fear passes as fast as it came. He does not know her.

Frederick moves partially in front of her. Seth steps directly behind Sam with one hand on his sword, but he is too close to effectively defend her or his King.

His stare softens and his facial muscles begin to relax with the corners of his lips curling up. He bows as he steps back and bumps into Seth. "Why are you behind me? Again? Back up."

Seth stands next to his brother and they look at each other with confusion.

Sam bows. "I apologize for not properly bowing to you. Someone was frisking me for weapons."

"Please stand. The two of you appear to be having a lively conversation. I came over to hear what it was about." Her right brow rises with her smile.

Frederick answers before Sam could respond. "I was explaining to your stable boy. With his skills he should be at your side. And who knows if something more would happen."

"I explained I would not be a good fit next to you, but a couple of meters behind you would be more appropriate." He glances at Frederick. "Since I am the stable boy."

Slipping her hand out of her glove, she grabs his bare hand. A tingling sensation indicates their energies are close, but not in sync. He stares at her hand. The tingling stops. She forces enough of her energy into his hand, but not enough for it to radiate a blue mist. He continues to stare. She whispers, "If something more happens, would you?"

He starts to smile and glances at her, but it disappears. His hands move to his side. "Majesty, nothing has changed. I am not of royal blood. That will never change. Unless the council allows you to change Arendelle's law, I am content supporting you in my position two meters behind you. And I know full well, you may give your heart to another and they may ask me to leave. My heart will be broken when that happens." Sam's head moves from side to side.

"What a complete idiot you are." Frederick slaps the back of his shoulder. "You are absolutely hopeless. Most monarchies have similar laws to protect young rulers, including my kingdom. Your Queen has proven herself in her role to rule Arendelle. With whatever is going on in your head, she worked to create the treaty all of us signed."

An arrow in her heart or a cold slap in the face, both painful enough to cause her to step back. Did he mean what he just said? Is this it? She gave him some of her energy. Would a fool do that? Would a fool hope for an impossibility staring them in the face that is not to be? Her teeth clench to give her focus. If anyone other than Seth and Frederick heard her comment, they would think less of her and all she accomplished with the treaty would be naught. Did she lose with her chance? She nods and slips her glove back on. With a smile she walks back to the dais and sits on her throne. In front of everyone she will be strong, but two have noticed her heartbreak.

Queen Victoria hands her a glass of champagne. "It will dull the sting."

Halfway down the left side, her sister gives her an encouraging smile. Even Kristoff staring at Sam appears to understand what did not happen. Frederick and Sam's voices carry across the room.

"The differences between you and I is the interaction between the people we are to be in charge. You obviously have more people in your kingdom than I ever had on my ship. And yet I knew each member of my crew. Not just their names, but their desires, their strengths and weaknesses. I have counseled many of them and pushed them to improve their lives and actions." Sam argues.

"Yeah, and a ship's captain or whatever title you claim, is concerned with his men as a coherent fighting force. I do not deny you may be a great leader of your crew. All you have to do is take your leadership skills for a few hundred and expand it to cover several tens of thousands of people. A little training by the right teacher and you could rule your own kingdom." Frederick argues back.

"That's just it, I wasn't bred to rule, but to lead, to adapt and overcome, to survive."

Frederick shakes his head. "There is more to life than just surviving."

Elsa notes the three councilmen laughing. They glance at her.

"Do not mind those men. Their types look down on everyone." Victoria taps Elsa's glass. "Drink up. You do not want Frederick and myself to be the only monarchs caught drinking, do you?"

"You are correct. That is something my mother would say." She guzzles her drink, but it does not soothes the words Sam spoke.

End of Chapter


	79. Chapter 78 Elsa's Plan: Finale

Title: Chp-78 Elsa's Plan: Finale

1 year, 9 months until correction.

Princess Anna watches her sister dab the corner of her eyes with her glove. She glares at Sam and wants to march over and punch his face for making her sister cry. What is wrong with him? Can he not see how much she wants him by her side?

Kristoff glances at her and lightly strokes her arm. "Don't do anything rash. Hold your anger until I get back."

He walks along the edge of the guest a short distance before angling directly to the dais. Elsa looks up at him. Her eyes reflect the emotional toll of the treaty negotiations and the stress of the party. Kristoff points to her and makes a motion with his hands. He points to Sam.

Anna moves along the guest towards the dais and hears Kristoff say, "Growl at him."

Elsa wrinkles her face not understanding. "What?" she asks in a low voice.

Kristoff says, "Wolf." He cups his hands around his mouth and moves his head like he is howling. Glancing back at Sam, he moves closer and partially bows. "He told you how wolves make their selection for a mate. You have to growl at him until he hears you. Pause for a moment and then move closer. Sniff at him."

"Like the wolves." She begins to smile a real smile.

Victoria holds up her champagne glass. "Good luck."

Kristoff walks back to Anna and she grabs his arm. "What did you say to her?"

He places a finger to his lips. "Just watch."

Elsa stands in her regal pose with her hands crossed and stares at King Frederick and Samuel. Neither appears to notice her. She removes her gloves and places them on the seat. A sparkle from a small vile next to the throne's leg catches her eyes. She thought Anna was mistaken to bring it here, but perhaps she was right. She peeks over her shoulder.

Sam with his back to her still argues with Frederick.

As discretely as possible, she picks up the perfume bottle and opens it. Whether anyone approves or not, time is running out for the both of them. The light fragrance of tropical flowers and a hint of coconut tickles her nose. Some time back, Sam made a statement which Anna reminded her recently. Sam said if someone had a light fragrant perfume of flowers with coconut, he would follow them. Was he stating a truth back then? With no options remaining she has nothing to lose by trying the perfume.

Covering the opening, a turn of the bottle leaves a small amount of the liquid on her finger. Her fingertip slides along both sides of her neck and she touches the perfume to her wrists. She starts to put the top on the bottle, but a thought crosses her mind to push him over the edge. With a sly grin, she touches the top of the bottle and slides her fingertip from under her chin to the top of her shirt's collar.

She places the perfume bottle next to the chair. With a smile and a determined focus, she steps down from the dais and straightens her dress. A light touch to her hair pushes the one invisible strand of hair back into its place.

She nods to Kristoff, as he makes a clawing motion with his hand, and winks to her sister. She closes her eyes for a few seconds and her feet move her to the half way point between them. Her eyes open and she stops near the three meter mark from him. A low growl passes between her lips.

Sam stops arguing in mid-sentence. He looks at the people watching him in silence. He asks Frederick. "Did you hear a growl?"

Frederick turns his head away with a glimpse of a grin. "I do not hear anything except your logic to justify your need to run away. You must have mush for brains."

Sam's left brow rises. "Insulting is definitely beneath your position."

"GRRROOOWWWLL"

"Tell me you did not hear that growl?"

Frederick smirks and nods for Sam to turn around.

Elsa stands several meters from him. An almost inaudible low growl sounds from her parted lips. An emotion moves in his heart. The sound stirs an interest deep inside of his mind. "Did you just growl at me?"

Elsa takes a step closer and extends her arm as if she was holding an invisible sword. She blows a puff of air along her arm towards him. She emits a slightly louder growl.

His mind responds to the unknown threat by releasing chemicals into his body. His senses become hypersensitive. His body prepares for battle. In a matter of seconds, he will become the aggressor and attack, but there is no perceived enemy. His mind hesitates in confusion. Sam takes three steps towards her and stops when he inhales the fragrance of the flowers and coconut. The threat decreases.

Elsa watches not just the obvious clues, but also the minuscule clues. He noticeable sniffs the air and takes two more steps towards her as he emits a low growl of a longer duration. With wide eyes, she steps within his arm reach and lightly touches his face. Her hand lingers. He inhales a deep breath and his chin quivers on the exhale. She moves her hand. His nose follows the fragrance on her wrist. His eyes partially close. He emits another longer growl that causes his lower jaw to quiver.

Elsa steps closer.

His eyes glaze over with a slight blue haze. She stands as close as possible without touching him and looks into his eyes. Another slight growl passes between her lips. Grinning with exposed teeth, she sniffs him. Her hand glides down his face and neck and down to his chest.

His muscles tense and push against the fabric of his shirt. He duplicates the growl back at her as his hands clench by his sides.

She continues to stare into his eyes and slowly walks around him. His head turns to follow her, then quickly turns to the other side.

She leans the side of her head against his back and detects his heart. The beats increase.

He bows his back to her and emits another growl slightly louder as others near them murmur. She closes her eyes and her hands slide up his back. Through his hair, her fingers touch his neck. Their energies sing as one in her mind. Her smile grows and her eyes open.

Anna asks, "What is she doing?"

Kristoff nods. "She is communicating with him."

"Sounds like a pair of wolves growling at each other," Anna comments.

"That's right. He has responded to her twice. If she can get him to respond one more time, she will have him." Kristoff motions to her.

Elsa moves to his other side, but runs her hand along his face.

He grabs her hand and pulls her around in front of him. Inhaling deeply at her wrist, he sniffs along her arm and finally to her neck.

She turns her head to expose more of her neck and emits a long low growl. Kristoff nods and holds up three fingers. Removing her hand from his grasp, she steps back.

His head hangs low. His eyes still partially closed, Sam slowly swings his head from side to side as though searching for her. His head stops moving as he closes his eyes. With his lips parted his lower jaw quivers and he emits a growl. He sniffs the air and takes a step following his nose.

Elsa stops.

Sam continues to track her step by step. His growl stops when he is within an arm's length from her.

Kristoff slowly and silently moves to where Elsa can see him. He points to his wrist, then to her, motioning for her to hold up her hand and move it near his face.

She nods and raises her hand moving it from side to side. Sam emits the low growl again as his lower jaw quivers. His nose follows her wrist and he steps to within a half meter of her. He lowers his head to her height and sniff to either side of her. His growling stops.

Kristoff points to Elsa and motions her to sniff and kiss his neck.

She leans into him and sniffs his shoulder.

Sam clinches his hands.

Elsa nibbles his neck and kisses along his jaw and finally kisses under his chin.

Sam bares his teeth emitting a low growl that only she can hear. He slowly slips his hands around her.

King Frederick speaks loudly, "Are we to believe she subdued the beast in him."

Kristoff motions for Frederick to be quiet. "Majesty, do not interfere. If he sees you as a threat he will attack until one is dead."

Sam turns quickly and partially opens his emerald green eyes. He crouches down.

Kristoff stares at Sam. "Queen Elsa, he is about to charge. Do not get in front of him. Call his name that only he will know. You have to distract him."

Elsa tries to remember his name. When did he tell her? The stables? The accident in the stables. The scene with him on the ground and his face covered in blood. What did he say? A name only he will know.

The Irish Ambassador holding a scabbard starts to draw his sword.

Kristoff calls out. "Stop! He will attack the one who is the greatest threat and you have the sword. You will be dead before you can get it completely out. Now no one move. Don't say anything."

Still with his eyes partially closed, Sam takes a step towards Frederick. His growl becomes more intense, more from the throat, different from the growls he emitted to her. His arm extends out from his side as if to keep her behind him, to protect her.

Frederick and Seth create space between them. Both rest their hands on their personal daggers.

Behind them one of the British officers says, "Gentlemen, do not draw your swords, but stand ready. I will take our queen out the side door."

Elsa's heart beats faster. The situation she created meant for him is escalating too quickly. She misjudged Sam's reactions. She stands next to him and a static charge leaps into her hand as she touches his back. His muscle quivers. Focusing her mind on their energies they become synced together. A tidal wave of rage and anger rushes through her body. Is it the moment or does he feel this way all of the time? Her breathing increases and her lips part to inhale enough air. Distraction. She has to distract him before his anger overcomes him.

His name pops into her mind. Her hand slides along his face. Will he attack her? Is she a friend or foe to him?

He sniffs the air. Her palm covers his nose. Through his parted lips, he inhales her perfume and closes his eyes. The muscles in his back begin to relax.

She chants the words taught to her a year ago.

"Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , Bóhólníihii bii' wót'ááh ( _Lord the Father, Lord of Heaven_ )

Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , Bóhólníihii bii' **Nahasdzáán** ( _Lord the Father, Lord of Earth_ )

Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , **yeiyí'aah** **éí** **bí** **ndiists'a'** **di** yízhí **éí** **ni jo yeiyí'aah bí, tsin naa'eeł** **ah-na-ghai Admal Yiska, Admal yiska**

 _(Lord the Father, Give that he will hear the name that you have given to him, Ship Leader Admal Yiska, Admal Yiska)_ "

"Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , Bóhólníihii bii' wót'ááh ( _Lord the Father, Lord of Heaven_ )

Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , Bóhólníihii bii' **Nahasdzáán** ( _Lord the Father, Lord of Earth_ )

Bóhólníihii **di** **azhéʼé** , **yeiyí'aah** **éí** **bí** **ndiists'a'** **di** yízhí **éí** **ni jo yeiyí'aah bí, tsin naa'eeł** **ah-na-ghai Admal Yiska, Admal yiska**

 _(Lord the Father, Give that he will hear the name that you have given to him, Ship Leader Admal Yiska, Admal Yiska)_ "

Sam stands tall as his hazel eyes open.

Her hand slips to his chest. Like a warm blanket pulled away, the rage disappears back from where it came in him.

He slowly turns his head to her. "Who taught you that language?"

Elsa stands motionless and exhausted. Her eyes dart back and forth between his eyes. Does he not remember? "You did!"

He looks to the floor as though he is searching or thinking. He asks, "Who understands what she spoke to me?"

A slight murmur begins as he searches the faces of the crowd, but no one claims to know what Elsa had said to him. He looks to the floor again searching for the meaning, but comes to the only possible conclusion. He grabs her upper arms. "The words you spoke are very hard. There is only one group of people who speak it and they never would have taught you to speak their language. If I taught you the words as you claim, there is only one conclusion." He searches her face for deception. Seeing none, he asks, "I . . . I must trust you?"

Elsa nods. "Yes, you told me if you ever become a danger to me or others around us and you will not listen, I should speak those words to you. Do you remember?" She searches his eyes.

"If I told you those words and you agreed," His eyes change to an ice blue color as he focuses on her ice blue eyes, "I would have given it to only one person. I must trust and care more for you!"

Elsa begins to smile as tears well in her eyes. She nods. He gets it. He understands. I got through to him. It was worth the fight. A moment of relief is short lived. The emotionless mask drapes over his face. The sparkles in his eyes fade. The life energy that sustains him becomes cold, even for her. His hands clench and fall to his sides. His eyes do not see as his chin touches his chest. She cannot hear his thoughts. A barrier stands between them.

She lowers her head as Samuel stands with his head down. She looks up as a tear drops from the corner of her eye. "Sam, I have tried everything to convince you of who you are. I have run out of options. My heart is breaking. I have no choice." With a blink, she does not stop the tears racing down her face. "I have to let you go."

"Elsa, no," Anna says as Kristoff wraps his arm around her.

Other in the room begun to murmur.

Elsa holds up her hand for silence. For several seconds no one speaks. Behind her Colonel Bond whispers to Queen Victoria.

Elsa says, "Unless someone has another idea," she looks around the room. She dreaded and hoped it would never happen, but the moment has arrived. She practiced what to say and the correct words to use. Her emotions choke the words, instead she says, "I have no choice, but to let him go."

The decision weights too heavy, but for her Queendom, she will protect them regardless of the cost. She must maintain control in front of the delegates and her people. Her blinks release more tears. With a deep breath, she crosses her hands in front and regains her regal pose. "Samuel Christopher Ryan, my mother obligated you to give your honor to protect me from all harm."

Anna buries her face into Kristoff's chest and tears overflow her eyes.

"As Queen of Arendelle, I give your honor—"

"Queen Elsa." Queen Victoria steps down onto the floor. "Please forgive me for interrupting. You asked for another idea. I may have one. If it does not work," she looks directly at Sam, "I will pay off his debt and take him off your hands so that you will never have to see him again."

Elsa glances over her shoulder. "If it works, I will personally be in your debt." She walks towards the side door and says, "We will go to the room across the hall." She stops and looks at the crowd. "King Frederick would you and Prince Seth please join me across the hall, along with Princess Anna and Master Kristoff?" She takes a step and stops. "Samuel Ryan, do not move from your spot. Either I or Anna will come and get you." She rocks forward, but does not move for a few seconds. She asks, "Sam, are you my good soldier?"

"Yes, Majesty, I am your good soldier," Sam answers without hesitation, but closes his eyes as he bows his head.

A murmur boils through the crowd as Elsa leads her party out the door, followed by Queen Victoria and her party. The people's comments reach Sam's ears. He admits too many of their comments are correct. Since Elsa pushed him into his territorial emotion with her imitation of the wolf selection dance, a change occurs in his mind. With each passing minute the pressure in his head tightens. His sphere of alertness to maintain control shrinks. His mind cannot see past the walls of the Great Hall. The murmur becomes a great roar as the thoughts of everyone assaults his senses. He fights a losing battle against the powerful urge to run away. His body sways as a battle for control rages in his head. His body tenses and then silence. A cold hand touches his arm. Hoping to see Elsa his eyes open, but they do not see her.

Anna looks up at him and whispers, "What is wrong? You are burning up."

He stares at her. "Your hand feels cold."

"Come with me. Elsa will know what to do." Anna pulls on his arm. His weight shifts to walk with her, but not in a straight line. He stumbles into the door frame.

Kai steadies him in the hall. "What is wrong with you? If you are looking for sympathy, you will not get it in there." He looks at his hand. "You are burning up. Why are you not sweating? Why are your hands shaking?"

Sam looks at Kai and back at his trembling hands. "I don't know what's going on. It started right after . . . right after she," he stares at Kai. His breath shortens and becomes rapid. His head constantly moves around and his eyes search. "She did this. I responded to her call and defended her."

The study room door opens and his eyes lock onto Elsa across the room. Kai guides him in.

"Good lord man, are you coming down with the fever?" Seth speaks as he moves towards him.

"Stop," Elsa commands. "He is not contagious. No one touch him. Kai move away. If he falls, let him fall." Kai exits the room. She moves past Anna and Kristoff. "Sam, do you know what is happening to you?"

His body shakes and he struggles to keep his eyes on her. More energy is needed to maintain control of his body, but it is a losing battle. He barely answers, "Yes."

Elsa steps in front of him. She turns her head slightly to speak to the others in the room, but maintains eye contact with him. "Do not panic for what you are about to see." She turns back to him. "Sam, can you hear me?"

A continues tremor moves Sam head, but he nods to her.

"I guess Pabbie was correct. I pushed you. I took a chance knowing if he was wrong, you could have walked away from me. Do you understand why?"

Again he forces his head to stop long enough to nod.

"I am afraid for you and me. I cannot continue our relationship as it is. Do you understand why?"

Clenching his teeth, he growls as his head nods.

"What am I to you?"

He growls again.

She shakes her head. "No, speak the words."

His body sways and she steps back. He falls to his knees. His mouth moves, but no sound comes out.

"Sam, I know it is tough for you, but you have to speak the words." He reaches for her, but she steps back.

"You . . . are my . . ." his hands shake violently.

She takes another step back. "I am your what?"

"My . . . key." He growls. His eyes appear to lose focus as he sits on his feet. His shaking hand reaches for her.

"I am your key?"

"Yes," the tremors stop. In an almost silent whisper, he says, "You are my key for life or death."

"What do you want me to do?" She takes a step closer.

His head lowers. His eyes search the floor. "Plea . . . Please release me."

"Release you, you want me to open the gates and let you walk out." She takes a step back.

Rocking his head back as his eyes fixates on her. "NO . . . Elsa, you mean so much to me. I don't want to hurt you, but I cannot live like this." He grabs his head grimacing in pain and bends forward. Through a growl, he says, "You are my key." His hand keeps him falling onto the floor. "Please release me."

Elsa places her cold hand on the back of his neck. Small wisps of condense cold air rise up from under her hand. "Oh my God, you are burning up." She kneels next to him and places her hand over his chest. More condense cold air, rises past his head. His energy fluctuates. She cannot get her energy in sync with his energy. Generating more cold in both of her hands, his tremors lessen until they finally stop, she synchronizes their energies together. The tension in his body relaxes. She helps him to sit back and moves in front of him. Her hand slides up his chest and lifts his head up. She smiles. "Do you see me?"

In a raspy voice he replies, "Yes."

She leans close to his face as her fingers touch four specific points on his neck and face. "You said you had confidence I could do it, so I will try." He stares into her eyes and she leans closer. Taking a deep breath, she gradually exhales a cold fog. He inhales her mist.

Closing his eyes, Sam's energy synchronizes with her energy. Only one other has ever taken control away from him. As a result, he fell deeper in love with his one and only friend and companion. As was done years ago the process is repeated. The comfort and peace from Elsa cause him to hunger for her breath. She builds up his strength by removing the staleness in his blood and energy. The more she gives, the more he desires her. As he had desired LadyCat in the beginning, he desires Elsa. His mind speaks to her. _You are the key. Will you release the final chains that separate us?_

Sam opens his eye to see a pair of the most beautiful blue eyes he has ever seen. A blue haze surrounds her beautiful face. He smiles.

She whispers, "Yes, I am your key. I will free you from your chains if you will let me." He slowly nods. She leans back. "How do you feel?"

"I'm doing better than I was in the great hall. Did you give up too much energy?" The blue haze around her dissipates. "You knew this would happen, did you not?"

She lightly strokes his cheek. "The truth is, I was hoping to push you just far enough, but when you did not commit, I gave up. I was going to give your honor back and let you leave."

He holds both of her hands. "What changed your mind?"

"Actually, Queen Victoria reminded me of what I already knew. She brought a relic I believe is from your past." He starts to turn his head, but she places her hand on his face and leans close. "I know you are in pain. I will help you to control it long enough to make a wise decision. Do you trust me?"

He stares at her and catches a glimpse of a blue sparkle flash in her eyes. "You are my key. I will trust you unto death."

Elsa helps him to his feet.

"Now stand here." Elsa turns, but he steps with her. She places her hand on his chest. "No Samuel." She stares into his eyes for several seconds. "You said you trust me, do you?"

He smiles at her. "Yes."

"Okay, you have to trust me on this one. Do you understand?"

"Yes." His smile grows.

Elsa glances to Queen Victoria. "You have to make this quick. His mind is struggling to maintain control." She moves back to Anna.

Sam notices others in the room. Were they there before he came in? At this point it does not matter. King Frederick and Prince Seth stand next to the table. Each rests their hands on their sword. At the other end of the table, A British sergeant holds a hooked pike in one hand and the pail in his other hand. Behind the sergeant an officer holds a long, narrow rectangle box. Beside the officer Queen Victoria with her hand in her dress pocket watches him. To Victoria's left, he recognizes a not so young man who asked him long ago, if he had seen the Sariphan ship. He was a Captain at the time, but now Mister Bond wears the military rank of Colonel.

All are in a defensive position each ready to protect their respective monarch, except for one. Directly in front of him, Queen Elsa does not stand in her regal pose. This is not going to be a diplomatic conversation. He could freeze the others where they stand, but no doubt they know he will not attack Elsa or Anna. If he defends against Elsa, the other would seriously wound him. He did not hear the door lock, but the room's confinement leaves him little choice.

He glances at the rectangle box. _Does the content of the box have to do with me?_

Elsa nods once.

"I will listen."

"Good." Queen Victoria steps out from behind the officer and removes an aged piece of folded parchment from her pocket and holds it up. "Samuel, do you see this?"

"I see an old piece of paper with the British seal."

Queen Victoria speaks in his language. "A distinguish gentleman from the western coast of North America visited me a number of years ago. He said his tribe lives in Northern Mexico. He describes encountering a tall man with white hair. The man was a head taller than all others in the tribe and spoke in the tribe's language. The gentleman said the man stayed with his people for six full moons. His people thought the white hair man was a shaman or a holy person because he made it snow during the hottest part of the year. I showed the gentleman the letters and he told me a very interesting story about the purpose of the Green Dragons. Please tell me. How would an Indian from North America know about a green dragon? Are you the tall white hair man, he was referring?"

She rotates the parchment and reveals the symbols on the other side. Even with her mature age, her eyes must have spotted the minuscule expression leaking past his defenses. "So you do recognize the symbols. This is the best copy of the original document, which is stored in a safe place in London."

Sam stares at Bond. He has to know what is in the letter. Why this game? What do they expect to gain? "How old is the original document?"

Victoria grins and steps back as the sergeant positions the pail at the end of the pike. "It is not quite as old as time, but definitely older than I am. If you can change your eye color to see inside of it, tell us, what does the rest of the letter says."

"I'm sure Colonel Bond has already told you what the symbols mean. The question is; has he read the other symbols inside of the letter?" Sam glances at the parchment.

Bond answers, "I have read what I can understand. Several symbols I do not recognize and the others I guess. It doesn't make sense with the rest of the letter. I believe you can read all of it. Do you see the symbol for danger?"

Sam stares at the Colonel and searches for any hidden meaning or deceit, but since the last time he saw him, he is sure Bond has improved his skills of hiding his emotions. "Yes, I see it."

"Did you see the symbol next to it?"

Victoria holds the letter over the bucket.

"Yes, I see them."

She drops the letter into the bucket as the sergeant pours a gray color grain on the letter.

Sam watches her. "Should I be concerned about it?"

"I know you have the power of ice. Are you quick enough to stop the powder from flashing?" Victoria asks.

He snorts. "You said the original is in London. I will go to London and get it."

Victoria grins and shakes her head. "No one in this room knows where it is hidden, not even me."

It is a game. Unless his parents did not teach him the Sariphan language, Bond would be more useful interpreting the letter than him. "Why are you telling me this?" Sam narrows his eyes at her and with a slight grin he says, "I can wait until all of you are dead, and then search for it."

Victoria shifts into her regal pose. She steps away from the bucket. The sergeant holds a vial of liquid over the bucket.

If she did not have the answers to the letter, why burn it? What question did you ask that Bond or the letter could not answer? Bond disrupts his thoughts. "Did you read the symbols together?"

"Yes, I did."

"Tell us what it means, before he burns it?"

Sam stares at Bond and searches for a possible opening in his defenses.

Victoria commands, "Burn it."

Bond steps towards her and holds his hands up. "Please wait." He stands straight with his hands to his side and his head down. "Majesty, please, I have given you all that I know about what is written on the letter. Sam is the only one who can answer it."

Sam places his hand on Bond's shoulder. "What is so important about the letter that I need to read it?"

Bond looks up at his Queen and holds his hand out. "May I?"

Victoria nods. The sergeant removes the letter out of the bucket and hands it him.

Bond points up the letter. "Do you see the seal?"

He still does not detect a chink in his emotional armor. What are you hiding? "I see it."

He ducks out from under Sam's hand. "A name is hidden behind the seal."

"Whose name?"

Victoria answers, "Samuel Christopher Ryan." She glances towards Elsa. "How does the author of the letter know your name?"

Sam watches Elsa, but she also does not give him clue to her feelings. She has gotten better. "My name is not that uncommon."

"For this century, I will agree, but not in the 6th century."

Sam's head turns to her.

Victoria grins. "Now I have your attention. The letter was found with other letters marked with dates from the year 516 to 539."

The soil and time itself should have eaten the original document along with everything else. It has to be a game. Is Elsa a part of this. He peeks in her direction and receive no emotional change. "With the English climate, it cannot be an original."

"Queen Elsa has no knowledge of this letter. So far only the three of us know the contents." Victoria taps the side of the bucket. "Normally, I would agree with your statement about the English climate, but this letter was encased in glass."

Sam shakes his head. "Perhaps several meters of glass and stored underground would protect it for 1300 years."

"Try ten centimeters." Bond beams.

"Ten centimeters would not last a few hundred years, let alone a thousand years," Sam rebuffs. "Ground movement should have broken the glass and nature would have done the rest."

"If the glass is impregnated with a carbon mesh, it could."

"Carbonplexar?"

Bond nods.

Sam's eyes focus on Bond. His mind searches for when the materials would be discovered and where the material was used other than in a spaceship or a personal craft. Could it be possible? "That process will not be available for another two hundred years."

"That's right, so what is the conclusion?"

 _My ship did not have that type of glass, so where did it come from?_ He stares at the floor. The pain throbs in the back of his head where his neck connects to his skull. His hand move to the spot and massages. The pain allows confusion to push past its restraints.

 _Who would have had Carbonplexar?_

Sam looks in King Frederick's direction, but not at him. "I don't know?"

Bond glances at Victoria. "I thought he would know." He reaches for Sam.

"Stop," Elsa commands. "Do not touch him. No one touch him no matter what he does." She steps in front of him and waves her hand in front of his face. "You may not see it, but his eyes are out of focus. Your letter has pushed him to face a painful event in his past."

"How do you know?" Frederick asks.

"I can feel his confusion. He has to solve it. Please do not interfere or he may shut down."

"You want us to believe that?" Frederick shakes his head.

Sam closes his eyes. "She is correct. Do not interfere." His eyes open with a shade of blue.

 _A younger voice says, I bet the sword in his memory block has something to do with this._

Sam looks at Victoria. "But I never found him."

 _The older voice says, his ship had the Carbonplexar in the windows. You said it yourself. The humans will not develop the precise process for another two hundred years. Sariphan's have the glass now._

 _The younger voice says, didn't he say the glass was the only thing that would survive the violent transition through the temporal wave?_

 _The older voice says, yes, he did. He also said if the glass broke, all organic material inside of the ship would be scattered across time._

Sam looks towards Elsa. "But if it cracked and did not shatter, he would survive the landing. Perhaps it was too damaged for him to chance another flight and he stayed where he landed." Sam lowers his head. "He knew I would try to find him. He knew I was from here. Knowing the chance was virtuously impossible, he left a message. Is it possible Arturus knew I would be here?"

His head nods as he looks at her. "Queen Victoria, I yield to your purpose for bringing the letter here. Your suspicion about my name followed by the symbols for 'Extreme Danger' is not correct. The author has limited paper to explain. If it is a warning about me there should be a symbol for male between my name and 'Extreme Danger'. Without the rest of the letter, the author may be suggestion a danger to me."

Bond hands the letter to him.

Sam breaks the seal and reads.

"Danger, Samuel Christopher Ryan, I hope you are reading this. If not, you may already be lost as I am. I did not anticipate this danger. Do not pass through the temporal ribbon and return to the same point in time. The fourth is your last. The fifth creates catastrophic damage to your ship and body. Through the dragon visit another before returning to your time. My cells have oxidizes at a faster rate. Planet's diseases consume me. My ship scattered over the ocean. Will future find it? I lived too long. My sword hides in a monastery. Protect the sword's blood. My life ends. I requested they take me to Avalon. Your past is your future." Sam folds the paper. "The last symbol refers to Arturus."

"Temporal ribbon, dragon, what does it mean?" Victoria asks.

Sam stares at Bond. "I am not the only one who has seen the temporal ribbon. It undulates and rolls. If you happen to see the dragon open its mouth, you will see the fire in its belly. If you are lucky you could see it spew something out of its mouth."

"Or someone?" Bond asks.

Sam nods. "Yes." His eyes look into Elsa's blue eyes. "Or someone." He holds up the letter.

Bond takes the letter and asks, "You said he had a ship. Where did it sink?"

"Unless there is an active energy source on his ship, I cannot detect it." He looks to Victoria. "The letter does not say which ocean or land mass he landed, but if you have his sword, he carried it there."

"Do you think the letter is a forgery?" Elsa stands next to him. "Is it his writing?"

Could Arturus be wrong? Has my chance to save my family already been decided? "The symbol for his name is correct. Unless Colonel Bond has lied, no one here would understand Arturus's words."

Elsa squeezes his arm. "Has it been number four?"

The pain stabs his head. Sam steps out of her grip. "I don't know. I think this is the first."

"What does your memory say?" Tears swell up in her eyes. "If you are wrong, what happens to you?"

Sam backs into the door. His eyes search the floor. I had to have counted correctly. There are no others. He has to be wrong. If you are wrong, tell her what happens to you.

Elsa grabs the side of his face. "Tell me."

He jerks her hand away. The sting followed by ooze where two of her fingers pierce his flesh.

"If my memory is wrong and this is number four, I would die." He glances away. "I do not know for sure."

Elsa lowers her head. Her hand tries to hold back a sob as she walks back to Anna's open arms.

Sam steps towards her. Bond punches the back of his shoulder. The pain in his head explodes into anger as he pivots around. "I should kill you for that."

"If it gets you to truly look at her, it will be worth it," Bond says.

Sam glances at Elsa. Her expression is different this time. She always came back stronger, but not this time. He is causing her pain. "I made a promise to them."

"What promise did you make and to who?" Victoria asks.

"My family, there is still a chance I can save them." A pain stabs his heart in this unknown territory. "I promised them, I would save them no matter what."

Pointing to the letter, Seth whispers to Bond. "Now it makes since."

"What about the letter?" Victoria asks.

"Sam, where is your family?" Bond asks.

Victoria glares at Sam as she walks over to Elsa. She whispers to her. Elsa nods. A flood of tears race down her face. Anna consoles her sister and she clenches her fist. He takes her glance at him to mean his time is up. Perhaps, now is the time to leave. A Queen and a commoner will work only if she advocates the throne, but at what cost to her. His heart screams of the joyful moments he felt with Elsa. His mind counters with the joyful moments with LadyCat and SaraCat. If Arturus is right and he missed counted, the next time he passes through the dragon, Elsa and his two Cats loose forever.

"Are they up there in a corner of the galaxy?"

Seth whispers, "Galaxy?"

Frederick shrugs.

The battle between his heart and mind pauses for him to hear the question.

Bond says, "My father told me of a place where there were three moons. The way he described the place I thought he was telling me a story. I was born here. I did not believe him, until I met you. I wondered if he really had seen the planet with three moons." He stands in front of Sam and grabs his shoulders. "When are they?"

With red, moist eyes, Elsa looks at him.

Sam watches her. If he completely breaks her heart, she will ask him to leave, but he made a promise. "My best guess, they are three hundred and sixty-eight years from now."

Frederick shakes his fist at him. "What nonsense is that, years from now? Your family is in the future."

He wanted to tell Fredrick how narrow minded he was for not thinking of the possibilities, but if he did, would it also apply to Elsa? "Excluding myself and maybe Mister Bond, I do not expect any of you to understand my answer, but it is the truth."

With his fingertips Bond slaps him. "Buddy, you give your Queen a little credit."

Sam clenches his fists as a thin layer of frost forms on his hands. He waits for the next excuse to strike.

Bond grins. "I expect she knows more than you think." The grin disappears as quickly as it arrived. "So I ask, what is your mission?"

"To save them." His hands release the tension. He did not say it with conviction. His hope lingers in a dying death. The memories of his family fades as the old parchment.

With a forceful voice Bond states, "Why whisper? We are friends here. In case my Queen Victoria did not hear you, say it again."

Anger takes control. So they did not hear, let them hear this. "TO SAVE THEM," he yells.

"That is better, SAVE THEM FROM WHAT?"

Sam slams his right hand against the wall. He wanted to push it through the wall, but it is not her fault. Instead, his ice flows and seals his hand to the wall. His eyes sees a green halo around Colonel Bond and the others, except Elsa, Anna, and Kristoff. His mind measures the distance from himself and each halo. He calculates the shortest path to strike each in one movement without having to cross his own path. His heart screams, but his mouth speaks the words. "THEIR DEATHS."

Elsa pushes Anna behind her and raises her palms toward Sam. Seth steps in front of King Frederick. The British sergeant drops the pail and moves in front of Queen Victoria. The British officer drops the rectangle box on the table and stands beside the soldier.

Bond steps back and to the side. "Now you have everyone's attention. Answer my question. How can you save your family if they are in your future?"

Frederick comments, "Save them in the future? Sam's craziness is rubbing off on to you."

"Quiet," Queen Victoria barks. "Please continue Mister Bond."

He turns his head towards Sam. "How will you save your family?"

"I have knowledge of how they will die. I will travel to a point in time before their deaths and save them." Sam turns his head to Bond. "Only you and I know how that will happen."

Bond stands beside him. "I'm not so sure your last statement is correct, but you need to convince yourself you are taking the correct path."

Sam frees his hand from the frozen wall. Small chunks of ice slide across the floor. He grabs Bond's arm. A sensation of radiates into his hand and he lets go of him. The green in his vision returns to normal. "Are you feeling well?"

"A touch of sinus congestion is making me a little weak, but we are here for you, not me." Bond walks towards Elsa and Anna. With a nod, he says, "Majesty, if he does not say it, I will say it for him. He is a foolish idiot for what he has done to you. His family died before he arrived in Arendelle. He plans to change the events that caused their death. If he succeeds, he will never meet you."

Bond pivots on his heels and points his finger at him. "Did you hear what I said? You succeed and you do not meet Queen Elsa. The entire good and bad things of Arendelle will not happen."

Victoria nods and points to the letter. Elsa gradually shakes her head and turns away from him. Sam rests his chin on his chest as he leans against the wall.

Bond taps the letter. After a moment he snaps his fingers at Sam. "Samuel Ryan, what happens to Queen Elsa if you do not land here?"

Memories of his actions and the events of the previous time lines flood into his mind. He remembers he did nothing and watched. He prevented a kidnapping. He saved a life and watched. Always the same, death and destruction falls onto Arendelle and the monarch's family. This timeline King Agnarr and Queen Iduna's children live.

Bond taps his shoulder. "You already know what happens, don't you?"

He nods. It is happening again. He failed and they died. Their blood covered the courtyard and he did nothing. He tries to stifle a sniffle.

"It is because you have already lived it."

Sam nods again.

"How do you know?" Bond grabs his arm. "Samuel, how do you know?"

Sam forces Bond to let go of him. "Because I remember up here." He taps his own head. "Do you think I like doing this to her? I have to try again."

"Again?" Bond steps back and turns to Victoria. "And I thought it was an old man's rant of a fantasy land." He taps his forehead with the letter. "Samuel, I heard you were poisoned a couple of years ago. Since then, I have also heard you have had episodes of memory loss. If this is correct and you said you have to try again, how many times have you tried and failed?"

He holds up three shaking fingers.

Bond places his arm across his shoulders and whispers. "Is this the fourth time you are hurting her?"

His head barely moves. "This is the longest time I have been here. This is the first time I have met her."

Bond stares at Queen Elsa. "Do you remember the previous times?"

He nods.

"Did you arrive at the same place each time?"

Again he nods.

"What about leaving?"

He shakes his head. "Different times and places."

Bond reads the letter. "What mechanism did you use to leave?"

Sam glances over his shoulder. "The dragon."

Bond points to a word. "Is the temporal wave the Green Dragon?"

He nods his head against the wall.

The letter slips out of Bond's hand, "Since you arrived here, how many times did the dragon pass close by?"

"Twelve."

"The first three times, how many times did the dragon pass by?"

"The first and second time the dragon did not pass by. The third time it passed only once."

"Why did you jump into the dragon?"

"I do not remember the specific reason, but logic says there was not a viable path to take me back to the point before my family dies. I entered the dragon's mouth."

Bond picks up the letter. His finger slides along the last sentence. "Do you remember everything that occurred before stepping into the dragon?"

"Yes," Sam mumbles.

"Are you sure?"

Sam's eyes narrow. He is as sure as he could be. If he accepts the fact that not everything is one hundred percent, what would be the doubt if it exist?

"Please explain something. How do you know you have lost some of your memory, if you do not remember them?"

"It is a similar when you are old and something triggers a memory from your youth. A smell, a sound, something you hear or see could be a trigger."

"Does that imply the memory is stored in your brain, waiting to be recalled, but," Bond glances at Elsa, "what if the memory is never recalled?"

"It depends where it is stored in your brain."

"I don't understand. It is either there or it is not, right?" Bond turns back to him.

Sam looks away and rubs his forehead. "If a traumatic event occurs in the brain and the person lives, the memory could be lost as the brain circumvents the damaged part. Once the damaged part has healed, the brain will store new memories in the healed area."

"Basically wiping the old memories if they were still there," Frederick says.

"That would explain why a person changes after a traumatic injury," Seth comments. "I have seen soldiers changed dramatically from what they were before the war."

Sam says, "Yes, the memories that created the person's personality are changed and their personality changes."

Bond asks, "But if there are no traumatic events, are the memories still there without a trigger?"

"I have no evidence to believe that they are not there."

"Sam, you stated, logic says there was not a viable path to take you back to your family. If as you say, you still have the memories of the other three times you arrived here, why would you go against the logic and come here? Again, I ask, how would you know if you lost some memories, if you do not remember them?"

Sam stares at Bond. Could he be correct? Did I mistakenly believe a key event would open a path to my family? Why else keep coming back? Has it been more than four times? That could be a logical reason for my behavior. Why do I not know? Arturus, how do you know four times is the magic number? What am I not seeing?

Victoria waves and glances at Elsa. She says, "Well, are you going to answer him?"

"I do not have an answer. After the first time—" He stares at the floor and whispers, "After the first time, if there was no viable path, I would not have returned. I would have searched elsewhere."

A cold hand touches his arm. "But you did three more times. Since coming back into my life, I have not known you to do anything without purpose." Elsa's red eyes sparkle with her smile.

"Purpose?" Sam whispers. "Yes, I had to have a purpose." He holds her shoulders at arm's length. A faded image moves to the front of his thoughts. The lights flicker from the candles. Even with the lighter colored paneling, the room appears dim. An older female emerges in the faded image. He half steps to Elsa's right. The older woman changes to a younger woman. Sam steps back and his hand brushes against his gloves under his belt. He stares at them and the image becomes clearer. "That was it."

He removes the gloves and stares at the symbols for fire and ice on the back of them. He holds them with the symbols showing next to her right shoulder. "Not gloves, but a glove." He places his left glove on her shoulder and slides it back, until he can barely see the fire symbol. Positioning his right glove low, at a table's height, he glances between the fire and ice symbols.

"Please look up and past my right shoulder."

She does as he asks.

An image forms in his mind. "It was a painting of you. Someone stood behind you. Their left gloved hand with the fire symbol rested on your right shoulder. They held their right glove in their hand above the table. The glove had the symbol of ice." He shakes his head and the image becomes clearer. "No, it was not ice."

He fights the memories of a dead Queen with child. The image squeezes his heart. His hand touches his Queen's face to verify she is real. Cupping her hands, he waves his hand over hers. Touching her palm, he pulls a white string and opens his hand. The string transforms into their snowflake. "That is the symbol I saw on the glove in the painting. That is why I kept coming back. I thought it was your mother." Holding both of her hands next to his lips, his smile would not be denied and bursts forth. For a moment the pain hides in a corner of his mind. "Until I saw you in the painting."

"But I have never had a portrait done as an adult."

"You will."

Elsa asks, "I still do not understand. You saw a painting before you came here the first time?"

His head gradually nods. "I thought the white hair was an elderly Queen. I thought the painting was your mother. Her death was an inevitable event. I could not stop it, but only delay it. If I had not seen the painting, I would not be here now."

"Does that really sound logical for you? A painting distracted you." Bond says.

"Yes." He stares into those blue eyes that captured his heart long ago. He cannot . . . no, he will not forget those blue eyes. He speaks to her. "I recall more memories of the painting. The first time I saw it. It was in a book. My little girl, Saracat, pointed it out to me. The gloves in the picture were the clues. She told me the fire symbol is Gaelic. The snowflake was given to me by S5."

"Your mother," Elsa says with a smile.

"Yes, my mother, both symbols are unique in the past and the future." He turns the back of his hands to her. He blows on the back of his left hand and the fire symbol appears.

Elsa blows on the back of his right hand and their snowflake appears.

"I was trying to find the owner of those gloves and to think I had them all along." He kisses the back of her hand." After all I have put you through, why would you want me to stay?"

She grips his hands and turns them to kiss the back of them. "You have frustrated me and have made me extremely angry at times. If I had done to others what I have done to you, I am sure I would be with my mother and father. You have shown me my powers and the responsibilities needed to control them. I am who I am today because of you. Arendelle is prospering and growing more than my father ever envisioned. New Kingdoms come to us to trade. I could not do it by myself. You gave me the courage to stand on my own two feet and gave me a little push when I needed it."

Her head tilts ever so slightly and flashes a moist blue sparkle at him. "I have tried everything to change your mind, but you are loyal to your family. I would love nothing more than to be a part of your family." Moisture builds at the corners of her eyes. "But I will not stand in your way." Her hands slip out of his hands. She gives him his glove and steps back. "I have been selfish. You need to find a way to save your family. I will do everything I can to help you achieve the success of your mission."

His lips separate to increase the flow of air into his lungs, but it strangles him. Is she letting me go? The cry of a child rings in his ears. His mind sees the younger versions of him turn away. His heart screams 'what a pity your mother must feel in your choice.' Three times you tried to find them. What question did Saracat ask when she showed you the picture?

His mind stares at the image, but his voice speaks, "She asked if I noticed anything similar between her and the picture." The memory of her standing in front of him stabs his heart. She held the picture next to her face as she tossed her white hair. "Just because your hair looks like the Queen of Arendelle does not mean you are related to her."

"Why not?"

His eyes blink and the blue tint fades. He stares at her. "What did you say?"

"Why not? Why can she not be related to me?" Elsa asks.

The voices are silent. His eyes scan the room, but he does not see them. The voices in his head murmur as they discuss the possibilities. One by one they stare back at him.

"Could it be possible? Did I miscalculate the probabilities?"

"Is Queen Elsa correct?" Bond taps his shoulder.

"Then it means I have miscounted. I had to pass through the gate at least four times, but when?"

"What happens if she is a link in your family and you never meet her?" Bond asks.

He stares at her and his eyes water. Closing his eyes tight and his teeth clenched together, a layer of frost forms on his exposed flesh.

Elsa cups his face and places her hand over his heart. "You do know what happens."

"Yes," his voice barely says.

"Does your family live?"

He mouths the word 'no'.

Through the blur in his eyes, he wraps his arms around her, and whispers in her ear, "I almost made the same mistake. I did walk away from you. I watched my history change. I did go back, but they were not there, no records, nothing recorded about their existence. My pride got in the way. I kept coming back until I could feel them. It was you. In your mother's womb, you reached for me. It was you all along." His eyes close and trails of ice run down his face.

Her fingers touch the four specific points on his neck and face. She encourages him to face the wall. "Rotate a quarter turn to your right."

His body obeys, but not under his command. His mind dives into the dark void. A single white thread connects him to the light. The sensation of falling slows. He extends his feet down and lands softly on a rocky surface. Dust particles drift up and illuminate the void. Several meters in front of him, a black rectangle sits on the surface. No light comes from it nor does it reflect the light. As he moves closer, his feet kick up more of the dust, which illuminates more light on the rectangle.

A tug on the thread causes him to stop.

"What are you waiting for? Open it," a soft and gentle voice says.

He peeks over his shoulder. "Who is holding the other end?"

She giggles, "You are."

He turns back to the rectangle. "You are taking a big risk by being here. If I fail, my mind will be lost and so will yours."

Elsa slips her hand into his hand. "Then we go together."

Lightly squeezing her hand, he slaps his hand onto the rectangle. Nothing happens. He places both of his hands on the rectangle and generates a cold blast, but still nothing happens. "I can't get it to open. Someone else put it in here."

She slips her hand under his arm. "I am sorry."

The rectangle begins to glow.

"Let go of my arm."

Elsa lets go and the glow fades.

"Touch it."

Cautiously, her hand touches it and strands of light come out of the blackness to connect to her fingers. Both of her hands slide across the surface and a golden light radiates out from her hands. Sam stands behind her and slides his hands along her arms until they rest on top of her hands. He generates his energy. The rectangle shifts through the color spectrum until it glows a snow white. It opens.

His eyes open as Elsa begins to fall back against the wall. He grabs her waist and pulls her into his chest as he breaks her contact with his mind.

Anna runs over to them. "Elsa, are you okay? Did he hurt you?"

Elsa steps back and looks up at him as her eyes transition from white to her blue. "What was that?" She pushes away from him.

With clenched fist, Anna steps in front of her sister and glares up at him. "What did you do to her?"

"She wanted to see. She saw it," he glances down, "as did I."

"What did you see?" Bond taps his shoulder.

"I'm not sure. The sequences of events were not logical. I don't know why I did it, but it changed everything."

"You wanted to end the war and you sacrificed more than you planned."

Everyone looks at Elsa. She continues, "I saw your family. You have a beautiful wife and daughter." She glances at Anna. "I would sacrifice everything for my sister, so I do understand your decision."

He steps back and watches the ice melt off his hands. Water drips off his chin. The images race through his mind. They repeat again and again as he stands motionless. His mind removes an image from the events. With fewer images the transitions from one to the next slows until one remains. A cold hand touches his face. His eyes focus. The blue tint on everything fades into the background.

"Oh Elsa, I killed them."

"No you did not."

He holds her hand against his face. "I made the decision that caused their deaths." He kisses the back of her hand. "I can't go back to them. There is nothing I can do that will save them. They are dead in that time line. You have seen the worst I can do. I will do whatever you say. Does my Queen still want me?"

"Yes, I have seen you at your worst and I have seen you at your best. I will settle for a happy median between the two, but you have one more obstacle to overcome. If the people of Arendelle do not accept you by my side, I will abdicate my throne to be with you. Will you accept?"

"No, with an exception," he answers without hesitation.

Elsa shifts into her regal pose. "I will hear your exception. Speak."

"Let us determine if I can overcome the two obstacles. If I cannot, let us search all possibilities for an alternative. If we fail, let us discuss your abdication and the transition of power." His left brow slowly rises.

Her right brow slowly rises. "Deal."

End of Chapter


	80. Chapter 79 The Sword

**Title: The Sword**

 **1 years, 9 months until correction.**

Elsa glances at Queen Victoria as she steps back from Sam. "It is time."

Victoria nods and motions to her officer.

"Time for what?" Sam asks.

The officer opens the thin rectangular box on the table. He removes a flat cross shaped object covered with a purple silk cloth. Laying it across his arm, he offers it to his Queen.

Victoria reaches into the cloth and holds the object by its hilt. The officer removes the silk cloth. She holds the sword with both hands. Even with the candle lights, the room fills with a dazzling display of mini rainbows.

Sam focuses on the double-edge sword. The past has returned. He was here.

She angles the sword to reveal the herringbone pattern running the length of the blade. The rainbows disappear. At the base of the blade, three symbols of different colors, glitter in the light. Victoria asks, "Do you recognize this sword?"

"It looks similar to my sword," Sam replies. His hands drop to his side. Sadness starts to grip his heart, but clenching his fists and tensing the muscles in his arm causes the pain to recede.

"Does your sword sing?" Victoria asks.

He looks down. The battle in his mind hesitates. Is it really his sword after all these years? The fire in his neck flares up. It strikes at his shoulders and sends a tremor down his arms.

Elsa asks, "Do you know the name of this sword?"

He nods.

"Sam, did you hear Queen Victoria's question?"

He blinks and clamps down the pain as he looks at her. "Please define sing."

Elsa points to Victoria.

Sam slowly turns his head to Victoria and asks, "Please define sing."

Holding the sword in one hand, Victoria slides her fingertips along the blade. The sword emits a varying tone and pitch depending on the number of her fingers touching the blade and how she moves her fingers. "It makes this type of sound."

He stares at the sword. It is his friend's sword. Where did they find it?

Elsa asks, "Does your sword make that type of sound?"

His head gradually turns towards her and he answers, "My sword is not designed to make that sound."

"Sam, watch," Victoria says and hands the sword to her aid. He holds the sword in one hand and lightly slides his fingertips across the blade. It does not sing. Victoria passes the sword to Princess Anna, and Kristoff, but the sword does not sing for either of them. She hands the sword to King Frederick. He slides his fingers along the blade and it sings.

Sam's brows bunch together as his eyes narrow and search the floor. More old memories invade his thoughts. "Is it possible?"

Queen Victoria stands next to him. "Do you understand?"

Sam glances at her, but mainly stares at the sword.

"Now watch." She hands the sword to Queen Elsa. Holding the hilt with one hand Elsa's fingertips gradually slide across the blade. An angelic sound rises from the sword.

Elsa steps in front of him and holds the sword out. "Do you understand what is happening here?" He gazes at her for a time, and then stares at the sword. She pushes it towards him, but he steps back. "What is wrong?" She steps closer. He steps back and continues to stare at the sword. "Are you afraid of it?"

He glances at her. "No, it is not my sword." Elsa frowns at him.

Victoria stands next to Elsa. "Did you notice who could make the sword sing and who could not?"

Sam continues to stare at the sword.

She says, "I made it sing. King Frederick made it sing. Queen Elsa made it sing. No one else made it sing. Why not take the sword and let us see if you can make it sing?"

Sam looks at everyone in the room, but stares at Seth a little longer. Movement catches his attention. He glares at the smiling face of another who can make the sword sing.

Colonel Bond nods. "Go ahead, Samuel. Show them."

"Have you touched this sword?"

Still with his smile, Bond slowly shakes his head.

"Interesting you did not let Prince Seth try." Sam's hand gradually wraps around the hilt, but Elsa does not let it go. She whispers, "You know who owns this sword, do you not?"

Glancing back and forth between Elsa and the sword, he answers, "Yes, I do know."

"Who is the original owner?" Bond asks as he walks towards him.

Sam lifts the sword. Her finger tips sweep across the underside of it. Vibrations radiate through the metal. He looks to Elsa and smiles as his hand tingles. Rotating the blade up, he leans his forehead against it. Closing his eyes, he whispers, "It has been a long time my friend. Where is your master? When did he last hold you?"

A cold hand touches his arm. "Who held this sword?"

He looks into her blue eyes and answers, "My friend Arcturus. You took the correct path to investigate my sword. I didn't know his sword was here. Now you know why your search failed." Sam turns his head to Queen Victoria. "I believe the Welsh called him King Arthur."

Bond asks, "How do you know him?"

The pain at the back of his head rages towards his eyes. Sam answers, "Arcturus saved me in the early years of my life. He was a gentleman and my mentor." He looks at Elsa. "You can thank him for how I conduct my life. This is his sword. I gave it to him just before he departed to save his people." He watches the other faces in the room and stops at Bond. "He came here the same way I did. He just went further back in time."

"What do you mean further back in time?" Victoria asks,

"Your legends have a small amount of truth in them. He towers over others as I do. He was a fearless warrior and fought for the weak, so I can see him fighting the Saxons to a stalemate. If I could have been there, we would have routed the Saxons back into the sea." He stares at Victoria then glances at Bond and Elsa. "My ship was the second ship. Arcturus had the first ship. When he entered the green dragon, he never came back." He gazes at the sword. "You want to know if I can make it sing." His fingers slide across both sides of the blade. Resonating sounds of various pitch and tones drift into the room. "Arcturus loved this sword. It responds to Sariphan's genetic material, nothing more."

Elsa frowns and slowly shakes her head. She walks past Kristoff. Anna wraps her arms around her shoulder.

Queen Victoria glares at him. "Why do you continue to fight it?

Bond says, "Admiral, is it your intention to hurt Queen Elsa?"

He snaps his head towards Bond and replies in a low monotone voice. "You are either very brave or very stupid for asking that while I have Excalibur in my hands."

Bonds points to Elsa with her back to them. "LOOK."

She turns her head away from him. A sharp pain stabs into his heart. "Elsa, please do not tell me you thought this was going to change our circumstances." He watches her, but she does not turn to him. "You did." His breath catches as he staggers back against the door. Bond grabs the sword and holds his arm out to stop Victoria from reaching for him. The British officer takes the sword.

"Admiral, you have already acknowledged that you cannot save your family. What about your Queen? Is it also your mission to protect her from all harm? You have dismissed every one of her attempts. She was ready to let you go. Do you not see her pain?"

Sam looks to Elsa. He tries to reach her with thoughts. _I am ruining your plans. I thought I would have time for us to explore all options. Even with the sword._

Elsa tightens her arms around her sister.

His emotions choke the words. He lowers his head. "My mission has not changed. I will protect her."

"Your own actions are harming Queen Elsa." The back of Bond's hand slaps an echoing ring across Sam's face.

In a blink, Sam grabs Bond by his collar and slams him against the wall. Close to his ear, Sam whispers. "You want to see the monster the humans created in the name of science. This monster can snap your neck like a twig or I can freeze your body and smash it into tiny pieces.

"LET GO OF HIM, SAMUEL. THAT IS AN ORDER." Elsa commands. Her frozen hands hold an ice sword pointed at him.

He glances around the room. Two British and two Southern Isle swords point at him.

Bond barely speaks, "Are you protecting her now?" Sam lets go of him. He falls to his knees, gasping for air.

He stares down at Bond. "Why did you do this?"

In a gravelly voice Bond answers, "I need to push you to the point, so your logic would take control."

"What logic?"

"The one you vowed to protect is ready to run you through. How are you protecting her?"

Sam stares at the floor. _I am failing in my mission. What can I not see? If I lose her, why am I here? Does my purpose end now?_ He barely hears the muffled speech through the blowing snow storm. Even the sunlight hides from him. _Elsa? Elsa where are you? I can't stay here. I have to leave before it's too late._ His emotions and logic fight for control.

Elsa collapses her ice sword into her hand and helps Bond to his feet. "Colonel, if you have any persuasive logic, now is the time. If he does not figure it out on his own, he will leave and your cause will be lost."

Still rubbing his neck, Bond nods to her. "I understand." With a deep breath, he yells, "ADMIRAL RYAN DO YOU HEAR ME?"

Sam covers his ears with his hands and replies, "I can't help, but to hear you standing there."

"What is your mission?"

"To protect Queen Elsa from all harm," Sam answers and presses on the indentations behind his eyes.

"Have you protected her to date?"

"Yes," he replies, closing his eyes.

"LIAR."

His eyes snap open. _What did you say? You called me a liar. Why would I lie? Am I a liar_? Elsa motions for Bond to continue.

"You are hurting Queen Elsa."

He looks down. His eyes move back and forth. _How can that be? I have done nothing to hurt Elsa_

"LOOK AT HER," Bond yells and steps closer to him as he points to Elsa.

His eyes look in her direction. She faces him and tries to smile. With her arms crossed, she holds herself and grimaces in pain. He feels the tightening of her chest and the knots in her abdomen. "Am I causing pain?" The storm roars in his ears and the pressure tightens around his head. His heart beats increases. He glances back at Bond. "I am causing her pain. Why?"

"Because you love her," Bond replies.

Sam rapidly shakes his head, "That's not logical."

"Why is it not?"

"I do not wish her pain." His breath shortens as he leans against the door. "It is not logical. I do not understand. I love her?"

"Sam, listen to me." Bond grabs his arm. "I can help you to make sense of it, but you have to listen."

He nods

"You said the sword only responds to a Sariphan's touch, yes?"

He nods rapidly. "Yes"

"Do you have access to your ship?"

He shakes his head. "No."

"If you had access to your ship, would you be able to determine who here is Sariphan?"

"100 percent Yes."

"Referencing the current time are there any means, methods, or devices that can be employed to convince the rest of them who is a Sariphan?"

"No."

Bond grabs his shoulders, "If you cannot prove who is a Sariphan and who is not, what will the people say about you for stating it?"

Sam stares at the Colonel and his heart beats slower. His mind studies the question. Is it possible that which I have done to others, I am doing to myself? "They will say I am crazy or demon possessed, just as I forced it on others."

"What happens to Queen Elsa if they do say it?"

He glances to her and whispers, "You will be sad." He lowers his head. _We have failed? Why did we not see it? Is this what happened to them? I failed to see the danger, until my ship was destroyed? Have I forgotten them? Am I forgetting my sweet snow angel?_

Elsa places her cold hand on his neck. "Are you my good soldier?"

He looks up, blinking away the thoughts of his family and moisture in his eyes. "I think I am."

"I know you are my good soldier and I know you are in pain. This must be done in order for us to survive together. Do you understand?" With a partial smile Elsa says, "Please answer the Colonel's question. What will happen to me if they say those things about you?"

"For your belief in me, they will say you are unfit to be Queen. If you allow me to stay in the castle, you will be emotionally hurt."

Bond jumps in. "That's right, Queen Elsa will be sad because of you. You need to do whatever is necessary to make sure you do not make her sad."

The pressure behind his eyes lessens. Logic gets the upper hand in his mind. His emotions fall back for his family. Sam nods.

"Earlier, you said legends have a small amount of truth in them. Do you remember?"

Sam nods again.

"If someone saw King Arthur swing Excalibur, would they hear the sword make similar sounds we heard a few minutes ago?"

He nods.

"If those same people saw someone else hold Excalibur and it did not make a sound, what would they think about the sword?"

"It will only sing for a Sariphan."

"But you are not there to tell them. They will make their own conclusions. What if over time they see many people handle Excalibur that does not make a sound, but they see a King or Queen make the sword sing, What are the people to think."

He stares at Bond. _I would have to touch them to know what they are thinking. This is not a logical question and he knows it. Why play games._

His heart pushes against his mind. _We are not giving up on her. He is doing to you what you have done to others. This is a logical question. You have seen similar events in other locations. What does a meteor passing overhead mean, prosperity or death or anything else? Why do you not know?_

He steps away from the wall. "If enough people saw Excalibur singing for only a monarch . . ." he closes his eyes tight and massages behind his left eye.

Bond asks, "What is the logical conclusion?"

After a few seconds still applying pressure behind his eyes, he glances at Bond, "Without additional information the only logical conclusion they have is to declare the sword selects the monarch. If that has been used, then maybe a true monarch did not receive their crown when they should have."

"Or maybe they used the sword to validate their claim to the crown that did not belong to them," King Fredrick comments.

Elsa steps back. "What about those who do not have a kingdom, but the people see one of their own is able to make the sword sing? What is the logical conclusion?"

His eyes lose focus. They close tight as he massages, both sides of his head. After a moment, he stares at her blue eyes. A calm slows his heart and logic answers. "The people will think the one who makes the sword sing is a monarch."

She asks, "But what if they see their Queen can make the sword sing and one of their own can make the sword sing, who are the true monarchs?"

He does not hesitate. "Both are monarchs by Excalibur's song, but only one can rule the land."

Else steps within his arm's length. "According to Arendelle law, could they get married to each other if the law did not forbid it?"

His eyes search her face. Colonel Bond stands next to Queen Victoria. Sam glances at Seth and King Fredrick and glances at Queen Victoria and her aids. A smiling Kristoff nods. Anna holds her hands together as though praying. She looks up and smiles. He reads her lips to say, 'you can do it'. He stares at Excalibur as the tension in his head releases. A cool hand touches his arm. Slowly his head turns and his eyes lock onto her blue eyes. The muscles in his face tighten to form a grin. His hand slides up her arm and across her back.

He pulls her closer with both arms and whispers, "To borrow a phrase from your sister, I knew you could do it." She wraps her arms around him and lays her head against his chest. He whispers, "Thank you, you are my hero. You have fought the good fight and peeled away all of my emotional layers. I'm sorry I put you through this." He speaks louder for the other to hear. "According to the legend of Excalibur, I made it sing in front of witnesses. Who am I to contradict the authority of three current monarchs?"

"Then there is no reason not to ask her," Kristoff comments.

With a nod, he takes a breath to speak, but Elsa places her finger across his lips. "There is one final layer that has to be removed before he can ask."

"WHAT!" Anna states more than asks.

She looks up at him, "It is more than our word that will seal this bond. The people of Arendelle must accept him. That is the final requirement."

He gazes into her eyes, "We need to make it happen. I can disable the sword so that only the four of us can make it sing and not for anyone else. We must show them that all is right in their minds, but they will agree."

"Agree," she says.

Colonel Bond offers the sword to him. Elsa steps to the side. "Before I do," Sam lightly grips Bond's neck and a blue energy pass from his hand to Bond's neck. "My apology for my actions. Drink something warm for the day and you will not know that I tried to choke you to death."

"If you do the right thing, it will be worth it," Bond says.

Sam takes the sword. Squeezing Excalibur's hilt, he touches the symbols in a specific sequence, before handing the sword back to the aid. "To make sure no other Sariphan's touch this sword," he glances at Elsa, "I recommend the three monarchs touch the sword first. It will deactivate until I touch it, then I will hand it back and we will see."

The door opens behind them. "Kai, you have good timing." Elsa turns to the group. "It is time for us to go back. Anna, please lead our guest back into the great hall."

Anna grins and walks past them, but winks at him. "Beauty first," she motions to Queen Victoria.

"That is very nice." She grabs Anna's arm. "We will go in together." They march across the way and into the great hall."

King Frederick followed by Seth and Victoria's officer and sergeant carrying Excalibur followed by Colonel Bond march out the door. Sam holds his arm out to Elsa.

With a glint in her eyes, she shakes her head, "This is a special occasion for you, so you need to make your entrance special. Kristoff will tell you what to do." Elsa walks to the door and says, "Don't keep me waiting too long." She walks into the great hall.

Sam turns to Kristoff. "What will you tell me?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "I was told you are to enter through the main doors, so come on." Kristoff walks down the hall.

Sam stops outside of the door. "When did she tell you that?

Kai blocks the door to the great hall and points towards Kristoff. "I believe Queen Elsa said you are to do as Kristoff says."

He narrows his eyes.

Kai responds, "You can look at me all you want. Queen Elsa is waiting for you."

From the end of the hall, Kristoff waves for him to follow. Sam finally reaches the main doors of the great hall. "Now what?"

"Go in."

His hand grabs the door handle. "Why the drama?"

Kristoff grins. "Maybe she is about to get even with you for all of the drama you put her through."

Sam steps away from the door and wipes his hands on his trousers.

"I'm kidding." Kristoff slaps his shoulder. "But your answers are in there. This is what you wanted, right?"

Sam hesitates to answer as another memory invades his thoughts. His daughter's last comment, "To save us you have to survive."

The thought fades as he nods. "This will be a part of my dream." Sam grabs the handles and opens the doors. With his head held high he walks into the room like he was meant to be there. Across the floor, she watches him. On the dais the three monarchs stand. On the floor in front of the dais most of the royal guests stand. They smile at him. The people of Arendelle fill the rest of the room.

He marches across the floor and crosses the Arendelle symbols inlaid in the floor. A distraction catches his eye. Three children giggle and point at him. Their mother taps the back of their heads to calm them down.

"Sam, what did you do," asks the sweet young voice.

He quickly looks down with an onrush of an emotional grin and looks over to Kristen. "Do you remember when you approached me on the bridge and you said, 'good luck with that'? Well, my luck is about to be fulfilled."

He walks over to a group of Arendelle's rich families and speaks for all to hear. "Many of you know me. I believe most will give a good favor of my accounts and yes, I know some would love nothing more than for me to fall off the Earth." He stares at Jensen for several seconds longer before he continues. "Some have asked why is there not a good woman standing by my side. I said she would interfere with my mission to protect Queen Elsa and her family. I truly believed that."

He turns to the children gathered on the other side of the room and slowly walks towards them. "Do not misunderstand. I love our Queen Elsa and her sister, Princess Anna and recently her husband Master Kristoff, but I did make a promise to King Agnarr and Queen Iduna to look after their girls, until they found a husband to take care of them." He stands with his hands together in front and looks at Kristen, her brother Erik and his friend Andrea. "That day on the ice in the courtyard, generously provided by our Queen, these three introduced me to a very beautiful young woman by sliding me across the ice where I nearly slid into our Queen."

"But you didn't," Erik says. A murmur of laughter rolls through the group.

With a nod to Erik, Sam says, "You are correct and this is where I have to apologize to the people of Arendelle. Most of you do not know, but earlier my mind was in conflict with itself and it became so great," he hesitates and looks down feeling the shame of allowing it to happen. He lifts his head with his chin up. "It became so great I virtually lost her. She did not give up on me."

He turns to the rich adults and moves towards them. "According to Arendelle's law; book one, chapter three, section one, and I quote, 'if the ruling monarch is married and the wife or husband of the monarch dies or the monarch is not married, the monarch is permitted to enter into a marriage if the prospect is a monarch, or a widow or widower of a monarch, or is a Prince or Princess first in line to become a monarch, close quotes. He scans the faces of the rich and sees two sneering at him. He turns his head towards Elsa. "Since there is only one part of the requirement I can possibly meet, I should have no problem, except for the two individuals." He turns his head towards Jensen. "Who will need more than my word that I . . . AM . . . ELIGIBLE."

Sam walks to the center of the room and stands on the diamond with the four flowers of Arendelle. With his hands clasped together in front, he faces the rich adults. "I was married and we had a Princess. I saw my little girl for the last time shortly after her sixteenth birthday. I cannot prove she was a Queen in her lands, so that part of the quote is out. I will not dare to imply the monarchs in this room could give a testimony about me."

Sam turns to the children. "We are told legends are just stories to make us feel good or to scare us into obedience. No one chooses to create a legend. Legends are born from the testimonies of the eyewitnesses who saw the events in person. As the story is told from one generation to the next, a piece is forgotten or added to the story. After many generations, those who hear the legends do not believe or are unwilling to see the truth. I believe all legends have a hint of truth in them if you are willing to look for it and some need more truth." He nods to Queen Victoria's officer.

The officer removes the purple cloth from the sword and steps in front of the dais. He taps the length of blade on both sides, then slides his finger along the length.

"Did you hear anything?" Sam searches the guest's faces. "Did the sword sing to you?"

A voice behind him asks, "No, that cannot be, are you saying the sword is Excalibur?" A murmur moves through the guests.

Sam looks to Queen Victoria. "Somebody knows about the sword." He turns to the monarchs on the dais. "Dear Sir, please allow each of the monarchs to hold Excalibur to see if the legend is true or not."

The officer nods to him and carries to the sword to Queen Victoria. She grasps the sword and slides her fingers along both sides of the blade. The sword emits varying tones. She hands the sword back to her officer. More murmurs flow through the crowd. Sam glances at the two who sneered at him earlier. They had moved to converse with Jensen. King Frederick holds the sword and he also makes the sword emit varying tones.

Jensen and the two others exchanged heated words at each other. Sam asks, "Is there a problem Gentlemen?"

Jensen steps from the crowd. "Interesting parlor tricks, we know Queen Elsa is our Queen, so no doubt, it will make the noise when she holds it."

"And what if it doesn't?"

The three look at each other, but Jensen answers, "Then somebody is not a monarch."

"Whether they are or are not is not up to us. Their kingdom will decide for themselves," comments the one standing next to Jensen.

"And there will always be doubt." He nods to Elsa and she lightly slides her fingertips along both sides of the sword. Excalibur emits an angelic sound. He nods to her again and turns to the trio. "Now we know. Three, who are monarchs, have the ability to make Excalibur sing. A logical conclusion is if someone who is not a monarch will not be able to make the sword sing. Let's see if Princess Anna can make the sword sing."

She already had the sword in her hand and slides her fingers along the blade, but no sound. She passes the sword to Seth and he also could not make the sword sing. The officer takes the sword and walks toward him.

Jensen's friend comments, "What about another representative for Queen Victoria to test it?" Jensen turns his head towards his friend.

Sam snickers, "Wait. Let me say it. It will be more humiliating if I tell him." Not waiting for an answer, he continues, "Were you not here when he uncovered Excalibur," pointing to the officer. "His fingers slid along the length of the blade. I asked if anyone heard anything. That is when the gentleman behind you asked if the sword was Excalibur. Remember?" Jensen continues to glare at his friend. Sam turns to the crowd. "Is it a parlor trick? If anyone has any doubts, come over here. You can hold the sword and we will see if you can make the sword sing. The humiliation will only last a day or two."

He searches the crowd, but no one moves. Kristen grins and shakes her head. He winks at her before turning to face the rich adults. Sam glares at Jensen and his two friends. "You said it yourself. It's a parlor trick. Take the sword and prove it's a trick." Jensen's two friends move to the back of the crowd. Sam pushes. "Jensen, I insist." Jensen moves to the back.

A soft, sweet voice says, "I know how to make the sword sing."

Sam turns. Kristen stands on the diamond in the center of the room. He walks over to her and kneels. "You can make Excalibur sing?"

Kristen shakes her head. "No, but I know how to make it sing."

With a slight smile he asks, "How?"

She grins. "You can make it sing."

"How do you know I can?"

She leans towards him and whispers, "You would not be here if you did not already know the answer."

He says, "You're too smart for me." Sam stands and grabs the sword. "Let us see." Holding the sword above his head, it begins to sing as his fingers slid along the length of the blade. Looking up at the sword he stops. For a few seconds the silence hides his thoughts. A rustle of movement sounds in front and moves around him. He looks at the children and the adults bow, even Jensen bows to him. Only three still stand.

Elsa smiles at him and says, "A good monarch will not have his court bowing for too long."

"Yes, everyone please stand." Sam gazes at the sword for a moment. Closing his eyes, he touches it to his forehead. His fingers locate the three symbols on the blade by the hilt. Sliding his thumb across all three, he whispers, "They remember you Arcturus." He holds the sword out and says, "Take special care of it. This sword links me to the British people. Please tell Queen Victoria what I said."

The British officer glances back at his Queen. "She already knows. That's why she brought Excalibur." He wraps the sword in the purple cloth and carries it to the side room off the dais.

"What are you waiting for," Kristen asks. He looks down at her. "She is waiting for you."

"I know, but it's been so long since I last asked a beautiful woman for her hand in marriage. The first time was an accident and a moral obligation."

"How do you have an accident in marriage?"

"Between the sheets—"

Kristen interrupts and holds her hand up as she shakes her head. "NO. I don't want to hear it. I still have a few years before I have to hear it. Mom said you can be a dog." She points past him. "You didn't, did you?"

Sam shakes his head. "No, no, no, the first time was a mutual agreement." He points his thumb towards the dais. "We have no agreement, but what if she says no?"

Kristen looks towards her Queen. She motions him down to her and he kneels. "The way she is looking at you, I don't think she will say no, but just in case, do you have a gift for her."

With lips parted, he stares at Kristen for a second or two, then swallows. "A gift?"

She nods at him.

"Umm." Sam considers what few possessions he has. "I don't have anything worthy of a Queen."

"But you do Admiral." Brigit encourages Eric and Andrea to carry a long thin rectangle box to him.

"What is this?"

"Open it."

Lifting the box lid a dazzle of sparkling lights reflect off the highly polished metal. "My sword?" It has been many years since he last saw the sword out of its scabbard. _When I did last see it?_ His hand slips across the blade. His finger touches the Sariphan star. A metallic green sweeps across the symbol as its energy surges. In a slow motion his head turns and his eyes see the wink of his Queen. With a smile he nods to her.

"Kristen, you are correct. I do have a gift worthy of my Queen." Grasping the scabbard in his right hand and lifting the sword in his left hand, he holds high above his head. The Sariphan star blazes its green and blue colors. Many gasps at the sight of the blade reflecting a metallic green. "The magic that allows Excalibur to choose a monarch is the same magic that will identify my family members." The sword slips into the scabbard.

He grins at Kristen. "I have a gift."

 **End of Chapter**


	81. Chapter 80 Elsa's Plan: I Win

Title: Chp-80: Elsa's Plan: I Win

1 years, 9 months until correction.

Sam holds the sword over his head. "This is my sword. This sword will not sing. The only sound it will make is the sound of death. The metal is similar to Excalibur's metal, but with an added layer of ceramics, sharpening is not needed. You will have to take my word for it." He grins. "An assassin's blade needs to be the best as do all dogs assigned to protect something," he lowers the sword and turns to the dais, "or someone."

"This sword was given to me by a man who claimed to be my father's brother. I never knew my father, so I could not refute his statement." Turning the hilt up Sam continues, "There are three precious stones. The red jewel is shaped in such a way, if it is lightly coated in ink and pressed on paper, it would reveal the signature stamp of an individual who became a certain British King. I have never tested it so I do not know."

He rotates the hilt for all to see. "This green jewel also has been shaped in a way, if lightly coated with ink and pressed on paper, would reveal the signature stamp of an individual who did become a certain Irish King. If that is true, this sword goes back a few centuries. Again, I have never tested it, so I do not know."

Sam holds the sword against his chest. "I see two individuals up there who have had an interest in my sword. The truth is, one has been told a lie and the other has been told the truth." With a smile he glances at Elsa and Victoria.

"With three jewels in my sword, there is only one jewel that is important to me." His fingertips slide across the center jewel. It radiates with blue, green and white colors. "This is the jewel of Sariphia. My uncle made the jewel glow as do I. He said when I am at peace, the jewel will glow." And just as quickly the glow disappears and only a blue and green jewel reflects the candle lights.

"As you can see, I do not feel well, nor have I been for the past few weeks. When I am not at my best, I am a little slow to understand."

"A little," cries out a little boy from the crowd.

Sam chuckles, "I recognize that voice." Erik's mother with an apologetic look on her face covers her son's mouth.

"That's ok. I'll remind him of this moment the next time I catch him staring at one of the lovely girls." A slight laughter rolls through the crowd.

Sam stands tall with his shoulders back. He takes a deep breath. His lips part as he exhales. Slowly he walks towards Elsa. With a smile he whispers to her, "A leap of faith."

He stops short of Kristoff and holds out his hand. "Princess Anna, I know your love for your sister cannot be matched and you want the best for her. I ask you, with Queen Elsa's permission, to stand next to her."

Queen Victoria moves several steps away. Elsa motions for Anna to stand next to her.

Sam follows her and stops at the bottom of the dais. He bows to Anna first, takes a half step to his left and bows to his Queen with two hands holding his sword out to her. In a loud voice he says, "Majesty, I offer this as my pledge to you as Queen and to the people of Arendelle. I vow to give my life as a warrior to protect Arendelle from all invaders."

Elsa grasps the sword, but does not take it and stares at him before replying. "I do not wish to take this sword from its rightful owner, but I do not wish to offend you for this superb gift, so this I say." Her blue eyes sparkle as never before. Her life energy radiates into his sword and into his arms. It has more power than a tingle. The sensation draws a memory from when he was a child. The same calming and joyful feeling overcomes his pain. His mind clears. It is not just hearing, but he feels the words she speaks.

Her smile blocks out everything but the two of them. "Do you think I am a machine without feelings and can bear to have my morsel of bread snatched from my lips, and my drop of living water dashed from my cup? Do you think, because I am the Queen living in this castle, I am soulless and heartless? You think wrong! I have as much soul and heart as you. And if God had gifted me with some beauty and much wealth, I should make it as hard for you to leave me, as it is now for me to leave you. I am not talking to you now through the medium of custom, conventionalities, nor even of mortal flesh: it is my spirit that addresses your spirit; just as if both had passed through the grave, and we stood at God's feet, equal as we are! I ask you to stand beside me not as Queen and subject, but as Equals."

He drinks in her words as he tasted them from another as a child. His heart takes the stage and answers. "I think of you as none of these things. You are a beautiful creature created by God for the whole world to see. I have no desire to take your bread or your last drop of water, but under the current circumstances, I cannot stand with you at the moment. But this day I must take a step back, fore I come to you to ask a favor. There is one whom I love. I made a mistake some time back and had wronged her. I must amend this error. She is a noble woman deserving the best. I know her life has been hard, but I wish to give her comfort that life can be fulfilled with the right person. I ask for your permission and blessing to marry this beautiful creature of a young woman." He bows to his Queen again.

With wide eyes, Elsa stares at him. The warmth begins to fade. Her energy withdraw from his hands.

Anna bumps her arm. "Your turn."

She glances at the floor and tightens her grip on the sword. Her voice not as strong wavers to a whisper. "Do you believe you are the right person to comfort her in this life, even though life has the tendency to throw obstacles in your way?"

"I do, Majesty."

"Does she love you?" A touch of sadness sounds in her voice as she takes the sword.

"Yes, she does?"

"How? How do you know she loves you?"

"Other than speaking the words, she has shown me her heart. She could have allowed me to charge King Frederick. Between him and his brother and the Ambassador, one of them could have killed me in the state of mind I was in. She took a chance with the perfume and sang the song to calm the beast in me. It's not just the words; her actions said she loves me."

For a moment, Elsa breaks from her regal pose. Her chest expands with a sharp breath and a partial smile blooms. Her eyes glisten from the onrush of moisture building in the corner of her eyes. Her body shifts back to the Queen's stance. "With such devotion and the display of love, who am I to stand in the way of true love. Samuel, as Queen of Arendelle, I give my blessing to you and your future bride."

He bows to her and stands. Sidestepping to his right, he bows and says, "Princess Anna, I know we have had a few rough moments, but I wish to apologize for the not so nice way I have treated you. You deserve the best in your life and I pray that your marriage with Kristoff will be more fruitful and blessed. I make this promise to you and to Kristoff, unless something unfortunate happens to me, I will be there for the both of you."

He glances to Elsa before continuing. "Princess Anna, I know you love your sister dearly and you are working to establish the fond memories you had. I do not wish to interfere with your quest, but I must let you know that my heart aches for your sister. She is the most wonderful person I have met, since arriving here. I thought I had experienced every emotion possible, but when I am near her, the emotions I feel I cannot describe, but I have seen it before. I first saw it between King Charles and Queen Ingrid. I saw it again between you and Kristoff. When I look into your sister's eyes, I see the same passion there. I know that whoever wins your sister's heart will also experience the same emotion, so I ask you, Princess Anna, for your permission to ask your sister's hand in marriage."

Anna steps down to him and wraps her arms around his neck with a tight squeeze. She whispers into his ear. "After all of this you better ask her. In case you haven't heard, I have a wicked right arm that sent a certain Prince, which we will not name, into the fjord." She steps back and holds out her hand. "Samuel . . . Sam, I give you my permission to marry my sister."

Sam bows and kisses the back of Anna's hand. He stands and sidesteps to the left to stand in front of Elsa. Behind her tear filled red eyes, her breath quivers behind her hand. He kneels on one knee and offers his hand.

"For the second time I found who I can truly love. I have found you. You are my sympathy, my better self, and my good angel. I am bound to you with a strong attachment. I think you, Good, Gifted, and Lovely. A solemn passion is conceived in my heart. It leans to you, draws you to my center and spring of life. It wraps my existence about you in a pure and powerful flame, therefore fuses you to me in one. I ask you to pass through life at my side, to be my second self and best earthly companion. Queen Elsa will you marry me?"

Elsa takes a deep breath and wipes a tear from her cheek. "All my heart is yours, Admiral. It belongs to you and with you it would remain, were Fate to exile the rest of me from your presence forever. But I ask for one condition. If you will stand with me for a lifetime, I wish to hear who you are, even if it takes a lifetime to hear." She places her hand in his hand. "Admiral Ryan, Commanding Officer of the USS Aurora, it will be my joy to marry you. YES."

Carefully removing her glove and tucking it under his belt, he opens his other hand holding a gold ring with the Crest of Arendelle and the Crest of a Star. Between the Crests is their snowflake. His hands shake as he slips the ring onto her third finger and covers her hand with his hands. Looking into her eyes, he moves his hand to reveal the two Crests momentarily shine a crystal Green and an Icy Blue. "The proof of our love is in this ring. A reminder, we should never forget."

Sam stands on the step from the top of the dais. Elsa steps to him and wraps her arms around his neck. He draws her into his chest with his arms around her waist and they passionately share a kiss.

King Frederick and Queen Victoria step down from the dais. "Ladies and Gentlemen, please welcome Arendelle's newest royal couple." Loud cheers and applauses fill the great hall.

They separate their kiss, but Sam is not ready to let her go and whispers, "I am absolutely stupid for not doing this sooner. I wish . . ."

"Shh," Elsa places her finger over his lips. "Let it go, it is in the past. We go forward from this moment. Fear will not control you as long as I love you. I know it held you back, but you overcame it to be with me. It takes a very strong person to overcome one's fears. A certain little sister taught me that."

They both turn their heads to Anna.

"What? Why are you looking at me?" Anna questions them. "You two need to separate so we can congratulate you."

Sam nuzzles her ear and whispers, "Are you prepared to be the Admiral's wife?"

"Okay, you two, you need to break it up so we can toast you," Anna states.

Elsa nuzzles his ear and whispers, "Are you prepared to be the Queen's husband?"

"Hey, you will have plenty of time for that. You need to focus."

"Well, at least I'm moving up in the world." He licks the outer part of her ear.

Elsa giggles as she rests her head on his shoulder. Anna frowns at them.

"Well, I guess we do need to attend to our guest before Anna sends us to our rooms."

Sam turns his head to Anna with a big smile. "That works for me, let's go."

"No, now you two knock it off. This will be done properly." Anna points an accusatory finger at him.

Elsa stands as she giggles. "I guess she told you. Are you sure she cannot read your mind?"

"That goes for you too." Anna waves her finger at her sister.

Elsa pushes on his chest. "We have been engaged only a few minutes and you have already gotten us both in trouble."

The staff finishes passing out glasses full of a bubbly gold liquid. Frederick taps his champagne glass. After a few moments no one speaks. He holds up his glass and says, "A toast to Arendelle's Queen Elsa and Samuel Ryan, who hid with the horses as the stable boy, until the British sword Excalibur exposed him for who he really is, Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan."

"Hear, hear," cheers the royal guest and most adults. They drink.

Frederick motions to Victoria.

Queen Victoria looks at her glass, looks at Samuel, and finally looks at Elsa. "Okay, before I offer a toast to you, let me ask you a question." She glances to Colonel Bond and swirls the champagne in her glass. "Queen Elsa, please do not take what I am about to say personally." She stares at her. "I have heard and read disturbing reports about Samuel. Recently I have seen for myself his abilities, so I do not have doubts about the reports. If he is loyal to you as he claims and does not continue to demonstrate what I saw, then you are truly blessed. If at any time you have no desire for him." She holds up her glass. "Let me know. I will take him off your hands. Let us toast Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan."

The 'Hear, hear' were not as many as before.

Sam does not drink, but holds his glass. Elsa taps his hand. _Why are you not drinking?_

 _She made a not so nice comment towards you._

Elsa slowly lowers her glass as she looks up at him. "Are you sure?"

"I have heard those words many times. She did not complete the statement with 'I can use your abilities', as others have added 'so we can save the world'." He grins at Victoria.

She grabs his hand and whispers. "Please do nothing. This is our moment. Drink up."

Sam drinks and keeps an eye on Victoria. She grins back at him. From the corner of his eye, he sees the British Captain of Queen Victoria's guards move his head from side to side once. In three quick blinks, his eyes see the blue tint and scan the people on the floor. A fourth blink clears the blue tint.

Elsa slips her arm around his waist and drinks as she eyes him. _What are you looking for?_

 _Give me a minute and I will tell you who the Captain was signaling._

 _Are we in danger?_

Elsa lowers her glass. "What is it?"

Victoria and Bond stare at him. Gulping down his champagne, he kisses the tip of her nose. "To reply to your comment, I did not get us into trouble after a minute of you accepting my offer. You were just as guilty."

"You were the one who did not let go," Elsa replies.

"I believe you were enjoying it as much as I was."

"That is not the point. You did not let go." She shifts into her regal pose.

A hand slaps the back of his shoulder. "Don't even try to argue your point. Sometimes it truly is best to just to let it go."

For the second time, he sees Elsa begin to break from her pose. "You are correct, my friend." He takes her glass and holds it over his heart as he nods to her. "A lesson I still need to learn."

She smiles and starts to slip her arm under his arm, but Anna grabs her hand. "You two will have plenty of time to hug on each other."

"Yes. We want to see the ring," Gerda says,

Kristoff lightly punches his arm. "Now I won't be the only one struggling with the protocols." He motions to the people. "Now you have to let the people show their respect for you, Prince Consort."

"You are correct again, but I must send a message." Sam walks past him and clinks the glasses together with each step.

"What are you doing? Please do not start anything."

He glances back at her. "A message I must send." Clink, clink, clink sounds the glasses until they stop. The British Captain of the Guards starts to turn his head, but stops. Sam's finger rests on his hand holding the hilt of his sword.

"Smile Captain, this is supposed to be a happy occasion. Do you agree?"

He nods twice.

"Good, there are four individuals who were watching you. You nodded once. If there is a disturbance from your friends, do not expect to leave the castle under your own power. Will there be an issue?"

He shakes his head.

"Good. Look at all of the people to the left of the main doors in back. There is at least one who can cause a lot of trouble for all of us."

The Captain slowly turns his head to his left.

"Please do not miss them."

He nods.

"Good." Sam walks down the dais and hands the glasses to a staffer.

Queen Victoria and King Frederick exchange their empty glasses for two filled glasses. She asks, "So what did you say to my guard?"

Sam picks up another filled glass. "Excluding your ambassador and his two aids, there are five extra guests not recognized. I asked if he knew the four who looked at him at the same time he nodded. If we are to be friends, I understand we need to gain the others respect and over time we will." He drinks and waits for either to ask the number one question.

Frederick's eyes squint. He takes a sip and asks, "You said five, but imply four are British, who is the fifth person?"

"Good question." He stares at Victoria as he sips. "Do you have any idea who that person is?"

"And how should I know?" She sips from her glass.

"You want to play this game? Let us play." Sam glances around the room. With a stern face he stares at her. "You saw the future from my timeline. It runs parallel to this timeline. It is your grandchildren who drag Europe into two great wars that will reduce the British Empire to just Island."

 _Samuel._

"The path England is taking today is the same the English took in my timeline."

 _SAMUEL STOP._

"During the middle of the twentieth century, two superpowers will stare at each other with world ending weapons and your island is right in the center."

He glances back. Elsa eyes him. He turns to Victoria. "Have we finished going down this road?"

"I believe we have, but for your information," she sips her champagne, "I do not know who the fifth person is."

They look at Frederick. He shakes his head. "I do not have anyone spying here."

Victoria looks towards the Captain of her guards. He barely shrugs. Frederick walks over to Seth and converses.

"You are not planning to run away are you?" asks a recognized voice behind and low to him.

Sam kneels with a big smile on his face. "I was not planning on it. Do you think I am lucky?"

Kristen shakes her head. "There was no luck with it. When I saw you on the bridge ogling her, I knew you had an eye for her and if you didn't mess it up, she was going to be yours. That is why I told you if you loved her, it would be a travesty not to pursue her."

He hugs her. "I was not ogling her, but you are also right. Thank you for your encouragement."

Kristen hugs him back. "When you have children, maybe I can come over and babysit them for you."

"Deal."

"Samuel Ryan, have you forgotten me already and have now begun to pick up younger females?" Elsa smiles as she walks up to them. Her fingers rake through his hair.

Kristen smiles at Elsa. "She's funny." She curtsies and runs back to the other children.

He stands. "I'm lining up a babysitter when we need one."

Elsa slides her arm around his waist. "I think she will have to fight Anna for that job." Elsa points at Kristen. "Is she the one I saw running along the bridge when everything thawed?"

He does not recall telling her about the bridge. "You saw Kristen and me on the bridge that day?"

"I felt a tug on my heart, so I looked. I did recognize the two of you on the frozen courtyard." Elsa looks across the room. "There are lots of children and young people here. You seem to have many friends."

He places his arm around her waist. "I guess I really don't like to be alone, so I try to do for others."

Brigit walks up to them and curtsies. "Congratulations, I was beginning to have doubts if you were going to get her. There was a bet that you would back out at the last moment."

His left brow rises, "Did anyone win the bet?"

Brigit grins. "I did. I knew you had demons to overcome, but I knew deep down in your heart, you would do the right thing. I just did not know she would have to treat you like a dog to get you to propose to her."

Elsa giggles. Sam looks back at Victoria talking to her Captain of the Guards. The Captain shakes his head and shrugs.

"I see you have those two in a slight panic and I did hear what you said. Am I the fifth unrecognized person here?"

He shrugs, "They were focusing too much on us so I gave them a distraction."

Elsa pinches his side. "That is a useful skill to have. You will teach me."

"I must have some secrets," he replies.

"No," She nods repeatedly. "Yes." Her right brow rises.

His left brow rises. "As you command."

Brigit slaps his shoulder. "I guess you will not be spending much time in town."

"Why would he not spend time in town?" Elsa asks.

Brigit nods to Elsa. "Majesty, as you can see from the number of young children here, Samuel is quite popular. Many of the town's people have come to depend on him in times of need. I suspect he will have other more important duties to perform which will take up most of his time."

Elsa touches Brigit's arm. "Initially, I believe Samuel will be able to continue to meet with the children and others." She looks up at her future husband. "His military experience has prepared him to take on more obligations without diminishing his other duties. I do not want to take him away from those who need him. I believe his skills have prepared him for a dual role to continue serving the people of Arendelle and to be my husband." She looks into his eyes and nods. "You will continue to serve the people of Arendelle, correct?"

He stares back. "Is that what you wish for me to do?"

"Yes, you will help me to understand the needs of my people. It is of the utmost importance that you explained and help me in understanding their needs."

Samuel caresses the side of her face. "Then that is what I will do."

Brigit smiles and looks over to the children. She nods. The children run to them and talk at the same time.

Samuel holds up his hand until the children stop talking. "One at a time, who has a question?"

Alfred asks, "Will you be able to go fishing with us tomorrow?"

Samuel looks to Elsa then to Alfred. "Please understand, I now have new obligations that I must fulfill. In the immediate future, I will honor all scheduled appointments, to include going fishing tomorrow, if our beloved Queen does not have any overriding precedents."

"No, you will not. If you made a promise to these children, I expect you to fulfill it. I think it would be nice, if they would permit me, to go fishing with you," Elsa states.

Samuel notices the wide-eyed expressions of several of the boys. "Why do you not want her to go with us?"

Lars comments for the boys. "But she is a girl."

"I'm a girl." Kristen punches Lars' arm. "I can out fish all of you."

Brigit speaks to Elsa. "They do this all the time. Are you sure you wish to go with them?"

Elsa looks at all of the children and smiles. "I have never been fishing. Perhaps, Kristen can teach me a thing or two about fishing."

Samuel still sees a few disappointed faces among the boys and he kneels. "Guys, I know you do not understand right now, but someday you will. I pray that each and every one of you will find your girl to love, to hold, and to cherish her. In order to prepare you for that day, I request you have patience with our beloved Queen and teach her how to fish as you taught Kristen. But this time there will be no punching, biting, throwing things, or wrestling, if she does not do it exactly as you say, OKAY?"

All of the boys carol the same answer. "Okay, if we have to."

Anna motions her to come over. Elsa takes Brigit's arm as they walk towards the dais.

Samuel waits until Elsa is in a conversation with the others and makes a fist at the boys. "Okay guys, I do not wish for Queen Elsa's first time fishing to be a disappointment because one of you made an inappropriate comment to each other and heaven help you if that comment was meant for our Queen. Any questions?"

The celebration continues well into the evening. Samuel finally returns to the ballroom after escorting the children and the adults to their homes. Kristoff falls asleep at the food table. By the balcony doors and the way they are laughing, Anna and Seth seem to be having a great conversation.

"So have you decided on a wedding day?" Victoria asks. "I need to get home and pass along instruction to my staff before coming back. The parliament will be clamoring for details to our new treaty."

"I am sure my brothers will want to poke fun at me for this treaty."

"And why would they do that?" Elsa asks.

"For the same reason's I poke fun at their decisions, just some harmless bantering." Frederick answers.

"At least yours is harmless, the British parliament has been known to be unreasonable and unmerciful." Victoria pats Frederick's hand. "Keep your crown for as long as possible." She points to Sam. "If he is right about our future, your family may not be the last to rule your island if it falls."

"And your grandchildren." He taps his glass to Victoria's glass and the both drink.

Sam slides into the chair next to Elsa. Her right brow rises. "What? Have you been talking about me behind my back?"

"Now that you are here, we can talk about you to your face." Frederick jokes.

Elsa slips her arm around his arm and interlocks her fingers together. "So what exactly did you say to them in the stables?"

"They wanted to know their future. I showed them one possibility." Sam slides closer to her.

"How did they take it?" Frederick asks.

Sam leans towards her. "Queen Victoria has had a lot of practice covering her emotions, but she could not hide them from me." He sits back and caresses Elsa's hand. "She knows what I felt years ago. Good or bad, her name will be attached to it. In my timeline in less than a hundred years, Europe will fight several regional and two multi-national world wars. Empires of today will be remnants tomorrow.

He looks to King Frederick, "Prince Seth became emotionally disturbed by what he saw. His child will be King when the Southern Island ceases to exist from the ravages of the First World War. The advisory will uses it as a military base to control everything passing to and from the east. By the time of the Second World War, the island will be made uninhabitable."

Sam smiles at Elsa. "In my timeline, there is no Arendelle nor is there any history of it. There is a small city or town called ARUN-DEL. There are some similar characteristics. Whatever event occurred to change my timeline caused your Arendelle to exist in this timeline."

"When did you know?"

"I think I have always known. Unfortunately, I may never know when I first knew it. There are just too many missing pieces."

Elsa leans her head against his shoulder. "I will help you to put the pieces together."

Kristoff snorts and sits up in his chair. He mumbles, "That was spicy." He belches. "What did I eat?" His head rest on the table with a thud.

Anna walks to him. "This is embarrassing. He does not drink alcohol and I do not know why he did tonight."

"Everyone at this table probably remembers the first time they got drunk and now so will he." Victoria says.

Everyone around the table nods except Elsa. She grins.

"If you will permit me, I can assist him to his room," Seth says. A nod from Anna, he pulls Kristoff's arm across his shoulders and lifts him to his feet. She half helps to get her husband out of the room.

A minute after the door closes, Elsa intertwines her fingers in his hair. With a tight grip, she turns his head to face her. "Now they are gone. Tell me why you revealed your past to them?" Her eyes sparkle with the fire of blue ice.

"If this is the fourth time I have passed through here, I cannot go to the home I knew. This is my new home with you. But to answer your question, the past can be changed by creating a new timeline. As to whether this will be better or worse, I do not know. I can sit back and watch your future unfold in whatever it may or I could tweak it here and nudge it there."

"Are you playing god by doing that?"

Frederick's question has been thrown at him many times, including LadyCat. Would they truly understand? Sam holds Elsa's hand over his heart. "King Frederick, if I knew at sunrise, your ship will shift as you walk up the gangplank. You will slip off and the lower half of your body will be crushed between the ship and the wharf, but you will live. Do I say anything or not?"

"I would want you to warn me." Frederick stares at him.

"And suppose I did, but instead of you getting injured, Prince Seth is injured. Did I help or hinder?"

"I see what you are saying, but you know of only one outcome of the event as the sun rises. What if he waits until after sunrise?" Victoria asks.

"Or we board early." Frederick says.

"As her Majesty said," Sam motions to Queen Victoria, "I only know of one possible outcome."

"If that event as you know has been changed, our future has been changed. So what is the correct answer?" Elsa gazes at him with wonderment.

"Unless, someone has a ship that can survive passing through the Green Dragon's mouth," Sam shrugs. "And there lies the problem."

Victoria points her finger at him. "You have a ship. You can take all of us to see the results of the chosen action."

"Arcturus also had a ship. Did you find it?" He searches her face, but already knows the answer. "When I crashed here, I remember falling and seeing a bright light. When I woke up, I was in a field soaking wet from a storm. I may be able to find the field. As for the ship's location, how long did I walk? How many days passed?"

"We get it." Frederick states.

"Actually, you do not." Elsa says.

Frederick and Victoria stare at her.

Sam encourages her. "Excellent idea, please show them."

Elsa taps the table and counts. Frederick starts to speak, but Sam holds up his hand to stop him. She says, "In fifteen seconds Prince Seth will enter the room. He is concerned the castle is haunted."

Sam smiles and squeezes her hand. Everyone watches the door.

Victoria counts out loud. "Eleven, twelve, thirteen, fourteen, Fife—"

The door opens and Seth walks in. "Why are you looking at me?"

"Thank you for participating in the test. You have proven our point." Sam grins.

"What point? This castle has a lot of strange things going on tonight." Seth slumps down in the chair next to his brother. "Perhaps the evening drinks are affecting me more than I thought. I should turn-in so I can get up for our early departure."

Sam points to the balcony door. Everyone looks.

Seth stands and slides his chair back. "See, in the hall, I saw two mirrors frost over as I passed them. There was no draft. The same thing happened in that building the Germans said was haunted."

"Are you saying my castle is haunted?" Elsa asks.

Seth glances at everyone in the room. "No Majesty, I do not have enough information to say your castle is haunted. Good Ladies and gentlemen, please excuse me." He bows and walks out of the room.

"It does not mean anything. He was under the effects of his drinks, nothing more." Victoria grumbles. "So you can influence people, so can I."

Elsa pinches his arm. "Tell her and hold nothing back."

"As you command," Sam indicates agreement. "King Frederick, a ship from France will dock in your harbor around the eighteenth of April. Three men will disembark. They will claim to be emissaries for England. Their credentials and a forged letter from Queen Victoria will say they are on a mission to Russia and no one is to know about them. A week later a British warship will anchor outside of the harbor for seven days. The British Captain will board the French ship and search for the three men. They will be told you have them. You will claim no knowledge of these men.

Sam motions to the both of them. "As a result of this misunderstanding, transport Captains will be encouraged to drop their cargo elsewhere. I have told you what happens in my timeline."

"Queen Victoria, these three men are the Masters of inmate work houses in Andover, Hampshire. They are stealing rations for personal gains and the inmates are starving. The scandal will erupt in August of this year when the inmates fight over the marrow and gristle off bones meant to produce fertilizer. This is a case of others not wanting to investigate for fear of their own negligence will be exposed."

"August? What about the three men?" Victoria focuses on him.

"When the investigation finally gets going with fervor, a year from now, many will walk away from their jobs and follow the three men to Russia. This scandal started last month. Your parliament will pass new laws two years from now. It will be a blight on your monarchy for years." He leans over the table. "When you take a personal interest in it and send your dogs to root out the corruption, they have to strike all locations at the same time."

He glances at Frederick. "You need to be on the lookout for the three men and hold them until she send a ship for them."

"That will take time."

"You have several months before the riot at the work house occurs." Sam glances at Elsa.

She says, "Go ahead."

"Okay, a disaster is befalling your forces, in the Bay of Islands, New Zealand. For the next ten months the native on the island will bleed England and create an opening for other countries to move-in. Do you know why they are fighting?" He waits several seconds. He taps the table and Victoria looks at him. "A flag pole is the reason. The British planted the Flag on a tall hill so that your people could be proud of their conquest. The proud native people wanted to be equal as the treaty said, but saw the flag say they were subjugated to the British."

Sam sits back in his chair. "Just because you have the biggest stick does not mean you have to wave it over everyone's head. A century from now, all of your colonies will remember and seek revenge, but now you can change it. I have given both of you a clue. By the end of the year, you will know if I am what I say or a fake."

"I know you are not a fake." Elsa grins up at him. "I can read your mind." She yawns and leans her head against his arm.

He glances at Victoria and Fredrick. "I know this is a lot. For you, your future has not been written. For me, this is another—"

"Growl." Elsa giggles.

"What did you say?"

"Growl, that was too easy." She snorts.

"Are you growling at me?"

"What if I am?" She wipes her nose on his sleeve.

"What are you doing?"

"I am leaving my scent on you." Her teeth sink into his arm.

"Uh, Elsa, that will leave a mark."

"I will leave my mark on you." A low growl passes between her lips and her eyes sparkle with the blue fire.

He starts to slide his chair back and she pushes him. As he falls back, she holds onto his hair. The chair slams onto the floor with a loud bang.

Holding his hair down, she licks his cheek and their lips meet.

"Well," Frederick looks over the table. "I do believe we should leave before they embarrass us." He holds out his arm. "Shall we?"

Queen Victoria hooks her hand in the crux of his arm. "Oh, to be young again. I still remember the few times Albert and I sneaked into a room for ourselves."

Frederick opens the door. "Do you believe what he said?"

Victoria glances back at them still on the floor. "The day before I departed to come here, I receive messages of exactly what he described in New Zealand. It is possible he received word before I arrived, but why would he be interested in an island on the other side of the world?" she walks out of the room. "I do not know what you will do, but I will keep an eye on him."

"As will I."

The door closes.

"Well, you did it. Are you happy?"

"I have you where I want you, yes, I am happy." Elsa replies as she buries her face into his chest.

Sam wraps his arms around her shoulder. "I'm happy as well."

End of Chapter


	82. Chapter 81 Decision

**Title: CHp-81: Decision**

 **1years 7months until correction**

A light breeze floats the fragrance of the spring flowers blooming in the northern hills through the open louvers at the top of the stable walls. Several horses raise their snouts and sniff the fragrance. Sam finishes brushing Aurora's mane. The service door opens and closes. Three sets of boots walk into the stable area. He glances up, while the tops of three brown hair children walk past the stall. "How many stalls do you have left?"

"None," Kristen replies. "We finished washing the stuff off the tools and hung them up on the side of the building."

"I don't have any carrots, Sven. Kristoff said he will bring several after breakfast," Erik says.

Sam glares at Aurora. "Did you see Kristoff leave?" Barely neighing she nods her head tossing her mane. "He said he would let me know, when he was leaving." He hangs the brush on the post and asks, "when did you see Kristoff last?"

Kristen opens the gate and answers, "When we poured the water out of the buckets, I saw him walking to the castle. Is there anything wrong?"

He answers as he steps out and closes the gate, "Nothing a little ice under a chair will not fix. Everyone wash your hands before we will go inside."

"Do I have to wash my hands again?" Andrea asks.

Kristen replies, "Did you touch Sven?"

"No," Andrea answers while he wipes his hands on his trousers.

"You let him lick your hands," Erik snickers and points at Andrea.

"Wash them again," Kristen commands.

"Sam is Sven's tongue clean," Andrea pleads.

He washes his hands and arms in the bucket. "I'm sure to Sven it's clean, but I think Gerda will say differently. If you want breakfast, wash your hands." Erik and Andrea push each other to get to the bucket first. They calm down and wash their hands.

Several minutes later, the three march across the courtyard. Sam follows the group and removes his shirt. Passing the shirt across his right hand, he generates a cold mass of air, which freezes moisture. His three helpers enter the side door to the kitchen. He rolls the shirt between his hands to break up the ice. With a snap, a shower of ice particles sail from the shirt and create momentary rainbows before the sun melts the ice. The sparkling colors hold his attention and darkness from all sides collapses his vision.

A door opens. "You cleaned them. Hold up your hands. Okay, they smell clean. Have a seat at the table. Did you lose someone?"

Hearing Gerda's comments shatters the darkness. Sam fluffs his shirt. While slipping it over his head, he scans the courtyard and searches for anyone watching him. Detecting a slight wobble in the energy waves above the castle wall, his mind notes the exact direction the abnormally radiates. He steps through the kitchen door. "I'm here."

"Two weeks to go and you still can not show up for breakfast on time." Kai comments as he points his finger at him. "You keep this up and she will cancel the wedding."

Sam hooks Kai's finger and shakes it. "I know that's a lie. After all of her hard work, she will see this to the end. Despite my time management issues, I'm not going to disappoint her."

Kai pulls his finger away. "Yes, and you are doing a great job since the food cart left the kitchen ten minutes ago."

He walks past the kitchen staff grumbling, "No thanks to the Ice Harvester."

Less than a minute later he walks into the dining room. Elsa points her fork at him and her right brow rises. He quickly moves to the chair on the Queen's immediate right and bows to her. "My apology for being late again, but I did not know Kristoff taught Sven not to speak when he leaves the stables. My Timing issue will be rectified within two weeks. Please forgive me."

She smiles and points to his chair.

He sits. The morning staffer sets a plate of seasoned potatoes, green leaf vegetable, and the equivalent to scrambled eggs, in front of him. He bows his head and closes his eyes. A cool hand rests on the back of his hand. He squeezes and holds her hand. After a few seconds he says, "Amen."

A second later Elsa says, "Amen."

He leans towards her and lightly kisses the back of her hand, while glancing up at her. "Thank you." With a smile he waits until she takes the first bite of food. "Anna, how are you feeling today?"

She glares at him and holds her napkin over her mouth. "I feel fine. Why do you ask?" She continues to eat.

"In due time, all shall be revealed." He eats. A shoe taps the side of his foot and his eyes dart to Elsa.

He glances between Kristoff and Anna. She nods once at him. After a few minutes of eating in silence, he places his left hand next to his plate. Lightly tapping the table, he slides his index finger forward. At the same time Kristoff's chair slides back from the table.

Everyone looks at a wide eyed Kristoff. He slides his chair back under the table. Red blossoms in his face as he ducks his head down to continue eating.

He taps the table again, but Elsa grabs his hand. He looks to her and she slightly shakes her head. He nods and continues eating. He notes a temperature drop. Metal taps a plate. Without moving his head, he peeks up.

Anna points her fork at him and swallows. "You did it. You slid Kristoff's chair back?"

He winks at her.

"Sam, let go of my hand. Sam!" Elsa pulls her hand free. His head slowly rotates towards her. She taps his arm. "Are you okay? Your face and arms are turning red."

His head rest against the back of his chair and his eyes closes. "My head is killing me."

"How long have you had your headache?" Elsa stands next to him.

He rolls his head towards her. "Last time I kissed you."

"Three months ago?" She touches his forehead. "You're burning up. Is this similar to last time?"

"One more memory block has to open." He looks down at his red hands. "I am expending a tremendous amount of energy to control the pain."

Barely holding the fork, his right hand rests on the edge of his plate. His left arm falls to his side. A flash of light strikes his mind and causes a surge of pain to collapse his vision. At the end of a dark tunnel colors merge and move around each other. The motion of his head slumps his body against the table. A pair of cold hands pushes him back up. The chair slides on the floor as the cold energy pulls on his left hand. The weight of his arm drags his hand back and it hits his chair. The cold touches his cheek and moves his head. His tunnel vision only reveals an unrecognizable face talking, but he does hear them.

A face surrounded with blonde hair asks. "Sam, can you hear me? Can you see me?"

Another face with red hair appears next to the blonde's face. "Elsa, what is wrong with him? Look at his eyes."

The blonde replies, "I do not know. His face feels extremely hot. His pupils are gone. It worked last time, so I will try." The blonde leans closer. A cold mist strikes his face. He inhales and gasps a deep breath. The long dark tunnel shortens and turns white. His second inhalation of cold air shatters the tunnel.

His eyes move as they come back into focus. A beautiful face smiles at him and catches a glimpse of Anna behind her. "If you're going to kiss me please ask Anna not to look over your shoulder."

Elsa leans up. "How do you feel?"

"I feel fine. How do you feel?" A grin quickly forms as he grabs her hands from his face. "Never mind, I'll tell you how you feel."

"No." Elsa places her hand on the back of his neck. "Something happened to you just now."

Sam's mind reviews the last several minutes and his hand holds Elsa's hand as a surge of pain assaults the back of his mind. A noticeable gap of white noise appears, but for how long? Once control restores the signals from his eyes, his other senses, especially his cheeks, feel the good feelings she creates with her cold hands. He asks, "What happened?"

She points to the plate. "You were eating breakfast before your body went lifeless."

He studies the plate and rolls the fork in his hand. Poking the yellow stuff, he asks, "What is this?"

"It is eggs like you asked."

He glances up at Elsa. "Eggs." He lifts up a piece of egg and examines it closely. It looks familiar. He drops it on the plate and picks up a smaller piece. "I like eggs." Tasting the eggs, his tongue moves it around and discovers a flavor he can't describe. A slight peppery spice stings his cheeks. He leans over the plate and shovels the eggs into his mouth quickly. For a few seconds he stares at the small crisped square. Stabbing a piece of potato with the fork, he sniffs it. "It smells good. What is it?"

"Seasoned potatoes," she answered and slides her hand onto the back of his neck.

He looks up at her again. "Do I like them?"

Elsa glances at Anna. "Yes, you do."

"Then I will eat them." The first couple of salty bites stimulate his saliva glands. The sweet pepper spice creates a wonderful flavor mixed with the salty potato. The pepper lightly stings his cheeks. They crunch outside with the soft inside creates a wonderful sensation. He finishes the potatoes as fast as he finished the eggs. Still tasting the seasons on the fork he licks it until no more flavor. He sets the fork on the plate and drags his finger through the remaining brown crumbs on the plate. He touches his finger to his tongue and the salty pepper flavor returns for a moment.

He picks up the plate and sniffs. The fragrance of the spices pushes his desire for more and he licks the plate. Brown particles of concentrated salt and pepper, potatoes, and the hint of the eggs tantalize his tongue. He licks from the center to the plate's edge. After a few licks he turns the plate and licks more. After licking half of the plate, he glances over the edge at Kristoff staring at him. He wants to offer him a lick, but the flavors are overwhelming, so he does not share. Down to the last quarter of the plate, he glances up to Elsa's concerned expression. The red head smiles at him. _I bet she likes egg and potato. I'll let her lick my plate next time._

Elsa sits in her chair and picks up her fork. She laughs as she covers her mouth.

"What's so funny," Anna asks.

She tilts her head towards her. "He thinks you like eggs and potatoes and will let you lick his plate next time."

"Excuse me," Anna narrows her eyes at him. "The only plate, I will lick is my husband's plate and no one else."

With a confused expression Kristoff stares at Anna.

Sam looks up at Elsa as he finishes cleaning his plate. She appears different. He wipes his mouth on his shirt and watches the few strands of her hair move.

She glances up and leans to the left. His eyes follow. "Are you staring at my hair?"

"It appears something is missing." He faces her and forms a triangle with his thumbs and index fingers. Aligning the bottom of the triangle to her hairline, he asks, "Do you wear a gold comb in your hair?"

Anna glimpses at Elsa and asks, "Gold comb?"

"Do you mean my gold crown?"

His hands drop into his lap as if they became too heavy to hold up. A flash of light instigates his mind to search again. "Gold crown?" The involuntary movement of his eyes triggers an assortment of images. His mind tosses each image until there is just one. A smile forms across his lips and he points to her. "Are you a Queen?"

Her eyes dart back and forth searching his eyes. "I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

Another flash of light strikes his mind. His body jerks as his hands grab his chair and the table. For a moment he does not move. A floating sensation takes over his body. The table comes into focus and his hand picks up the fork. Everything appears frozen, no heartbeat, no movement of his lungs to take in air. Time appears to have stopped, but for how long. Suddenly, his chest heaves as a rush of air passes through his mouth. He sets the fork on the clean plate.

 _Am I waiting for my meal? Did I fall asleep?_

Lifting the plate, he searches for a few breakfast crumbs. He puts the plate back in the same spot. "By chance did I eat the eggs and potatoes?"

Kristoff stares at him. A cool hand touches the side of his neck and creates a sensation that distracts him. Her hand slides to his lips and he sniffs. Her fragrance stimulates the pleasure center of his mind. He traces the hand to its owner and kisses the back of her hand. He glances at Anna standing next to her. "Why are you hovering near me?"

They look at each other. Elsa asks, "What is the last thing you remember when you were holding your fork?"

He narrows his eyes, expecting a different question, but answers, "I was eating the eggs and potatoes."

"Do you remember actually eating the eggs and potatoes?"

"What do you mean did I actually eat?"

Elsa cups her hand against his face. "Something is happening to you. For several minutes you acted strange. Do you remember seeing Anna or me moving to you?"

His mind searches for the answer. "No, I do not." With a neutral expression he places his hand on top of her hand. "What else do I not remember since coming from the stables?"

Elsa holds his hands and kneels in front of him. He listens to every word she speaks detailing the last several minutes. He maintains eye contact and tries to analyze, why. "It sounds familiar, but that would describe any other morning."

She asks, "Who else was with you this morning?"

"Kristen, Erik, and Andrea helped me to clean the stalls." He watches for the miniscule changes in her expression.

"Where are they now?"

His mind finds the last image of them leaving the stables. "I would assume they went home."

Elsa' expression changes when she glances up at Anna. "They are in the kitchen eating breakfast. You were behind them."

He watches her. A weakness of doubt shines through her armor. Fear will soon follow. "Are you sure?" _Has the threshold increased? Is it breaking through again? If I can't hold it, the troll may finally get his wish._

Her right brow rises. "How long have you been in pain?"

With a half-smile, he shrugs. "Some part of my body is always in pain."

"How long up here?" She taps the side of his head

His eyes close and his head flinches as a spike of pain stabs into his mind. Darkness consumes his thoughts. An onrush of white noise overloads his ears with steady tones and crackling. How much time has passed? His mind does not know if it has happened before now. A muffled sound enters his ears. His eyes open to a concerned expression of love.

He forces a smile. "I'm glad I can't hide it from you anymore. I don't remember when it started, but I noticed it shortly after I proposed to you."

"When I knocked you to the floor?" The pulse in her neck beats faster.

"No, before, when everyone congratulated us." He leans towards her and places her hand over his heart. He stares at the floor a few seconds rather than looking up. "Now that you mention it, my headache has been getting progressively worse. If it continues at a steady increase, I will be completely incapacitated in about three weeks."

"At least you will have a honeymoon, before that happens." Kristoff comments.

"If I lost several minutes I suspect that too will increase."

"I'll take care of you during those times."

He touches her face. "You said I acted strangely. I will assume that means different from what you have seen." He cups her face with both hands. "Elsa, I know you do not see me as a monster, but that does not say what's in my head is not the intention of a monster. When I removed the restraints your mother called me a monster after what I did."

"But it was a snap response on her part. She never saw the casualties of war and it was the first time for her," Anna says.

He glances up at Anna. "That was only sixty men." He leans his face close to Elsa and whispers, "how many are in your Queendom, excluding the three of you?"

"I will prevent it from happening."

His voice quivers, "can you really? I will know when you come after me. In those moments, you will be my greatest threat." He slowly shakes his head as he closes his eyes. "I thought I had finally found peace."

Elsa wraps her arms around his neck. "I fought too long and too hard to let you go now. Can Pabbie help?"

He lightly nibbles on her neck. "How can I possibly forget this taste?" She pulls him closer. He barely moves his head. "Kristoff, will you please contact Grand Pabbie. I'm sure he is expecting me."

Kristoff answers, "How soon?"

"Immediately."

"I'll leave now buddy. I should be back in a couple of hours."

Anna runs after her husband. "I'll walk you to Sven." They close the door behind them.

"Elsa?"

"I do not wish to hear it. We will get through this."

"I know you will, but to ensure you have the greatest chance of survival, we need to disconnect." He locks his arm around her shoulders to keep her from moving. Her body shudders as he applies pressure to four specific points on her neck and face.

She pushes away from him and grabs the side of her neck. "What did you do? I cannot hear you."

"I placed a mental block on the connection between us. It prevents me from knowing what you're about to do should the time comes. Unless I remove it, it will dissolve on its own in thirty days. You will need as much clarity as possible if you are to save me, again." He notices her fingers pressing against her neck and face. "If I pressed too hard, let me massage it out."

She rocks back and up onto her feet. "As you said, I should be prepared for the possibility. I need to make arrangements for my absence."

"Absence?"

She looks back at him as she runs towards the door. "Do you think I'm going to let you go by yourself? Marriage or not, I'll see you to the very end." The door closes behind her.

He exhales a large volume of air. "That went swimmingly well. Toad, you better fix it. Elsa's depending on you." His right eye twitches.

Sam rubs his right eye. Opening both eyes, he sees Orion the Hunter midway above the horizon. Other than the stars above he sees no lights. A cool breeze sweeps across him as tiny bits of pain stab at his arms and face. He leans against a small boulder. Blood and dirt cover the scratches on his arms. He flinches in pain when he touches his face. With his shirt and trousers torn, he inspects a deep gash in his knee. His wet trousers give him a chill with the passing of another breeze. Looking down and up the hill, he appears to be at the half-way point. "How did I get here? Did I get these cuts and dirt from rolling down this hill?"

Several meters across from him, a boulder protrudes out of the ground. "It's a good thing I didn't roll any further. The rock would have hurt."

"You already hit that rock once," sounds a familiar voice behind him.

Rolling to a defensive position on his feet, Sam's clenched fists glisten with a sheen of ice. His eyes see the area in a blue tint, but he sees no one. A glimmer of the blue changes to hints of orange for a second, but just as fast it disappears. Was it an anomaly from his own breath? His mind received a signal from his ears, so it was not his imagination. Extending his search, he detects several nocturnal animals, but all are too far away for him to hear. The orange wave appears again. The small boulder he was resting against begins to rock back and forth, and transform into a troll.

Pabbie holds up his hands and speaks to him in his language, "Stop, Admiral Ryan, I'm here to help you."

"Admiral, how do you know I'm an Admiral?"

"I rescued you from your ship when you crashed here. You fell out of the sky." Pabbie slowly moves towards him.

He stands and ice melts from his hands. "Pabbie, how did I get here, you little toad?"

"Your language is difficult for me to speak. Speak as I do."

"Is this better?"

"Yes, after all these years I still don't understand your comment about comparing me to a type of frog. I look nothing like it." He waddles to him. "Give me your hand."

Sam holds out his hand and Pabbie slaps his stone hand against it. An electrical energy charge shoots up his arm and into his neck. He falls to the ground with his arm quivering. "How the hell is shocking my arm supposed to help me?"

Pabbie stares down at him. "Shocking your arm does nothing for you except to numb it for a short period of time. The shock is for your head. It will help to reconnect the electrical paths in your brain so you can think a little clearer, you big baby."

He rolls onto his back and stares at the stars. A meteor streaks across the sky lasting a couple of seconds, followed by a second meteor creating a longer trail of white fire. Just before the fire ends the meteor passes in front of a distortion. He stares at it and feels a desire to go to it.

Pabbie leans over his head. "Did you see it?"

"The green distortion," he asks, still staring at it. "What is it?"

Pabbie looks at the sky and steps past him. "I don't understand the science behind it, but you do. It arrived the night your ship crashed here." He turns to him. "Continue staring at it until you notice a different color." He sits down and watches him.

Some movement returns to his arm. After several minutes he jumps to his feet. "Just then it changed red, now it's green."

"You told me the red is the fire in the belly of the beast. It shows its fire to entice you to return. That night it spew you out of its mouth."

He barely moves his head. "It has a familiarity of beauty. What do you call the beast?"

Pabbie looks towards the sky. "You said it is a temporal wave, but the last three times it passed, you called it the Green Dragon."

"Why would I call it a Green Dragon, if I know it is a temporal ribbon?" His right eye closes tight and he applies pressure to his right temple. The pain intensifies and forces him to his knees. He raises his left arm in time to prevent his head from hitting the ground. His salivary glands produce excess saliva and his abdomen tightens. The muscles in his chest constrict and suffocate the life out of him. A tingling sensation passes through his body and it releases his lungs to gasps for air. A pool of saliva collects in a depression in the rock underneath him. He groans as his abdomen spasms. "What is it?"

"Do you hear it calling? You said when it moves closer, you struggle and fight its control." Pabbie pulls up a weed growing in the crack of a rock, and rolls it between his hands, crushing and shredding it. He sprinkles the shredded weed in the pool of saliva. "What power does it possess to control you?"

"The window to my world is still open," he gasps.

Pabbie opens a small bag and pulls out a pinch of red powder. Sprinkling the powder over the weed, wisps of smoke rise. "Why do you not close it?"

"I don't know how," he growls and sits back on his heels.

"You do know."

Sam shakes his head and holds his eyes closed.

Pabbie grabs a hand full of his hair and pulls his head up. "I know the pain will become worse as the Green Dragon moves closer. You have a choice to end it now, if you let me help you. Eat the weed potion in your spit. When the smoke stops you will have no choice, but to figure it out on your own." He lets go of his hair and walks a short distance to sit.

He glances at Pabbie and back at the green and red potion on the rock. Another spasm builds in his abdomen, therefor he consumes the red weed and struggles to keep it down.

Pabbie waves in his direction. "For your sake, I hope you did not wait too long."

His gut twist and explodes a loud belch. Stretching his mouth open as wide as physically possible, a white ball falls to the ground and cracks. He slumps onto his side, while glaring up at Pabbie. Every last ounce of his energy has departed him. The cool breeze eases the tension in his body, while the pain in his head becomes a very dull sensation. He does not hear the noises in his mind. His heart beat slows to a steady rate. He tastes the saltiness of his sweat and blood at the corner of his lips.

Two sensations warm his arm. He tries to move his head, but it does not respond. A warm voice speaks to him. "Sam, what happened to you? We left you in the dining room and you disappeared. Elsa is worried sick about you."

His mouth moves and his throat emits a raspy sound, "Elsa?"

"Yes, she is worried about you. We need to take you back to the castle so you can heal."

"Elsa is here?"

"No, she is waiting for you at the castle." She rolls him onto his back and a partial smile forms on his lips.

"Anna?"

"Yes, I'm right here," she answers moving his hair out of his face.

"Is Kristoff here?"

He leans over Anna. "I'm right here, buddy."

"My rings, where are they," he asks as he looks around.

Kristoff touches Anna's shoulder as she looks up at him. "What rings are you talking about?"

"I suspect they are in the white ball," Pabbie points to the cracked ball next to him. Anna reaches to touch it. "I would not do that. It is white because his internal bodily fluids have frozen to it."

Anna pulls her hand back like she touched fire. "Ewe."

Kristoff says, "It looks like it came out of an elk's gut, which does look disgusting." He pokes it with a stick until it breaks open. He kneels and inspects it. "There is something in it. It looks like two rings."

"They are mine and hers," he replies in a raspy voice.

Anna asks, "Who is her?" Sam stares up at the stars not responding.

Pabbie walks over to them. "Her, is his mate from long ago. He stares at the green dragon up there. This has been the worst year for him when the dragon passes by."

"You mean a real flying dragon," Anna asks.

"It is as real to him as Kristoff is to you." He touches Sam's head. "His energy level is lower than normal. I wonder if he had to continually expend energy to keep his rings, frozen." He picks them up and rolls them over in his hands. "They are generating energy. There are symbols on the inside I cannot read." He hands one to Anna and the other to Kristoff.

"I don't know these symbols either," Anna says.

"Nor do I," Kristoff comments.

"Take the rings to Queen Elsa and ask her to come to the next valley with the dry riverbed. We will take care of him until you get back," Pabbie says. Six boulders transform into trolls and pick up Sam onto their shoulders. They march towards the ridge.

Kristoff helps Anna to her feet and walk towards Sven.

Elsa sets her china cup down and stands. The two delegates stand and bow. Kai motions to the door. "Gentleman, you will hear from Queen Elsa in a week's time. If you will proceed to the door your escort will show you to your ship." A guard holds the door open and another follows the two delegates out of the room.

Elsa slumps back into her chair with her head down. The past two days have given her only a couple of hours of continuous sleep and has left her will-power exhausted. Her Queendom and Sam's problems have taken away her joy and happiness. If only she could get another hour of sleep as her eyes close. _Did I make a mistake? How can I explain that my husband runs away every few years because of his emotional state? Is this what he kept warning me? Sam, I cannot help you if I do not know where you are._ She wanted Sam to teach her to detect others near her, but at this moment, she wishes he had taught her how to turn it off while Kai stands next to her. "Send in the next one?"

"They were your last appointment for the day."

"I guess you have not heard from Anna or Kristoff since they left this morning."

"No Ma'am, I have not. I will go check if they have arrived," Kai answers and walks out the room.

Whispers come from the hall, as the door closes. For a minute the person stands by the door. They slowly move to the end of the table.

"I can hear you breathing. Do you really think you can sneak up on me?" she looks up at the young girl with long brown hair.

The young girl curtsies, "My apology, Queen Elsa, Sam told me to check on you while he is away. If I am disturbing you I will report to him, when he gets back, that I did see you." She turns towards the door.

"Wait. Please come and have a seat." The young girl hesitates. Elsa stands and motions to the chair on her left.

The young girl stares at her as she moves along the table and sits in the chair. She jumps out of the chair. "My apology again, I'm supposed to wait for you to sit first."

Elsa smiles and sits. The young girl sits with her back straight and stares at her. Elsa leans towards her. "It's okay to relax. I will not bite. You must be Kristen."

With a grin she answers, "Yes ma'am. Sam is my friend."

"When did he tell you to check on me?"

"Three months ago, when he asked you to marry him in the ballroom, he said he had a mission for me if I will accept it. He pays me. He sits with me in the kitchen. We talk about lots of things and he sends me home with a small basket." Kristen looks around and motions her to come close. Elsa leans close and Kristen whispers to her. "You know he really likes you?"

"I have heard that. How do you know?"

"Because he told me and you know what," Kristen asks as she looks around again.

Elsa looks around the room. "What?"

"It's not his fault. He can't help the way he acts crazy at times." She leans back in her chair.

She stares at her for a moment. "Did he tell you why he does that?"

Kristen nods and looks around again. She whispers, "The dragon makes him crazy."

"You mean the green dragon?" She nods. "Do you know how often the green dragon passes near here?" She nods. A weight descends onto her shoulders. She whispers to Kristen, "Is the green dragon near?"

"Yes."

"Have you seen it?"

Kristen shakes her head.

She narrows her eyes. "How do you know it is near?"

"The next full moon will be number twenty-four."

She thinks back to the last time he mentions the green dragon and remembers. "Does it come by every two years?"

Kristen nods.

The door burst open. Before Kai can announce them, Anna and Kristoff enter. "We found Sam," Anna states.

Kristoff adds, "As soon as the guards and two horses are ready, Sven and I can lead you to the valley near Grand Pabbie's home."

She looks down at Kristen. "Thank you for your company. I understand why Sam likes you. Kai please have an escort take Kristen home and send a little gift bag with her." She walks around the table and stops by the door. "Who called for the guards?"

Anna raises her hand. Kristoff grabs her hand as he places his arm around her waist. "I did. Samuel made it clear to everyone. Heads will roll if we let you get into a potentially dangerous situation."

Kristoff covers Anna's hand with his own hand. A hint of a smile escapes her lips. She steps to Anna and places her hand on top of their hands. "Your husband is a good man."

Anna leans her head against his shoulder. "I know."

Elsa looks past them at Kristen. "He is not here and yet he is looking after my safety. Who else has he threatened with rolling heads?"

"It would be easier to ask who he has not threatened," Kai states standing by the door. "The guards are ready with your horse."

She walks back to the door and asks Kai, "He threatened you too?"

"No ma'am, I have known Samuel a long time. He does not threaten anyone. He makes promises."

She smiles at the others. "Oh, I see. Tell the guards I will be ready in a few minutes. Thanks to Kristen I know how to help him."

Several minutes later Elsa walks out the castle doors and down the steps as she ties her hair back. On such short notice, she wears a green shirt, black trousers, and black boots. A guard assists her onto her horse. She looks around. Her guards on horses sit ready as she motions to Kristoff, "Lead the way."

Kristoff urges Sven towards the gates followed by eight guards, the Captain of the guards, Anna riding next to her, and eight guards in the rear. They follow the road out of Arendelle for several kilometers.

Kristoff leads them halfway up the mountain. He stops the column and rides back to the Captain. "We go off road from here. There is a path that leads through the forest. Until we get to the top of the ridge, we will travel single file."

"What's on the other side of the ridge," the Captain asks.

"There is a clearing where we can rest. I will go ahead to the other ridge and make contact." He turns Sven around and moves back to the head of the column with the Captain following.

Captain Larsen commands, "Okay, right column fall-in behind Kristoff then the left. Sergeant your column last."

Sven starts down the path followed by the front eight guards. Elsa guides her horse behind the Captains and Anna follows her. The path is barely wide enough for the horse. Ahead Sven bulls his way through the thicket. A canopy of tree tops blocks half the light, creating the damp and sticky undergrowth. Short bushes and branches take turns trying to swipe her off her horse. Pushing between two bushes a vine scrapes across her leg, which she is thankful she is wearing trousers and not her dress.

 _May be this is why no one objected to my trousers or that vine would have sliced my leg._

She looks back at Anna and notices she is wearing trousers. Anna waves at her. She smiles and twist in time to duck under a low branch that almost wipes her off her horse. Blue sky peeks through the canopy ahead. Her horse steps and slides sideways down the hill. She prepares to jump if the horse falls, but it turns its body and powers itself back onto the path. It catches up with the Captain's horse. She glances back and Anna's horse slips as her horse did. The horse steps on to firmer ground after breaking through to the clearing. A sloping area the size of the castle's courtyard surrounded by forest on all sides presents a lush green hide away.

A guard holds her horse's reins and helps her down. She looks back and sees Kristoff helping Anna off her horse. H _ave you brought my sister here before today? Does Sam know about this place?_

The last eight guards emerge from the forest and the sergeant calls out, "Everyone drink water, no exceptions. Mister Kristoff," he points to the small stream at the bottom of the clearing, "Is that clean water down there?"

He replies, "An underground stream supplies it with sweet and clean water."

The sergeant bellows. "Take your horses to the stream and refill your water containers."

She watches the guards move with purpose. They don't speak, but each helps each other by removing twigs and leaves from their uniforms and horses. Four guards position themselves in an imaginary box around her. Sun light reflects off a sword on one of the four guards positioned further down the hill and shines in her face. She notes the other three guards have their swords out of their scabbards also. Each faces a different direction.

Captain Larsen stands next to her. "Is there anything wrong, Majesty?"

"Other than your sergeant giving out two orders, no one is talking and they move as one." She sweeps her hand. "These four guards have positioned themselves without orders. Is this normal?"

Larsen holds a water container in front of her. She takes a drink. "This is not normal for the other guards. Samuel Ryan personally picked twenty guards to be your personal guards. He supervises their training. When they are guarding you, he taught them to use all of their senses. They will talk to each other, but with the minimum amount of words. If they are talking they are a liability to you and he has the knack of knowing who is a distraction to the others."

Anna steps next to her holding a white kerchief as she pours water onto it. "You have a little smudge on your face probably where that bush nearly knocked you off your horse." Wrings the water, she wipes the smudge.

"So that is why they are using hand motions to communicate with each other. Is this how the Admiral's crew responds to his commands?" She takes the kerchief from Anna's hand. "How big is the smudge? It feels like you are washing my face."

"It looks like a large dirty leaf hit you," Anna responds with a grin.

"As soon as I started down the trail, a damp leaf hit my face." She studies the cloth and a realization enters her thoughts, therefore she narrows her eyes at her. "The first time I looked back at you, you grinned like you are now and waved. It was on my face the whole time. Was it not?"

"It's not like there was anything you could have done while in there. I did not think you were going to just stand there watching everyone or I would have given you the kerchief first." Anna pulls twigs from her sister's hair. "Did you bring a brush?"

"I didn't bring a container of water. Why should I have thought of a brush?" She glares at the Captain, "And you did not say anything."

Larsen shrugs his shoulders. "I didn't think it was that bad. The men get a lot dirtier in the field."

Elsa holds the cloth out as Anna pours water on it. Wringing it out she comments, "I wonder what he would say about his Queen getting this dirty in the field."

"First, he would probably laugh. Second, he would take the cloth and gently remove the dirt." Anna smiles.

She wipes her neck and stares into the forest across the clearing. "You are probably right." She slowly shakes her head.

"What is wrong?"

"In the last hour, I have learned he has worked with many people to keep me safe and I did not know it. I am beginning to understand why he stressed so much when I sailed with King Frederick to meet the Irish Ambassador. It was not jealousy. He was deeply concerned about me. Right after the thaw, he was looking after me."

"He did say his mission was to protect you. You saw into his mind. Was it a lie?" Anna asks.

"No, that part was not a lie. The fact he had others helping him and hid it from me." She glances at Anna. "What else has he hidden from me?"

Anna shakes her head as she closes her eyes tight for a second. "I don't understand your concern. You have a castle full of guards to protect you, so he created another layer of protection. Other than his crazy actions the last month, has he given you any reason not to trust him?"

"Shortly after the thaw he told me over time all would be revealed." She hugs Anna. "Every event becomes progressively worse. Is this what my life with him will be like? What if his next event is worse than this one?"

Anna holds her sister tight. "Elsa, you're not having second thoughts are you? I considered he was the one? The past three years you have been aggressively pursuing him. Are you thinking about letting him go?" She waits. "Elsa?"

She leans back to look at her sister. "After the accident in the stable, I thought I knew him. With each event I find I don't know him. When we get past this event, he and I will talk, but what if he doesn't know and the next event is a surprise to him. Anna, I have to consider the people of Arendelle."

"Okay, I will support your decision. All I ask, is make sure you have all the information before making the decision about him."

Elsa nods more to herself. "I promise." Kristoff approaches and Anna moves to his arm. "How much further do we need to go?"

He points across the clearing. "There is a short path. We will go over the ridge and down into a dry riverbed. Grand Pabbie will be waiting for us."

She looks in the direction. "If it is short, let us mount up."

"Well the path is narrow. The horses can't walk through there, even Sven has to stay here. If you are ready I'll lead you through, but the guards will stay here, that is Pabbie's condition."

"So be it," She states. "Captain, you and your men stay here. We will proceed ahead."

The Captain protest, "But,"

She holds up her hand. "I will take full responsibility for countering Samuel's request. We will contact you when we have arrived on the other side. If you do not hear from us in one hour, you may search for us."

"Yes ma'am," Larsen moves to converse with his sergeant.

"If you two are ready, please proceed."

Kristoff slips his head and arm through two water containers. Anna holds his other arm and he leads them across the clearing. He pushes between two bushes with Anna immediately behind him.

Elsa follows Anna through thick bushes and on to a path lined with tree trunks on both sides. He is correct about the path being narrow. A couple of times she had to turn sideways to step between two tree trunks and duck for the low canopy of branches. She spends more time going around or over or under before she steps out of the thicket and into the opening. Clouds partially block the sun, but the air is warmer than the path. Kristoff leads Anna down an embankment. She follows their footsteps into the dry riverbed. As they reach the other side, Kristoff helps Anna and her up the bank. They walk a short distance before three boulders transform into Pabbie and two trolls.

Pabbie walks up to Elsa and she nods to him. "Welcome Queen Elsa and congratulations to your upcoming marriage to Samuel. I know this is a stressful time for you, but please consider the stress Samuel is also under."

She replies, "First, thank you, seconds I agree with the stress on both of us that is why it may be best for us to delay the marriage until his situation improves."

Pabbie jumps up onto two trolls and holds his hand out to her. She places her hand in his. "Elsa, when Sam arrived in our land, he was very angry. He and I did not get along and I contemplated this valley was not big enough for the two of us. The glimpses I stole from his mind told me he was lost and confused. He was trying to find his home and his family."

He pats her hand. "Elsa, I took a chance with him. Knowing full well that if I failed, either he would be dead or I was. After I showed him what I'm about to show you, he made a request and handed me a cube shape crystal, broken into pieces. Also he handed me pieces of forged earth elements and told me to do my magic to transform them back into their original elements. The rest of the parts he melted into a ball and told me to place the ball into the deepest hole I could find, but more importantly I was to make sure no one found it, afterwards he laid on the ground. What he asked next, told me he had given up."

Elsa had never heard Pabbie speak seriously, not even a slight joke to lighten the mood. If it is as bad as he sounds, she has to maintain control for her Queendom and . . . wait, no speculations. She focuses on his words and asks, "What did he say?"

"He had taken many lives in the name of others. His mind has a vast knowledge of things to come and science." Pabbie looks down. He pats her hand and he looks at her. "He asked me to take whatever I could find and kill him."

She takes a deep breath. "Obviously you did not, so what did he say."

"He taught me the method of blocking certain memories that would work on him, which is similar to what I did for Anna and others."

"So you caused his memory issues."

"Not exactly, he told me what memories to block and what to do should the pain overpower him."

She pulls her hand away from him and steps back. Her head moves side to side as she backs away. She walks a short distance and her hand catches the scream before it passes between her lips. Her mind races for answers. He may have made the choice for her.

Anna interrupts her thoughts. "Are you okay?"

"This is what he meant when he said there was one more that could be worse." She stares at a distant bird floating above the trees. _Have I been lying to myself? Did I not hear the words he spoke?_

She pushes her hair back from her face before grabbing Anna's arms. "All those times he seemed to be making random comments, he was giving me clues about his life. He was preparing me for this moment if I had been listening." She turns to Pabbie. "Did he know this would happen to him?"

Pabbie jumps down and walks towards her. "I believe he knew this could happen."

Elsa turns away from them and stares at the opening in the forest where they came. "If he is the monster he refers," she lowers her head, "what is to prevent him from going back to his old ways? I cannot take that chance."

"Elsa no," Anna says. "I know all of us have had good and bad events with him. How is he any different from anyone else who has good and bad days?"

Clenching her fists, she shoots back. "When you have a bad day, do you have the urge to freeze someone or shoot an ice arrow at the top of the mountain?"

Anna takes a step back. "When someone pushes me to anger, I want to punch them. Why would I want to freeze them? I cannot create an ice arrow out of thin air."

"He can."

"So can you. Have you been having the urge to freeze someone or shoot an ice arrow at the mountain?"

Elsa stomps her foot on the ground. "That's not the point."

"It is the point. He vents his frustration differently than most people." Anna says.

"Most people," Kristoff comments.

"Okay, all people except you, Elsa. In the past three years, what has he done to endanger anyone?"

"Do you think the people of Arendelle would have shown up at his proposal if he had done them harm?" Kristoff asks.

Anna grabs her hand. "Unless you can point to specific events where he was aggressive, it seems to me, if he could not walk away, he would accept whatever came at him. I do not recall if he ever complained."

Pabbie taps his fingers together. "Queen Elsa, I believe this is what he would do. He would give you a choice. If you wish to see his world, I will take you to him. If you wish to let him go, your memories will be all that you have of him. He will not come after you."

"If you let him go at least see if he wants his rings back," Kristoff asks, holding a string with two rings on it.

Pabbie says, "Let me see those."

Kristoff hands the rings to him. "There is energy coming from them." He offers them to Elsa. "There are symbols on the inside of the rings that I do not recognize. Do you know them?"

He drops them into her hand and she immediately feels a tingling sensation up her arm. She reads the words in the first ring. "This is his ring. It is his name, Samuel Ryan."

She studies the second ring. Her finger slides across the two gems embedded in the ring. "This appears to be his wife's ring with his daughter's name, Ladycat, Saracat." A glimpse of anger crosses her face. "Where did you get these?"

"Just before Anna and Kristoff found him, Sam belched up a large white ball of ice. It cracked open and Kristoff saw the rings."

"Why would he swallow these?"

"It may have to do with the dragon."

Her eyes dart back and forth between the rings and Pabbie with a fierce look. _What are you holding back? I recall you were determined I did not open his memory block prematurely._ "What about the dragon? Do these rings cause the dragon to arrive every two years?"

Pabbie points to the eastern horizon. "The moon will be full in two days. I believe there is a connection between the rings and the dragon. He did not say what it is, but that the window to his world is still open and he hears it calling him."

Elsa looks at the crest of the moon slowly rising above the hills. _Sam, why did you not tell me? I cannot help you if I do not know._

Pabbie continues, "It may grow worse for him before it improves, Elsa." She looks at him. "You have a choice to make. Will you see it to the end with him or do I tell him never to come back?"

She peeks at the moon again. _Papa, mama, did you know this about him?_ _My heart hurts. I missed another clue and he stated it repeatedly._ She holds the rings and they interlock together. The two larger stones surround the smaller stone. She remembers the time when her mother held her in her arms and father hugged the both of them. She looks away and blinks as the excess moisture pushes past the corner of her eyes. "You loved them. You are not a monster. What am I supposed to do?"

Anna wraps her arms around her. "You are right. He is not a monster as you were not a monster three years ago. At the time, did you try to push me away because you knew who you were? I was determined to show you were not alone."

Elsa wipes away her tears and gazes into Anna's eyes. "You speak the truth. You did not let me go."

"Maybe you are in the unique position of knowing exactly how he is feeling right now." Anna smiles.

"As you were to me, do you think I am his Anna?"

"You will never know standing here."

 **End of Chapter**


	83. Chapter 82 Scientist Five

**Title: CHp-82: Scientist Five**

 **1years 7months until correction**

The sun peeks out from behind the clouds as a light breeze ruffles the top of the trees.

Elsa hugs Anna. "You're the best." She looks for Pabbie. "Where did he go?" They look around.

Kristoff points to the top of the bank. Pabbie motions for them to follow and walks out of sight. Kristoff helps Anna and Elsa up the bank. He claws his way up and leads them towards another troll waving at them. Across a rocky field the trolls lead them between several half buried boulders and stop in front of a cave where the boulder next to it looks like it was recently moved. A light flickers in the tunnel, followed by another troll holding a torch walks up to them and hands one to Kristoff.

The troll says, "Follow me. It is a long way down."

Elsa takes Anna's hand with Kristoff follows them as they follow the troll into the cave. They hunch down a short distance, afterwards the tunnel opens for them to stand up. The floor of the cave declines down. She keeps glancing back to check on Anna. A little farther the torch light reflects off an object above them. As she passes under it, a dull image, as if from an old mirror of her, stares down at them. Anna looks up and waves at her through the reflection. The troll in front steps aside and stops.

Pabbie rolls up to her. "Majesty, there is a strange magic in there. It will not harm you, but please be prepared for what you are about to see. I can safely say you have never seen anything like it. It is a little farther down here." He waddles into the dark. The stones around his neck give off the only light.

The troll holding the torch motions for them to continue down the tunnel.

The light behind them cast long shadows. She slows her steps almost to the point of dragging her feet. She can't see what or where her feet are stepping. Suddenly, she feels disconnected from the ground. As quickly as it started it passes.

"What's wrong," Anna asks.

"I felt a little dizzy, but I am okay now." She gives Anna's hand a little squeeze.

They stop as a bright light shines in their faces and Elsa holds up her hand to block the light. A bluish-gray square forms below the light. After a few seconds the square changes into a rectangle mirrored surface from the top to the floor of the cave. The light turns off. The mirror splits in half to reveal a small dark room.

Pabbie motions for them to enter. "There is room for all three of you to go inside. The outer doors will close and you will feel a slight pressure on your body. The inner door will open and you step through."

They step in and Anna asks, "Are you going in with us?"

Waving his hand he shakes his head. "I went in with Samuel a long time ago. It made me very uncomfortable, so I will stay here where I can feel the dirt. When you go through the doors someone will meet you on the other side." The doors close behind them. A blue light illuminates from above.

"What is that about feeling the dirt," Anna asks, holding onto Kristoff's arm.

"This room must cause him to lose his connection with nature."

A hiss sounds from above, which causes them to look up. Streams of clouds from the four vents drape over their heads. Pressure builds in the room and they press their hands against their ears. After several seconds, the hissing stops. Tiny stings similar to the shock of many static arcs cover Elsa's face and hands.

Anna asks, "Did you feel that? It feels like the bristle of my hair poking my face and arms."

"It felt like I was about to be struck by lightning." Kristoff rubs his hands together.

The door opens to a hallway with a slightly brighter blue light. Elsa glances out the doorway, one way and the other way. A light flashes in the corner of her eye as she turns. A short hair blonde female stands where there was no one. The young woman reminds her of someone Sam knows in Arendelle, but at the moment she cannot remember her name. Her trousers and shirt or mini-dress appears to be tailored made. The blue light and shadows hide the type of material in her clothes, which would give her an idea of where she is from. They are definitely not from the local area.

"Please enter the ship so I can adjust the lights to what you normally see." With a smile she points up the corridor. "I know you are friends of Admiral Ryan. He will be glad to see you, especially you, Queen Elsa."

Elsa holds onto Anna's arm and watches the female, while they move into the corridor. The door closes with a swoosh. The hall's blue light gradually changes to the yellow light of the sun.

The female points. "Please proceed to the room at the end of the corridor. I will meet you there."

All three turn their heads towards a light gradually illuminating the room at the end of the hallway. A shadow moves to one side of the room. Anna glances back and squeaks with slightly higher pitch. "She is gone. She was standing here," Anna points to the floor. "I looked away for a second, and she was gone."

Kristoff motions down the hall. "Maybe that person down there can tell us what is going on." Anna tightly holds onto his arm.

"Pabbie did say we will see things that we have never seen before. Let's see if our host will have some answers." Elsa leads the group towards the lighted room. As they pass through the door, the light in the section behind them turns dark. She walks into the room and stops. Kristoff and Anna almost run into her. She stares at the back of a female with the shoulder length white hair and form fitting white clothes and white boots.

The female turns around and focuses directly at Elsa. "Welcome, this is the medical section. My name is Krystal. I am Admiral Ryan's assistant aboard this ship."

Elsa glances back into the dark room. Could Krystal be the twin sister of the female who greeted them at the door? Kristoff leans his face close to the wall and slides his fingers across the texture. Anna taps her fingernails on the wall and a shelf.

Instead of wood-grain browns and gray stones, everything is a shade of white. The ceiling radiates a light, but it does not appear to have a fire source. The table next to the wall and the four chairs are a shade darker than the walls. The chair seats and backs are a shade darker than the chairs. The floor appears to merge with the walls. Behind Krystal a bland and white shelf runs the length of the wall. Elsa steps to the side and far wall reveals rectangle lines above and below the shelf. She steps the other way and the lines disappear. The small room could be Arendelle's doctor's office, except there are no medical instruments or an examination table. She takes another side step and the lines on the wall reappear, but the table and chairs are slightly larger than the small table in her study room.

Why is Krystal staring at her? Does she know about me? What is she waiting for? Elsa asks, "You said his ship. I have never seen a room like this anywhere. Is this the ship Samuel crashed on our shores?"

Kristoff comments as he rubs his fingers across the wall, "Wow, the paint covers the grooves of the wood. I heard there is a paint that repels water." He turns his head to Krystal. "Does this repel water?"

Krystal looks at Kristoff, "water?" She looks at Elsa, "shores?" Krystal stares at them for a moment before smiling. "I think I understand. This ship does not float on water. The Admiral will have to explain the purpose of his ship." She glances at all of them. "Are you hungry?"

"Are you expecting us to stay long," Elsa asks.

"That is your decision. The Admiral needs to remain in the medical bed for another thirteen hours and thirty-six minutes. If you wish to leave and come back later, he will be here." Krystal continues to stare at Elsa. "I see why he likes you."

Anna asks, "When Sam disappears for several days does he come here to see you?"

Elsa observes Krystal's response. There is something different about her, almost like she is purposefully weighing her response before answering.

"The Admiral does not come to see me." She points upward. "He stays out there even though he has walked over the ship many times."

Elsa glances up. "How long have you been here?"

"The entire time."

She flinches. _A vague answer, what are you hiding?_ "Were you aboard this ship when it crashed?"

Krystal turns her head slightly. "Yes, I was."

 _Mama talked about him. I know he told me. When did he say he landed here? Even if it was only a few years._ Elsa asks, "How many years have you been on this ship?"

Krystal does not move for a noticeable two or three seconds. "An astute question, he has taught you to observe the potential opponent. Very good, the method will work well for you in your line of work."

Krystal looks up and moves her head as though she is watching someone above them. "Your guards have become impatient. I recommend Kristoff return to the surface and send them away until noon tomorrow. You will be quite safe here, but I know the Admiral does not wish for this ship's location to be revealed at this point in time."

"Elsa?" Kristoff asks.

She studies Krystal expression and sees a shimmer of light in her eyes. _Why does that look familiar?_

Krystal turns her head to look directly into her eyes.

"Kristoff, do as she asks. We will wait for you here." Elsa continues to stare at her. _There is nothing behind your eyes. Are you a ghost?_

Krystal grins and moves her head from side to side.

Kristoff kisses Anna's cheek and walks down the hall. A blue light illuminates each section as he proceeds into the next section and turns off after he passes. The airlock doors open for a few seconds and close. The corridor dims to dark.

"Your observations are excellent. I am not a ghost. You are one of the few to see past my eyes. If you had a device to scan this room you would have detected the photon streams emitted from the walls. He has taught you well." She walks past the table and stops next to the side door. Krystal peeks over her shoulder, "to answer your question, twenty-four years and 8 months."

"You have been here twenty-four years?" Anna asks.

Krystal points and a blue light illuminates near the airlock.

Anna turns towards the hall. "That was fast of him."

Krystal winks at Elsa and places her finger to her lips as she vanishes.

"Oh my!" _What magic does Sam's ship contains. He never told me anything like this._

Anna grabs Elsa's arm. "What is it?"

"You didn't see her disappear?"

"No, I saw a light turn on down the hall and hoped Kristoff had returned." Anna looks at the side door and sniffs the air. "What is that wonderful fragrance?"

Elsa sniffs. She points to the red pot wafting steam on the shelf. "I think it is coming from there." They approach the shelf and Anna holds her arm. "It smells like chicken soup." Compartment doors open on each side of the soup.

"Oh look, we have steamed bread and three bowls. Krystal did ask if we were hungry."

Elsa lightly taps the pot, prior to holding her hand against it. "It is warm. I'll get the pot and you can get the bread and cups." She moves the pot to the table.

Anna sets the bowls and bread on the table. "Good, you found the ladle and spoons."

"I did not find them. They were just there."

Anna leans over the soup and closes her eyes as she inhales. "I do not remember seeing them, nor do I care. This soup has made me hungry." White hand-cloths appear on the table from colorful shimmering lights.

"Good, I am sure you did not see the hand towels next to the soup." Elsa picks up the cloth. It reminds her of silk and she traces the embroider symbol of fire inside a snowflake.

Anna bumps her as she says, "Have a seat and try the soup. It is so tasty."

She looks down at the chair behind her. "I know I did not move this chair."

"Eat first, talk later, and try the bread. I have not tasted anything this fresh since Gerda snuck me a piece of hot bread before your coronation. Grand Pabbie said to be prepared for what we might see." She dips a piece of bread in the soup and eats it. "Mmmm."

Elsa slides her hand across the smooth back of the chair. There are no ridges like wood, but she grasps the chair and easily lifts it off the floor with one hand. She sets it down and slowly sits waiting for it to collapse, but it does not. She slides the chair closer to the table. With a hand towel in her lap, she picks up the spoon. Anna's bowl is almost empty. She scoops up a small carrot, green leaf vegetable, and hopefully chicken. The fragrance reminds her of chicken soup, but with a thicker sauce. Softly blowing the steam away, she passes the spoon between her lips and closes her eyes. The flavors and textures remind her of the comfort food she enjoyed in her room with her mother after a long study session. It is definitely chicken soup.

Anna taps her arm and whispers, "try it with the bread."

Elsa takes the bread and dips it in the soup. The taste explodes more flavors across her taste buds. "Mmmm, this tastes good." She savors every bite. As she reaches the bottom of the bowl a blue light illuminates at the other end of the hallway.

Kristoff enters the room. "Do you smell chicken soup? As soon as I started up the hall I could smell it." He sits in the chair next to Anna.

Anna ladles the soup into a bowl.

He tears off a third of the bread and takes the larger piece. Dipping it into the soup and eating it, he moans. "This is the best chicken soup I have ever tasted. Where did you get it?"

"Like many things here, it just appears," Anna answers. She tears the remaining piece of bread in half and offers one to Elsa. The bottom of her bowl emerges after the last piece of bread sops up the remaining soup. "I wonder if the kitchen staff can make a soup like this."

"A cup of water would be nice," Elsa comments. A moment later and with a twinkle of lights a plain cup of water appears on the table next to her.

"I would like a cup of water," Anna states.

"So would I," Kristoff chimes. With a twinkle of lights, two cups of water appear on the table. He guzzles the water down.

Anna sips her water. She dabs her lips with the hand cloth, afterwards, her hands rest in her lap as she looks at everything. "The Admiral has a very special ship."

"Yeah, I wished I had this ship," Kristoff comments. "Making food appear out of thin air, no one in Arendelle would go hungry."

"I wonder if it can produce anything besides food," Anna asks.

"And if it can, then what?" Elsa asks using the last of her bread to soak up the sauce.

"We could boost our economy by trading or selling it."

She slides her bowl to the side and dabs her lips with the hand cloth. "What do you think would happen if our neighbors or worse our enemies discovered what we have? What if this ship cannot produce a lot at one time?"

"We could share with them." Anna states.

"If I knew it had a limitation, I would keep it a secret from everyone." Kristoff pushes his bowl away.

"If we cannot keep it a secret, what do we do?" Anna asks.

"If we are not strong enough, it would be a matter of time before someone takes it away from us." Kristoff answers.

"You mean war?"

"That is why it was never revealed." Elsa glances to Anna. "Did momma or papa ever tell you about this?"

"No. I never knew he was here until he nearly slid into us."

"If they knew they did not tell me either. I do not think they knew, so why is he revealing it to me now."

The side door opens and a woman's voice answers, "I have wondered that question myself. Why did he reveal his ship to you?"

A young woman with long blonde hair steps through the door. A textured white blouse partially covered by a featureless smooth white coat, and straight legged white trousers cover all of her curves from her neck down to her white boots. Emerald green strips rest on her shoulders. The only other color to contrast the white grabs Elsa's attention. An ice blue snowflake surrounded in silver in a pendant attached to her white blouse. A green metallic color sweeps across the snowflake as she moves. The integral design of the snowflake looks familiar. The woman stands next to the table as Elsa continues to stare at the pendant.

"Elsa?" Anna asks.

Elsa looks up.

"The pendant is beautiful. Is it not?"

"Yes, it is beautiful. The design looks like my snowflake."

"It is."

The woman steps back and stands with her feet slightly apart. She places her hands behind her back. The stance reminds Elsa of Samuel's military stance when he is focused. She catches Kristoff glancing back and forth between her and the woman.

The woman's left brow barely moves up. The corner of her lips gradually turns up. "Are you going to ask me?"

Elsa pushes her chair back and stands in her regal pose. "I am Queen Elsa of Arendelle. What question should I ask?"

The woman stands in front of her. She looks her down, and back up, before staring into her eyes. "So you are the one who captured my son's heart. Have you been to his snow mountain?"

"Your son," Anna blurts out.

"Yes, I have been there," Elsa answers.

"I thought I recognized you."

"Wait, who is your son?" Anna asks her sister. "Who is her son?"

A thought flashes into her mind. _If she knows about his mountain, how are you here?_

"A very good question," the woman's left brow rises. "Do you wish to tell them or should I?"

Anna moves around the table and stands next to her sister. "Do you know who she is?"

Elsa takes a deep breath and begins one more battle. "Her name is S5."

Kristoff narrows his eyes at the woman. "S5, is that your name or a nickname for a longer name."

She stares back at the woman. "S5 is short for Scientist Five, the fifth scientist introduced to Samuel when he was a child."

S5 nods to her. "Tell them the rest."

"Rest of what," Anna asks.

"Sam is your son," Kristoff comments as he looks away.

"And," S5 glances at him.

"You are not alive," Elsa speaks softly.

Anna snaps her head around to Elsa. "What?"

"The real S5 died as Sam tried to protect her." Elsa steps past Anna and stands less than a meter from S5. "That night he killed all of those people and grieved for you, but you are not his mother."

S5 takes a step back. "How do you know, Queen Elsa of Arendelle?"

"A year ago when we were attacked on Lookout Plateau, I held him in my arms as he opened his mind to that evening when they attacked the two of you. They killed you and he went crazy killing everyone who tried to stop him." She looks away. "You are like Krystal, a collection of lights to give you form."

S5 grins. "He said you were smart and you would figure it out. I applaud you." She tilts her head. "You are correct, but I have a little more substance to me or I would have appeared as Krystal did."

Anna moves behind Elsa. "You mean you are like the chairs and bowls and eating utensils that appeared out of nothing."

"In a way, yes."

Kristoff puts his finger in the minuscule amount of soup in his bowl and asks, "Was the food real?"

"Yes, the food is real. If you take a substance and rearrange its particles, you can create food. The sparkling lights focus the particles to form into a specific item. You saw Krystal because you can see the frequency of light. I am a combination of the two methods. Sensors in the room monitor your expressions and mannerisms and feed me information as to how I should respond. As an example, my physical shape excites Kristoff."

Anna's eyes dart to him. "Hey."

"Anna, you are experiencing physical pain in your lower abdomen. Queen Elsa has been trying to reach out to Samuel. Krystal appears and disappears in a room. I have to use doors. As long as the ship has the power I exist."

"Why did he reveal his ship now?" Elsa asks.

"You already know why. What event will occur in a few days?" S5 focuses on her.

"We will be married."

"My son has no desire to deceive you. He wishes and has prayed you will not be surprised with anything from his past." S5 looks up for a few seconds. "I wish the real S5 could be here for him. You have struggled so hard to overcome all of his obstacles." She steps closer and holds Elsa's shoulders. "I know of only one other who succeeded in capturing my son's heart."

Elsa holds S5's arms. "His wife named Catherine and his daughter named Sara?" She feels a pulse and warmth in her hands. If S5 had not stated, she would have thought she was a human.

S5 drops her hands as her left brow rises. "How do you know their names?"

She pulls two rings from her pocket. She holds up one ring. "Catherine and Sara are on the inside of this ring." She holds up the other ring. "Samuel and Sara are in this one."

"May I hold them," S5 stares intently at the rings.

Elsa stares at the rings for a moment, before placing them in her hand.

S5 closes her hands around them. She reads the name. "These really are their rings and not replicates." She holds them close to her ear. Her eye color changes to a darker blue. After a few seconds they change back to the lighter blue. She holds them up where Elsa could see the sparkle of rainbow colors. "That is how she did it. She is a genius for even trying. His daughter installed a transmitter in these rings to track him across time."

"Track? Across time?" Kristoff asks.

Elsa is glad he asked the question and not her. _Is this one of the things Pabbie warned us_.

S5 stares at her. "Without getting into a lot of details, it means no matter where her father traveled, she would know where he is. The transmitter receives a signal and broadcasts its location. After all these years he held onto them." She glances at her. "How did you get them?"

Elsa looks to Kristoff. "As I understand it, Sam coughed them up in a ball of ice."

S5 turns to the side and appears to be looking through it. She turns back around and forces the rings into her hand. "Now it makes sense how he thought he heard the dragon." She motions to the rings. "He hears the transmitter responding and looks for the source, that is how he sees the dragon."

She clasps her hands together close to her chest and bows her head with her eyes closed. "My son, you suffered needlessly." Her eyes open and she blinks away the moisture in the corner of her eyes. "Once she died the rings should have stopped receiving the signal, so why are they still transmitting?"

S5 touches the wall panel next to the side door. The blue panel changes to a dark background with moving multicolor lines, white letters and changing numbers. She taps the panel and the background replaces the letters and numbers with a line graph. A wavy line near the bottom creates several spikes. She touches the tallest spike and it moves to the center of the graph. She touches the panel in three locations. Many spikes fill the panel and a red line connects the tops of the spikes. S5 steps back from the panel and lowers her head. She appears motionless.

After a few minutes Elsa stands next to S5 and touches her arm.

S5 turns her head slightly, but is not able to blink the tears away. A tear rolls down her cheek and she whispers, "My son suffered all those years. He was in conflict. He did not have a definitive answer that his family was dead. He was holding out for hope."

S5 grabs Elsa's shoulders and slowly nods her head. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, my son truly and deeply loves you. As long as he had a miniscule amount of hope, he loves Catherine and Sara." She brushes the tear away and turns to the panel. "Those spikes are the energy his rings receive from the dragon. Notice the spikes get smaller moving to the right. The signal is an echo from the original transmission. It means the gate closed immediately after Sara sent the signal. She would have kept the gate open to receive a return signal from the rings."

"Like dropping a small rock into a bucket of water, the ripples will bounce off the sides, but in less than a minute they disappear," Kristoff comments.

All three turn their heads towards him.

He shrugs. "I have thrown rocks into a lake and wondered if the ripples would ever reach the other side of the lake.

S5 nods to him. "Your analogy is correct. Sara's original signal traveled back and forth to the open dragon. When the dragon was close the rings responded and disrupted Samuel's thoughts."

"Causing him to act all crazy," Anna asks.

"Yes, when the dragon moved away, the rings stop responding and as you imply he acted normal."

"Why did the dragon stay open?" Elsa asks.

"The echoing signal kept it open. If Sara held her gate open long enough to receive a reply, there would not have been an echo." S5 tilts her head towards her. "I surmise Sara experience a traumatic death as she sent the signal. He was hoping it was a mistake. As you defeated each of his barriers his conflict increased. If it was not for the echo, he would have asked for your hand in marriage at least a year ago. I'm sorry you suffered for his mistake."

"If this is the cause, can you prevent it from happening again," Elsa asks.

"I don't know. He may be able to stop it." S5 winks at her. "Do you wish to see him?"

"Absolutely." Elsa's face blossoms with a smile and with the anticipation of seeing Sam.

S5 turns the Anna and Kristoff. "Sam did not expect either of you to be here." She points down the hall. "Under the blue light is a door panel. Press it. Go into the room and Krystal will answer any questions. Until Sam says it's ok, please stay in the room. The hall lights will be turned off. There are no external lights."

Anna starts to speak, but Elsa interrupts, "Everything will be ok. When Sam wakes up I will ask him to let you in."

Kristoff slips his arm around Anna's waist and leads her down the hall. Anna looks back and Elsa motions for her to continue. Under the blue light Kristoff touches the wall and a door opens.

Krystal speaks to them. "Please come in. I have been instructed to answer your questions within the scope given."

They walk in and the door closes. The hall fades to darkness.

Elsa follows S5 into the next room. The door closes behind her.

"Please do not move until the lights come on." The sound of movement fades in the dark.

She stands in total darkness with no sounds except her breathing and her heart beat. After what seemed like a long time, a red light flashes on a wall. She sees movement by the wall, as an overhead light gradually illuminates the room.

A small desk with a piece of glass angled out of the top sits to her right. S5 stands next a panel of lights and an odd shaped table. It looks like a rectangle box sitting on a stand that appears to be part of the floor. Lights blink on the side of the table. A similar table sits on the other side of the room. A thin veil rises from the table and forms the outline of a human body.

"I guess you have never seen a room like this?" S5 watches her.

Elsa slowly shakes her head. "I have never seen a ship like this and I suspect there is more to his ship. I have always wondered –"

"If he was making it up?"

"Yes. I could never imagine any of this."

"Before he took you to his snowcapped mountain, did you ever consider the mountain to be in his mind? When his horse Aurora kicked him in his head, did you think he would still be alive today?" S5 holds out her hand, "come over, he is alive for the moment."

She takes her hand. "What do you mean he is alive for the moment?"

S5 taps the controls on the table, followed by the controls on the wall. The veil illuminates around the human's head. It reveals her love under the veil. She wishes to touch his face, but until she is sure she maintains her composure.

The panel changes to a dark blue color and an image of the side profile of a human head appears on it. A smaller gray oblong ruff shape object appears up and behind the eyes.

"My dear, you will have to take my word for this part." S5 touches the gray mass and dots of lights flash over the mass. "The lights are the chemical processes in his brain. The more he uses his brain, the more lights are grouped together. The lights are his thoughts."

"Is he think?"

"Yes, if I were to scan your brain you would have a similar light pattern." S5 touches the panel and the gray mass expands to fill the panel. She touches it again and the mass expands again.

Elsa points to the dark spot near the lower left of the gray mass and asks, "Is he not thinking there?"

"In a way you are correct. There is no brain activity in that spot. I believe the dark spot has been causing him to conduct himself in a manner not accustom to him."

"What is it?"

S5 stares at the mass for a moment before answering. "Without knowing your knowledge of the human brain, let me describe it like this. If you read a book there is a logical flow the author wishes for you to follow. If a page in the book is torn out, depending where in the book it is removed, you may note the missing page, but the flow of the story is not diminished. If the missing page has a transition in it, the flow of the story would be like falling over a waterfall. You start in water and land in water, but in between, you lose the author's meaning because of the abrupt change." S5 points to the black mass. "A part of his brain has been damaged. I can repair the damage if I knew what caused it, but whatever memory was located in that area is lost forever."

"All these times he lost part of his memory, pages were damaged."

S5 gives her a partial smile. "He said you would understand the book analogy. I can replace the missing pages with a blank page. If the person repairing the book does not have a copy of the original words for the missing page, what do you have?"

"A blank page," she understands the meaning between the blank page and his missing memory.

"It stays a blank page until someone writes on it."

"Do you know if that page had his recent memories?"

S5 does not answer, but adjusts the panel image.

She slips her hand under the veil and squeezes his hand. "Did I do this to you? Did I push too hard?"

S5 wraps her arm across her shoulders. "Elsa, no, he loves you. He did these things to protect you. I know you were put under a great burden after your coronation."

A flashing light on the panel draws S5's attention. The images change to his gray mass. A point of light appears brighter. She touches the panel and it expands the bright light. She looks back at his hand. "Remove your hand from his."

Elsa lets go of his hand and crackling sounds as tiny sparks jump between their hands. The bright light on the panel slowly fade to the same intensity as the other lights in the gray mass.

S5 steps away from them and places her hand over her mouth. She stares at the panel and remains motionless for a short length of time as though she had been frozen.

Elsa waves her hand in front of S5 with no response. She knows what she saw and what she felt from him. She reaches under the veil and grabs his hand. She watches the panel and the previous light becomes brighter. A lower panel light flashes. She slides her hand up his arm, and the light in the gray mass becomes brighter. _Do you need more contact?_

She slides his arm to the table's edge and holds his arm against her body. Her hand gradually slides over his upper arm. Many lights in the gray matter become brighter. She lightly kisses his fingers. S5 steps past her and shrinks the images. Elsa lays his arm down.

S5 focuses on the panel. "Don't stop sweetie. His body is not responding, but his mind is. Keep doing what you were doing."

Elsa holds his hand between her hands and presses his arm against her body. Many lights turn brighter on the panel. _If he is responding to my touch, is his brain awake?_

She holds his hand to her face and moves his fingers to specific points on her face and neck. "There you are. I thought you were lost." Elsa stares at the blue mist moving over his arm and covers his upper body.

Sam responds. _I did not mean to frighten you._

"I know you meant no harm. If we are to become husband and wife you have to trust me. It's not like I can hide anything from you."

 _You know, mom can hear you speaking out loud._

"What?" She looks up. S5 smiles at her. "You are right, she is staring at me. Why do you think she is smiling?"

 _Because she knows how important you are to me._

S5 says, "Are you talking to him?"

"Yes, I am. I still struggle with not speaking out loud when I hear his thoughts." She replies as she lightly strokes his arm.

"Curious," S5 lifts her chin causing Sam's fingers to slide down her face. "Do you still hear him?"

"Yes."

S5 touches his forehead. "You little rascal." She stares at her. "He gave you the key. You are his key."

"I have been told I was the key many times, but I only know about keys that open locks. What lock am I to open?"

S5 steps next to her and places her arm around her shoulders and gives her a squeeze. "My dear, you have already opened his lock and I suspect you did not know you were doing it. When you came into this room, did you hear him?"

"No."

"Do you remember at what point you could hear him?"

"When I first came into the room and it was dark, I did not know he was here, but somehow I knew he was here. I saw him. I wanted to touch him, but I did not wish to do anything that would delay his recovery."

"When you saw him why did you need to squeeze his hand?"

Elsa gazes at him. "I wanted him to know I was here for him."

"Were you able to hear him, just then?"

"No, I was not sure if I was feeling his heartbeat or if it was my imagination. You stepped back and I had a thought." She stops and looks away.

S5 places her hand on theirs. "You had a thought and?"

"Some time back before coming here, I touched his face and for a moment the world did not matter. I wanted to know if touching my face, he would feel the way I did."

 _Tell her what else you did and why_.

Elsa grins at him. "I will. Do not push me." She glances at S5's smile. "When I felt his hand on my face I remembered events from long ago. I remember someone telling me there are four connection nodes in everyone's face that if you press on them at the same time, you can hear their thoughts. I moved his fingers to those spots and asked if he could hear me. He said yes." She angles her head towards him. "That's never happened to me and now I have thoughts from when I was a child." With a slight confusion, she looks at S5. "Did he place one of those blocks in my mind?"

S5 chuckles, "Sweetie, only he would know if he did. I suspect if you search your memories you will discover when he placed it." She squeezes her shoulder and steps over to the panel.

Elsa stares at his motionless face. "Why did you block my memory?"

 _At the moment it was the best course of action and your father ordered it._

It sounded familiar, but nothing more. "What did papa want me to forget?"

 _It's not what, but who._

"Who?"

 _I'll give you a clue. Think back to the first time you created your snowflake?_

Elsa searches her mind back before her coronation day. She remembers when her snowball struck Anna's head. It was before that moment when she slept in the room alone and Anna slept in their parent's room. She made several snowflakes, but there was one she always liked. It had to be before that, but where. She claps her hands tight around his hand and takes a sudden breath. A flood of emotions overwhelms her control.

S5 whispers, "What do you remember?"

Moisture builds up in her eyes than a tear races down her cheek. "I was standing on a horse leaning back against him. The horse walked towards the front door. Papa motions us to come to him. He is mad. Momma stood on the top step and held Anna. She is crying. Sam turns the horse around and we stop near the wall."

S5 touches the four points on the side of her head.

"He told me to remember the things he showed me, afterwards he taught me how to make his snowflake." Elsa turns her hand up and her snowflake crystallizes above her hand. "This is what he taught me."

"That is a very unique snowflake. It is very special to him. His mother, the real S5, taught him to make that snowflake and said as long as someone can make it, she will always live."

Elsa looks down as her tear falls onto his finger. "He was protecting me. I do not know why Papa did not let him stay. Perhaps Arendelle would not have frozen had they allowed him to teach me the correct use of my powers."

Elsa smiles through her tears. "I think I know what caused the black mass. Less than a year after he returned to my life, he tried to warn me, but I did not listen. He drank a poison meant for me. A day later he complained of a headache that did not go away. A staff found him in the stable sitting in his chair. A thick layer of ice covered the back of his head, neck, and shoulders. That was the first time I saw him use ice to heal. He said the ice kept the poison from flowing throughout his body. It gave his body a chance to destroy the foreign invaders. When he woke up at the end of the day he said he had a low grade headache that he could control, but he did not think he got all of the poison out of his system." She looks up and blinks several tears down her cheek. "He said the poison came from a flower call an angel's trumpet."

S5 taps the panel and it displays several varieties of Angel trumpets. "It is a part of the Brugmansia genus." She taps the panel again. "Limit the search to the Brugmansia plant and compare the chemical components of the plant with the sample of the mass." The panel displays a mostly yellow and green, long flower with red tips. "You are correct. The mass is made up of the Burgmansia Sanguinea flower. It is a pretty flower, but if you consume a large quantity, you would eventually die from the side-effects of the plant shutting down your body. This flower is indigenous to the pacific side of South America." She taps the panel and different chemical symbols appear after the word TREATMENT. "Now, I know what it is. I can treat him, but it will take time." She glances at her. "He may fight the treatment. I believe with your help we can finally cure him of his headache."

She pulls his hand closer to her. "Will more of his memory be lost?"

S5 places her hand over hers, "Sweetie, I don't know. Are you afraid he may not know you or has forgotten the last year?"

She does not answer, but another tear racing down her cheek.

S5 cups her cheeks. "You precious child, his headaches were a constant reminder of who he is and what he was in the past. He was in love with you before the poisoning. You may have to explain some gaps in his memory, but I know it's not very comforting right now. If he has forgotten, I will do what I can, but the only memories I have access are in his past. You will have to fill-in the memories since he arrived here."

As more tears escape her eyes, Elsa allows S5 to cuddle her head. "I wish my mom was here."

For several minutes, S5 holds her and hums a familiar melody. Elsa lets her thoughts move to her earlier years. The song comes to her and she remembers staring into hazel eyes. She remembers the warmth and not afraid as she does now. "I remember when he sang the song to me those years ago."

S5 says, "When he had a bad day, His step-mother, S5 would sing the song. He would curl up in her lap and fall asleep. She taught him the song shortly before she died."

"She was always there for him in the background or where he could see her, was she not? She watched over him as he watches over me. Did he know this would happen?" Elsa asks.

"The poison?"

"Yes." Her stress levels begin to slowly diminish.

"It is uncharacteristic of him to continue down a path that he knew would cause him or others harm. This is all new to him. His life goal is to minimize harm to others despite his past. The poison event is well past his normal duration in a timeline."

Elsa raises her head. "Time line? I do not understand. This is new to him?"

"I probably should not have said timeline. He has given you hints of his past. Think of it like this. Every timeline or lands he has visited, he went there already knowing who was there, the political environment, and the circumstances that he would be in. He stayed in the lands for three to four years, before moving on to the next lands. He has been here longer than the other lands he visited combined. You know how much pain he is in and yet he chose to endure it. Why?"

"Because of me?" Elsa smiles.

"I know the past couple of years have been stressful for you. He has given you many opportunities to walk away, but you chose to pursue him." S5 looks at Sam. "You have one more chance to walk away. He will stay this way until the ship's power is gone. The troll will make sure no human finds his ship."

She squeezes his hand. "What happens to him when the power is gone?"

"If he wakes up, he will wake up in total darkness. He may be able to dig his way to the surface, but the world will be different from the way it is now. If you wish I could calculate how many years of power is remaining. Since he gave you his key, upon your instructions I could program his bed to inject a more lethal poison into his blood. His death would be painless and he would never know."

With an expression of horror, Elsa backs away from her and the tears flow. "We have come so far together. I do not wish to walk away. If you can, heal him, please do so. I will do whatever needs to be done."

S5 touches a control on the side of the table. The table's far side expands out. She places it under the veil. "Go to that side and lie on the table next to him."

Elsa walks to the other side and steps on the short stairs. She lies on her back. The table's smooth and warm surface fills in all spaces under her back and neck applying an even pressure. She glances at his hand, and rests her hand on top of his.

"Don't move. Let the table move you."

The surface turns her onto her right side. There was no detectable pressure increase on her side as she is familiar with her own bed. The table surface moves again turning him onto his left side to position his face close to her face. S5 lays his right hand on her hip.

"Ok, it's time for your part. Place your fingers on the side of his neck and face. Close your eyes and find him on his snow mountain. Have fun and ask him any questions. I'll do the rest. Before you know it, you will wake up."

Elsa places her fingers on the three specific points on the side of his neck and face. She finds the fourth point. The heaviness of her eyelids gradually closes. With a deep breath and a sigh, she opens her eyes to a snow covered mountain.

Elsa glances up at the sun in the blue sky. Placing her hand above her eyes, she looks around. Halfway down the slope Sam points up. A shadow grows bigger as it moves up the slope towards her. She lowers her hand just before the large snowball falls on her. Digging herself out of the snow, she hears a crackle and looks up. A thin red line appears in the sky and arcs to the horizon creating a red glow. Laughter draws her attention to a young boy running down the slope. She runs down the slope and a young girl's voice yells at him, "I will get you, Samuel Ryan. You cannot hide from me." They play and they play and they play.

Sometime later, "Sweetie, it's time to wake up." Slowly opening her eyes, a beautiful set of blue eyes stare at her. After a few seconds the blue changes to the familiar hazel eyes she knows.

Sam smiles and slides his hand up her side and along her arm. He glides her hand along his face to kiss her palm. He continues to move her hand to his heart. He whispers, "Thank you. It was brave of you for what you did. I didn't care as long as you were with me and we could play."

"Play, what game were you playing," Anna asks as she leans over him and grins at her.

"Ok kids, it's time to get up." S5 says behind her. The table surface rolls her.

She reluctantly lets go of his hand as S5 helps her to her feet. Anna runs around the table and grabs her arm.

"Hold on to your sister. Elsa, take it slow. You have been lying there motionless for thirteen hours."

"Thirteen hours why so long?" Elsa asks, stretching her arms.

"I had to make sure every molecule of the poison was removed." S5 leans close and whispers, "There was a physical void where the poison resided in his brain. I don't know what memories were lost. His brain cells were stimulated to grow and fill the void. You remember about replacing a torn page in a book?"

She and Anna look back at Sam.

"His page is blank, so help him write a great story on that page."

"Buddy, they are looking at you and that's never good," Kristoff comments as he walks out of their view.

Elsa watches his reaction. Sam looks to Anna, next to S5, next to her. His smile is the reassuring recognition she needs. S5 touches the table and it rolls him onto his back. He sits up and slowly stands. Bowing his shoulders and arching his back several bones pop into place. He runs his finger through his hair working the knots out, before flipping it over his shoulders. He turns around as he stretches his arm over his head and stops. "Kristoff is your wife ogling me?"

Anna tightens her grip on Elsa's arm as she glances at her.

She plays along and asks, "Anna, are you looking at Sam lustfully?"

Anna turns her red face away and shakes her head. "No, I am not looking at your future husband with lust."

The baritone voice asks, "What future husband?" He looks at Kristoff. "I thought you and Anna were already married?"

"We are."

"So who is the future husband?"

Kristoff points.

Sam's eyes grow wide as he looks into her blue eyes. He mouths the words as he points to her, 'you and me', before pointing to himself.

With a broad smile she nods to him. He continues to stare at her.

S5 asks, "Son, are you ok?"

"My heart rate is increasing. I feel . . ." He blinks several times as his eye color changes from hazel to blue to emerald to dark green. He staggers against the table. Kristoff grabs his arm. She and Anna start to move around the table.

S5 grabs her arm. "Wait. Let him go."

Kristoff lets go of his arm and Sam slides down the table and onto his knees.

"Nobody touches him." Still holding Elsa's arm, she leans towards him. "Sam, you need to reset. Do you understand?"

He barely nods.

"Do you need the key?"

He barely nods again.

"Elsa, this will be hard for me to explain, but he has been programmed to receive the key."

S5 leans close and whispers, "You want to know how much control you will have over him? Here is your opportunity. Connect to the same pressure points on both sides of his face and neck and tell him what you want him to be with you. Tell him he is your enforcer and he will, or he is the assassin and he will be. Make it a good one. He is ready to write on that blank page."

S5 looks at him for a second and says, "I'm sorry son, but you have caused her a lot of pain." She whispers to Elsa. "No one will say anything. He will understand. This is literally your last chance to walk away from him. Walk past him and out the door. I will do what is necessary for him and I promise he will not come after you."

S5 leans back and releases her arm.

 **End of Chapter**


	84. Chapter 83 Elsa and S5

**Title:** Elsa and S5

 **1years 7months until correction**

Elsa steps away from S5. The distress of hearing his mother tell her to walk away from him pushes her to clarity. She squares her body to her. With her fist on her waist and feet slightly apart, she lifts her head. "It is because of what he put me through the past couple of years that I love him. I know it has been painful for the both of us. He showed me I am a survivor. He trusts me and I will not abandon him in his moment of need. I believe he had a clear conscious when he asked me to marry him. Do I believe it will be a bed of flowers for us, no? I realize all these years he has been near and protecting me."

She walks around the table as Kristoff barely gets out of her way. She whispers to him. "Samuel, turn around and sit on the floor."

He slowly turns and slides down to lean against the table.

She says, "I may not know what he knows or be able to do what he does, but for now I can give him what he needs and protect him."

Elsa steps between his legs and kneels over his thighs. Her fingertips connect to the four specific points on one side of his face and his neck and she presses her other fingers on mirrored points on the other side. She whispers a chant. His eyes change to a crystal blue color and he places his hands around her waist. A tingle moves from his hands and radiates throughout her body. Calmness fills her heart and mind as she continues the chant. The outside world fades as her mind focuses on him. A floating sensation lifts her body as she watches him.

Sam takes her in his arms and their lips meet. Their world changes from the darkness of nothingness to the bright light of sunlight reflecting off the snow.

He says, _by coming here you are my life partner. Nothing will separate us except death. We will show the world our love, but here and now our minds are one. It's too late to back out now. You are stuck with me._

Her lips curl into a smile which breaks their contact. With parted lips, they breathe the cool energy from the essence of their souls. _This is the way I want it._

 _Do you know where you are?_

She gazes up at him before answering. _On your snow covered mountain?_

The corner of his lips curls up as his left brow rises. _Nope, this is not my mountain._

She looks around and recognizes the trail she walked the night of her coronation. Further down the slope and between the trees, she sees that path she ran through from the fjord. She searches further down the hills she sees her home. _My castle,_ Stepping back from him, she points. _That is Arendelle, I can see the people. They are getting wood for their fires._ She turns back to him. _Why did you create this specific scene?_

 _I did not, you did. Look at the details. I guess you stopped here and looked back before continuing up the mountain._ He turns her towards the north mountain. _What do you not see up there?_

For a moment, she stares and for what is not there. _My ice castle is missing._

 _Think back to the moment on that day you stood here and looked at Arendelle. What were you thinking?_

She walks a short distance down the path and remembers everything she saw. Walking back she stops next to him and searches the mountain. _I stopped to take a breath. In this area I knew I was vulnerable to an attack. I looked back and saw the people moving and shivering. I assumed all of Arendelle knew I created the freeze. I could not go back. I looked up there._ She points to the north mountain. _If I could find a cave I could rest before moving on._ She lowers her head so he would not see her. He steps in front of her and she wraps her arms around his chest.

Sam wraps his arms around her shoulders. _What did you feel and what decision did you make?_

 _I wasted three years. I should have been building my relationship with Anna, but I was afraid, I would hurt her again. I was going to miss her. To protect her, I would leave the area. Had Anna not come for me, King Hans would be ruling Arendelle and perhaps Anna would be dead._

 _But you kept going to the mountain. What changed your mind?_

She looks up at him. _I started to hear a catchy melody and began to sing to myself. I sang what I was feeling. I wanted to see, what could I do with my magic and I did?_

 _You sure did. Look at the mountain_. They both look up. Glittering on the face of the mountain, light reflects off the ice castle. Sam holds her tight and runs his fingers through her hair as he kisses the top of her forehead. _Why is this place so important to you?_

 _This is where I separated from my past and took a stand for who I am._

 _When you feel depressed or overwhelmed, come here and remember what you did to move forward._

She looks up at him. _I understand this scene for me, but your mountain._

 _Why are there no features except the snow and a few trees in the valley? It was the day before they killed her. She brought me there and taught me all I know about controlling ice. Even then, I knew something was wrong, but while she was there nothing mattered. For however long we were together, I was happy. I had a mother who loved me. She was the first I ever loved back._

 _I am sorry for bringing back those memories._

Moisture builds in his eyes as he smiles. _I'm not. As my wife there will be nothing to hide. You need to know everything about me, so be careful as to what you ask and when you ask it. You don't want to embarrass us._

 _So if I ask you a question now, it will be the truth._

 _Yes, I will not filter or adulterate it or think you cannot understand it._

 _Your mother said you needed to reset. Did you reset and what does it mean?_

 _When you brought me in here, my mind resets to establish a known reference point. This moment with you has locked all my thoughts to a common point, without it would cause my thoughts to become random and create confusion. I have hesitated at the wrong time._

 _If I was not your key, your mind would not have reset._

 _Correct._

 _Is this why you gave me your key? You knew something like this was going to happen. What if I had died?_

 _Yes, yes, and I would have lost my memories._

Her eyes widen. _What?_

 _You asked if this is why I gave you the key. The answer is yes. Take away our gender and we are very much alike. There was a high probability my circumstance was going to happen. If you die before this moment I am a lock without a key. I would have lost my memories forever._

 _But your mother out there,_ she points to the sky, _said she will do what is necessary for you and promised you will not come after me. What did she mean by that?_

 _She would have fulfilled my final instructions and before you ask. I gave them right after I was poisoned the first time. You had gone back with Prince Georg. Anna said my action made you very afraid. I have no memories of those few days you were gone. I remember being chained in the cell, and my next memory was Gerda bringing me food on day three. She said you were the only one who could calm me down long enough for the guards to put heavier and more chains on me. I was so afraid you would not come back. I needed a backup should I lose control again._

Sam continues, _Pabbie brought me to my ship. I gave S5 instructions that if you walked away or did not come looking for me, she would use minimum power to keep me alive for one hundred years, afterwards, she would wake me up. If the power dropped to the bare minimum, she was to use the remaining power to freeze my heart, followed by a lethal dose of poison injected into my body. After a day or two, she would have smashed my heart into pieces, before using her remaining power to shut down._

Elsa leans back. _She was going to kill you._

 _It would have been a mercy killing. I would not have woken up._ He strokes the back of her arms and bends his knees until his head is level with her head. _The last thing I wanted to remember is your beautiful face with that smile which overwhelmed all of my resistance. I did not wish to live if you were not a part of it._

She wraps her arms around his neck. _I love you Admiral Ryan._

Wrapping his arms around her waist, he stands and lifts her off the ground. _I love you Queen Elsa of Arendelle._

Sam opens his eyes and Elsa rests her head against his shoulder. Her lips nibble and her cool breath sweeps across his neck. A very relaxing sensation shoots throughout his body. He glances at her smile, but for a second he peeks at the slight opening in her shirt. He whispers, "I can see down your shirt."

Elsa replies, "Wait until you see the rest of me."

He starts to comment, "I have seen the rest –"

"Naked?" she interrupts.

He stops breathing in the middle of an inhale with his mouth open.

"Did she say naked?" Anna asks behind them.

"I'm not sure what she said," Kristoff answers.

A tapping on the top of his head causes him to look up and grin.

"I am sure of what she said." S5 grabs a hand full of his hair and shakes his head. "You keep your pants on until your wedding night." She looks at Elsa looking wide-eyed up at her, "Queen or not, don't give out any free samples until both of you say, 'I do until death do us part.'"

"Wow, that is something our mother would have said to us," Anna comments looking over the table at them.

"I guess we should get up."

S5 lets go of his hair and combs it smooth.

The corners of his lips turn up as his left brow rises to signal her. Her right brow slowly rises to return his signal. She glances down and moves her leg to hide his rising embarrassment. Her lips yield to a grin.

He says, "One for the road."

She parts her lips and takes a breath, but before she could reply he presses his lips against hers. She stares at him, with surprise he would kiss her in front of others, but she did bring him to her moment of decision on the path to the north mountain.

She places her arms around his neck, pulling him closer as she closes her eyes. He pulls her closer, pressing her body against his. The tip of his tongue slides across her polished teeth. Her heart beat races as she inhales and she closes her lips around the tip of his tongue. He pushes the tip in further and battles against her tongue, but she creates a negative pressure drawing his tongue in further. She starts to pull away, but he doesn't let go and she nips his tongue. Before their lips part he darts his tongue between her teeth and her upper lip, tasting the last moment of sweetness. Their lips separate and their eyes gaze at each other.

He whispers, "Oh my God."

She leans her head against his chest. His heart beats strong. With each breath he inhales the flowery fragrance of her hair. He speaks louder than he wanted. "You are so intoxicating."

She raises her head quickly. "I have never been call intoxicating. I think you made my heart skip a beat a time or two. Thank you," she lightly kisses the end of his nose. "I love you."

"Don't even think I'm going to leave you two alone in here," S5 says. "The sensors have detected your guards are in the clearing. It's time for you to go."

He rises from the floor helping Elsa to her feet. They stare at each other and he lets his hand linger along her arms for as long as possible. She steps back and his hands slide along her arms, then into her hands. Finally the tips of their fingers break contact. He steps back and takes a deep breath. Slowly the breath passes through his nose. He glances at Kristoff holding a grinning Anna.

Sam clasps his hands behind his back. "Master Kristoff, if you would be so kind as to inform the Captain that we will be returning within the hour." He looks to S5. "I need a few minutes to tidy up the ship before I leave." Kristoff and Anna depart holding hands. Elsa moves to the door.

Sam walks around the table and stands in front of S5. "There is not much power. Your systems will shut down soon."

She touches his face. "Son, you knew this would happen. Your mother would be very proud of your accomplishments, especially what you had to endure over the last three years. I could have helped when you were first poisoned."

"And my pride said I could do it myself. If I had a confidant . . ." He looks away from her. She moves his head to look at her. He partially smiles and says, "They would have convinced me of a different decision."

"Perhaps, from this day forward," she glances past him, "you have someone who is willing to advise you. I ask that you give her a chance." She pinches his cheek hard and forces his head to turn back and forth. "You have placed your bride under too much stress. You talk to her. You listen to her the same way you listened to your senior officers." She pinches harder. "You treat her with the respect due to her position."

He pulls her hand from his face and places it over his heart. "She stole my heart a long time ago. Soon I will give her the rest of me."

"Take pictures, I bet she will look more beautiful in her wedding gown."

Sam kisses the back of her hands. "Mom, I believe I can boost the ship's power, even to the point of a full charge, but it will take time."

"How is that possible? You do not have enough energy to charge the power cells."

"I won't, you will. There is a natural deposit of Tytrianium that attracts the lightning when a storm passes over the area."

S5 pushes his chin to one side, and then to the other side. "I do not detect deceit in you. There is no such thing as a natural deposit, so what are you talking about?"

He positions her hand and fingers to touch the four specific points on his face and neck. "I have seen a large deposit. I will break it up and create a power conduit to the surface. When the storm passes overhead a lightning strike near the crystal will be sufficient to charge the power cells, but it will only work if the lightning strikes close to it."

For a second, a blue line sweeps across her eyes. "And you think Pabbie will allow this?" She brushes his hair back over his shoulder.

"I am confident, if I cannot persuade him, Queen Elsa should have no problems doing it."

S5 looks past him and holds out her hand.

Elsa moves around the table and takes S5's hand. She slides her arm around Sam's waist.

"I believe both of your mothers would have wished to be where I am standing. I believe each might have said this." She lightly strokes Elsa's face. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, you have seen almost the worst he can do and yet you are still here. I don't know of any advice to give you, except take care of my son."

"I will." Elsa replies.

"Samuel, treat her with the respect of your wife and your Queen." She grabs his ear and pulls his head down. "She is not LadyCat. Do not expect her to do the things LadyCat did. When you walk out of here, close the chapter and put the book of your past on the shelf."

"I will," Sam replies.

She lets go of his ear and looks at both with moisture building in her eyes. She hugs them. "Create a new book and welcome to our family."

At the exit doors Anna and Kristoff wait for them. The door opens and Sam motions for them to enter. He looks down the hall where Krystal and S5 stand. With a forced smile he nods to them. Krystal fades; S5 nod and blows him a kiss, then she fades. He steps into the airlock and the doors close behind him. Elsa holds his hand and leans against him. Hissing sounds from the vents above them, followed by, the outer doors opening. They start up the tunnel, but Sam stops after the doors close and he touches the hull of his ship. His glowing eyes create a blue glow on the tunnel walls.

A boulder rolls up to them and transforms into a troll. He snaps his stone fingers together and creates several sparks to light a torch on the ground. The troll waddles up the tunnel. "We have to hurry before the guards come down here looking for you."

"Is Pabbie waiting for me on the surface?" Sam asks, still holding onto Elsa's hand.

The troll stops for several seconds before answering. "He will be there when we exit."

As they walk up the tunnel, Elsa asks, "What is that all about?"

Sam's glowing eyes return to their normal color. "It is time for us to finish the conversation, which we started when I crashed here." He pats her hand. "It is nothing to worry about."

Elsa jerks on his hand, which forces him to face her. "If it has to do with you, yes, I will worry. Now what did the two of you talk about?"

He kisses the back of her hand. "He said he would watch me and if he felt I was a danger to the inhabitants of this area, he would destroy me."

"That will not happen as long as I am here." She wraps her arm around his arm and holds his hand as they walk up the tunnel. "As Queen, I have a say in this."

With a slight chuckle, Sam comments, "Yes, Majesty, you do have a say in this."

A mostly cloudless sky greets them as they step into the daylight and in time to see Anna and Kristoff walk over the ridge. No other trolls are visible, but Pabbie stands some distance from the tunnel. Still holding Elsa's hand, Sam shifts his body into the command mode of his past. With shorter steps, so as not to force Elsa to lengthen her step, Sam marches to three meters from of the troll.

Pabbie glances at them. "I guess you want my answer."

"I do."

Elsa releases his hand and steps closer to Pabbie. Her hands rest on her waist. "Whatever your decision is, you must persuade me to agree with it."

Pabbie stares up at her, before glancing at Sam. "Many years ago, there was a frightened young girl who injured her little sister. I told her, fear will turn against her if she could not control her powers. Her father said she will control them, and then proceeded to close her away from her sister and the other little children." He wags his head from side to side and walks to a small boulder to sit. "I did send a message to Queen Iduna to let Samuel back into the castle." He shakes his head again. "I do not know if she received the message or not."

Pabbie points his stony finger at Sam. "I have no doubts. You revealed too much to them and they could not trust you as I could not trust you when the dragon spewed you out of its mouth."

"You saw the dragon and his ship crash here?" Elsa relaxes her stance and looks back at Sam. "Did you know?"

"At the time, I was more concerned about the humans who attacked me and the circumstance that caused me to be here." A light breeze sweeps through the area and ruffles his hair. Sam inhales a deep breath while he searches the sky.

"Do you see anything beyond the clouds?" Pabbie asks as he waddles closer to him.

"Still nothing." Sam inhales a deep breath again. "I suspect it was a spectacular sight of my ship appearing out of the darkness, and then it glows a white, orange as it burned through the atmosphere." He watches Pabbie. "You were extremely lucky to find the ship as quickly as you did or you received help."

"My father told me where and what to look for. You were on time." Pabbie holds out his hand. "You need your answer."

Sam kneels. Elsa stands behind him. In her first attempt, her fingertips touch the four specific points on each side of his head. "I will watch."

Pabbie hesitates. "Has he shown you everything? Do not be surprised if he has not." He grabs Sam's hand. A flash of light surrounds them

"Elsa, can you hear me? Elsa, let go of him." Anna muffles.

"Grand Pabbie, Grand Pabbie speak to me." Kristoff yells near them.

"Son, your friends need your help." A voice whispers in his thoughts.

Sam's eyes gradually open and a dark blue tint covers everything. His hand reaches up and separates Elsa's hand from his neck. An explosion of colors, fills his mind, along with a high pitch whistle. Many small objects pelt the side of his head. A weight falls and rests onto his side. His mind receives faded images that fill with color. He rolls onto his back and pulls Elsa's lifeless body on to himself.

"She is not breathing." Anna shakes her sister's body and yells, "Elsa, wake up. Please Elsa wake up. Sam what is wrong with her?"

Sam does not find a pulse in Elsa's neck. He closes his eyes and generates a cold mist to slow the chemical and biological changes in her body.

Pabbie grumbles as he rolls to a sitting position. "Where did the lightning come from?" He staggers to his feet and waddles over to them. "Sam, did you cause the lightning?"

Sam blinks and a blue halo surrounds everyone, including Pabbie, but there is one, he does not see. Kristoff grabs Anna and positions himself in front of her as he backs her towards the ridge. They wear the mask of fear as they stare at something near the cave. Pabbie holds his hands up as though to attack or defend. He backs away from them, but watches something beyond him.

Perhaps it was lightning that drained his energy. In his weaken state, Sam cannot project out any force except to withdraw his energy from Elsa, which will endanger her. He will have to wait until the threat moves within the reach of his arms. A quick freeze should slow the attacker.

The sound of rocks crunching against each other along with the tearing of the grass moves closer, but the movement sounds of walking on two legs. He detects an odd sound with the movement. Sam twists his head enough to see two small blue rectangles and an array of pulsing lights traveling along tiny threads, which forms the outline of a human body.

"When you said lightning bolt, I thought you meant the lightning from a thunderstorm and not you would create the bolt."

"Elsa is injured." He continues to stare with blurry eyes.

"I know. Move your hand from her heart and let me do my job."

Sam's vision finally clears. He slides out from under Elsa's body and holds her hand. "Please save her. I can't do this anymore."

"Then you need to get your head on straight." She places a small white rectangular device with a number display over Elsa's heart. "I removed the remnants of the poison from your brain. There are indications your body froze." She glances at him. "I would assume you were injured severely enough your body went into an automatic defense to heal itself." Elsa's body contracts for a half second. "It appears you took risk without regard of the consequences." The numbers on the device drops to zero. "Under the current circumstance with the lack of medical technology, the Admiral I know would not have taken so many chances, unless he had given up." She stares at him.

Sam counts to himself and as he reaches four, the numbers on the device count, four, ten, sixteen, twenty-nine, and holds steady at around sixty-five.

"Did you give up?" She removes the device and presses the tip of a small cylinder against Elsa's neck to inject medicine, afterwards she packs both in the white box with the other medical supplies.

Elsa's face cringes and she starts to move, but Sam cradles her in his arms. "I've got you."

"I saw a flash of light and now my chest hurts. What happened?" Elsa asks.

"The three of you were struck by lightning. I do not recommend moving too quickly, until the medicine calms the tension in your muscles."

Elsa looks past Sam and grips his arms tight. "What is that?"

He reaches his hand back and grabs the cold metal. "Reboot program." The cold in his hand changes to a warmth of softness.

Elsa smiles. "S5?"

"Yes, Majesty. Now you have proof that I am not a human, but was created to mimic one from his past." Wearing a textured white blouse partially covered by a featureless smooth white coat, and straight legged white trousers, including blue broach with a floating snowflake, S5 stands and holds the medical kit by her side.

"I thought you could not leave the rooms." Elsa says while Sam helps her to feet and holds her close to his body.

"With the ship's power at a critical level, I could not, but the bolt of lightning charged the power cells with sufficient power to permit me to be here."

"There were few clouds in the sky. I felt no static build up to indicate the lightning was about to strike." Pabbie says as he waddles up to them. "What magic caused it?"

Anna runs up to them and hugs her sister. Kristoff walks up to them and says, "I have seen lightning strike nearby from dark cloud that were some distances away, but nothing like this."

Anna asks, "Elsa, what magic cause the lightning?"

S5 ruffles the back of Sam's hair. "Yes, Admiral, please tell them where the lightning came from and more importantly why."

Sam glances at S5, "I need to recalibrate your circuits."

Elsa pinches his side. "I like the way she is. Do not change her." She looks up at him. "But do you know why lightning struck us?"

He kisses Elsa's forehead. "I do not have the energy to cause lightning, except in a storm. I'm sure neither do you or Pabbie. I had no reason to believe differently, but the evidence says I was in error. I can estimate your energy and Pabbie's energy. When we link together, our energies also synced together. Mathematically, it is not just adding, but multiplying our energies together."

S5 must have picked up on their confusion and says, "Your combined energy attracted the lightning from the clouds over the mountains. When it struck you, the ship drew the energy down the tunnel which charged the power cells, which allows me to stand here."

Sam nods to S5. "What she said." Elsa does not look convinced. "Now that I know it can happen and if I will get my head on straight, it will not happen again." He kisses her nose. "What S5 said is correct. I can use the poison as an excuse for my behavior, but it does not make it right. She also made a statement that I have to agree. I took too many risks, even the Admiral would not have taken them. Some of those risks endangered you. I should have been less ambiguous in answering your parents' questions." His fingertips lightly glides across her cheek. "I was not true to myself and hide my face behind a mask I thought was good enough for you. I am unworthy to be with you."

Elsa grimaces and shift to kneel in front of him as she cups his face. "Are you trying to back out?"

Shaking his head, he smiles. "No, that is the last thing I want to do. You are deserving of a person who will complement the Queen. The only person I know of who fits that description is the Admiral. If you will permit him to stand by your side, he can take care of the minor occurrences of running your Queendom, but you will always have the final say in everything. I will be there to answer all of your questions."

She leans close and whispers, "What if you wish to play or run?"

He kisses the tip of her nose. "It will be up to you as to when or if you permit me, agree?"

She nips his nose. "Agree."

Sam helps Elsa to her feet. "S5, status report."

"Aye Admiral, ship's power up to ninety-seven percent. Hull integrity at one hundred percent and . . ."

 **End of Chapter**


	85. Chapter 84 Dragon Gate

**Title: Dragon Gate**

 **1years 7months until correction**

Two weeks later, Sam continues as he has done for the last three years of rising before the sun and cleaning the new deposits in the horse's stalls. After feeding the horses he opens the water box and pumps the water handle several times. The pipes rattle. All the horses on his side stare at him over the trough. He turns the red handle and water flows into the water trough. One by one the horses stick their snouts in the water and drink. He turns a green handle. The water flows underneath the floor to the water channel on the other side of the stables and the other horses satisfy their thirst.

The water delivery system reduces the number of trips to the well down to one and it cuts an hour and a half of time to a few minutes to water the horses. The local blacksmith and his very inquisitive young assistant built the delivery system from conceptual drawings he provided to them.

Sam walks into Aurora's stall and gives her neck a good scratching. She ignores him as she continues to drink. "I bet if I make a few suggestions to that young man, he could make it work for all of Arendelle."

Aurora bumps her head into his arm.

"I wonder how much the future will change as a result of my interference."

She shakes her head and creates a wave that travels down her body and ends with a flick of her tail. "You're probably right. Who is to say that history is not happening as it should?"

She nickers and bumps her head against his head. He wraps his arms around her neck as she places her head over his shoulder. "You will always be my girl, but in a week, you will need to share." She groans. "I know, it's time to let go and finish my mission. SaraCat would not have pushed me through the portal if she did not know what she was doing."

"Are you saying goodbye to your girlfriend for the last time?"

He turns to Sven staring at him. "Sven, you are getting better at sounding like Kristoff. You even learned to throw your voice to make it sound like he is behind me, very good."

Sven trumpets and Kristoff slaps the back of his head as he walks past. "Very funny, One week and the big day will be here. Are you getting a little nervous, buddy?"

"Nervous no, concerned, yes." Sam shuts off the water valve and closes the water box door.

Kristoff feeds Sven a carrot and leans against his stall. He grins at him.

"What?"

Kristoff makes the motion with his hand to urge him to speak. "What are your concerns?"

Sam walks over to him and scratches Sven's neck. "When I met my first wife, she wanted to be dropped off at a specific port, but I needed to meet a courier at a different port. When my business was done I was prepared to take her to her port. Many, many years later she became the Captain of my fighters. She led them into battle and I commanded my ship. Something happened in our last year together and it cost her and our daughter's life. I can't bring them back, but I don't know if the cause has been resolved or if it will show up again. I wanted to die when they were lost. I didn't even get a chance to say goodbye. It's almost like my daughter was trying to tell me it's not over yet." He stares down at the floor.

Kristoff ruffles Sven's mane. "Hmm, I do not know what to say. Your wife sounds like Anna in her own way. Are you regretting asking Elsa?"

The dart stings his heart. "No, getting married to her means I get the benefits for protecting her, really close."

Sven snorts and Kristoff says with a hint of a smile, "Don't laugh at him. It's tough enough to go from an Admiral of a fleet to the husband of a Queen, unlike myself where I went from Ice Master Harvester and Deliverer to Prince."

He shoots back. "You two go ahead and laugh. I'll be laughing when you have to get up during the night."

"Why would I be getting up at night?" Kristoff asks with a smirk.

With a big grin and a wink, Sam whispers, "Ask Anna."

Kristoff stares at him for a moment, before looking towards the door. "This morning was the third time Anna was not feeling well and stayed in the washroom a long time. She did not eat much this morning, but I did notice she kept rubbing her belly." He continues to stare at the door. "Is she?" He steps towards the door and turns as a smile forms and Tossing the carrot, Kristoff runs out the door.

Sam takes a bite of a carrot and offers it to Sven. "You know that is still funny to see his expression. I would love to be there when Anna tells him she is definitely going to have a baby." Sven snorts and nods his head. He hands Sven the other carrot and finishes his chores in the stable.

An hour later, outside the stable doors, Sam empties the water he used to clean up. The door almost closes when he pushes it open again. Through the tree line on the eastern hills a blood red color illuminates the sky. He sniffs the air to detect the chards of a forest fire, but instead smells burnt hair. Smoke rises from his shirt. He pulls his wedding rings up by the string around his neck. A tiny spark flashes between the rings touching each other and he grips them in his hand. The vibrations create a familiar sensation except he doesn't feel sick. Now the eastern sky changes to a light green. He shakes his head in disbelief and runs to the castle's main entrance. He slips past a staffer exiting the door and charges across the Entrance hall and takes the stairs three steps at a time. The residential guard steps out of the way in time as Sam runs past him.

He rushes into his room and slams the door closed with a click of the lock. His legs give out and his body slumps against the door. Pressure builds in his head. He rubs the side of his head behind his eyes. "I hear you calling me."

The pressure waves increase as each one passes. He shakes his head and exerts a counter balance with his energy. "Not this time, I know you are close."

His eyes open and stands. An onrush of nausea grips his body as he staggers towards the bed. Dark green eyes stare back at him in the mirror stand. He collapses next to the bed and clutches his head. It takes all of his energy to counter the dragon's call. The pain subsides enough for him to open his eyes. He slides a metallic box out from under his bed.

A knock comes from the door. A familiar voice calls, "Samuel, are you all right?"

He swings the box onto his bed. "I am doing okay. My headache has flared up. A little rest and I will be fine later today."

"Samuel, please open the door." The door handle rattles.

The latch releases and the top of the box pops open a few centimeters. He raises the lid hoping the cloth survived the many years being in the box. He holds up the maroon and ocean-blue silk shirt. Expecting the shirt to have holes, he finds none. Removing his stable shirt, he falls against the bed and massages behind his eyes. The pain eases and he slips the maroon shirt over his head. He loosens the tight collar from his neck. His arms cross in front to stretch the back. A light fragrance drifts up from the shirt. His mind recognizes the fragrance and her image reminds him of how dearly he misses her and wishes she was here to help him sort his thoughts. "Krystal, why are you not in this time period."

A loud bang on the door interrupts his thoughts. "Samuel, open the door. Queen Elsa wishes to see you," Kai barks.

"Sam, this is Anna. Please open the door. We are concerned about your headaches."

He closes the lid on the box and stands. The tightness of the shirt loosens to the conformity of his body. It will have to do since his time is up. He retrieves his bow and quill with three arrows from the fireplace. He runs to the balcony door and yells, "Leave me alone, I need to fix this before it is too late."

Out the door and over the balcony rail, he lands with a thud in the courtyard and a plume of dust rises. He sprints to the stables. The door opens as he reaches for it. Holding an unlit torch, Kristoff stands in the doorway. Sam stares at him. "Queen Elsa would not like you catching the stables on fire."

"You're wasting time, go slay the dragon," Kristoff says.

"How do you know about the dragon?"

"You're still wasting time and you will need this." Kristoff holds a small Viking boat in his hand, along with two stones.

Slipping the stones into his shirt, Sam takes the torch and stares at the boat before taking it. "Thank you, buddy."

He runs towards the main gates and the guards' wave him through. He nods to them as he passes. He looks over the rail and spots a cluster of leaves moving away from the shore. Their slow movement will take them to the main channel in the fjord for some time. He jumps over the rail and lands with a splash in a half meter of water. He steps his way along the edge to the castle wall and continues around the corner turret to a small patch of dry shore several meters into the fjord.

Staking the torch into the ground, he tears off a piece of cloth. He folds it several times and presses it onto the deck of the small boat. Removing the wedding rings from the leather strip tied around his neck, he clenches them tightly. His chest tightens as his heart beats faster. He reads the names inside of the rings followed by a piercing pain that stabs at his heart. He falls to his knees. A tear swells up in his eye and leaps out. It splashes on the name of his beloved. More tears sprint to the corner of his eyes as the memories of his family race through his mind. "I'm sorry LadyCat. I have to break my promise. If this works, the next time around I will take you home."

He holds his rings close to his heart. "SaraCat, are you sure? Are you sure this will work? I'm sorry I have doubts, but if you are wrong, my last two possessions from the two of you will be gone."

The vibrating rings bring his attention back to his task. "If this is what you meant, all that I know will change."

Sam places the rings in the center of the cloth on the boat and tears off another strip a cloth to cover the boat from bow to stern. He pushes the boat towards the center of the fjord and waits a few seconds before exhaling cold air across his hand to funnel it towards the boat. The boat drifts towards the center of the fjord. He removes the three arrows from the quill and wraps a piece of fuel soaked cloth around each tip. Rinsing his hands in the water, he removes the two stones from his shirt. Striking the stones together a spark ignites the torch. With an arrow in the bow, he stands ready. For several minutes he waits, but the pain in his heart increases. His shirt and collar darken from the droplets of tears.

A warm breeze blows across the fjord pushing the small boat faster and further out. He lifts the bow and calculates the arrows trajectory with the wind speed. He pulls the bow string back a quarter lengths and swings the arrow's cloth over the torch. A flame leaps from the torch onto the cloth. Drawing the bow back to the three-quarters lengths, he raises the arrow's tip for a medium arch and lets it fly. The flaming arrow leaves a smoky trail. It crests the arch and trails down. The breeze reverses direction, causing the small boat's momentum to stop. The arrow flies several meters past the boat.

With the boat barely moving he notches another arrow and lights the cloth. Lowering the trajectory, he pulls the arrow back to the full length and lets it go. Before the feathers of the arrow passes his hand, a flash of light strikes his mind. He falls to his knees and barely gets his hand down to keep from falling into the water. His whole body stings with a hot fire.

The dragon calls for him with its voice of deafening ring.

The fire diminishes in his right shoulder and arm from a cold touch. He fights through the fire and a set of beautiful blue eyes quenches the fire in his mind.

She leans close to him and whispers, "I believe in you. You can do this." She helps him get to his feet.

The small boat still floats toward the center of the fjord. He glances at her. "Your dress is getting wet."

She hands him the last arrow.

The dragon's energy tenses his body as it screams for him to stop. He loads the arrow in the bow and lights the cloth on fire. With the distance and arch calculated he pulls the bow string to the full length. From the corner of his eyes flashes of green sparkles off the water. He holds the arrow on the target and snaps his head towards the green dragon charging him. Its mouth opens creating a red hue on the water.

He demands, "eh-ha-jaydóóshí ch'į́įdii." (GO AWAY FROM ME DEMON)

The red mist reveals his Starship Aurora among the stars.

The vision pulls on his heart and mind to go to it. "nidooleełdoodayooch'íídshí nana." (You will not deceive me again)

His desire to jump into the mouth of the dragon closes the world around him. A cloud forms in front of his ship. "shił bééhózinniyooch'ííd." (I know you lie)

The cloud disgorges many enemy ships. His heart drops as the battle starts as it did so many years ago.

Drawing on his life force, the dragon's breath intensifies and he calls out, "ELSA, I NEED . . . I need your help. I can't do this alone."

Her cold hands on his shoulders quench the fire. She presses her head against the center of his back and exhales cold air down his spine.

He snaps his head back with eyes focused along the shaft of the arrow and releases the string. The smoke trail rises, before it arches down. His eyes follow the smoke into the water. A momentary orange cloud blossoms at the water line and rapidly changes into a dark smoke.

The dragon spews its energy to capture its prey. The bow splashes into the water.

He steps between the dragon and his love. Arching his body over her he presses her against him. With his eyes closed, he whispers, "No matter what happens, you are my family. I love you."

The dragon roars with a rapid release of energy sweeping across his back like a gale force wind. His body sways, but does not break.

All his senses overload his mind. All is quiet. He feels nothing. He sees no colors, but a brilliant white. There is no sensation of anything. The voices in his mind remain silent, followed by a high pitch whistle coming from everywhere. The white is not as brilliant transitioning to a dull white. A color streaks across the white space, followed by another and another. Each color takes up more of the white space. His mind registers and processes the colors.

A red color streaks across the white moving rapidly in a rhythmic pattern. Behind it another brighter red mimics the first almost like a slightly delayed echo of the first red. The two reds separate creating a great distance between them. A sound thumps with the rhythmic movements of red followed by a blue color that wavers with the sound of water splashing.

A rainbow of colors pass overhead and oscillates with the sound of people speaking. The sounds of a cloth snapping in the breeze cause the colors to jump to one side. The screeching sound of a bird cause the colors to break apart, but form back together.

The wavering blue bumps into the tan color and the temperature drops noticeably. All the colors sway to one side as the blue bumps the tan again. A semi-clear color floats towards him creating a sweet aroma. As he draws in the aroma the other colors expand out away from him prior to returning to the same distance. The aroma changes the white spaces with more colors. They swirl around him and move closer.

He reaches for the colors and pressure builds around his chest and under his arms. He looks back and a yellow color hovers behind him creating warmth across his back. The colors continue to change and merge and form images.

A screech vibrates all the colors. A distinctive sound of water splashes against rocks and the shore. Water moves his body in a swaying motion. Another screech of an eagle flying overhead causes him to slowly open his eyes to a blue sky. Above him a beautiful woman glows at him. Her gentle smile appears familiar and calms his heart and mind.

"Am I in Arendelle?"

She bows her head closer and a twinkle sparkles in her eyes.

"Are you . . . Queen Elsa of Arendelle?"

Her lips part to reveal her pearly whites in a grin, he interrupts, "Are we, husband and wife?"

She shakes her head.

"We will be married soon?"

Her brows flick up. "In one week."

"One week." Sam rolls onto his knees. He tosses his wet hair back over his shoulder. A light breeze cools the back of his soaked shirt. Memories of when he first arrived at the castle flood his mind. A strong wave splashes into her. He automatically grabs her and pulls her close. He does not consider the consequences and takes a leap of faith. "May I kiss you?"

She places her hand behind his neck and pulls him down to her as she rises up. Their lips meet. The sweet aroma of the clear color tantalizes his sinus receptors. The tip of his tongue sweeps across the softness of her lips. The tenderness explodes a cool mint flavor into his mouth. He inhales her fragrance and hungry for more. A splash moves her and causes their lip to separate. His eyes open.

On the castle shore Kristoff points towards the town. Along the wharf cheering Arendelle citizens wave to them.

Sam glances towards the moon. "I don't hear it." He closes his eyes for a moment and opens them. "I'm not detecting it."

With a gentle smile Elsa says, "You slew the dragon."

He searches for the small Viking boat on the fjord and does not find it. "The rings kept the gate open. When they stopped transmitting the dragon closed its mouth and disappeared." His brows push together.

She searches his eyes. "What is wrong?"

He tries to pull back his emotions, but the realization she is the third person willing to risk her life. "You took a big chance. The dragon would have swallowed both of us and if you were not touching me, you would have been lost or we would have been lost together. If I had failed, you never would have known me since I never would have been here." He pulls her closer inside of his arms. "You gave me strength and steadied my hand. You saved my life."

"Just like you took a chance with me, twenty-four years ago, on that road with my mother?" A sparkle glimmers in her eyes.

"Even if I could repair my ship, there is no timeline for me to go." He touches her cheek. "I hope this is what you wanted. I am here with the most beautiful woman on this planet. No matter where I go, I will be nearby."

She lays her head against his chest. "I am glad you are stuck with me." She glances up at him. "Did the last memory block open?"

"Yes, it did. That was the second one I asked Pabbie to place in there. The next time we see him, we, both need to thank him."

"What did it reveal?"

"After the treasonous guards revolted against your parents and I stood in the courtyard looking at their blood on my hands, your mother called me a monster. I knew in my heart you would not be safe. While I still had my honor, I asked Pabbie to hide the truth about the rings transmitting." His smile slips away. "At the time I had a plan to take you shortly after you were born. Not to spite your parents, they and everyone here has never experienced people with our abilities."

Her eyes widen at him. "You were going to kidnap me?"

He lightly slides his fingers along her cheek. "To keep you safe, yes, if my appearance had not changed, you would be married to someone else."

Her eyes dart back and forth between his eyes. A voice from the wharf yells, "If you are going to wait for the tide, kiss her again."

He waves at the gathering on the wharf. "I think we should get out of the water." She wraps her arm around his arm and grips his forearm. They walk to the small patch of shore where Kristoff stands.

She indicates to a boulder, "Where is the boat?"

Kristoff points to the tree line across the fjord. "A gust of wind pulled the boat's rope from the rock and it is now over there, too far for me to swim."

He stares at the bottom of her dress. "We could walk around to the main gate, but you will get wet from the waist down."

Kristoff points to the darker spots in the water. "Unless she steps into one of these holes."

"Unless you are a strong swimmer your dress will pull you under." He looks at her still holding his arm. "If you will permit me, to show Arendelle my support, you can sit on my shoulder. Kristoff will walk in front of us and hopefully he will find the hole before I do."

She frowns and pinches his arm. "I think you are using this as an excuse to feel my bottom."

He frowns, "Why would I want to ruin the surprise in a week?"

Elsa puckers her lips and blows him a kiss. "Kristoff can walk in front. I will follow a couple of steps behind him and you follow me."

"I like my plan better."

Her right brow rises, "one week."

"I'm not waiting for you." Kristoff steps into the water and maintains the water level below his knees. Elsa follows with Sam close behind her. She stumbles, but he wraps his arm around her waist to steady her.

Anna greets Kristoff with a peck on his cheek. "So what happened? I heard someone yelling, a flaming arrow catches your little boat on fire in the fjord and a gust of wind came out of nowhere." She pulls on her husband's shirt, "What happened?"

Kristoff loops his arm around Anna's waist. "After we got out of the boat, I saw what you described."

Anna looks to Elsa, "well?"

Elsa adjusts her wet dress and grins. "What?"

"Do not 'what' me. I could not see around the wall. What happened out there? I thought something might have happened to you, so did the wind have anything to do with whoever yelled?"

Elsa hugs Anna. "I do not know if I could explain it, if I wanted to." She looks back at him. "How do you feel?"

"Without a reference I cannot answer your question, but I will tell you what I know. The gate is closed. Any possibility of going back to save my family closed with the gate. I will never know if this changes their future or not." He smiles to hold back his emotions. "In one week you will be my new family. I don't know what tomorrow will bring. This is all new to me."

He stops next to her and holds his forearm parallel to the ground with his fist curled under.

Elsa let's go of Anna and hooks her right hand in the crux of his arm. She steps and he steps a fraction of a second later.

Gerda carries the grooms clothing into Samuel's room and lays them over the back of his chair.

Elsa steps into the room. She removes her shoes and motions to Gerda not to speak as she slinks to the open balcony door.

Sam dips the quill into the inkwell and holds it for a few seconds. "Why would you assume I did not hear you moving across the floor?" He glances back at her.

"One day I will."

"But not today." He continues to write.

She stands in front of his table. "Uh-hum?"

He grins at her. "Do you wish to sit?"

"That would be nice."

Sam places the quill in the ink well. He removes the stack of papers from the second chair and set them on the table. He assists Elsa into the chair. As he sits across from her, he stares at her smile.

"If you wish to read what I have written, you may do so, but understand these are my thoughts so if I'm incorrect in some areas concerning your thoughts, write your own log." She does not move. After writing several sentences, he glances at her.

Elsa motions towards the door. Gerda carries a tray of hot tea and two pastries and stands next to the table.

He glances at his papers spread out on the table. With a sigh, he looks up at her.

Elsa grins. "Maybe we can find you a small table to set your papers."

"I'm mostly done. I have one final chapter to write, before I can seal them in a container to be open in the future." He stacks the papers onto the decking and place the inkwell and quill on top.

Gerda serves the hot tea in the two cups and places a pastry on the small plate next to each cup. She curtsies and returns to the room.

He points his thumb at the door. "All these years I do not recall Gerda ever curtsying you. Is that new?"

She mouths the word no and sips the tea. He watches his spoon swirl the tea in his cup. With the sound of the fjord splashing on the rocks outside of the wall, the tea slides up the spoon and falls onto itself. The dragon's undulation did the same thing. He blinks the dragon away and scoops the tea to his lips.

"No-no, proper etiquette says we do not drink from the spoon."

"Okay." He sets the spoon down and picks up the cup with two fingers, while holding his pinky out.

She observes him and sips her tea. Before she could say anything he gulps his tea down. He quickly places the cup on the table as his hand covers his mouth. His head rocks back and hits the wall. His knee smacks the table and rattles the tea pot and cup.

Elsa snickers. "That is why you sip and not gulp, but I am impressed you did it with your pinky finger out. Proper etiquette for drinking tea says the fourth and fifth fingers are tucked in your hand."

In a gravelly voice he says, "Thank you, I will remember that next time."

"I am sure you will. Let us try the pastry."

He does not have to look up to know she is grinning at him. He sits up and a sparkle in her eye twinkles at him. "I'm willing to bet, you tried to teach me the proper etiquettes of eating a pastry. Now that my taste buds have been disabled, I'm probably not going to enjoy the pastry as I had hoped, so go ahead. I'm sure I'll give you another laugh."

"Possibly, it is best I see your mistakes now before a bunch of snooty royals laugh at you." She tries to reassure. "Eat your pastry."

"No proper etiquette comments first?" She shakes her head. "I understand. You need to determine the level of embarrassment potential I may cause you, so you can set aside time to reduce that level, hopefully, to no embarrassment."

He picks up the pastry and bites half of it.

Elsa picks up the fork and knife. Cutting off a small piece of the pastry, she sets the knife on the edge of the small plate. Switching the fork to her right hand, she delicately pierces the pastry. In one fluid motion the fork passes the pastry between her lips. Four chews later, she swallows and repeats the process for a second piece of pastry.

Sam licks his finger and picks the crumbs off his shirt. As he licks the last crumb he glances up.

"That is why you will use a fork to eat a pastry." She slides her plate in front of him. "Use the fork and knife."

"No wonder you're small. If I eat the way you did, I would expend more energy cutting it. By the time I finish I will need to sneak another one to make up for the energy deficits." He stabs the pastry and cuts it in half. Picking up the larger piece, he notes a frown watching him from across the table and he sets it down. His eyes close for a few seconds.

"Ok, I will do it your way as long as I'm given an opportunity to sneak into the kitchen." He opens his eyes and repositions the fork and knife. Cutting off a small piece, Sam mimics Elsa's proper etiquette for eating the pastry. A smile replaces her frown.

She touches the back of his hand. "Very good, we have a few more days to practice other areas of proper etiquettes. This may be uncomfortable for you, but anything you say or do will reflect on my position."

He rolls his hand and closes his fingers around her hand. "I know. I have to control my emotions and not to respond except in your safety." He places his other hand on top of hers.

"Krystal used a similar technique, you just did. She would let me fall, and help me back up." He looks away from mentioning Krystal. They are in the past and he has to let go of them. Elsa is his future and he looks at her. "I'm not a King nor do I ever wish to be one. I think I'm beginning to understand what your mother meant by saying she did not want to be Queen. She enjoyed doing the behind the scene stuff."

She squeezes his hand. "What is bothering you?"

He lowers his head. "I didn't feel this way when Cat and I got married. She was more like me. Jump first, kick butt, and deal with the circumstances later. Over the years we both agreed we needed to slow down and pass the torch to our daughter. I was ready to grow old with her." With a half-smile, he looks up. "Do I look old?"

Her hand rest on top of his hand. "You look younger than the Admal I remember. Why are you asking this?"

"Because I don't feel old, I know you could have accepted any other suitors. I am extremely honored you said yes to me. I will do all you ask, that is within my capacity. I don't want to be Queen Elsa's little husband who is seen seldom by the people. This is the time of the industrial revolution. You make the trade treaties and if you will allow me, Arendelle can become an economic powerhouse in this area."

"Is that what you were writing? The things you would like us and Arendelle to be?"

He taps his head. "In here I have the knowledge that will change this planet. This knowledge will make you and if we have children, targets of the greedy. I am recording my thoughts of all that I knew before arriving here and the consequences of my interactions with this area. I will place these in a sealed container and request Pabbie to place them in my ship. I hope someday my relative will determine if my decision to stay did change the future."

Her brows roll down and she stares at their hands. "If you can repair your ship," she glances at him, "you could go back to your home." Her hand loosens its grip.

He tightens his hold of her hand and slides to his knees next to her as he tips his chair over. "Elsa, listen to me."

He curls his hands to hold her hands over his heart. "My home is where I lay my head to sleep. If, and that is a very remote chance, if I could repair my ship I can go to the physical locations of where I've been, but it will not be the same place as I remember. Those places I remember will not occur for another six-hundred years."

She leans close to him. "But if you could repair your ship you could."

He moves his head from side to side. "Before I knew that Arendelle existed, I knew what could happen if a future generation discovered my ship. I made a deal with Pabbie. After I destroyed the ship's capability to open a dragon, he removed my knowledge of my ship's location. The temptation to repair it and fly could have become too strong for even me."

"But I know where it is. Anna, Kristoff, and the guards know where it is. You could search my mind."

He touches her cheek. "Do you remember the open field where you drank the sweet water from the stream that came out from under a pile of boulders?" She stares at him. "You remember the narrow trail from the road that took you through the forest and the steep hill under the canopy of trees that blocked most of the light. You even remember the dry river bed, the field of boulders and the tunnel. If you and the guards were to look for it right now, you will not find the trail from the road, the forest, the sweet water, the slipper hill, the river bed or the field of boulders. That was the only way Pabbie would agree to allow me into my ship."

"Are you saying Pabbie removed those thoughts from my mind?"

"He may have repressed them, but I do not know for sure. If he did, over time you will remember the missing pieces. One day you will have enough pieces to look for it, but nature has the tendency to change the landscape."

"And S5?"

"Anything I know, you will know. I know where she is right now, so I know where my ship is located. The fjord is deep enough to hide it, if it needs to be moved, but all depends on Pabbie's confidence in my mental state. At this point it is a waiting game." He kisses the tops of her fingers. "I'm tired of waiting for what might be. I will keep an eye out for changes in history, but right now, I'll keep my eyes on you. I want to be by your side."

She leans in and kisses the tip of his nose. "Good, you have more work to do. Anna, Kai, and Gerda have volunteered to help improve your royalty skills." His eyes stare at her. "You are wasting time. You will see less and less of me as the day approaches."

He rocks back and stands and pulls her to her feet. Picking up the quill, inkwell, and his papers, he asks. "When and where?"

With a grin she says, "The dining room is first."

After a few moments, the balcony door closes behind them.

 **End of Chapter**


	86. Chapter 85 The Guests

**Title: Chapter 86: The Guests**

 **1 year, 7 months Until Correction**

Sam walks across the courtyard towards the stables. The light blue eastern sky chases the stars from the heavens. A cool breeze flows in from the north with a hint of late snow flurries. He holds his arms out and tilts his head up with his eyes closed. His eyelids separate a millimeter. Only the guards on the wall would see his blue eyes. Most guards have seen his morning ritual of scanning Arendelle. This morning he scans as far as he is able. No surprises, no green dragons will disrupt their special day.

He continues to the stables. A chorus of neighs meets him at the door. He ceremoniously bows to the Horses of the Royal Guards. "Ok, boys and girls, I need to get you fed quickly so I can have breakfast with my new family, so no horsing around."

Sven trumpets and the horses stare at him.

He gives Sven a carrot. "Thanks for laughing at my joke." Sven gobbles the carrot and searches for another. "Sorry, the last one is in case Master Kristoff does not feed you before I leave." He proceeds down the aisle filling the horse buckets with vegetables and grains. He notes one horse does not eat, but he continues his work. At the door marked water, he pushes and pulls a lever several time until water begins to fill a pail. The weight of the pail pulls two levers that slowly open two valves. After a few seconds, water flows into the water trough at the back of each stall. With the help of the blacksmith the water transfer system maintains water in the troughs so water will always be available until he turns off the system.

Less than an hour passes when he stands next to the stall of his favorite horse. "Come talk to me."

Aurora snorts several times and her ears lay back flat. Her tail switches hard and fast twice. She turns her rump towards him.

He looks to Sven. "Do you think she is upset with me?" Sven snorts with a nod. "I think you are correct." He steps into the stall. Aurora moves her rump pinning him to the rail.

"Are you serious?" He places a cold hand on her rump. Despite his abilities, she could lean her full weight into him and break his bones. "Don't play this game with me. I know you are upset." He drops the temperature in his hand. "I will defend myself if you do not get off of me."

Aurora's stubbornness relents and she moves her rump away from him. He reaches to touch her neck, but she stomps her hoof close to his foot and looks away.

"Ok, I hear you." He backs out of the stall. Aurora catches the side of his face with her tail. He glances down the aisle. Most of the other horses stare at him.

"Are you doing this for my benefit or theirs?" He ducks out of the way as she swishes her tail at him, but he grabs her tail and pulls. She neighs and tries to turn around baring her teeth. He waits until the last second and releases her tail as he slaps an icy cold hand onto her nose. She backs away shaking her head.

"You act like a spoiled brat and I will treat you like one." He leans against the rail. "I told you this day would arrive. I have given all of myself to Queen Elsa."

Aurora stomps the ground with a loud snort. He waits for her to stop. "You didn't let me finish. Until as such time Queen Elsa releases me of my duty as the stable boy, I will continue to come in here. Unless she tells me differently, I will be living in the castle, so I will see you everyday, but don't get offended if she has me to perform other duties that will prevent me from visiting you and your friends."

A trumpet sounds behind him. "Yes, you too Sven."

Aurora slinks over to him with her head down and neighs. Her ears turn loosely forward.

He wipes the ice off her nose and she lays her head over his shoulder. "I know you are sorry and I forgive you. The next couple of days I may not see you, but I will see you again and soon. You will always be my best horse." She leans her head against him.

Sven bugles and Aurora flicks her ear towards the door.

"Am I interrupting?" Kristoff asks carrying a bag of carrots and vegetables.

"A slight miss understanding. Aurora was hoping this day would never arrive so she had a temper tantrum and I had to explain it to her."

Kristoff takes a vegetable out of the bag. "Yeah, I bet she liked that." He voices for Sven. "We have a great understanding. He brings a snack and I eat carrots."

Sam scratches Aurora's neck. "That's not what I hear." She exhales through her nose and nods her head. He grabs the brush off the post and brushes her mane.

"Wait, what? What do you mean that's not what you hear?" He turns before releasing the carrot. Sven reaches through the rails, but the carrot is out of his reach. Kristoff walks over to Aurora's stall and taps him on the shoulder with the carrot. "What have you heard?"

A slight grin forms as he turns to Kristoff. "Do you know you are beginning to sound like your wife?"

"What?"

"Anna is notorious for using the two words together 'wait' and 'what'." Kristoff did not appear to understand. "You said 'wait, what' prior to asking me what I meant by that." He steps around Aurora and brushes the other side of her neck.

Kristoff stares at him for a moment before biting off the end of the carrot. "Great, I do sound like her." Sven snorts and nods his head.

"You may sound like her, but you will never look as pretty as Princess Anna." A chorus of neighs echoes through the stables.

"That's not funny." Kristoff waves a half-eaten carrot at the horses.

Sam grins. "They were not laughing at you. They were greeting Princess Anna."

Kristoff spins around to Anna with her hands on her waist.

She asks, "What did you say about sounding like me?"

He wraps his arms around her. "I used two words you are notorious for using."

She leans back. "Notorious?"

Another chorus of neighs echoes in the stables. Sam smiles as he nods. "Now, they are laughing at you."

"I do not think you are using notorious for what it actually means." She tweaks his nose.

"Maybe not, I'm trying to say you use two words often enough that a lot of people associate those words to you. I meant it as a compliment that I'm improving."

Anna stares for a moment. "Okay, I will accept the improving part. Breakfast will be served soon and I am famished." She glimpse towards Sam. "Will you be joining us? You know we can get someone in here to take over. You could train them and not have to spend all your time in here."

Sam hooks Aurora's brush on the post and scratches under her chin. "Well girl, I could use the help. I would be able to spend more time with you and my new bride." Aurora stares at Anna and flicks her tail. "I told you I will have new responsibilities and one of them is to eat breakfast with my bride, everyday."

Aurora swishes her tail and pins her ears back.

He reaches for the stall gate. "Okay, I'll see you whenever I can."

Aurora clamps her teeth onto his arm. Kristoff pushes Anna towards the door and grabs the rake for moving horse deposits. Sam holds up his other hand.

He turns his head to Aurora. She pulls him from the gate and twists his body. She leans her head against his chest and creates a vibrating sound with her mouth closed. His forehead touches her head as slits in his eye expose a blue glow. He forces air pass his slightly opened lips. "You will always be my girl. Is it ok for me to leave?" She nods her head. He exits the stall and tosses Sven a carrot.

Anna and Kristoff, both stare at him.

"That is not the first time she has done that and she has never bitten me. Let's go before Queen Elsa starts without us." They follow him out of the stables.

Several minutes later he enters the servant's door to the kitchen.

"You better hurry. The food cart left a minute ago," comments the chef.

"Shoot." He runs past the staff and down the hall. Into the open entrance, he catches a glimpse of Queen Elsa entering the dining room. "Shoot, not this time." He sprints down the service hall past the food cart and Gerda's glare to the door. For a moment he catches his breath. In a casual manner, he steps through the door. Elsa is a few steps from her chair, but he reaches the chair before she does and slides it out for her.

Her right brow rises and he bows his head. She brushes her hand across the back of his hand. "At least you are here before I sit."

He slides the chair under her.

She grabs the back of his hand. "I thank you for being on time. Did you run from the stables?"

He sits in the chair to the Queen's right. "Actually, I walked, but it took a little longer getting Aurora's spit off my arm."

Her hands clasped together on the edge of the table, she asks, "How is she adjusting to our new arrangements? I hear she gave you a hard time."

He taps the side of his head. "If I was not able to hear them, she would not be an issue. She made her point and I understand."

She watches his expression as she slides her hand up his arm pushing his sleeve up to reveal several curved indentations. "I see she did. Are you going to have an issue with her?"

Gerda places a plate with sliced bread, smoked salmon, sliced boiled eggs, and a cream pastry in front of Elsa. "Did that crazy horse of yours bite you?"

"Oh no, she was making a point with him," Anna snickers.

"Yes, I see several of them. Why do you let that nag talk to you like that? Be the man and put her in her place."

His head snaps up to her as Elsa grabs his hand. He expose his teeth and emits a low rumble. Elsa squeezes his hand jabbing her fingernails into his palm.

Gerda grins. "You wish to say something?"

"Aurora says the same thing about you. Letting the nag talk to me, why do I not put her in her place." He throws back at her.

She tilts her head slightly. "Are you not feeling well? My first jab and you quickly showed your aggression. You're not having doubts, are you?" She grins again.

"Gerda, I am a little hungry this morning. You can pick on him later." Elsa maintains a hold onto his hand.

"Yes, ma'am," she continues placing the plates in front of Sam, Anna and Kristoff. Another staffer begins serving the meal.

"Uh, Elsa, is that his blood between your fingers?" Anna asks.

He places his hand over her hand and closes his eye. A blue glow escapes between his fingers.

After a minute, Elsa pulls her hand away. A slight glow follows her hand as she touches his face. His eyes open and the glow disappears. "She is right. You were easily distracted. Who or what has your attention?"

His hand opens and closes as he looks in her direction, but he does not concentrate on her. "It is strange. I do not hear the noise that I have grown accustom." He focuses on her blue eyes, but sees more. A blue aura surrounds all of her. Her hair flickers with the dance of white fire. Her clothing dissolves from her shoulders and moves down her arms.

In the distance he hears, "Samuel stop!"

Her clothes continue to dissolve, revealing her white and blue energy sparkling with silver flashes. A distant howl moves closer to him. The howl increases to a roar followed with crackles of arcs. An explosion of energy whites out her aura. The crackle explodes in his ear.

"Samuel, what are you doing?"

His vision focuses on Elsa standing next to him. He looks up to narrowed eyes and a frown. "Did you hit me?"

"I told you to stop, but you kept going. Wait until after the wedding and you can ogle me all you want."

"Wait, you were ogling my sister?" Anna asks.

"Ogling," Kristoff snickers. "Wait, what does that mean?" Anna whispers to him.

Elsa pulls her hand, but he does not let go of her. "I was observing your energy which allowed me to pick up on a static noise that has a harmonic. What did you see?"

"He can do that? What is there to look forward to if he already knows?" Kristoff asks.

She jerks her hand free and glances down as she rubs her hands together. She mumbles a quiet response, "My clothes dissolving."

He slowly shakes his head. "I do not already know." He cups her hands. "I love you too much to cheapen our marriage with a boyish lust." When she does not pull from him, he stands and wraps his arm around her. "Despite what your brother-in-law said, I don't know what you look like underneath nor have I tried to peek."

He kisses her forehead. "Long before I ever arrived in Arendelle, in my previous profession, I did look under the target's clothes to determine what weapons they had before I disposed of them. Tonight will be the first time I see your birthday suit."

"Birthday suit?" Kristoff asks.

Anna whispers to him.

"Oh, I think I should eat so I don't say anything I can't take back."

"Shh," Anna hushes Kristoff.

He takes her hand and holds it against his face. "Let me show you what I saw." He watches the whites of her eyes gradually change to a light blue.

After a minute she pulls her hand away and the whites of her eyes change back to normal. "Will I see as you do?"

"You can, but I would not recommend it until after today. It will be one less distraction. Then," his left brow rises, "I will teach you to see the souls of everything."

"Wait, you can see people's souls?" Anna almost yelps.

Elsa answers before he does, "Not the spiritual soul, but everything generates energy and that is what he sees."

He pulls her hand to his lips and without a blink, he gazes into her eyes as he nibbles the back of her hand.

She rewards him with a smile.

"Excuse me Majesty, the chef needs to discuss this evenings dinner," Kai says behind them.

"Please discuss it with the chef." Her right brow rises.

His left brow rises again. "My love, you know what you want for your wedding day. I want this day to be a memory you will remember from now and when you do, it will bring you a smile, even if you are physically not able to smile. If you want me to go down there and talk to them, I will."

She leans her head against his chest. "As long as you are with me, it will be perfect."

He slides his hand across the back of her neck and lightly applies pressure. "Come, my dear. Have a seat." He assists her to her chair then kneels. "Elsa?"

She grins and slowly turns towards him. Anna moves to her side.

"Elsa, this is as good a time as any. I need to show you. Right now I am evoking your safety. Do you understand?"

With a nod, she brushes her finger across his cheek.

"What is wrong with her?"

"The same thing would have happened to you if I had not intervened." He reaches across and grabs her hand. "Princess Anna, I need you to help me."

She stares at him.

"Please go with Kai and in your capacity as Princess settle the discussion with the chef. By all means use me as a threat to him and his staff."

"Do you hear that wavering static?"

With pressure on her hand, he answers. "I do now. I thought it was just me, but since you hear it, I have to find the source."

"I don't hear anything," Kristoff comments.

"Actually, you do buddy. It is more pronounced in a very quiet room. Some people need a small amount of noise to drown out the static."

Gerda points to Kai.

He glances at him. "You hear static or the searing of meat." Kai nods. "Were you exposed to a loud noise?"

"A long time ago, there was an explosion that caused my ears to ring for several days. It occurred before you arrived here." Kai looks away.

"That is why you have a clock above your bed."

Kai does not answer.

"My dear, now that I don't hear the dragon, I started hearing the static noise a week ago. If it ends up being nothing, I will deal with it. If it is something, I will confront it."

"Uh-um, the chef?"

"I will talk with the chef. You make sure you are ready this afternoon." Elsa leans over and kisses his forehead.

He slides her chair back and she walks towards the door.

"Elsa, I think Anna may be helpful in reminding you of today's tasks in case you get distracted."

She glares at him. "I know what needs to be done, but I do welcome her assistance then you boys can do whatever you have planned." Anna gleefully joins her sister and they depart.

He holds up his finger to shush Kristoff before he speaks. He waits until his bride-to-be is down stairs. "Will it be ready?"

"Yesterday, he said it will be ready today. After breakfast I was going to visit the painter to see that he is finished." Kristoff replies then gulps down his cup of water.

"If you don't mind, I would like to join you to verify it is as requested." He gobbles down his breakfast and guzzles down his drink. He looks into Elsa's cup and drinks what was left.

Kai refills his cup. "When did you last drink anything?"

He tries to remember.

After a few seconds Kai refills Elsa's cup. "That long, if you plan to accompany our Queen to her meetings you may wish to drink as often as she does."

He guzzles both drinks and sounds a long sigh. "Ok buddy, let's see what we can see." He follows Kristoff out the door.

"For acting as calm as they appear, they seem to be stressed," Gerda comments.

"I agree." Kai helps to clear the table.

Kristoff and Sam walk through the main gates in silence.

The guard points towards the wharf. "There is a ship coming up the fjord. The flag is wrapped around the mast."

He asks, "How long before they reach port?"

"Unless the wind picks up, it will be after the noon time."

He looks in the direction of the ship. "I'll check it out when I get back." He and Kristoff continue across the bridge.

As they pass the town square a familiar voice calls to him. "All hail the King."

He stops at the alley and watches her walk down the stairs. "I will never be the King."

She swings her dress as she sashays towards him. "You could if you wanted." She wraps her arms around his waist and presses her cheek into his chest. "Most everyone would accept you as King."

He wraps his arms around her shoulders. "I'm sure the usual suspects would object to that, but if I wanted to be King I would have done that years ago and my wedding day would not be with Queen Elsa."

She pinches his side.

He tries to break from her and backs into the wall. "I don't like that look in your eyes. What do you need?"

A grin gradually forms and a twinkle sparkles in her eyes. "The boys are not concerned about a wedding. They had their fill the night you proposed to our Queen."

"But?"

"Kristen, well, you will be doing me a great favor if she could see a proper wedding. I have very little money so I will not attend." She looks away.

He kneels in front of her and lifts her chin. He rolls her tear onto his finger and her breathing wavers. "You have been my friend even when others walked away. I make this oath to you and to Kristen. If I am still here and some lucky gentleman receives a yes from Kristen, I will do everything in my ability to make her wedding memorable."

"Mom, you're not making Sam feel guilty because he is getting married," Kristen asks as she trots down the stairs.

"No dear –"

He interrupts, "She told me you have never seen a wedding. Is that correct?"

"Yes, I have never seen one."

He rises to his feet and stands at the bottom of the steps with his hand held out. "The past few months my mind has been distracted. I do not use it as an excuse, but I made a promise to your father years ago to watch over his family. I even failed at that. With your mother's permission and with your permission, it is a custom where I'm from and I hear people here have a similar custom, but I request you be my sword bearer. I will not ask you to sing my exploits and the many I have killed and conquered. I will ask you to defend me in case marauders attack and try to take my bride from me."

Kristen's eyes grow wide.

With the hint of a smile, "Well, it's a good thing you are not in my homeland." He lets the grin expose his teeth. "I'll give you a choice. I'll escort you and your mother to a seat on my side of the chapel since I have very little family here."

She takes his hand. "What is the other choice?"

"You carry my sword." Her expression as innocent and as revealing shows her interest. He continues, "It's just a ceremonial sword in its scabbard. You will not get hurt."

"You mean the one that is as tall as she is?" Kristoff asks near the street.

He gages her height starting with her feet to the top of her head. "I think she has the sword by a half meter."

"I'm sure the boys around her will love seeing her carry your sword," Kristoff says.

He detects Kristen's hesitation. "Don't take his words to heart, but with the right clothing, I bet a few of the boys will take notice of you."

"What if I don't want the boys to notice me?"

"Then I will teach you to intimidate the boys with my sword."

"Excuse me?" Brigit asks.

"Ok, before mom has a heart attack, you can escort me down the aisle and sit on my side with mom."

"If she wishes to go, she has my permission, but I have to stay with her brothers to maintain the peace between them."

He holds his hand out to Brigit. "I can make arrangements where they will behave."

She shakes her head as she looks down. "As you said the wedding is for the bride and this is your time to be with her."

He wrinkles his forehead and turns away. An emotional dagger stabs his heart. He blocks the pain from his mind and nods.

Brigit touches his arm. "The castle is their world and we live in our world. You can be the bridge between our worlds. I will pray for you and your beautiful bride."

"And you, Kristen?"

"Momma's right, I would feel out of place wearing a fancy dress when I could be fishing with my brothers or beating up one of his friends."

He lightly brushes her hair over her shoulders. "I understand. We all have our place in society." He forces a smile. "Perhaps we can go fishing next week."

Kristen wraps her arms around his waist. "You will be alright. Just don't forget to say 'I do' at the proper time or step on her dress when you walk down the aisle."

He wraps his arms around Kristen shoulders. "Your father would be proud of you." After several seconds he steps back. "Well, I have a few things to get done before this evening." He nods to Brigit and clasps his hands behind his back. He walks past Kristoff and up the street.

Elsa stops and abruptly turns towards the door. She stares with intent. The noise in the kitchen stops and everyone looks at each other and then to their Queen.

"Elsa, what is wrong?" Anna touches her arm.

"I do not hear him."

"What?"

She runs to the door and steps through as she searches the area between the top of the wall and the wall gates.

Anna stops besides her and looks in the same direction. "What are you looking for?"

"I cannot hear him. It was like a door closing. Something must have happened. I have to help him." She starts towards the gate.

Anna grabs her hand. "Elsa wait, let Captain Larsen send the guards to look for him."

Captain Larsen approaches and bows. "Majesty, is there something I can do?"

"Something has happened to Sam. Please find him." Her shoulders slump as she wrings her hands.

Anna wraps her arm around her. "Before that door closed, do you know where he was?"

She paces back and forth. "He is standing in an alley talking to a young girl with brown hair. I have seen her in the castle. I think he goes fishing with her and her brothers." She taps her fist to her head. "Her mother is Brigit."

"Then the young girl is Kristen." Larsen says.

"Yes, that is her name Kristen." She stops and lowers her head. "I felt a surge of energy from him. He hugged her and the door closed."

"Did you see Kristoff?"

"He was standing on the street at the end of the alley."

"I think I know where they were going." Anna grabs the Captains arm and they walk a short distance.

Elsa closes her eyes as she holds her fists near her lips and she whispers. "Sam, where are you? Why did you close the link? You said you would tell me before you close it. Has something happened to you? Did something from your past show up?"

"Elsa, The Captain knows where Brigit lives. He will find him and tell him you are concerned. I am sure he has a rational explanation for what he did. Let us go back inside. I am sure it is just temporary."

Near the end of the street, they stop at the painter's house. Sam knocks on the door frame three times and waits. From the other side of the door, sounds of boots shuffle across the floor.

The door opens and a short gentleman with paint on his shirt greets them. "Come in, my friends." He leads them into the next room. "As you can see I had to start over. I did not mix my last batch of paint properly and overnight the new paint ran down the canvas. I must apologize. This will not be ready for this evening."

Sam studies the current painting. Most of Queen Elsa and part of the gentleman's hands are painted. It reminds him of the picture his sweet SaraCat showed him of a partially burned painting of a future Queen Elsa and the male stranger standing behind her.

"How long will it take to finish?"

The painter glances to Kristoff standing by the door. "If I don't have any other misfortunes and the paint dries as I'm hoping, I still need to mix a batch color that ruined the other painting."

He barely turns his head to glare at him. "How long?"

The painter rubs his hands together. "Three days, no more than five days, I could give some of your money back." He glances back and forth from Kristoff to him.

"As long as it meets the requirements of the contract you can keep the money." He marches past Kristoff and out the door.

A minute later, Kristoff catches up with Sam walking towards the wharf.

"Are you okay?"

Without missing a beat, he replies directly, "Why do you ask?"

"Why? You normally spend some time conversing with the painter, but . . ."

"But what is your point?" Sam spots the Southern Isle flag on the ship costing up to the dock.

"My point is you were short with him. Your shortness made him nervous." Kristoff struggles to keep up with him.

"Have you not heard? I'm marrying one of them so I will not be one of us."

Kristoff grabs his arm and stops him. "What? Who is them and who is us?"

San stares at him without emotions. "Ask Princess Anna. I am sure she knows the differences between the 'them' and the 'us' classes of Arendelle's society."

"What is wrong with you?"

He grabs Kristoff's wrist and applies pressure until he releases him before continuing towards the wharf. "I need to review the guests arriving from that ship."

He reaches the pier in time to help pull a hawser line to moor the ship.

"Well, did the Queen of Arendelle come to her senses and banish the horse boy to the docks?" King Frederick comments as he walks down the gangplank. Prince Georg follows his King.

Sam studies the Southern Isle King and his brother for any weakness. He does not move with his hands clasped behind his back. The King will have to get his fine clothes dirty to get past him. Georg steps to his brother's left side with his hand on his sword. He glances to the ship's crew going about their business. One guard watches them, but he is too far away to save his King.

Frederick and Georg stop several meters in front of him. Georg glances left, then behind him. He appears to recognize the danger they have walked into.

"I still say you are as stupid as you were the last time I was here. Have you forgotten your manners?" Frederick grips his sword.

"Brother, there is something wrong with him. I advise we do nothing to give him an excuse to attack."

King Frederick glances over his shoulder and yells. "CAPTAIN, BEAT TO STATIONS." The ship's drummer beats the sound to battle stations. A bee hive of activity explodes on the ship as several Marines rush to the rails with crossbows and two sharpshooters point their long rifles at him, one on the quarter deck and other at the ship's bow. Several sailors jump onto the pier with swords in hand as more run down the gangplank.

"Are you going to stop all of us? Now stand aside." Frederick takes a step.

Prince Georg grabs his brother's arm and steps in front of him with his sword drawn. The clatter of horse hooves race down the wharf.

A rider clicking his heels on the pier approaches. "Samuel, what are you doing? They are our guests."

Sam nods to the two sharpshooters, but returns his stare at Frederick and Georg. He gradually separates his hands behind his back as ice forms between them. The clicking boots stop two meters behind him.

Captain Larsen whispers a plea. "Sam, they have us outnumbered. I do not wish for my men to die because someone had an itchy finger. You pull your sword and how many of us will die before the rest of the guards get here."

Sam clasps his hands together. "Captain, if you see this situation as lost, I will give you the time to take your guards back to the castle, before I roll their ship and freeze them. The tide will take their bodies out to sea. We can say—" He catches Frederick's glance towards the castle, while the muscle under his right eye twitches. Is it a moment of hesitation or was he unprepared?

Larsen interrupts his thoughts. "Please tell me what's going on. Why did you close the connection with our Queen?"

Frederick stares at him and commands, "Captain, if you will not arrest him, run him through."

Larsen steps to the side and yells. "Majesty, what crime has he committed deserving of death?"

"He is interfering with my King's obligations to meet Queen Elsa," Prince Georg replies.

Sam focuses on Frederick. His eyes do not move nor blink, but his hands move apart, creating the blade of an ice sword.

Larsen moves several steps back. "Admiral Ryan, Queen Elsa has requested your presence immediately. Admiral, do you understand your orders?"

He forces his hands together and the partial ice sword disappears. He brings his feet together and slides his hands to his side. As he rolls his shoulders back and stands tall, he performs a military about-face. He marches to the Captain and stops a meter in front of him. A grin forms across his face. "Do you find it interesting, I have said nothing and done nothing, yet they have their weapons drawn?"

"Interesting or is this a test?"

"My meager presence has them quaking with fear. What do you think will happen when Queen Elsa gives me the authority to make decisions?"

"Do I have to answer that?"

"You are a good man, Captain Larsen. Maybe I should find out what my bride-to-be needs from me." He sidesteps two steps and marches up the wharf leaving the Captain to face the Southern Isle contingent.

"Gentlemen, I would really hate to see someone from Arendelle think you are attacking. Prince Georg, you have seen Samuel in combat. What do you think he would do if one of your troops fired by mistake?"

Georg nods and commands, "Release from quarters."

The Marines move away from the rails and the sailors return to the ship.

"Thank you, sir. If you gentlemen are prepared, I will escort you to the castle."

Frederic and Georg, both search in the direction Samuel traveled before moving towards the Captain.

Larsen grins. "I assure you. He is half way to the bridge." He leads the way with King Frederick and Prince Georg close behind, followed by three Southern guards and three Arendelle guards.

Sam crests the bridge and the castle gates open with several guards replacing the swords into their scabbards. He approaches. "Why did you close the gates?"

The Lieutenant replies, "The drum beat to arms."

He snickers. "You can blame that on the King and Prince of the Southern Isle. They thought I was attacking them."

"Were you?"

He glances over his shoulder and sees them at the other end of the bridge. "I sent a message."

"Did they understand the message?"

"Who is here and who is back there?" He walks past them.

The Lieutenant looks across the bridge. "I guess they did."

Sam returns to the stables.

 **End of Chapter**


	87. Chapter 86 Preparations

**Chapter 86: Preparations**

 **1 year 7 months Until Correction**

Half an hour later, Kai burst into the service room. "Samuel, where are you? Queen Elsa is not going to forgive you for almost starting a war with the Southern Isle."

Gerda glares at him from between the rails. "King Frederick? You do recall he wanted Prince Georg to marry our Queen?"

He continues trimming the horse's hoof. "Actually, that is one of the events I do recall clearly. Georg may have wanted to marry her, but she growled at me and not at him."

She picks up a long piece of hay and flicks it against his arm. "What is going through your head today? Most men who are about to get married do not work on their wedding day."

"Nor do they insult the Queen's wedding guests. What did you do to force King Frederick to call his troops to arms in our harbor?" Kai snarls with his hand on his waist. "Do you know how much trouble you have caused our Queen this morning?"

He lowers the horse's hoof to the floor. It reaches over him and grabs the hay from Gerda and chews as it stares at her.

He rubs the horse's chest and says to it. "She was only trying to get my attention not hurt me." The horse snorts. "This is not the first time her guest has mistaken my actions for hostilities. What exactly did I do that they consider hostile?"

"You would not let them pass on the pier. They said the Captain of the Guards had to persuade you to move."

"Did they happen to mention how they responded and who had their swords drawn?"

"Yes, they did." Kai points an accusatory finger at him. "You stood in their way to bully them. Why of all days do you have to pick a fight?" He slams his hands against the rails causing it to rattle. "If you ruin my Queen's wedding, I will do everything in my power to get you out of Arendelle." He hits the rail again and stomps out of the stables.

"Wow, I have never seen him this mad." He glances at Gerda. "It's not like I'm doing it on purpose, but it does make three for today." He lifts the horse's other hoof and trims.

"I have seen him this mad, twice, when that evil Duke tried to kill our Queen."

He nods to himself as he continues trimming. "If I was not incapacitated at the time, the Duke and Hans would have been fish food. No doubt King Frederick and his brother would not be here."

"No doubt," she replies as she starts to walk away.

"What was the first time?"

She looks back at him. "What?"

He places the horse's hoof on the floor and moves to the rail. "You said you saw him this mad twice. What was the first time?"

She walks over to the rail and touches his arm. "Please do not tell him you heard it from me. When I walk away this conversation did not occur."

"I understand."

"The day you saved Queen Iduna's life, you took the King's sword. He saw two guards on the wall. One had a crossbow. Sometime after you put down the rebellion, Iduna confided in him of what you said about her being the target. He asked around and no one gave him an answer. He was very upset he did not know anything about the guards before the rebellion."

"He didn't hear because Otto Jensen of the guards claimed he had a spy on staff and made sure the other guards knew it."

"Was there a spy?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

He steps out of the stall. "I believe her name means 'one who has heard'. Now there is an irony." He moves into the next stall. He waits, but it does not appear Gerda knows who he refers. "Coal black hair, you told her to button up her top or leave."

"I only remember the one who had black hair. I was told she left a couple of days before we returned."

He leans against the rail and waits for her to add the numbers together to get the answer.

"That hussy, different guards would follow her around. If I could not find her, I searched the barracks first. Oh, now that makes me mad." Gerda fumes. She turns to him. "How did you find out?"

"The same way I find out about things I need to know. At the time, I needed to know if there was to be other rebellions before I disposed of the rebels." He lifts the horse's leg to check the hooves. "Don't ask me if I discovered others against the King or Queen. My trial is proof of my loyalty to them."

She walks into the service room.

He yells to her. "Ask him if he sees me as part of 'us' or one of 'them'?"

After a few seconds the service door opens and closes a second later.

The following morning Sam manicures the last of the three disruptive horses, who refused to cooperate the previous day, but with a cold attitude reminder, they are eager to get the hooves trimmed.

Working on the last hoof, he hears a faint knocking on the service door. A momentary blue hue reflects off the polished buckles on the harness hanging on the post. He detects a young male opening the door.

"Hello? Is anyone in here?"

"What can I do for you, son?" He moves silently towards the service room.

"Prince Georg sent me to bring you back to him." The boy moves along the wall trying to peek into the stable area. He fidgets with his hat.

Sam catches a glimpse of the boy's uniform. It reminds him of the nine year old Prince Georg who searched for bugs with Princess Elsa. The more he stares at him the more he sees similar features of the young Georg.

He steps into the light and the boy's eyes widen. "Are you related to Prince Georg?"

The boy slowly nods. "He is my uncle."

"Why would the Prince send his nephew to do his job?" His left brow rises. "Is this a test for you?"

The boy stares at him.

"Is this a test for me?"

The boy just stares.

"Do you know my name?"

His head slowly moves from side to side.

"Are you familiar with a military rank of Admiral?"

His head slowly nods.

"My military rank is Admiral." The boy's eyes widen. "Are you familiar with the proper protocol concerning an Admiral and a Prince?"

The boy moves his head diagonal and gradually slinks back towards the door.

"Since your head movement could be construed as either, yes and no, or confusion on your part. Do you know what I think?"

He moves his head side to side and continues moving towards the door.

"I think that subject was probably covered in one of your classes, but you don't remember. You know what else I think?" He steps towards the door and drops to his knees as he holds out his hand.

The boy stops and stares at his hand.

With a smile he tries to calm the boy. "Let's start again. My name is Samuel Ryan, Admiral. What is your name?"

The boy hesitates, holds out is hand and stares at him. "My . . . my name is Prince George."

He shakes his hand. "Prince George? You are named after your uncle, Prince Georg?"

He shakes his head and a smile buds on his face.

"I hope someone told you the likelihood of you becoming King of the Southern Isle is almost zero, unless you have a plan to remove all of your uncles from the line of succession."

"Oh-no, I would never wish that on my uncles. They are very good to me."

George's mind, like many children, is wide open for his viewing. George is sincere. The grin on the King's face and the not so happy face of Prince Georg, tells him Frederick over ruled his younger brother in sending little George to the stables. _What game are you playing Frederick?_

"Just to let you know. An Admiral has authority over a Prince unless he is next in line to the throne, or the King publicly announces a Prince will have authority over the Admiral." He stands. "I bet you are hungry." He holds out his hand. "Do you like cold fruit and cream?"

George takes his hand. "I have had fruit and cream separately, but not together."

"If you are willing to try, I bet we can find some in the castle's kitchen, afterwards you can thank your King for sending you to see me." He opens the door and escorts George into the castle through the service door.

A half hour later, Kai marches into the kitchen. "What are you doing in here?"

Gerda replies after swallowing her fruit and cream. "What does it look like? We are entertaining Young Prince George with dessert. Do you want some?" She holds up a spoon full.

"No, I don't want some. King Frederick and Prince Georg are looking for him." Kai replies in a huff.

Sam points his spoon at Kai and leans close to George. "See how his face turns red and the blood vessels in his neck bulge out. He is not upset your uncles are having him look for you. Oh-no, he is upset because we did not invite him to have fruit and cream with us."

George snickers and sticks another spoon full into his mouth.

Kai stomps out of the kitchen.

He stares at the short hall. "Well, I do believe it is about to get a little interesting."

Gerda pokes his side. "You do know they are looking for little Prince George."

"That's what I hear, but have you heard Prince George has a respiratory infection." He sets his cup on the counter.

"What does he have?" She examines George. "He looks fine."

"Put your ear near his mouth."

Gerda leans close to George. "He is wheezing."

"Yes and it is in its early stages. By this evening he will be coughing and later extremely miserable. I bet if you take him to the Herbalist and tell her he needs the winter elixir. The wheeze should disappear along with the infection." He holds out his hand. "Okay, buddy, if you will follow this lovely lady, she will get you something for that wheeze and it will help you to sleep at night."

George gives him the cup and jumps down. He motions to the door.

"Oh, he has better manners than a certain Admiral I know." Gerda and George walk out the door.

Several boots shuffle down the hall floor. Sam grins.

Prince Georg enters and glares at him as he searches the kitchen.

"Ladies and gentlemen, please exit the kitchen. I am quite sure some vulgarity is about to be thrown at me."

The kitchen staff exits through the service door. The Prince continues to search under counters and in the storage room. Sam watches him as he finishes little George's cream and fruit. Prince Georg steps through the servant's door for several seconds before closing it. He stands next to the counter and glares up at him. Georg starts to speak, but he holds up the palm of his hand near Georg's face

Sam watches the hall as the spoon chimes in the cup. King Frederick followed by Kai enters the kitchen. His eyes lock onto the King. His hands make a wide stance as he leans on it. "Ask your question."

The guard enters the dining room and hands Queen Elsa a piece of paper. "Well, that makes nine ships floating up the fjord and eleven more have been spotted further out."

"Looks like you will have the chapel packed with guest. Do you think Sam will give up a few seats for your guest?" Anna chuckles as she continues to work on the dining seating arrangement.

She stares out the window towards the fjord. She hears her sister's comment, but a feeling of despair increases dramatically since he closed the connection between them. Her eyes slowly droop.

Anna shakes her arm. "Elsa, why are you sad. This should be one of the happiest days of your life." She waits a few seconds. "Elsa, what is wrong?"

"I do not like this feeling. He is right. He said once I become comfortable hearing his thoughts and knowing where he is, it would distress me, if it closed." She rests her head on the back of her hand. "Even if it is temporary and logical for this day, something does not feel right. I do not like it."

"You're the Queen. Do something about it." Gerda comments as she enters the room.

"I guess I could send the guards after him, but I do not think he would like that. It would create a trust issue between us."

"So what is your alternative?" Gerda waits and after several seconds she knocks on the table next to her head.

Elsa sits up as glares at Gerda. "You have my attention."

"What is your alternative?"

She throws up her hand and shakes her head. "I do not know. The one person who could give me an alternative for this type of situation is not here."

Gerda places her hands on her chair and leans close. "Your mother did not teach you the trick to finding him?"

"What trick? Do I know this trick?" Anna asks as she leans towards them.

"I can easily spot you so I'm sure you do not know the trick." Gerda answers.

Anna huffs. "Why would mother not teach me," she glances at Elsa, "or us this trick."

"He has to give you part of his energy. I don't understand how it works. I know it does." She grins at Elsa. "You have the ability to find him. He just has not shown you where to step."

"What do you mean where to step?"

"To find him you must concentrate on him. Visualize what he looks like. The more of your senses you get involved to identify him the easier it will be to find him."

She huffs and her hair bangs fluff up. "I do not understand."

"Look at me, then look at Anna."

Elsa glances at both.

"Based on what your eyes see, Am I, Anna?"

"Of course not."

"If you were blindfolded could you smell the difference between us? How about touch? What about hearing and taste. With only one senses at a time could you tell the difference?"

"It depends if my senses already know the difference."

Gerda's grins and walks past two chairs. "I bet each of your senses individually can determine Sam from others." She glances back. "Your face is turning red. You have already tested your senses for him."

Despite her desire she did not have to be told. The heat in her cheeks told her she was blushing.

"Elsa, I have never seen you get this red so quickly." Anna teases.

Gerda holds the back of a chair. "If your senses know Sam from other men, this trick will be easy for you. Take a moment to look at everything in this room before closing your eyes."

She visually looks at everything, including a sister making a funny face at her, but she closes her eyes.

"Keep your eyes close and remember where everything is located." Gerda waits a few seconds. "Now blank everything out except to see only blue."

"Blue?" She starts to open her eyes.

"Don't open them," Gerda barks at her. "You will have to start over if you do."

"Does a dark blue count?"

"Your mother said dark blue creates the greatest contrast between the objects you wish to see. Visualize Anna and Anna only. What do you see?"

She turns her head towards Anna's last location and remembers how she last saw her, but Anna looks distorted like she is behind glass, but she sees enough of her to know the distortion is her sister.

"Do you see her?"

She nods.

"Look for me."

She turns her head to the location she saw Gerda and focuses hard to bring her image against the dark blue, but she does not appear as Anna did. The faint image appears to be moving something in front of it. "Are you waving your arm?"

"Open your eyes."

The blue background changes to the dining room with all of its furnishings and Gerda waving at her. "Why did I see Anna as a blurred image, and yet, I saw you as an outline? I could see the blue field through you. Is this what he sees?"

Gerda walks back to her. "You saw me so you can see him. He has many years of practice. I'm sure he sees it clearer as you will one day. I'm sure the first time he tried, it was very strange to him, but he had someone to teach him and give him encouragement then she showed him how."

"Why has he not shown me?"

"If your sole existence is to be an assassin," Gerda cocks her head towards her. "Are you giving up your Queendom?"

She narrows her eyes at Gerda. "No, I'm giving up my crown." She looks down for anything that will help her to focus. The slightest movement of her hand causes the engagement ring to sparkle. She barely moves her finger and the rainbow of colors dance across her ring followed by green and blue which begins to dominate the other colors. A warm hand touches her arm.

"My dear, what did you just see? Were they colors reflecting off your ring?"

She looks up at Anna and to Gerda kneeling next to her.

"What is wrong with your eyes?" Anna asks, leaning away from her.

"What do you mean my eyes?"

"Elsa, the same thing happened to him the first time. He said his eyes were in a between state of seeing normal and seeing in the blue vision. He pushed against the limits to get it under control. The whites of your eyes are a light blue. All you have to do is concentrate one way or the other and it will clear. If he is nearby you can find him." She looks at the floor and past the Queen's chair. "If you will wait a few minutes I will be back and try to help you. I have to get the younger Prince George back from the Herbalist. Sam said he has a breathing infection trying to take hold of the boy."

Gerda runs out the side door.

She looks at Anna. "Are my eyes blue?"

"Well, it is like she said the whites of your eyes are a light blue."

"I cannot go through the wedding ceremony with blue eyes. What will the guest say?" She covers her eyes with her hands and peaks between her fingers. It is still the same. I see the colors." She repeats the covering and uncovering of her eyes. It does not change. Thoughts begin to run through her mind of people laughing at her. She closes her eyes tight, but still she sees colors merging together as they shatter into tiny pieces.

Hands grab her arms and shake her. "Elsa, Elsa, stop."

"I can't control it."

Anna pulls her head to her shoulder. "Elsa, if this is Sam's magic. Concentrate on him. Visualize him."

She brings the image of Sam into her thoughts. He moves into the colors and forces them to solidify. He brings them under control and drifts away. She opens her eyes and the room is as it should be.

"Are you okay?"

"Now I know why Sam says he cannot do it for long. My head hurts." She hugs Anna and closes her eyes. The blue field returns and she thinks of him. The wall gives way to the next room and the next. She sees the glowing images of the staff moving around the kitchen. She sees the blurred image of Kai and recognizes King Frederick and Prince Georg in the kitchen afterward she sees a similar image that was Gerda. She glances towards the herbalist room and sees two warm bodies and the outline of another person. "Did Gerda say she was going to the Herbalist to get young Prince George?"

"Yes, she did."

She stares at the blue outline in the kitchen. "I think he is in the kitchen."

Anna pushes her up. "How do you know?"

"Gerda said if I can see her, I can see him. If she is with the herbalist, he or someone like him is in the kitchen with Kai, Frederick, and Georg. Are my eyes still blue?"

"They are not quit as blue, but they do have a blue tint to them."

"Please go to the kitchen and get Sam out of here for a little while. I do not want him to see me like this."

"But he can help you to bring your eye color under control."

She grin, "I know he can, but I need to control it long enough to get past the wedding. Gerda implied that Sam may not see her. It will give me a chance to test the limit. After all, that is what he would do."

Anna stands. "Ok, I will get Kristoff and we will entertain him for how long?"

"When he is ready to come back do not stop him."

Anna departs through the hall door. She sits back with her eyes closed and stares at him. A grin forms across her lips.

"Where is my nephew?" Prince Georg snarls as he jabs a sharp object into his side.

Sam does not move. "And who is your nephew?"

Kai intervenes. "Where is the Prince, who was sitting next to you a few minutes ago?"

"Yes Samuel, where is Prince George, who was sitting next to you?" Frederick smirks.

The pain in his side gets a little sharper. "Is that the same little boy wearing a uniform similar to the uniform you wore when you were nine years old out in the garden searching for bugs?" His head rolls to the side. He sees an emotional change in Prince Georg's eyes. "Is he whom you are searching?"

Georg withdraws the dagger point from his side.

"All that you know about me, why did you send your nephew to the stables to fetch me to your brother?"

Georg's emotion reveals the truth before he could regain control.

"You didn't send him did you?"

Georg looks away as he clenches his jaw.

"Which of your idiot brothers would place your nephew in harm's way to get at me? Well, let's see which idiot brother is here." He pretends to search the room before pointing to Frederick. "Well, well, there is one right there. Look Prince Georg. It is your older brother, the King."

Georg does not look, but turns his back towards his brother as he massages his head.

"I can understand a King seeing his subjects as nothing more than a resource to be used, but a brother. Worst yet, if he sees your nephew as an expendable resource, which explains why he was willing to let you take the blame for stabbing me while you protected him." He shakes his head. "I hope you are not doing this to impress me." He points an accusatory finger at Frederick. "You think I'm disrespectful now, wait until tomorrow when Queen Elsa gives me the authority to negotiate for Arendelle."

"Is that a threat?"

"Just like the threat you gave his nephew?"

"What?" Georg clenches his fist as he glares at him.

"Again he didn't tell you. Georg, you need to trust only, once you can verify. Your brother threatened to force the young Prince to sleep on the cold floor, if I did not return with him." He glares at the King. "Did you know the young Prince has a respiratory infection? The cold floor would make the problem worse and in this age of time he could have died."

He glances at the two brothers. "Georg's incompetency and your indifference, I would have listened to the child's wheezing and the moment I DETECT the young Prince in distress, I WOULD remove him from your care and escort him to his mother."

The servant's door opens. Prince George holds the door and motions for Gerda to enter. She eyes everyone in the room. "What are you gentlemen doing that needs the staff to stand outside?"

Next to the closed door George stands with his feet together and his hands to his side. Sam reaches under the counter and holds a cup.

"Younger Prince George, did you take the herbal medicine?"

"Yes, sir."

With a smile he hands the frosty fruit and cream cup to George. "Good, you have performed in an outstanding manner."

Georg snickers and looks away.

Sam gradually rotates his head towards him. "Care to enlighten us with the meaning of the suppressed laugh?"

"I will answer the question." King Frederick moves to his side of the counter. "I have been deeply concerned with your actions in the past several years. I thought Queen Elsa had made a mistake by accepting your proposal. I told her the last time I was here. Do you know what she said?"

He stares at him.

Frederick continues, "She said to test you and even said you would do this."

He glances at the boy.

"Prince George is completely innocent. The confrontation on the dock was the test, but when little George had a coughing fit, I suggested we send him to you"

"See if I would detect it and take action." He turns his head to older Georg. "The knife was the distraction so I would not look. You understand if I had grabbed your hand, I would have known a second before I broke it."

Georg slaps the back of his shoulder. "A calculated risk, as it turns out, you have proven yourself to the King of the Southern Isle."

"I am satisfied with my first opinion of you was incorrect, but that does not mean I will not be watching you. I still say Queen Elsa is too good for you."

"Okay, stop picking on my future brother in law." With her hands on her waist Anna struts around the counter and wraps her arm around Sam's arm. "Come with me. We need to talk."

He walks with her through the short hall. "Did you know that was a test?"

"No, I did not and Elsa did not know either."

As they moved into the entrance hall, she maneuvers him towards the main doors. He glances towards the top of the stairs, and hopes.

"You will see her soon enough. Have patience."

They stroll out the doors and down the stairs. Kristoff holds his arm out and his wife hooks his arm. The three stroll towards the gate. He walks in silence as they converse about Elsa's wedding. Across the bridge and down several streets, they amble. Anna visits the shops along the way as Kristoff cares her packages.

"Do you need some assistance caring those?"

Kristoff peeks around a box. "Anna says the other boxes are supposed to be smaller than these. I just hope there are not too many more." He adjusts the boxes as Anna places another package on the stack.

"Come on, we have more gifts to pick up." She marches down the street to the next shop. Kristoff follows her.

Sam does not move and watches them. "Is this what awaits for me tomorrow?" A shadow approaches from the side. After the early tests he prepares to strike even though the shadow looks familiar.

"What if it is? Does it tip the scale for you to run?"

"Where shall I run? Even a few weeks ago, it would have totally destroyed her heart. I would have done exactly what I have been trying all these years to prevent." He turns to a friend. "Shepherd, are you a little old to be following me?"

"Don't flatter yourself. Why do you think the Princess is roaming the shops when she usually sends Kristoff for her packages?"

"To get me out of the castle, of course."

"That's not what's bothering you, is it?" After a moment, the Shepherd slaps his arm. "I don't have to have your abilities to see something is stressing you. Walk with me."

He watches the Shepherd walk down the street away from his soon to be extended family. He runs and catches up with the Shepherd.

"I was beginning to wonder if you had heard me. You're not getting cold feet."

He looks down at his feet. "They are cold, but no colder than usual."

"No, no, cold feet as in having second thoughts about marrying Queen Elsa." They both stop and nod to a lady passing in front of them.

They continue walking. "I want to marry Elsa."

"Elsa, not Queen Elsa? Interesting!" The Shepherd grins up at him.

"If you have a point to make, please make it."

"You want to marry Elsa, but not the Queen?" He continues walking.

Sam stops. His brows push together and the wrinkles on his forehead leave a scowl on his face. "No, Queen and Elsa are one in the same."

"It sounded like you wanted the girl, but not the title." He stops at the corner.

Sam steps towards the Shepherd. "Do you think I'm going into this blindly?"

"It doesn't matter what I think. It's what you think and I think you have a problem with the Queen." He steps into the street.

Sam grabs his arm and pulls him back. "Now you listen to me. I love Elsa whether she is Queen or not. As she is Queen I will follow her commands to the best of my abilities."

"But you have an issue with her title."

"No."

"Liar, you're holding back. It is best to reveal the truth now and not after the wedding."

"Her title has nothing to do with it."

"Then it's her, you lied again and I'm not going to let you hurt her."

The Shepherd lunges at him.

From his perspective the scene moves in slow motion. He is surprised the Shepherd is really attacking him. His hesitation allows a lower rib impact which propels him back over several wooden crates. Sam rolls across his back and onto his knees ready to fight. "What is wrong with you?"

The Shepherd picks up his hat and brushing the dirt off of it. "I have asked you the same question and you have yet to answer it." He places his hat on his head. "If you can't answer the question, I beg you to delay the marriage until you can answer the question."

Sam lowers his hands to the ground as his head drops forward. "But I love her."

"Why?"

"For many years my goals was to keep her safe. The last three years she has been fighting for me. Anyone else would have left after the first trial. She never gave up." He snorts to himself. "Not even LadyCat would give up on me and I gave plenty reasons for her to leave. In the end, LadyCat fought to her death, so I would survive on the small chance that I could save them."

"Does she believes in you?"

"Yes," Sam leans on his hands.

The Shepherd kneels beside of him. "You confessed Elsa fought for you the last three years. Do you doubt she believes in you?"

Sam's body stiffens as he focuses on the emotional child who wants to run. His other emotions stand to the side and wait for his decision. His mind searches for her. On the snow covered hill he looks up. A person with white hair fluttering in the breeze watches him. He crawls up the hill and slides halfway back down. The sunlight reflects off the clothing. A gust of wind, waves the cape with the Arendelle flower. He recognizes the face of his bride to be. The cape flickers to reveal a star field and the Sariphan star etched on the underside. The cape drifts up and in the corner is his ship the Aurora. She draws out a sword from its scabbard and stabs it into the snow. Three jewels in the handle reflect their brilliance in the sunlight. The blue jewels projects Elsa's snowflake. The green jewel projects the flames of fire. The center red jewel reflects the beating of two hearts merging into one. The blue jewel project its light onto the snow creating a path of blue steps the stop half way down the hill.

She stares and points at him.

The green flames surge and retreat around his feet. He holds up his hands up and generates the same green flames.

She points to the end of the blue steps.

He kneels and presses his hand into the snow in front of him. The green flames shoot forward and create green stairs that lead to the blue steps, but they do not touch.

She takes a couple of steps down the stairs and watches him.

He stands and steps onto the green stairs.

She takes another step.

The pain and stress, loosen their grip on him. He takes two steps and she takes three steps down. He takes three steps up and quickens his pace as she takes four steps down. She reaches the end of the blue steps as he reaches the end of the green steps.

Her white hair silhouettes her face. Blue snowflakes rain down over her. He lifts his right hand and the green flame reaches for her, but the flames change into her blue snowflakes. She touches his hand and a surge of cold slide up his arm and into his chest. She reaches out and he takes her other hand. An emotional calm fills his heart and he places one foot onto her blue stairs. She turns her body to face him and places her foot on his green step. The blue and green energy swirls around them, until it changes to red and undulates in rhythm with their heart beats as they beat as one.

He lowers his head as she lifts her head and their lips meet. A sensation of floating relieves the stresses against his body. Visions pass through his mind with each one moving faster and faster. The images replay his past and reveal the blood on his hands from his assigned targets. She slides her hands over the blood and he sees countless dead worlds. Images of star patterns revolve around them. He recognizes a few constellations and a memory surface, reminding him of only one location that would contain those specific star patterns, but that location no longer exist. Everything merges together and explodes outward to change his surroundings to a desert. A green shadow sweeps across the sky and creates a green hue on the surface.

He looks to the sky. The edge of an emerald green planet passes between him and the sun. It reminds him of when he landed on this moon. The planet moves and the green shadow follows it. Birds sing and water dances over river rocks. The area that was deserted now teams with life.

He stares at the blood covering her and glances at the blood covering his clothes. He tries to pull away, but she holds onto his arms. In the distance the Emerald planet sets below the horizon. Her hand touches his face. The blood runs off of them and into the crevasses in the ground.

She smiles as she lifts up a female toddler with blonde hair. The crystal blue eyed child grabs his collar and pulls as she nuzzles her head against his neck. A familiar sensation he desires never to let go. The woman slips her arm around his waist. He glances down at the dark haired baby boy in her arms and pulls her closer as his arm slides across her shoulders. Many representatives from as many worlds as there are stars bow before them. She looks up at him.

He asks, "Is this the future that will come to past or one possible future?"

"You already know the answer. You just have to live it."

His eyes open. Mud covers his hands where they rest in a mud puddle. A sharp pain stabs his leg and he moves his knee causing a rock rolls out from under his leg.

A female's voice asks, "What did he say about the future will become the past?"

He rocks back onto his heels and holds up his hands as ice crystals form. After the mud freezes he flexes his hands and the ice particles with the mud falls to the ground. He wipes his hands on his trousers and looks directly into a beautiful set of turquoise-blue eyes. "I asked her if what I saw is the future that will come to past or one possible future."

Anna and Kristoff glance at each other while watching him.

The Shepherd comments, "You already know. Will you live it?"

"Please don't tell me you can read my mind?" Sam wipes the mud from his face with his sleeve.

"Do you think you are the only one who has the same root problem? In my line of work I have heard it all." The Shepherd shakes his head, "But I have never seen anyone get mud off their hands by freezing it. Is that one of those things you don't like to talk about?"

"It is. Few people know the truth about me and I have to be true to myself and my bride. To answer your question from however long ago, she does believe in me. Any delay would be reason enough for her to walk away." With the Shepherd's help he stands. "Queen Elsa has done something that LadyCat could not do, even in the end, but they both believed in me." He taps the side of his head. "She can see me."

He bows to Anna, "Princess, is there a reason that I should not be in the castle right now?"

She holds his arm, "No, I believe we are finished for today. Would you be so kind as to escort me and my husband back to the castle?"

"Shepherd is there anything I can do for you?"

From over his shoulder, he replies as he crosses the street, "Not today, but that is a very good trick I would like to call upon."

Places his hand on top of her hand, Sam takes the first step. "Your hand feels similar to Elsa's."

At the castle, Sam escorts Princess Anna and Kristoff into the foyer.

Gerda hugs him in the doorway. With moisture building in the corner of her eyes, she smiles up at him. "Do you know what our Queen did?"

He brushes a tear away and wraps his arms around her. "She found me on her own as I knew she could. Thank you, for giving her a little nudge." He whispers. "If her mother had lived she would have taught her the trick. Things being the way they are, again I thank you for showing her the way."

Gerda hugs him tighter as dark spots form on his shirt.

"It is okay, the King and Queen's little girl has grown up." He pats her head.

"Yes, she has. Do you need water brought up to your room for cleaning or can you do it yourself?" She pinches his side.

"Careful, tomorrow I will send my bride to explain to you why you should not bruise me."

A glint flashes in her eye. "Tomorrow maybe, but today?" she grins.

He breaks free from her and runs towards the stairs. "Coming through," he avoids a collision with two staffers before stopping at the bottom of the stairs. He turns. Gerda continues to grin. He bows to her and runs up the stairs two steps at a time.

On the residential landing, he takes a moment to compose himself while marching to his room. As he passes the Royal suite he detects two cold spots on the door. He hesitates and peeks over his shoulder to see who would be watching him. For just the moment he gives in to the temptation and places his hands on the cold spots. Her energy radiates into his hands. He whispers, "Soon I will shower you with all my love, very soon."

A muffled voice sounds through the door. "Okay, soon."

The cold spots on the door withdraw. He continues to his room and closes the door. His knees crumple as he slides against the door. "Will soon be soon enough?"

A paper garment bag hangs on the mirror. Still with two hours before the wedding starts, there is no need to put on the wedding clothes, but Sam stares at them. _What if they are too tight? It would be best to find the discrepancy now and not just before I have to walk down the stairs._ Reaching for the string holding the brown paper, he stops. _Please don't let it be like her father's uniform._ He pulls the string and opens the paper.

Royal blue slacks and a matching jacket with gold trim drapes on the hanger. A pair of polished black boots sits next to the mirror. "I don't know if I can dance, let alone walk in those boots."

Several minutes later while sitting in the chair, he stomps the boot onto the floor and his foot slides in. "They feel nice. My feet are not being squeezed." He walks around the room. Trousers are not snug, but not too loose either. "These feel very nice. Should I be surprised if the shirt and the jacket fits?"

He slips the jacket over the white shirt and proceeds to swings his arms across his chest with no binding or restrictions. Adjusting the jacket, he sees in the mirror what he does not want to see. "I hope this is not a prelude to what I will be seeing every day." With a nod he confesses, "It's comfortable."

The mirror reveals a strange image and he pulls his long white hair over his shoulder. "I have time to get it cut. It contrasts too much with the uniform, but if this is what she wants, I will wear it as is." A thought occurs to him as he flicks his hair back. "I don't remember being measured."

A slight twist and a turn the other way while looking in the mirror, he could get comfortable wearing the clothing. He glances at the wall between his room and the royal suite. "Thank you."

He removes his wedding garments placing them on the hanger and just puts his trousers on. A tone echoes in his head. "I have an hour. I wonder what the world is doing."

He runs and jumps over the balcony. An ice pole strikes the ground halfway between his balcony and the outer wall. His momentum and the ice pole propels him onto the wall cover. He runs across the top and leaps to the top of the corner turret with a blast of air kicking up dust. He leans against the flag pole and faces the setting sun. His chest rises to maximum capacity several times. His heart slows and he changes his vision to the slightly blue aura. Nature sings to calm him.

"Please go next door and check on Sam. His mood has changed." Elsa stares at the wall between her suite and his room. "Anna hurry. I am not detecting him."

Anna knocks on the door a second before she opens it.

Elsa closes her eyes and concentrates. She hears him humming.

Anna burst into the room. "Whoa." She forces a smile and points at her. "Did you know your eyes are glowing blue?"

"I heard him humming. Was he in his room?"

"He was not in there, nor on the balcony. It looks like he tried on the wedding clothes. I did see a puddle of water under a clear blue pole leaning against the outer wall across from his balcony.

Elsa moves towards her balcony. "Samuel, where are you hiding, now?"

"Do you want me to send the guards to look for him?"

She frowns. "No, he is close. I cannot find his exact location."

"Well, maybe you should eliminate where he is not. Is he beyond the bridge?"

Elsa concentrates as her vision sweeps the area outside the balcony door.

"Whoa!" Anna steps back.

She glances at her sister. "What is wrong?"

Anna points a shaky finger at her face. "Your eyes are glowing blue again." She moves towards the door.

Elsa looks in the mirror behind her. "Anna, please do not leave."

"I am not leaving." She closes and locks the door. "You cannot go to your wedding with your eyes like that."

Elsa moves around the room as though she is searching the floor. She stops at the balcony door.

"What do you see?"

Her head gradually turns and angles upwards towards the outer wall. Even with a dark blue background, a shadow stands on the roof of the corner turret. The head of the shadow turns as though it is peaking at her and she hears a voice. _It took you long enough, but a lot sooner than the last time._ The shadow moves and disappears.

Anna touches her arm. "What do you see?"

"The humming stopped. I thought I saw him to the top of the corner turret by the flag pole. He moved." She snaps around. "Go check his room, quickly."

Anna runs out the door and barges into Sam's room.

His trousers drop to the floor as he flips his shirt to cover his lower parts. "What happened to knocking, Princess?"

She turns her head towards the wall. "Where have you been and do not tell me you were in this room the whole time?"

"I needed fresh air." He partially turns his body as he points to the balcony.

She turns her back to him. "Do not show me anything I do not want to see."

He chuckles. "I stepped outside and climbed onto the roof. There was a nice breeze up there. Were you worried about me?" He watches the pink blush move up her neck and over her ears. He silently moves towards her.

"I was not worried, but Elsa was. She said your mood changed and then she could not see you."

He whispers behind her. "She did not see me leave?"

She ducks her head as she covers her eyes and moves toward the door. "I do not want to see anything."

He grabs her arm. "Anna, it is ok. I have clothes on."

She covers her eyes. "Are you fooling me?"

"I would never intentionally fool you with something so scandalous. If you had hesitated like you normally do when you knock, my trousers would have stayed up."

She peeks between her fingers and closes them again. "Put your shirt on."

"Don't run." He puts his shirt on backwards. "Okay, I'm sufficiently clothed. Now why did you burst into my room?"

Anna peeks again before facing him. "That is not the proper way to wear a shirt."

"You're delaying."

"No, I am not."

"Why are you here?"

"I am establishing if you ran away or were preparing for your wedding."

"She thought I had run away?" He glances at the wall between their rooms. "Tell Elsa I went to the roof for a breath of fresh air."

Anna backs out of the door and closes it.

Sam removes the shirt and glides his hand along the wall until he finds a cold spot. His eyes close and his head leans against the wall. "You thought I would run away."

 _I did not know where you were._

"But you sensed me?"

 _Yes, I detected a change in you, so what changed?_

"I went outside to clear my head."

 _What are you not saying?_

"This is good. Despite my efforts I still have human feelings. I'm glad you can detect my emotions change. I was on the roof listening to nature and started humming a song my mother sang to calm my mind. That is the change you detected, but there was an earlier change in Arendelle when Anna and Kristoff were supposed to be watching me."

 _What did you see?_

"Another good detection, I saw a future of us or one of our offspring completing my bridge. My mission will not be completed until we have a child."

 _Boy or girl?_

"My first instinct is to say a boy, but the vision says it could be either and she looks just like you."

 _We will be alright. This is just another adventure. I will try very hard not to make life dull for you._

He snickers.

 _Are you laughing at me?_

"Yes, I am. Compared to the last three years, how much more adventurous do you think it will be?"

 _As much as we make it?_

"You are absolutely right my love. It will be as adventurous as we make it. I'll meet you downstairs shortly." He pushes off the wall. The hum in his ears returns. He glances towards the balcony. "I will find you tomorrow."

A few minutes later a knock comes from the door. "I'm decent, come on in."

No response.

He touches the door and senses no one in the hall. The door creaks open. He looks both directions of the hall then looks down at the small package on the floor. He picks up the package and a fragrance with a hint of coconut tickles his nose. Sniffing it until he reaches the bed, he pulls the string off the outer paper and holds up a teal-blue shirt. A pair of teal gloves fall out. The back of the left glove reveals the embroider symbol for fire. He turns the right glove over, next to the left and takes a sharp breath as he gazes at the embroider snowflake given to him by his mother. The corners of his lips curl upon thinking that her snowflake has been passed on to another generation. He chokes back his emotions and stares at the shirt before sliding it between his fingers. "Interesting, this is very close to what I wore back on my ship."

The clock on the mantel strikes the bell for the first quarter of the hour. Another knock comes from the door. "Enter."

Kai enters the room. "Why are you wearing that shirt?"

He looks down at his clothes. "I think this looks better. The white shirt puts a target on my chest." He holds up the red sash. "This is too light to be a belt. I'm not sure if this is supposed to be worn under the coat or on the outside like her father did."

"To the very end you are going to be trouble. Put your coat on." He snatches the sash out of his hand. "It goes on the outside."

Sam puts on his coat and grins.

"What's so funny?" Kai asks as he wraps the red sash around Sam's waist and ties with a loose knot.

"In an hour you can't insult me without offending Queen Elsa and I know you do it because you care."

"Afterwards, I just have to be more discreet when I make my comments." He steps back. "As for caring, I care more about her than I do you, so if you hurt her."

Sam holds up his hands. "I know, I know, you are the third person to express their desire to protect Queen Elsa." He holds out his hand.

"What is this?"

"It is my way of saying, thank you. Don't ever let me forget what I have. I know you and Gerda saw her growing up more than I did, but thank you for believing in me. I will do everything I can to earn your trust on a daily basis."

Kai shakes his hand.

"This also gives me the opportunity to apologize for tripping you."

His brows narrow together, "When did you trip me?"

"Shortly after I arrived . . . in the kitchen . . . with Queen Iduna . . . your first insult to my face, I tripped you as you turned away from me. Gerda got very upset over it."

Kai narrows his eyes at him and places his clenched fist on his waist. "That was a long time ago. If you had not said anything, I would have gone to my grave thinking I did trip over my feet." He stares down at his feet. "If you had not tripped me, I would not have known about Gerda's feeling for me." He holds out his hand.

Sam shakes it. "Thanks you my friend."

Kai snatches his hand and matches to the door. "I need to get you over to chapel before I push you down the stairs."

Sam snickers as his hands slip into his gloves and follows Kai out the room.

At the bottom of the stairs, the castle staff bows and curtsies to him. He nods in return. "I will never get comfortable with this. Are you sure the sash is supposed to be this loose?"

"It's fine. Stop messing with it before you loosen it." Kai stops next to the castle door.

From a side room, Princess Anna escorts a lovely young lady wearing a white dress and light blue colored gloves, who also cares his sword.

Sam kneels in front of her. "I thought you were not coming."

Kristen glances up at Anna.

"I am sure you have heard my sister can do magical things when she puts her mind to it," Anna comments.

"I have heard that and I can see she is very talented."

Kristen touches the corner of his eye. "Why are you crying?"

He wraps his arms around her. "The other day I was sad and now you fill my heart with joy. Thank you for changing your mind and I see you are holding my sword. Will you be my escort to the chapel?"

She steps back and curtsies. "It will be my honor, but if we are attacked along the way, I'll drop your sword and hide."

He chuckles. "I understand." He turns towards the stairs and in his baritone voice he bellows, "Thank you."

Kristoff rounds the corner holding his fingers in his ears. "I don't think everyone in Arendelle heard you. You want to try again."

Anna steps between them and adjust Sam's collar with the gold lining. She slides her hand down his dark blue jacket and adjusts his red sash. "Please, do not encourage him."

"That is okay. The one, who needed to hear it, did." Sam turns to Kristen. "Before I am encouraged to get myself into any more trouble, let's walk." She moves to his left side with Kristoff behind them and they march towards the chapel.

At the chapel entrance with a few of the guest mingling outside the door, Sam spots young Prince George staring at Kristen. She waves at him and the young Prince smiles.

With a slight grin, Sam comments, "Careful my dear. He is a Prince from the Southern Isle. He will try to steal your heart."

"How do you know he will try to steal my heart?" She asks looking up at him.

"Just look at him, those beady little eyes, that funny haircut. He might as well shave his head if it gets any thinner. I do believe he had to stand on a stool to see over the bridge rail."

Kristen stops and plants the tip of the sword in-between two courtyard stones. She crosses her arms and gives him her best angry face. "I have never heard you make fun of any of the children in Arendelle. Why would you make fun of him?"

He stops two steps past her and watches her walk over to young Prince George before following her.

She says to the young Prince, "Don't listen to him. He is getting married today and has been acting strange."

Sam stands behind her. "Oh, you were talking about this young Prince George. My mistake, I thought you were talking about his uncle, the old Prince Georg."

Georg shakes his head. "Who is your friend?"

"Kristen, this is young Prince George with an 'e', and his uncle old Prince Georg without an 'e'. Old Prince Georg, these are my friends, your nephew, young Prince George and Kristen."

Georg kneels and offers his hand. "Kristen is a pretty name." She shakes his hand. "You should not hang around this old goat. He acts strange all the time. If he is acting stranger today, it is because he is scared and is about to run away, then I can take his place and marry Queen Elsa."

"Not in this universe," Sam replies. The two Princes and Kristen stare up at him. "Never mind, I will not run away. He can keep dreaming all he wants."

A small river rock hits near them and slides to a stop next to his boot. They look at the rock before searching in the direction it came. At the top of the steps Anna scowls at them and motions for them to move. A glitter of light reflects off her diamond necklace. Even from the distance he spots the snowflake with Alexandrite and Turquoise gems.

"That is a pretty good throw from there," Georg comments.

"Great accuracy," Sam comments.

They look at Kristoff.

"How far did you get before she hit you?" Kristen asks.

"Not even half that distance." He rubs the side of his head.

Anna shakes her fist at them.

Sam points to Anna and opens his hand with spread fingers three times, before pointing to the chapel. She nods to him and walks back into the castle. "Anna gave us the fifteen minute warning. Come on Kristen. You can drool on the young Prince after the reception."

"I wasn't drooling," she snaps.

"It looks like they were both drooling on each other," Georg comments with a grin.

"I was not." Young George replies and moves to the other side of his uncle.

Kristen moves to Sam's right side and jabs his leg with the hilt of his sword. Sam and Georg grin at the youngsters.

 **9771**

 **End of Chapter**


	88. Chapter 87 No Backing Out

**Chapter 87: No Backing Out**

 **1 year 7 months Until Correction**

In the chapel foyer, the stewards escort the groom party and royal guest into the auditorium. Both Prince George and his uncle Prince Georg take their seats in the second pew behind King Frederick on the front pew. Kristoff walks down the aisle. Sam takes two steps before looking back. He motions Kristen to his side. "You are my friend. Unless I'm leading you into battle, you can walk by my side."

"But I was told never to walk at the side of royalty."

"Who told you that?"

"Momma."

Sam kneels on one knee. "I do not wish to disrespect your mother, but did she also tell you there are exceptions to all rules?"

Kristen nods.

"I'm not royalty, yet, even afterwards I'm not sure that I will be. You can tell your mother you honored her request after the ceremony. Until everyone says 'I do', please walk by my side."

She agrees with a grin. They walk down the aisle together. Kristen grips the sword tight and focuses ahead. He places his hand on her shoulder to calm her. His ears hear a few inappropriate comments. The glare he sends to them quiets the noise. In the front, he sits her on the first pew by herself and glances back at his side of the disproportionally empty seats as compared to the bride's almost full side.

Setting the sword next to her, he whispers. "Don't worry about them. Don't listen to any comments they may say. I will deal with them at the appropriate time. We still have several minutes. Do you need some water or use the preacher's water closet?" He winks at her.

"No, I'm fine." She points a chapel steward behind him. "That boy is waving at you."

Kristoff elbows him. "They are about to shuffle the people around to even both sides, so we need to wait in the side room." Sam follows him into the next room and closes the door. "Don't take a seat buddy. This will be over in no time."

"No time is at the start of a battle. No time is when Ladycat and I married."

A knock sounds against the door and Kristoff opens it. He steps back and bows. "Please come in Majesty."

She walks directly to Sam and holds out her hand. He bows and kisses the back of her hand. "Majesty, Queen Victoria of the British Island, welcome to Arendelle. It is my honor that you are here."

"I was here the day you proposed to Queen Elsa, remember?" Victoria taps his arm with her fan.

"Well, a lot has happened since then."

"That is what I hear." She hands him a letter. "He wanted me to personally deliver this to you."

One side of the letter has the symbol of the Sariphan star and the other side his name, Admiral Ryan, Commander of the Aurora. He detects the energy radiating from the letter. "How is Colonel Bond?"

"He died two weeks ago."

Sadness stabs his heart. He meant to visit him, but as with all plans, life happens to interfere.

"He said you were his one and only friend who knew the truth about him."

"Did he pass peacefully?"

"I had a special room for him in my castle. I was the last to see him and he gave me that letter. He said if I could not put it in your hand, I was to burn it. The next morning he did not wake up. I did not read the letter. I suspect you will be visiting England."

He glances at her. "We are kindred spirits. Our training had similar patterns of a common teacher."

Her brows rise with her wide eyes. "I see. Will you find time to visit?"

He opens the letter. After a few minutes he slides the letter under his sash. "I will make every attempt to do so. I will honor his request. How many were like him?"

She glances at Kristoff and back to him. "He said there are many."

"I will need to contact the heads of the families. If they wish to send the originators to their families back here, I will do so."

"How many?" She asks.

"At most seven, if their children were taught who they are, it could be a few more. Do you know if they are still in England?"

"I'm not aware of the children who have left. I believe there are four." She grabs his hand. "Are you like him?"

Kai enters through the side door.

Sam grins and winks at her. "I will let you know when I visit."

"Majesty, when you are ready to take your seat, we will begin." Kai points to the open door.

"We cannot keep the bride waiting." All in the room bow as she walks out.

Kai says, "Okay, you two. I will walk all the way across to the other side. I will motion for you to come out to the center and bottom of the stairs." He points at Sam. "Do not stop along the way. The bride session will not start until you are standing at the center."

Kai turns to Kristoff. "Wait until Princess Anna is in her position next to the stairs before you escort the bride. All four of you will walk up the stairs together." He looks out the door. "It's time." He marches towards the far side of the stage.

Kristoff slips into his navy blue jacket and inspects himself in the mirror. After an adjustment to his gray trousers, he asks, "Are you nervous?"

"Even though this is my second one, I would be a liar if I said I wasn't."

Kristoff slaps the back of his shoulder. "You hide it well. You ready?"

With a slight nod, he answers, "I'm ready."

"Then let's go." Kristoff steps out of the room.

Sam follows and sees them. "Wow!" A huge smile blossoms on his face upon seeing the groom's side filled with his friends from Arendelle. He stops at the center and bottom of the stage.

The music plays and Princess Anna slow-steps her way up the center aisle. The interior lights allow her white dress to display the hint of blue tint. With each step the fourth pleat exposes a blue material with an array of light blue glittering snowflakes. As she reaches the halfway point, Kristoff marches down the aisle. As he gets close, he holds his right hand down and out. Anna drops her right gloved hand down and out. For one step their hands meet and they exchange a glance of love to each other. The next step their hands separate. She stops at her position next to the stage and Kristoff rounds the corner in the chapel foyer.

Sam bows his head towards her and she winks at him. A few seconds later, the music changes to The Brides March. Everyone stands and turns towards the center.

With slow steps Kristoff escorts Queen Elsa up the aisle.

As he stares at her, his heart beats a little faster. His world narrows to the only person in the room who matters to him. _I miss spoke. There is one more beautiful than the Queen._

With a smile she turns her head slightly towards him. _Stop talking. I am nervous enough as it is._

A sparkle catches his eyes followed by another. Each step she takes makes the sparkles form into the pattern of her snowflake. The bodices and sleeves form the similar designs as her ice dress. Three rows of glittering diamonds accentuate the blue snowflake charm surrounding a red star. Halfway up the aisle, her movement reveals a light green between the fourth pleats of her white dress. Her infectious smile draws his smile out. A sparkle from her blue eyes captures his breath. His heartbeat increases as she gets closer.

Sam offers his arm. Elsa's teal green gloved hand moves out from under her bouquet of flowers and slides on top of his arm. Their blue snowflake embroidered on the back of her glove sparkles at him. He covers her glove and slides the thumb across the embroidery. She squeezes his arm as she takes the first step and they walk up the steps with her.

The Bishop steps forward and speaks, "Welcome honor guest. We are here to witness the holy matrimony of our Queen to this man. It is customary for the current monarchy to give their wishes and comments to the new couple. This ceremony will continue the tradition."

Elsa steps back and turns towards her sister. She bows her head.

Anna places her crown in her sister's hair and holds the bouquet of flowers.

Elsa turns and grins at him. "As the ruling monarch of Arendelle, Admiral Ryan, please kneel."

The corners of his lips curl up as he drops to his knees with a thud.

She sweeps her hand under his chin. "When I met you in the courtyard, three years ago, there was something about you that seemed familiar and strange. Despite the circumstances of my situation at the time, your presence pulled on my heart. I did not understand why. As time passed and the strange events began to occur to you, I wanted to run not from Arendelle, but from you."

She lightly brushes the indentation on the left side of his forehead. "Then you were kicked by your horse. You opened your world to me. Even when I wanted to tell someone I knew they would never believe me. I was afraid as you fought death to you protect me. In your pain I felt your strength from years past. You had not left me. I could not hear you."

She sweeps her hand across his face and her wrist brushes against his nose.

He inhales her fragrant with a hint of coconut. His eyelids droop.

She continues, "When I did not listen, you drank the poison meant for me. Your struggle soon began as you fought an ongoing battle for your life. Many times I wanted to and I was advised to let you go, but my heart kept saying you were special. You said you had a mission to complete and I wanted to see your mission completed."

With his eyes fully open, he stares into the changing colors in her eyes.

She shakes her head. "In the last three years I should have died, but you would not allow it at the moment it happened. As if someone was tearing out the pages from your book of life, your memories were being misplaced. In a few instances I wanted you to leave and never to come back. Each time the young boy cried out to me. I could not turn my back on him. Captain Ryan asked me why I did not let you go. My heart screamed the words, but I finally spoke them. At the moment of my death you saved me. Later I took your heart. We are one and forever we will be one. I could not let you go because I love you. We started this journey together. We will end it together."

Kristoff places a kerchief on his shoulder. He hands it to her and she dabs her eyes.

She stands tall and shifts her position to her regal pose. "So there will be no confusion as to who is doing this, I wish to bestow a title on Admiral Ryan."

Anna steps next to her and opens a small box.

"As proof that you are Arendelle's Protector, I present to you with the medal of Sariphan for all to see your love for the people of Arendelle." Elsa clips the red silk ribbon around his neck. She kisses each of his cheeks. "Please rise."

She turns and Anna removes her crown. Sam rises to his feet. He shows the metal to Kristoff. The Bishop nods to Anna.

Anna stands in front of them and faces the auditorium while she holds their hands. Taking several breaths, she stares at the floor.

Elsa squeezes her hand and whispers. "You can do this."

Sam whispers, "I believe in you."

Kristoff steps forward and offers her a kerchief.

She dabs the corner of her eye and with a huge smile she says, "I always thought my sister would marry before I did, especially since she was the Queen. As the Admiral has stated on many occasions, things happen in their own time and we should not rush it."

She looks directly at him. "But sir, you took your sweet time before asking my sister to marry you. Before you say the timing was correct, based on all that has happened, I would have to agree with you. I know you claim to have a connection with her, but all I know is when she was depressed or frustrated, you lifted her spirits. Both of you have fought against great odds to protect the other. I know of no other circumstance where you have displayed your love for each other. With the Queen's permission, Samuel, Elsa, let no one step between the two of you. The Queen blesses your union together."

Anna hugs both of them and returns to her position left of the bride.

The Bishop steps forward. "Are we ready?" They both nod to him. The Bishop begins.

"Friends, we have come here today to share with Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan an important moment in their lives. Their time together, they have seen their love and understanding of each other grow and blossom and now they have decided to live out the rest of their lives as one."

The Bishop addresses them. "I require and charge you both that if either of you know any impediment why you may not be lawfully joined together in matrimony, you confess it now. Be assured that if any persons are joined together otherwise than as God's word allows, their marriage is not lawful. Do you have anything to confess?"

He smiles at her and they both shake their heads.

The Bishop nods to both of them. "Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Corinthians. Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, and it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil, but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. At the beginning of creation God made them male and female. For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh. So they are no longer two, but one in the sight of God."

The Bishop places his hand on their shoulders. "Let us pray for this man and woman as they make their marriage vows." All bow their heads.

"Father in heaven, Samuel and Elsa have chosen each other. Help them and bless them that their love may be pure, and their vows may be true. This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior."

The Bishop hands Elsa a small piece of paper. "Queen Elsa will give her vows first."

She reads the paper then gazes into his eyes. "I, Queen Elsa of Arendelle, take you, Admiral Samuel Ryan, to be my husband, my friend, my faithful partner, and my love from this day forward. In the presence of God, our family, and friends, I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner in sickness and in health, in good times and in bad, and in joy as well as in sorrow. I will cherish our union and love you more each day than I did the day before. I will trust you and respect you, laugh with you and cry with you, loving you faithfully through good times and bad, regardless of the obstacles we may face together. I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward, for as long as we both shall live."

The Bishop hands Sam a different piece of paper. "It is time for you to give your vows."

Sam gazes into Elsa's eyes and repeats a similar vow. "I, Admiral Samuel Ryan of the Fleet Command Ship, Aurora, take you, Queen Elsa of Arendelle . . . I give you my hand, my heart, and my love, from this day forward, for as long as we both shall live."

The Bishop touches his shoulder. "Samuel, what symbol do you bring as a pledge of the sincerity of your vows?"

His hand reaches back as Kristoff drops the symbol into it. Sam opens his hand, "A ring."

The Bishop turns to Elsa. "Please remember, a ring is more than a symbol of your marriage. It is a seal of the vow you have made to one another. The circle of the ring is, as far as the human eye can see, a perfect circle with no beginning or end, so too, God has perfect love for you and wants you to love one another in His grace that has no ending. This ring is made of precious metal. You also are precious in God's sight and now in the life of Admiral Ryan. When you are absent from one another, the presence of the ring reminds you to be faithful and to fulfill your vows to Samuel."

The Bishop turns to Sam. "You may now place your ring on your Bride's finger."

She holds out her left hand. He delicately slides her glove off her hand and tucks it in his sash before slipping his ring onto her finger. His left brow shoots up and he lightly kisses the back of her hand as he gazes up at her.

"Okay, Admiral, you are getting ahead of the ceremony." The Bishop touches Elsa's shoulder. "Queen Elsa, what symbol do you bring as a pledge of the sincerity of your vows?"

Anna places the symbol in her hand. She shows it in the palm of her hand, "A ring."

The Bishop turns to Sam. "Samuel, this ring is a seal of Elsa's vow to you. She presents this to you as a token of her submission to you as you have submitted to Jesus Christ. This is a symbol of leadership and privilege. God has placed you as head of the family. You must lead in worship, works, and fellowship as she will depend on you for strength."

Bishop turns to Elsa. "You may now place your ring on his finger."

He holds out his left hand. She slides his glove off and wraps it around her flowers before slipping her ring onto his finger. Her right brow slowly rises up and she lightly kisses the back of his hand as she gazes up at him.

The Bishop places his hand on both of their shoulders. "Let us pray before any other spontaneity takes hold of them."

Several guests near the front snicker.

"Our Father in Heaven, we pray for all married couples that they may continue to give, be able to forgive, and experience more of the joy of our Lord with each passing day. Especially for Samuel and Elsa as they begin their married life together that they may have divine assistance, the constant support of friends, and a long life with good health. May your fullest blessing come upon Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan, from this day forward and forever. May Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior, always be at the center of the new lives they are now starting to build together, that they may know the ways of true love and kindness. May the Lord bless you both all the days of your lives and fill you with his joy. Amen."

The guests say 'amen' in unison.

The Bishop joins their right hands together and says, "Those whom God has joined together, let no man put asunder. In so much as Samuel and Elsa have consented together in holy wedlock, and have witnessed the same before God, their families, and these friends, having given and pledged their troth, each to the other, and having declared the same by the giving and receiving of a ring, I pronounce that they are husband and wife." He steps back. "Seal the promises you have made for each other with a kiss."

He steps closer tilting his head slightly to the right and lower. He watches the joy in her eyes. "We did it."

She lifts her chin and exhales a cool mist he eagerly inhales. "Yes, we did."

Their lips touch and he tastes a hint of mint flavor. She reaches her arms around his chest and pulls him tighter to her.

They part and gaze into each other's eyes.

She whispers, "Your mother would be proud of you."

"As Iduna and Agnarr would be proud of you."

The Bishop holds his arm out towards the people. "Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you Queen Elsa and King-Consort Samuel of Arendelle."

Everyone stands and applauds.

His left brow shoots up as he begins to comment. Both her brows rise and she interrupts. "According to Arendelle law, you have to be a King or did you lie to these people with Excalibur?"

He lightly kisses the tip of her nose. "You are correct according to Arendelle law. It is one more thing I have to get accustomed."

They face the guest and a loud cheer erupts. "Long live Queen Elsa and King Samuel."

He clenches his fist and holds his arm out waiting for her to place her hand on top of his hand as she has done the last three years.

"Not this time," she comments as she slides her hand under and into the crux of his arm.

For a second he watches her rings sparkle and smiles. "This is a new world for us. Let the adventure begin."

They walk down the aisle. Anna cups her hand on Kristoff's arm. He motions to Kristen. She cradles Samuel's sword and he encourages her to walk beside him as they walk down the aisle.

The chapel doors open. Castle Guards in their ceremony uniforms stand to either side of the path from the chapel to the castle main doors. A Lieutenant standing half way to the castles bellows the commands. "DRAW."

The guards grasp the hilt of their swords and partially draw their swords from their scabbards.

"SWORDS."

The Guards withdraw their swords in unison and position hilt to ten centimeters in front of their face.

"SALUTE."

They extend their arms to create the sword's archway.

As he and Elsa walk under the archway, he complements the guards. "Great job, thank you for being here."

As they reach the end of the archway, Captain Larsen and the Lieutenant lower their swords blocking the exit. Sam glances at them. "Gentlemen, you're not really going to swat our Que–"

A sword interrupts his comments as it whacks his bottom. He tries to smile with both brows raised as his head turns to his bride.

She grins up at him. "You understand the significance of this?"

He grins back at her showing his teeth. "In a military wedding, yes, I would assume they are welcoming me to the monarchy."

"He does understand. Just to let you know, we drew the infamous sword owner's name out of a hat. Also, every guard in the command dropped their name in the hat." Captain Larsen grins.

Elsa leans close to him. "I had to forbid Anna from putting her name in the hat." She peaks past his arm. "I had to forbid the Captain from accepting a large payment from Anna." She stands proper and looks forward.

Sam glances back and Anna grins at him. "I don't know if my heart can take any more of these surprises. Do I dare go inside the castle?"

She squeezes his arm. "Welcome to my family. The best surprise will be waiting for you in the royal bedroom."

The last two swords are raised and they proceed up the steps. Gerda curtsies as Kai opens the door. He bows, "Majesties."

In the side room to the great hall, he turns to his bride. "Do you remember when we met in this room?"

"Actually, I do. It was on my coronation day. I caught you peeking out that door." She places her hands on her waist. "Will you confess you planned to be in here with me at the time?"

He glances at the floor, then back at her. "My intent was to get into the castle to meet you. The last time I was in the castle this room was not here. I let my guard down by not verifying the room was empty."

"If you had known I was in here, would you have approached me? Like this?" She grabs his Gluteus Maximus and presses her body as close as possible to him.

He wraps his arms around her shoulders. "I did not wish to scare you away. My actions depended on your responses." His hands slide down her back. "But to clarify, if I had done this," his hands clamp onto her Gluteus Maximus and gives them a good squeeze. "This would have been inappropriate to touch the Queen in this manner?"

"Depends?"

"On what?"

"If it felt good or not." His hands slowly create space from her bottom as his smile fades. She puts his hands back on her bottom. "What do you think would have happened?"

"I guess it depends whether you accidentally froze me or screamed and the guards ran into here to stab me." She grins at him. His smile returns and he interlaces his fingers as he lifts her up by her bottom.

She turns his head and presses his ear against her chest as she wrap her arms around his neck and lays her head on his. "I love you Samuel Ryan."

"I love you Elsa. I always did." He listens to her heartbeat slow followed by a low snicker.

"What's so funny?"

"Over the few years after you accepted me into your castle, I wanted nothing more than to hold you. Not like this, but this is better than what I was thinking and later this evening I get to hold you as my wife."

The door leading into the ballroom opens. Kai whispers, "Are you two ready?"

"Give us a minute and we will be ready." She kisses his forehead. "Are you ready, my King?"

He lowers her to the ground and they adjust their clothing. "So what is the sequence of events?"

"Similar to the coronation," she answers as her fingers slide across her glove tucked into his sash. "Kai introduces us and we step out onto the floor for the first dance. Others will dance to the second song." Her smile fades. "What is wrong?"

He glances at the floor as though searching before answering. "I do not know how to dance. I should have anticipated this."

Kai asks, "Majesties are you ready?"

She grabs his chin and turns his face until he looks her in the eyes. "Do you trust me?"

"What?"

"Do you trust me?"

A moment of hesitation occurs, but he answers, "With my life."

She quickly moves to the door and whispers to Kai.

"Now," Kai asks, before moving away from the door.

She returns to him and holds his hand. "I should have asked, but I had too many distractions." She squeezes his hand and grabs his arm. "We will get through this."

"I'm sorry I never learned. It was on the list of things to get done.

She smiles up at him. "Ours is not a traditional marriage. Let us continue the same theme." She blows a cool breeze of air into his face.

"What are you going to do?"

"You said you trust me and I will trust you to do the right thing at the appropriate time."

Anna storms through the curtain. "I got it."

"Got what?"

Elsa rushes over to Anna and stands between him and her so he could not see what Anna hands to her. "Perfect. Tell Kai to announce us when you are in your position." She whispers into Anna's ear.

Anna giggles as she glances at him before passing through the curtain. Elsa does not look at him, but holds his hand.

"Should I bother asking?"

She shakes her head. "No, this will work. Just promise me you will not let go completely."

"Let go of what?"

Kai announces in the ballroom, "Ladies and Gentlemen."

"That is our cue." She pulls him through the curtain.

"I present Arendelle's royal couple, Queen Elsa and her husband, King-Consort Samuel."

Except for the other monarchs, everyone bows and curtsies.

Elsa and Samuel walk to the center of the dais. As everyone rises, Anna walks onto the floor directly in front of them. Elsa leads him to the edge of the floor and whispers to him. "Trust me. Move towards Anna. I will come to you."

He hesitates, but if he does trust her as she has asked, it is just a first dance and neither will be embarrassed. He rolls his shoulders back and lifts his chin while walking towards Anna because she motions for him to come to her. The music starts. Anna moves her body to the music and continues to motion for him to approach her.

A fragrance assaults his sinuses and he stops. Sam clenches his fist to his side as his head lowers and swings from one side to the other side. His nose sniffs for the fragrance and another breeze assaults his sinuses with a stronger fragrance causing his head to rise with partially closed eyes.

Anna smiles and nods as her hands motion for him to come towards her.

The fragrance attacks his mind. His body rotates to his left and a small hand passes close to his nose with a new assault of a coconut fragrance. He reaches for her, but she twirls out of his reach. Elsa stops and peeks over her shoulder and emits several low growls. The fragrance and growls push his senses to tense his muscles ready to pounce on his prey. He fights to control his urge to race towards her. Each time he reaches for her, she slips away and he emits a lower growl. Her steps follow the beat of the music. His body anticipates the music, but he still misses. She leads him around the floor. Finally, he grabs her hand. She turns to him, but does not fight. He draws her in as he sniffs the air. Her wrist slips close to his nose. He inhales deeply and continues to follow the fragrance up her arm, while he stares into her eyes. He continues to move closer and he draws his lips back as his teeth part. At the last second she turns her head down and away so his teeth would touch the back of her neck. Her actions of giving freely cause him to stop as he does not hear the music.

The room explodes with applause. He regains his composer and stands tall, as does she. Their chests heave for air. He wraps his arms around her and whispers, "I do trust you."

They kiss and she rests her head against his chest. The music begins again and the others dance.

"And what dance was that?" he asks.

"Your favorite, the wolf dance," she grins as she squeezes him tighter.

"I could have damaged your pretty little neck."

"No you would not."

"And how do you know?"

"Because I trusted you."

They move their bodies to the music without moving their feet. Many guests dancing past give their compliments. He glances over to Kristen dancing with young Prince George and nods to her. She smiles back as she points her finger at him. After some time passes, the music stops.

He escorts his bride back to the dais. She sits on the left chair and he sits on the right chair. They take a breather as more wishes and compliments come their way. A steward offers him a drink.

"The last time I drank champagne I nearly died. If you have nothing else, please bring me water with a slice of fruit in it." He watches the steward continue around the room passing out drinks. He sighs a little too loudly.

Elsa touches his arm. "You are not getting bored, are you?"

"Bored no, thirsty yes, I asked the steward to bring me water with a piece of fruit, but he has yet to move to the drink table.

"Have patience my husband. I believe your drink is coming this way."

Gerda carrying a silver tray walks up to him. "Your berry flavored water, your Majesty."

He takes the cup and counts the berries. "I will not get accustom to being called that. Only three berries?"

As Gerda turns to walk away, she comments. "I'll get you more berries . . . you big baby."

He shoots a glare at the back of her head and leans towards Elsa. "Did you hear what –"

"No, I did not hear anything."

He glances at Elsa. "You didn't –"

"No, I did not." She snickers as she turns her face away from him. He leans over her throne and blows a puff of air that makes her curls move. She giggles and turns to him. "I'm sorry. I just had to see how you would respond." She cups his face. "I know you do not wish to be treated differently, but they will treat you differently and you have to respond –"

"Like royalty? I know proper protocols and I understand. It's not much different than an Admiral and his crew."

At the other end of the ballroom the doors open and Kai announces, "The wedding meal is served."

"Thank goodness," he starts to stand, but she latches onto his arm and he sits back. "Let me guess. We enter last."

"Look at it this way; we get to leave first after the meal." She smiles at him.

He watches the staff and guards corral the guest towards the dining room. "I wish I had my head on straight to study the royal snootiness. How many utensils will be provided?"

"It's an eight course meal."

From Elsa's right side with Anna on his arm, Kristoff chuckles.

"That does not sound good."

Anna snickers, "We only had a six course meal."

Elsa stands and adjusts her dress. She makes a pouty face at him as she holds out her hand. "Trust me. You will be okay. Watch what I do. If you do everything correctly, I will give you a reward."

"Like what?" He stands and adjusts his jacket.

"You have to do everything correctly first, then you will know." She takes his hand.

Anna and Kristoff walk towards the door after the last guest exits the room. Elsa steps, but he holds her back.

"My love, I do not wish to embarrass you by my ignorance of these things."

"You must have encountered this before now. How did you do it then?"

He shrugs. "I always had someone to tell me the particulars of the specific diplomatic situation. I just needed ten to fifteen minutes to learn it."

She pulls on his arm and they walk towards the exit. "This is very basic. Forks are on the left. Spoons or knives are on the right. Do not reach across your plate for the other utensil. Keep them on the same side. Always pick up the outside most utensil and work your way in for each course. The dessert utensils are at the top of the plate. Don't touch them until dessert is served. If that is too much, just watch me."

At the dinner table, he assists Elsa to her chair before sitting to her right. The guest sits after he does. He stares at his plate. _Outside in, Outside in, holy crap, why so many glasses. She did not say anything about the glasses._ He slightly turns his head and whispers. "Is one of these for water?"

Elsa smiles and converses with the Anna and the other guest. He glances at Kristoff, who appears to be just as miserable as he is. They nod at each other. He watches the guest being served their meal as the staff moves closer to him. Finally, a lightly steaming bowl of a yellowing liquid is set on his plate followed by the water poured into a glass. _That must be the water glass._ He glances up and notes everyone watches him. He glances to his left and sees Elsa holding her soup spoon.

He picks up his spoon and she delicately sips her soup. Kristoff breaks off a piece of bread dips it in his soup. He glances around the table. Others are also breaking off pieces of bread.

He leans close to his bride. "Will you be eating your bread?"

She barely shakes her head.

"May I have it?" She barely nods.

He breaks off a large piece of bread and dips it in the soup, which actually creates a wonderful taste. He finishes his piece of bread and breaks off another piece.

Many guests stare at him. Elsa continues to spoon her soup. He whispers, "It was not proper what I did?"

She stops midway with her next spoon full. "That is why we have spoons and forks." She continues to eat.

He leans his head forward. A grinning Kristoff lifts his fork with a piece of bread dripping from the soup. He leans back and whispers. "I feel a cold draft building under a certain chair on that side."

She stops her spoon long enough to comment. "I recall you did a similar thing to him at their wedding meal."

His eyes scan his plate and he snickers. "Yes, I did. It's still funny even now."

"He did not appreciate it at the time." She scoops the last bit of her soup.

"He got back at me so it's even. If you don't believe me look at him." She looks at Kristoff.

Kristoff stops eating. His grin fades as his eyes glance between him and Elsa.

Sam grins with his teeth showing and points to Elsa as he holds up his two thumbs. Kristoff whispers to Anna and she turns her head towards Sam. With clenched hands and holding her utensils as if she is about to cut a piece of meat or someone's throat, she glares at him.

A shoe taps his foot and Elsa whispers, "Do not start anything."

Sam holds and squeezes her hand. With his palm up, he motions to Anna and Kristoff and smiles. Kristoff nods and Anna returns a smile to him.

The Staff serve the next course of the meal. He does nothing until his bride moves first before he mimics what she does.

Course after course passes the time. In a crowded room no one speaks to him. The questions are directed to Elsa and the conversation surrounds Anna's soon to be born baby. Even Kristoff appears to understand the delicacies of conversation with the royalty. He does not mind. It gives him time to observe and analyze allies and potential foes. Every time his eyes pass Queen Victoria and King Frederick, they stare at him. Other than the soup, he eats very little except the salad and cheese, but drinks plenty of water.

Prince Georg asks, "King Samuel, you are not eating. Is the food not to your liking?"

 _What do I answer? Elsa?_

She leans to Anna and whispers.

 _Answer as the Admiral._

After a moment Anna giggles and glimpses him as she leans towards Kristoff and whispers.

From Sam's peripheral most everyone watches him and he notes the conversations have stopped. The fingers on his left hand tap the table one at a time. After each has tap the table for the third time, he answers, "Despite my size, I have a limited variety of foods I choose to eat. On occasion, I will indulge in eating other foods as those provided here, so as not to offend the staff who prepared the meal," he looks to Elsa, "or to my lovely host."

Sam stares at Frederick. "I was looking forward to this meal, but earlier today, I met a new friend related to a certain individual at this table, who I will not mention. The individual sent this young Prince on a mission that had a zero percent chance of success, until I determined the young Prince was given false information about me; therefore I decided a future monarch would be a beneficial asset to Arendelle. I indulged the young Prince with a fruit and cream drink cold enough to eat with a spoon. As a result of this new friendship, I am confident my new bride would understand and approve of the circumstance and would forgive me for not eating, now, but I will enjoy it late this evening to keep up my strength."

Queen Victoria taps Frederick's arm. "I am glad I am not related to that young man who asked him the question. I would be too embarrassed to continue to sit here."

Frederick slowly turns his head to Victoria. "Perhaps a poor choice of words."

"Perhaps indeed," Elsa says.

The staff exchanges the plates for dessert bowls.

After a short time, he taps the side of her leg. Elsa looks over at him. He leans close and whispers, "I need to go to the little boy's room."

She leans closer to him. "Who's room?"

He whispers in her ear. "I drank a lot of water that wishes to be let free."

"You do not need my permission, just go."

"Most assuredly I do." He puckers his lips.

She kisses them. "Just remember they will be watching you. Anything you say or do will reflect on your Queen."

"I understand." He slides his chair back and stands. Other than the members of royalty, everyone stands. He glances around the room and motions with his hands. "Please be seated. I have to take care of some business. I will be back very shortly."

Everyone sits and he exits the room. In the royal suite as he washes his hands, he hears a hum just like before. After a few minutes he determines the hum is not coming from the castle or Arendelle. He systematically determines the hum is not coming from the south or west. He begins to search north when it stops.

A knock sounds from the door. He asks himself. "What is north or east?"

A second knock sounds from the door. "Samuel, Is everything ok?"

He opens it. "Are you two lost?"

Queen Victoria asks, "We have a question. May we come in?"

He eyes them. "Officially this is not my room until Queen Elsa invites me in." He points his thumb down the hall. "We can go to my room for discussions."

They step back and follow him to his room. He closes the door with a click of the lock. "Do you think someone would see it suspicious, you two leaving shortly after I did?"

"We did not leave together."

"Is this where she kept you? There is hardly any furniture." Victoria comments.

He holds the handle as he leans against the door. "This is all I needed. I was free to go as it pleased me."

He watches Frederick open the balcony door for a few seconds. Victoria sits in one of the two chairs by the table. They both stare at him.

She asks, "Well, are you going to offer us a drink?"

"Food and drinks are downstairs."

"That is very rude of you." Frederick comments standing next to Victoria.

"You are playing a dangerous game by being here. What question did you have?"

Frederick starts, "We noticed you observing the guests. What did you observe about them?"

"I notice a lot of things about them. Please narrow your requirement."

She comments, "Friend or foe with explanations."

"Nothing personal, but all of you are foes until I can prove you to be friends. You have the combined power to crush Arendelle. Many will be lost, but you can do it. Excluding the two of you, the others are looking to maximize their gains with minimum loss."

"Yes and you give a generic answer," Frederick says.

He shakes his head as he drops his gaze to the floor. "I am not, nor will I ever be a politician. I was not raised nor trained to be one as the two of you have become."

"You seek out and destroy," Victoria whispers.

His eyes flick up to her. "Who told you that?"

"Colonel Bond."

"If I unlock this door, you will leave." He stands straight.

Frederick glances down to Victoria. "You are correct. He will not be pushed into a corner."

"Samuel, do you remember telling me, I should not let anyone get close to me unless I can validate their sincerity?"

"I also said in your lifetime you may never encounter such a person, but if you do keep them close."

"Well, not only did I find one in my Albert, but I found a second in James Bond. It is what he said on his death bed that concerns me and it involves Arendelle."

"Why are you not speaking this to Queen Elsa?"

"Because we need your validation or you disprove our concerns." Frederick appears to observe him.

Victoria taps Frederick's leg with her folded fan. "Tell him your concern with Queen Elsa."

Sam narrows his eyes at them. He truly hates politics and wishes they will get to the point.

Frederick states, "I know you and Queen Elsa have this mind thing where you can sense each other. I believe it is more than just that and her sister knows what it is, so whatever Elsa knows, you know. The question is, does she know everything, you know?"

He tilts his head towards them. "This is your last chance."

Victoria starts. "Bond said you knew more about his family history than he did and you knew his relatives who landed near Arendelle."

He searches her face and body, but does detect deceit. "Continue."

"He said you knew one of his relatives had children and one of them may be at the dining room."

He holds up his hand. "On that point, I am ninety-eight percent positive based on the physical description between this person and Bonds ancestors. My insight into this person tells me, while they have the genetic makeup, they do not have the training or knowledge as Bond's relatives." He looks down and away from them.

"So the two per cent gives you concern?" Frederick asks.

"At this moment, no."

"But this person could?"

He glares at Frederick. "What do you think this person could do?"

Victoria answers, "The same thing they did when they landed here. I understand if it was not for Queen Elsa's, great, great grandfather, Arendelle may not exist."

"Or the northern Warring-King," Frederick adds.

He glances between them. "It is interesting you know a lot about the area's history."

"Everyone, who traded with people in this area, has their version of the legend of the Warring-King. Even the Russians knew about the King and his magic. I believe you know the legend is true."

"Does your wife?" Victoria smirks.

"She knows whatever her mother and father told her." He opens the door enough to speak, "Guard?" A guard steps from around the corner. "For the next ten minutes, no one, regardless who they are, will you allow entry."

The guard nods and turns his back to the closed door. Sam places his right hand on the door frame and a sheet of ice covers the door and the frame. He flicks his finger towards the balcony door and ice forms around the door and frame.

"You have less than ten minutes to ask your questions." He steps away from the door and clasps his hands behind his back.

Frederick asks, "Do you know the one trait which links Colonel Bond's relatives?"

"For male and female it is the pure blonde color hair."

She asks, "Why blonde?"

"When you cross breed two flowers of different colors, what colors do you get?"

"A mixture of the two," Frederick answers.

"And nature will create instances of the pure color of either, but it becomes the rarity. Over time the constant cross breeding with different colors will produce more of a neutral color, unless you can genetically modify the flowers to produce only one or the other color and not anything in-between."

"So the blonde hair is their purity, if that is the case, the one in the dining room, is he a pure one or one of nature's rarities?" Victoria's fading smile concerns him.

"That is why I'm only ninety-eight percent sure. I, currently, do not have the technology to validate the two per cent. Even if he is a direct descendant, he does not have their training."

"You have explained Master Kristoff, but not the blonde hair. James had an off shade of blonde." Victoria asks, "How do you know their hair color?"

"Because I found the ship they landed."

"Take us to it," Frederick commands.

He taps his forehead. "The exact location was removed for every ones safety."

"Why?"

"For the exact reason you are questioning me now. Anybody who has the intelligence to find the ship also has the intelligence to learn from it. The magic of the Warring-King was created from advance technology on that ship."

"That must be an awesome technology." Frederick glances down at Victoria. "Is it true he was able to call lightning to strike is enemies?"

"On the peaks of your castles, are their metal rods that get struck by lightning? Is that not a form of controlling where the lightning strikes?"

Victoria stares blankly. "A native see a puff of smoke from a ship followed by a hut in their village exploding into fire. They see the crew from the ship as gods." She looks at Frederick. "But we know differently, do we not?"

Frederick walks over to the fireplace. "The ship must never fall into any ones hands."

"And there is your conundrum, if the natives capture your ship, how long would it take them to learn the sequences to fire the cannon?"

Victoria's smile gradually returns, "Without help, I would assume not in their lifetime or possibly never."

Frederick turns back to them. "How can you be sure within the next hundred years someone does not discover the ship's secret?"

Silence fills the room for several minutes as they stare at him. He holds his right hand out and wiggles his fingers. A tiny white ball appears above his hand and gradually grows to the size of his fist. He walks over to Frederick. "Take it. It will not hurt you."

Hesitantly, Frederick takes the ball in his hand. "It is cold."

"Have you ever seen a warm snowball?" Sam walks back to the door and grabs the handle. He looks over his shoulder. "I don't know what your future holds in this land. Soon your attention will be focused on the rumors of war on the European continent. People like Prince Nick and the Duke will come here searching for a legend that few know the truth. Time will hide the truth and the legend will fade into history."

He lets go of the door handle and stares at the floor. "Let me make this perfectly clear. No doubt you know Elsa froze Arendelle, but it was not just Arendelle. Her lack of control froze everything from the fjord to the mountains. Two days later the ground was clear of all snow. If she had control of her ice, the Southern Isle could have been covered with a meter of snow and possibly the east coast of England." He glances over his shoulder. "I have control and the northern parts of Europe would have had the meter of snow and all of Great Britain. You could have dismissed it for a freak storm, but the atmosphere would have been changed and possibly another ice age would have begun."

He opens the door as the ice shatters onto the floor. A second later the balcony door ice also shatters. "I assure you. I am far scarier than anything you will ever see. I have been watching Kristoff and he is not an abnormality. We will see with his children."

He steps into the hall and closes the door. With a click of the lock he hands the key to the guard. "In five minutes the ice in the lock will melt. Let them out." With a grin he walks down the hall.

Sam returns to the great hall and scans the room. Several British and Southern Isle guards gather in small groups. The guests with their beverages socialize with each other. Kristoff escorts Anna through the guest. Several women gather next to Anna no doubt to discuss the future Princess or Prince. On the dais Kristen stands in front of his chair. The point of the scabbard touches the dais between her feet as her hands hold the scabbard below the sword's hand guards. He wishes he had a picture to capture her elegance as the handle forms a cross on her chest.

Kristen grins at him. Queen Elsa shifts on her throne to look past a guest. She points her document signing, finger at him. He starts to look over his shoulder. _There is nobody behind you. I am looking at you, my husband._

She wiggles her finger, motioning for him to come to her.

He marches across the floor. Half way across Prince Georg with the British Captain approaches him. "Where is King Frederick?"

"And Queen Victoria?"

He glances at the both of them. "In a minute they will be fighting to see who will be first through the door of my room on the residency floor."

Prince Georg and the Captain charge out the room.

With a grin he reaches the bottom step of the dais and bows his head towards his bride. "I apologize for the delay. I was ambushed in my room by two paranoia guests."

A slight grin begins to form. "What did those paranoia guests want?"

"They have a concern with the color of your brother-in-law's hair."

"What about my hair?" Kristoff asks as he assists Anna to her seat.

Kristen touches his arm and points behind him. "Are they the paranoid guests?"

He stands beside her and reaches around so his fingertips lightly touch her face and neck. "Yes, they are the paranoid guests."

"Sam, No," Elsa commands as she stands, but her dress hinders her from moving quickly.

"They started it and I will finish it, now."

Elsa gets her dress to cooperate and steps down from the dais. "I sent them to you to ask their question."

"Oh, I know and I did answer, but not the way they wanted."

Kristen looks up at him before she stares at Frederick and Victoria. She lifts his sword and marches towards them. The British guards draw their swords and run onto the floor to surround their Queen. Several Southern Isle guards move towards the front of the room, while two stand in front of their King.

Frederick grabs a guard's sword and pushes past them. "I will deal with him myself."

Kristen slides the scabbard off her sword and tosses it to the side. She grips the sword like it was an extension of her arm. She raises her sword and continues towards Frederick.

He stops Elsa from moving past him. She yells, "What is wrong with you people."

Frederick rolls his sword hand over and angles, it towards Kristen.

Sam flicks his finger and Frederick drops his sword as it becomes encased in a block of ice. He sweeps his hand across the room at shoulder height. Guards and many others have their hands freeze to their swords and they cry out in agony.

"Kristen, stop."

Frederick looks down. The tip of Kristen's sword is a hand width from his heart. She rocks back and lowers her sword. Frederick slaps the flat of the blade causing the tip to hit the floor. He stomps on the blade smashing the handle onto the floor and reaches for Kristen. He does not see the frozen fist fly over Kristen's head. Falling to the ground, he clutches his missed shaped right shoulder.

Sam stands over him. "Kristen, it is time for you to do your magic."

She stands with her feet together and stares ahead. She extends her arms out to her side and slams her hands together in front. An explosion of light shoots out from her hands in all directions. Everyone closes their eyes as their heads fall forward except for royalty, Kristoff, and Anna.

He grabs Frederick's arm and jerks. With a loud groan the King's shoulder pops back into its socket. He helps him to his feet.

"Now you two look around this room." Swords that were frozen to a hand begin to drop to the floor. "You were concerned that a Sariphan would create an up-rise to challenge your authorities." He points to Victoria, "What color hair did James say the Sariphans had?"

She glances at Kristoff. "Blonde?"

He flicks Kristen's long hair over her shoulder. "What color do you call this?"

Victoria answers, "A light brown."

He slides his hand under her neck and cups her hair. His other hand slides over the top of her hair and it changes to a very light brown, but not quite blonde. "Now what color do you see?"

She moves closer to them. "It looks like the same color of James' hair."

He steps back. Who in here is the Sariphan?" He sweeps his hand towards the dais. "Queen Elsa definitely has blonde hair. What about Anna with her red hair? Is it you with your white hair? What about Frederick and George with their gray? What about my white hair? Are you sure it is Kristoff's ancestor's that have you frightened?"

He places his arm around Kristen. "There are two Sariphan's in this room and Kristoff is not one of them."

Victoria looks down at Frederick. "If she is one of them, I listened to a Sariphan on his death bed." She walks towards Kristoff. "He was my friend and saved England twice. Clearly I am mistaken."

"You said you were ninety-eight percent sure his descendants are Sariphan." Frederick rubs his shoulder.

He hugs Kristen. "And I said I needed to validate the two percent to be sure. Their children will let us know."

From behind several taller guests a shorter truly blonde hair female steps out. "Samuel, we had an agreement you would not reveal us to the humans and yet here we are. Now what am I going to do with you?"

He steps back towards the dais. "Ladies and gentlemen, this a pure Sariphan not polluted with human blood."

"Brigit?" Elsa asks.

She stands next to her daughter. "I told you he would get you into trouble."

Sam says, "It is not Kristen's fault. It is my fault because I let the event continue. I will honor our agreement as was stated."

Elsa slides her arm around his arm. "Please do not blame Sam. I could have stopped it. I made a bad judgment call."

Brigit nudges Kristen and she looks up at her mother, before moving next to Sam and interlocks her hands with his hand.

"What is going on?" Frederick asks.

Brigit's hair begins to radiate a yellowish light and dance with static. "It is done." She claps her hands once.

Victoria, Frederick, Anna, and Kristoff lower their heads with their eyes closed. Elsa looks around the room. "What just happened?"

"When they wake up, they will be confused." He smiles at his bride. "Kristen held my hand and I held your hand, we were not affected. Our memories remain in whole. They will remember the event as a dream. As long as neither of us explains it to them, it will be just a dream."

Brigit moves Victoria close to Frederick. "You have several seconds before they wake up."

He slides his right hand to her side. He lifts and extends her right hand with his left hand. He pulls her close and leads off with several steps. For a moment he dances with her as she gazes up at him.

Kristen announces as she walks past them, "Five seconds, get into position." Brigit moves to the back of the guests.

Elsa's right brow rises. "We were dancing if asked."

With a grin, "Plausible deniability, it is the truth." His lips brush against her lips and they press together as he pulls her closer.

Kristen and Brigit clap. Others look around with confusion, but they begin clapping. The sound of rolling thunder fills the room. He pulls his lips back, but their eyes remain locked together.

Kristen comments. "See. I told you if you pushed him a little, he can dance."

Sam escorts Elsa back to the dais and waves to the band. "Everyone dance."

The guests fill the floor and the music plays. Frederick escorts Victoria to her delegates.

He glances over at Kristoff staring at him. "What's wrong buddy? Not in the mood to dance."

Kristoff stands to his right and glances at him after that Elsa. "I'm not sure. Something happened. You two were over there. I saw a flash of light and you were over there," pointing to their left of the dais.

Kristen taps the sword handle against Kristoff's hand. "You're dreaming. Maybe the flash was the light reflecting off of Queen Elsa's dress as she twirled and it mesmerized you with the vision of beauty."

"You were staring at my sister dancing." Anna grabs Kristoff's hand and leads him on to the floor.

Sam feels her staring at him. "What?"

Elsa shifts in her chair and leans against his arm. "Did you teach her to think on her feet or did she teach you?"

Without turning his head towards her, he replies, "Her mother taught her."

"Who taught her mother?"

"I did." Other than the music, silence fills the void between them.

Kristen comments, "I know you want to ask him. Don't wait too long."

A cold hand turns his face towards her. "Who taught you?"

Sam pulls his lips tight. "She was like you. Why do you ask what you already know?"

"S5?" Elsa watches Anna and Kristoff dance. "You may have the task of politics better than I do. Will you teach me your words?"

With a peck on her nose, he replies, "I will teach you all that I know."

She grabs his face and plants her lips on his. He does not fight.

Several hours later everyone stands near the stairs. After a final congratulation, Elsa holds his arm, they march up the stairs. At the royal suite Sam adjusts her dress and carries his bride into the room. As his foot sweeps the door close with a slam. Ice forms around the door frame to prevent any noise from passing under the door.

 **End of chapter**


	89. Chapter 88 Days before Knights

**Title: Chapter 88: Days before Knights**

 **1 year 7 months until Correction**

A tickle on his nose awakens him, but his eyes do not open. Sam tries to move his hands, but they refuse. His hands grip flesh and do not move. The abdomen muscles scream first as his sides strain with each breath. His mind remains in a euphoric state to be of any help. His body detects a weight on him and it groans with the slightest of his movement. A stinging sensation burns in both shoulders. He tries to move one shoulder, but hands grip both of them. The weight moves with a soft moan. The tickle returns to his nose and it gets worse.

A soft voice whispers, "You can do it. Keep trying."

He forces his eyes open. His mind finally decides to interpret his body's sensors. Beautiful blue eyes greet him and a smile draws the attention of his lips that hungers to taste them again.

"Well husband, this is all new to me. After last night I understand what Anna tried to tell me without telling me the details." Elsa rubs her nose into his chest hairs. With an inhale she places her ear over his heart and glances up at him. "Even after last night you smell so wonderful."

He pulls his hands out from under her knees. They take control and with barely a touch glide along her thighs. His hands stop long enough to squeeze her Gluteus Maximus and feel her contours. They glide up her back and finally cross over to lightly give her a squeeze.

She purrs. "I had fun last night."

"I did also. You were wonderful. No, you exceeded my expectations, even from my dreams."

She rests her chin on her hands and a grin forms. "You fantasized about me in your dreams?"

"I've thought about us being together many times. I just didn't think it would really happen."

She lays her cheek against her hand. "I would surmise the sun has been up for some time, so what do we do after yesterday?" She glances up at him. "Why are you grinning?"

The muscles in his lower abdomen flex.

She rolls her chin back onto her hands as her right brow shoots up. "Something else is awake. Perhaps you would like to slide your sword into my scabbard?" Reaching for his shoulders, she slides herself up to nibble his chin.

With a grin of anticipation, he watches her as his fingertips lightly skate down her back and onto her thighs.

His sword springs to life as it reaches for its goal. She slides back and the tip enters after the second try. She pushes back until his sword is securely locked into her scabbard. She begins a slow rocking motion. His hands slide up her waist and over her breast. Her eyes close and her lips separate to emit a soft purr.

Sam grins. "Now I remember why you fell asleep on me."

She smiles as her rocking increases. "Oh yeah."

Sometime later, the ice around the door frame rapidly melts. Dressed in black trouser, boots, and an off-white shirt Sam opens the door. He observes different guards at each end of the hall than when they entered the room the previous evening. Both guards bow their heads to him. He offers his arm. A petite hand interlaces her fingers with his fingers. Queen Elsa steps out and closes the door. Her blonde hair drapes loosely across her shoulders. She extended the collar of her summer dress and added a few more shades of red, browns, and oranges.

They take each step with caution as they walk down the hall. "If you trip, I will try to catch you or at least keep you from sliding all the way down the stairs."

"If you start to fall, do not expect me to save you. You will roll over me and squish me into the carpet." They both snicker.

Kai meets them at the bottom of the stairs and bows his head. "Good afternoon, Majesties, Anna and Kristoff are finishing their meals if you wish to join them." He motions towards the dining room.

Kai opens the door. "Our Majesties have returned."

Anna grins and Kristoff stands, but neither speaks. Sam escorts Elsa to her chair and he sits to her right. With the click of the door closing, Anna explodes out of her chair and wraps her arms around her sister. They hold each other and share a few tears. Kristoff shrugs his shoulders.

Sam watches the sisters for a moment, then turns to Kristoff. "Well, thank you for yesterday's events. I liked the guards salute, but I was totally surprised by the welcome to the family salute on my bottom."

"Yes, that was a classic touch there. I'm glad I could help."

He motions with his head towards Anna. "So how are you and Anna doing?"

The servant's door burst open. Gerda races in and wraps her arms around the sisters. "I know your mother and father are extremely happy their girls are all grown up."

"You three are not going to have a boo hoo fest are you?"

The back of Gerda's hand smacks his chest. "Hopefully there will be more patters of small feet to play with Anna's little one."

He snickers and grins at Kristoff. "Did you hear that? She is calling you her little one." He hears a chuckle from his bride.

Gerda swings back at him again. His body groans from twisting out of the way.

Elsa comments as the other two give her breathing room. "Okay, please do not beat up my husband. We did come down here to eat. I am famished."

"You know, I recall Anna said the same thing the day after her wedding." Gerda comments as she returns to the servant's room.

Anna asks, "How does that sound to use the words 'my husband'?"

Elsa grabs his hand. "I love saying it."

With a smile he squeezes her hand. "And I get to say to those who had an eye for you, 'I'm the one she chose to sleep with her'."

Her eyes widen. "You are not really going to say that, are you?"

"A little too risqué?"

She barely nods her head, but it was noticeable to him. "How about I change the word 'sleep' to the words 'I'm the one she chose to be with her'."

She mouths the word, 'better'.

He leans close and puckers his lips. She grabs a hand full of his hair and twists his head. Several seconds later she lets go of his hair. His head gradually drops and makes contact with the table. His eyes do not blink as he stares at his wife.

Gerda brings in their meal and sets a plate in front of Elsa. She holds the second plate. "Is he dead or did you take his breath away with a kiss?"

"Second one." Anna chuckles.

He blinks and slowly sits up. A ghastly sound passes between his parted lips as he inhales. "I am royally dead if I make you angry at me."

"Welcome to the Royal Society of Arendelle," Kristoff comments. "At least you will have a fighting chance."

Gerda sets a plate in front of Sam and he digs in to eat.

Anna snaps her head around to her husband as she grabs the edge of the table. "What do you mean by that?"

Kristoff's eyes widen as he begins to lean away from her. "Which part?"

"I vote for the second part." Sam comments between bites. Elsa kicks his ankle at the same time Gerda slaps the back of his head.

He glances between Elsa and Gerda. "No, no, no, this needs to come out." He points his fork at Kristoff. "If you are to be the head of your family, this is one of the moments you need to lead." He nods to Anna. "Tell her exactly what you meant."

Elsa grabs his hand and digs her fingers into his palm.

"This is exactly what he is talking about." He makes eye contact with Elsa. "If you wish for me to be an obedient soldier to blindly follow you, I will cut my hair short and be that soldier." She loosens her grip of his hand, but he does not let go of her.

He slides past Gerda and kneels next to Elsa's chair. He moves her fingers to touch the four specific points on the side of his face and neck. His eyes move as though searching and a connection is made. They stare at each other for a moment. He touches the four points on the right side of her face and neck.

She smiles and presses her head into his hand.

"Do you understand? He desires to share with Anna what we have."

"I did not realize the pressure I had been placing on him." Elsa slides his hand down over her heart and looks to Anna and Kristoff. "It seems I have to apologize to the both of you. Despite Sam and my abilities, we cannot control your family." She looks into her husband's eyes. "If we are to follow God's Will, Our husbands are the head of our family. Anna, it does not mean we cannot give advice or information to help our husbands, but whatever their decision, we need to support them in that decision."

Sam gazes into Elsa's eyes. "Kristoff, as head of our family, we are to encourage and seek the wisdom and advice of our wives. We are to honor and cherish them, especially when they do not hear us. We must show compassion as the mothers of our children and provide for their comfort and safety. All four of us grew up under different environmental circumstances. We need to practice patience with one another and the best way to do that is to communicate and just as important we need to listen."

Sam and Else touch noses and lightly kiss. She wraps her arm around his neck and gently pulls him closer. They both turn their heads to watch them.

Kristoff taps the back of Anna's hand. She hesitates, but allows him to hold her hand. Their bodies lean away from each other.

"Anna, give him a chance," Elsa says.

"Explain the second part of your statement, 'at least I have a fighting chance'," Sam says.

Kristoff turns his body towards Anna and kisses the back of her hand. "I love you so much. I will do anything for you. There have been times when we have a disagreement your sister stares at me as if she is holding back from freezing me. When your sister enters a room I'm in or we are in, my first thoughts are to get out as fast as I can. When I first stayed here in the castle, it seemed like everyone was watching me, waiting for me to make a mistake."

"I know exactly how he feels about that." Sam whispers to Elsa. She puts her finger to his lips. "Shh." He licks her finger and she wipes her finger on his shirt.

Anna faces Kristoff and holds his hands. "I did not know you felt that way. When I talk to my sister, my intent was not for her to intimidate you."

Sam whispers into Elsa's ear. "Sounds like you have a control issue."

She places her hand over his mouth and he licks her palm, but she does not remove her hand.

Anna continues, "I value her advice. I wanted to share my experiences with her. I was not sure if Samuel was going to control his erratic behavior and Elsa has to banish him."

Elsa wipes her hand on his shirt again as she grins and whispers in his ear. "Now who cannot control himself?" She licks the inside of his ear.

Kristoff says, "I understand and I'm glad you can talk to her, but can you tell her not to look at me as though she is debating whether to freeze me now or later."

"Back at you sweetie," He licks her whole ear.

Elsa drops her head under his chin and pushes up. She grabs his shoulders and sends a sheet of ice across his back. He tries to wrap his arms around her, but she slowly pushes him back.

"What is wrong with you two?"

They turn their heads toward them and separate as they adjust their clothing.

Gerda comments, "It looks like they are enjoying each other's company."

"And that is what I'm talking about. If she froze my back like she did to him, I would be on the floor in pain." Kristoff lets go of Anna's hand and sits back in his chair. "That is why I don't say anything."

Sam looks down and holds Elsa's hand. He gives her a half smile.

She nods to him. "We tell him a truth."

"Agreed." He closes his eyes as he lowers his head and takes several deep breaths. On the fourth breath, he exhales a cold mist across the table and the room temperature begins to drop. In a matter of seconds everything in the room sparkles with a thin layer of ice except for the immediate area surrounding the five of them. He opens his eyes seeing everything in the blue tint.

"Do not move," Elsa says. "Kristoff, I cannot do this, without as you have said, turning this room into a block of ice. But I can do this." She slides her hand under Sam hair and on the back of his neck. His head wobbles and she pulls him towards her as he falls unconscious in her lap.

Sounds of ice crack as the room temperature rises. Gerda carefully moves around the Queen's chair and assist laying Sam onto the floor with a thump.

"Anna, my fear is whether you were making the correct decisions. Maybe I have gotten into the habit of showing Kristoff my face that if he hurts you I will freeze him. Over the past years, I have learned that fear was unfounded. I also fear that I could freeze Arendelle or some hamlet because I cannot control my emotions or the ice, like he can. If he were to throw his entire ice energy at me, I could not stop him, let alone save either of you, but I can put him to sleep. I can, if under a dire situation, make sure he never wakes up, if he loses control."

His hand grabs the edge of the table and Sam pulls himself up. Using the chair to stand, he sweeps his hands across the table. The ice particles transform into droplets of water and collect into a sphere. The ball of water floats over to a side table and settles with a plop in the vase.

"There is always water even in a desert that can be collected. My fear is that I would lose control and someone would be injured or killed. You have seen a glimpse of my abilities." He reaches back and Elsa takes his hand. "I know my love can force me into unconsciousness and prevent me from ever seeing the next sunrise. I don't know how or do I care." He looks at her. "We hold each other's life in our hands. After what we have been through, I cannot imagine living my life without her. All logic says I should be dead or on the other side of the world. I know someday we will part in death, but until that happens, we will have our moments of difficulties –"

"And fears," Elsa says.

"Joy," Anna looks to her husband.

"And happiness," Kristoff says and he hugs his wife.

"All these things make a marriage. You have your good days and your bad days. The one overriding rule that we must commit to daily is to never walk away."

Elsa nods. "And I have underestimated you, Kristoff. I apologize to the two of you. You can stay here in the castle or if you choose to move to a different location, I will be sad, but I will respect your decision."

Sam eyes her. "Then we need to make sure he does not wish to leave. He has been telling us and we were not listening."

Anna glances at Kristoff. "What did you tell them?"

He shrugs. "I'm not sure what he is talking about."

Elsa grins up at Sam and glimpses at them. "You are correct. We have not been listening to him. If he has a reason to stay, they would not wish to leave."

They stare at Kristoff.

"Anna, what are they doing?"

"Kristoff, buddy ole pal, how would you like to be in charge of resurrecting the Knights of Arendelle?"

"Knights, as in a suit of armor?"

Sam continues. "No, as the knights of old protected its people, you will lead this generation of knights to protect Arendelle with modern skills. You will be the first knight provided you survive."

"Provide he survives?" Anna glances at Sam and her sister.

Elsa pulls on his hand. "When were you going to tell me about the knights?"

"Actually, I had been considering it for some time. I had planned to bring it up at this evening's meal, but now is a good opportunity."

"Then give details." She smiles up at him.

He kneels facing her and kisses the back of her hand. "Please hear me out. I speak for their benefit. If I had not been here, the probability of Arendelle being invaded was extremely high. Despite the military and the guards that I respect, I got into this castle several times and they did not know. Arendelle is large compared to the immediate surrounding area for a hundred kilometers. Further out there are several kingdoms with a large standing army that would crush Arendelle, one being Christiania up the coast. Unless there is an influx of people moving into Arendelle we could hold out for a short time, but surrender or death would be the only options."

He presses the back of her hand against his forehead as he closes his eyes. "A company of knights could infiltrate the enemy and wreak havoc to the point of demoralizing the troops."

She runs her fingers through his hair and curls it around his ear. "You mean like you?"

He rolls his head from side to side. "There will never be anyone like me again. We four, in this room, have skills, when applied at specific times will overcome them." He looks into her eyes. "And I want Kristoff to be in charge of the company."

He rolls his head to stare at Kristoff. "You will have to meet the same standards as the rest of the company. Other than me, you are third in line with the greatest possibility to succeed through the program."

"Third, who is first and second?" Anna asks.

"I have yet to ask them so I will not give names at this time, but I promise they will be the tip of the spear."

"Will the knights be limited to men only?"

"First and second are females. All will be allowed to try. The standards will not be lowered for anyone. If the person believes they can continue to contribute to the unit in other ways, it will be reviewed, but the basic fundamental of the unit is to kill. The fundamental above that is to do everything possible to achieve the mission goal without killing."

"Like when you fought against the Weselton assassin. You could have killed him easily," Anna says.

"That is correct."

Kristoff frowns. "I don't think I can kill another human being."

"Would you fight a wolf if it was attacking Anna?" Elsa asks.

Sam diverts his eyes down. Her posture tells him she understands. The pressure on his mind decreases.

Kristoff replies, "Yes, I would kill a wolf to protect my wife."

"If the wolf attacks me?" Elsa asks.

"Yes . . . yes, I would kill it."

Sam glances at Elsa with a half-smile.

Without looking up at him she states, "Go ahead and ask him."

"The four of us are at the Lookout Plateau. Anna is setting out a blanket on the ground near the cliff's edge. Elsa is getting a basket off a horse tied to a tree twenty meters away, but the horse moves knocking her down. She does not move. You do not see me anywhere. You run towards Elsa, but then Anna screams. You are half way between the two ladies. Two wolves appear equal distances from them. Each charges at one of them. Which wolf do you attach first?"

"That is not fair to him." Anna rebukes.

He stares at her to gauge her response. "It is a possibility. Tell me Kristoff, how many times have you seen wolves split their numbers to attack from different directions?"

"I have seen it happen."

"Which wolf do you attack first?"

"The one charging Anna."

"Why?"

Anna snaps her head around to him. "What do you mean, why? He is my husbands."

"Your sister dies and you become Queen."

She cringes. "No, not like that."

Sam slams his knuckles on the table, startling them. "Yes, just like that. The sad fact is, most people will move to self-preservation, in which case, all of you will do just that. Few people would actually fight a wolf for a loved one. Fewer still would make the correct decision."

"He should attack the wolf charging the Queen first?"

He looks down at the floor. Elsa squeezes his hand. "In this scenario, there is no one correct answer only a lot of pain. So the question is how do you minimize the pain?"

After a moment of silence Elsa comments, "You change the scenario?"

He grins at her and squeezes her hand. "How?"

"We stay close together and look out for each other."

Anna whispers, "I learn to kill the wolf myself."

"That is one possibility, but if you could hold out long enough for Kristoff to save you that would be another."

"If there is anything left of me to save." Anna lowers her head. Kristoff kneels next to her and with his arm around her, he pulls her to him.

"See. It is more than just changing the scenario. What is the obvious you are not seeing?"

They stare at each other. A soft voice by the door answers. "You have to know and are assured in the skills of each team member."

"My sword bearer speaks the truth. I present number two." Sam grins as his heart is lifted. "Tomorrow we begin."

An early morning fog obscures everything above the walls. Enough sky light pierces the fog to create a gray tint to everything close to the ground. Small bands of mist dip into the courtyard and float back over the wall.

Four volunteer guards with their blanket, swords, and minimal other necessities wait on horseback. Sven climbs the steps and bumps Kristoff as he kisses Anna. Aurora patiently waits for Sam as he kisses Elsa.

Sam gives her an extra-long hug. "It is just for two weeks. It will pass in no time."

She squeezes him tighter. "I know it will. I am sure the council will keep me busy and before I know it, you will be back."

His fingers touch four specific points on her face and neck. _You can talk to me anytime. I'll give you an update every evening and you can relay Kristoff's status._

 _May I send Anna's messages to Kristoff this way?_

 _By all means yes, but if I do not respond immediately, it will be because I'm doing something at the moment, but I will contact you._

 _I understand. Will it be okay if I miss you?_ With no response she looks up at him.

He blinks his eyes to keep the excess tears from collecting in the corners. "It has been a long time since someone stated they would miss me." He gives her a long passionate kiss.

Aurora taps the step and neighs. A second later the other four horses neigh.

Elsa wrinkles her face at Aurora. "Jealous?"

Aurora taps the steps and shakes her head.

Anna stands behind Elsa staring at Aurora. "What is that about?"

"She called me a derogative name."

"How do you know what she said?"

He snickers.

Elsa pinches his arm. "Stop laughing."

Anna turns away, "Never mind, I know how."

An eagle screeches overhead. Sam gives Elsa one last peck on her nose. "Time to go, the sun will be well up by the time we get to the training ground." He grabs Aurora's ear. "No more name calling or you will find yourself outside of the castle."

He walks between the horses and shakes the hand of each guard. "Roy . . ."

"Geir . . ."

"Alf . . ."

"Jostein . . ."

He swings up onto Aurora's back. "Thank you gentlemen for volunteering, I hope you will be the first of many Knights of Arendelle."

Anna hooks her arm around her sister's arm as they wave at them. Sven positions himself in front of the four guards.

Sam guides Aurora to the rear of the column. "Captain Bergman, at your command."

Kristoff looks back at him. "My what?"

He pulls on the reins and guides Aurora to the front of the column. "I'm not a cavalry man so let's make this simple." With a louder volume he says, "Riders forward, normal pace."

Aurora and Sven walk towards the gate. Sam peeks over his shoulder to make sure the four guards are following. They pass through the gates. A thin layer of fog covers the surrounding hills except where the sun has burned it off on the eastern hills.

The horse's hooves clatter against the stone bridge creating an echo of many horses.

Sam comments to Kristoff. "I will have to talk to the military general about the proper horse commands. For right now we will use 'Riders Forward, normal pace', 'double pace', 'charge'; 'Riders Halt'; 'Column left or right', to turn down a street or path. There are also 'Riders mount' and 'dismount'."

Kristoff nods to him.

Several merchants stop setting up their wares to watch them pass. They pass the square and into the heart of Arendelle. Several children wave to them.

They pass the fourth street and Sam pulls Aurora out of the line. "Keep going Captain. I need to make a pick up. I will rejoin you very shortly."

The riders pass and Aurora clops down the alley to stop next to the stairs. He rolls his fingers together and shots three ice crystals at the upstairs door. A few seconds later the door opens.

She stares down at him with her arms crossed.

"I will assume you know why I am here?"

She faces away from him and looks up the alley.

"I still remember what you said. I will honor it, but I ask that you hear me out before making a final decision. You and Kristen have a unique set of skills that greatly enhance the capabilities of Arendelle's Knights."

She rolls her head slightly in his direction. "And whose path will you take yours or Sariphans?"

"Seventy-five percent Sariphan and the rest mine."

She faces him. "So you want to create the Sariphan team. With all of those knocks on your head, have you forgotten a Sariphan team devastated this area?"

"Because of my personal knowledge of them, I would not create a strike team of Sariphans. These are humans." He taps his forehead. "I will control them here or take away their thoughts."

"How long will you be gone?"

"Two weeks from today, we will be back. If for whatever reason you need Kristen to come home, contact Queen Elsa. I will get her back by the fastest means."

She leans against the rail and shakes her head. "Two weeks is a long time. She helps me to take care of her brother while I fix their meals. At the end of the two weeks, I'll need to get away for a while to regain my sanity."

He bows his head and nods, "What do you want so Kristen can train the team?"

Brigit grins and points towards the window across the street. He did not have to look. He knew she was pointing to the second floor window above Councilman Jensen's law office. He heard several reports of Ms. Hulda pressuring Mr. Gostislav to fire Brigit.

"Do you want a new place to live?"

"NO, this is optimum for me. Just use your charms to make her stop harassing Mr. Gostislav and my children."

He turns to stare at Mrs. Hulda's window. "It will be done. I guess they did not learn from the last time." He nudges Aurora around so he can watch the window.

"Oh, she is watching. I have one more condition to allow Kristen to go. If you get the desired results, when it is time, I want you to train Erik and his friend Andrea."

"Deal."

A clatter of shoes runs out the door. "Momma, why didn't you tell me Sam was here?" With a small pack on her back and a walking stick as long as her height, she jumps and pushes off the rail halfway down the stairs. She lands on his leg and sits on the saddle in front of him. She adjusts her dress and pushes back against him. "Back up, I don't want to ride on Aurora's neck. Hold my stick."

He slides back out of the saddle and holds her walking pole.

She takes the reins out of his hand. "I will do it. Let's go Aurora. We need to catch up with the others."

Aurora walks towards the street.

He asks, "When did your mother approve this event for you?"

"Last night, when I asked."

He grabs the reins and turns Aurora around. Brigit grins and waves as she enters her apartment.

Kristen snickers. "What did you have do to get mom to Ok me for this trip?"

"Allow Erik and Andrea a chance to become Knights." He turns Aurora up the street and drops the reins in her hands. He points to the upper window of the Councilman's law office. "And to get Ms. Snooty to back off."

"I told her all she had to do is ask you. I'm sure you would have said yes."

"You're right, I would have, but this way neither of us will be obligated to the other." He searches up the road and does not see the other riders. "Keep the horse steady while I can scan the area."

Kristen holds the reins with no slack.

Sam spots the riders passing outside of the wall. "Let's take an easy walk."

She does not release the reins and tips of her hair change from brown to orange to red to yellow and back to orange. "Erik has been asking questions?"

"About?"

"Where he comes from, why he focuses on certain adults differently than he did previously. He asked why his friend Andrea wants to play all the time and not be more serious?"

He reaches around and forces her hands to loosen the reins as he nudges Aurora to walk. "Sounds like the Sariphan part of him has awaken. Your mother must be happy about it. She said she wasn't sure if it would become active." His fingers glide through her hair and the tips return to the light brown color. "Has he seen your hair change colors?" She shakes her head. "Sariphan females develop their abilities at a younger age. Erik is late because of his human side."

She peeks back at him. "Is that why the male team leader was always older than the female team members?"

He glances at her and smiles. "You already know the answer. I have seen you conduct yourself around Arendelle, while the human see you as an energetic young girl playing games. No male will dominate you, human or Sariphan. Because of your advance skills, you would be one of the rare female team leaders."

She waves and yells, "Andrea, Erik has to finish his chores. Go by there before noon."

"Okay." Andrea answers as he runs up the street.

"He is a loner. I hate to see Erick shy away from him."

"It may happen and will be unfortunate. Encourage Erik to stay his friend for as long as possible. Get them to work together on projects. Andrea may actually surprise all of us."

They pass through the outer wall. Sam's mind focuses. "I have the back half."

Kristen replies, "I have the front half."

Aurora follows the trail of the others horses.

 **End of Chapter**


	90. Chapter 89 Kristoff

**Title: Chapter-89: Kristoff**

 **1 year 7 months until Correction**

An hour later, Aurora walks into the camp area with only Kristen on her back. Aurora emits a lower rumble and stops next to the other horse. Roy and Alf watch Kristen then roll their eyes.

Kristoff assist Kristen down. "Where is Sam?"

"He fell off a little ways back, but said he would walk the rest of the way."

"I guess we can wait for him. He did not say what to do next."

She shakes her head. "Are you prepared for an attack?"

"Attack? He did not say anything about an attack." Kristoff searches the edge of the forest. "Why would he attack on the first day?"

"Do you know why you are here?" Kristen waits as she watches him. "What better way to determine the skill levels of the new trainees?" She glances towards the path they road in on and moves to the other side of Aurora's neck. She hides as much of herself as she can between Aurora and the next horse.

Jostein holds the side of his neck and yells. "What the hell?" He looks at his hand. A small welt forms on his neck. He searches the ground and looks towards his right. A shower of pebbles strikes Geir. He runs towards the road. A whirling sound flies through the air with a thump in the middle of his forehead. He staggers and falls to his knees. More stones shower the area and soon the other two lie on the ground.

Sam walks in from the road and observes the group. "I must have forgotten to tell you the training starts as soon as you reach the training area?" He stands next to Kristoff. "No one is seriously hurt. Gather everyone by the log over there."

Aurora snorts at him. He holds out her walking stick as Kristen walks around the horse and takes it from him.

"Come join us." He escorts her to the group. The trainees hold their heads and arms as they sit on the log. He places his hand on her shoulder. "This is Kristen. She will train you in self-defense."

"Really, what does she know about fighting?" Alf smirks.

Sam asks, "What do you think is the purpose of the attack?"

"Do not turn our backs to you?" Two nod in agreement.

"I'm not the one who attacked you. I just walked in." He grins at them.

Roy jumps up and points his finger at him. "We know you have the power to throw those rocks at us."

He moves Kristen behind him as a shower of larger stones rain on the men. They groan as they help each other up.

Kristoff wipes the back of his neck and studies the blue sticky stuff on his fingers. "Wait," he sniffs his fingers. "No you did not." Kristoff narrows his eyes at him.

"Captain, please tell your team what you have found."

"This is a combination of three berries. You give this to someone in pain and a half hour later they will be asleep."

The guards check each other and find the berry cocktail.

Sam tries to hold back a grin. "Now that it is on your skin what will it do?"

"My finger and neck will go numb as it is already starting."

"How long will the numbness last?" Sam grins and Kristen snickers.

"It depends on the size of the area covered by the berries and the amount of berry juice. My fingers and neck will be numb thirty minutes to an hour. The juicier and larger the area could be several hours." Kristoff shakes his hand.

Geir laughs as he points to Roy. "The whole side of your face is covered berries."

The juice begins to show its effect on them.

"Before I give the cure, what is to be learned from this event? How many saw the berries coming in?"

Kristen steps out from behind him and raises her hand. None of the guards show any sign of wanting to answer.

Sam winks at her, "Kristen, please tell them what they should learn from these attacks."

"You should be prepared at all times, especially when you move through a hostile area. Never expect the same type of attacks so close together. The first attack conditioned you to a specific response. The second attack camouflaged the true method of attack."

"The berries." Kristoff shakes his head.

"Everyone responded as they did from the first attack which allows the secondary attack with the berries to be on target." Kristen nods her head. "The second attack was very effective. All targets were hit."

"But why me?" Kristoff asks.

"To lead, you must endure what your troops endure. It creates sympathy for them and they will have a greater respect for you. Why would anyone attack with these berries?"

"Incomol pacitpate wolf ut kurling hen." Roy with his half blue face answers.

The others look at each other. "What did he say?"

Kristoff translates," Incapacitate the person without killing them."

"Very good, if I'm not mistaken, there is a path that leads to a stream a little ways past the boulder. Follow the Captain and help each other."

The four guards follow Kristoff. After they moved past the boulder Kristen asks, "The last time I was here that stream had very little water in it. I have not seen any rain. It may be dry."

Sam shrugs his shoulder. "We shall see. This test is for Kristoff."

"See if he can lead them to water?"

"And if they remember they do not have any food." He sits under a shady tree.

She follows, but stand in the sunlight. "You don't think they will get a little upset?"

"Actually, I'm counting on it. As long as they have water, they can go a week without food. How long can you go with just the sun?"

She twirls her walking stick between one hand and the other. "The amount of time exposed times two. I ate more than I usually do last night so I'm good for two cloudy days. What about you?"

"There are enough plants around here for me to eat."

He watches her spin the stick in very specific patterns. An untrained eye may see her randomly tossing the stick, but she performs several offensive maneuvers.

"Can you defend against a sword with that?"

She stares at her stick as she taps a stone with it. "I can, but a couple of good hits would break it. This is not a combat weapon. I use it for walking and moving icky stuff out of my way."

"But you could defend yourself with it?"

She narrows her eyes at him. "Will I need to defend myself?"

He smiles, "Before the day is out, yes."

"Then I better prepare." She ties her hair up making it less likely someone could grab it. Still twirling her stick she walks the perimeter of the area as she inspects everything.

Several hours later the sun reaches its zenith in the sky. From the other side of the boulder, Sam hears grumbling minutes before they move into view. As sweaty as they appeared they act energetic.

"What took you so long?" Sam asks.

"No thanks to you. I bet you knew the stream was dry." Roy leads the group and grumbles.

"How much?"

"How much what?"

"How much do you want to bet?"

Alf and Geir try to warn him against the bet. Sam observes the conversation. The four guards move to a shaded area.

"Roy, how much do you want to bet?" He stares at him. Roy refuses to look in his direction. "Captain, Where was the water?"

"Over the next hill back there." Kristoff motions with his thumb over his shoulder.

"Did you bring any back?"

Jostein says, "I told you he would ask."

"Shut up," Roy says as the back of his hand smacks Jostein's chest.

Kristoff answers, "No we did not. Since we do not have containers to water the horses, I thought we should take the Horses and Sven to the water."

Sam nods before glancing up at Kristen.

The rotation of her stick slows until she grips it firmly. "Now the fun begins." She retrieves a slightly curved stick that is as long as her stick and tosses it near the center of the plateau. A warm breeze blows in from the south. It will not reduce the temperature in the area. How will they act under the conditions?

"A change in the weather brings opportunity." He stands and whispers to her. "Are you ready?"

She answers with a grin.

He moves to the curved stick and rests his hands on his waist. "Mister Roy, you have disrespected me. I accept your wager."

Roy looks at his friends and asks, "I did not make a wager."

"By not answering the Admiral, you bet that he knew the stream was dry. He just accepted your bet." Kristoff says from his spot on the log.

Roy steps out into the sun. "I do not recall the wage?"

"If you lose you get to walk home."

"What if I win?"

"I will let you ride your horse back to Arendelle."

Roy looks back at his friends and shrugs. "I accept. What do I do?"

With a grin Sam points to the curved stick. "Pick it up."

Alf says, "Don't do it. He is setting you up."

Geir says, "Ask for specifics."

"Your turns are coming up. If he does not pick it up, I guarantee it will be harder on the two of you."

Roy stares at the stick. "I can't win against you?"

Sam snorts. "Why do you assume it is against me?"

Roy glances at Kristoff.

"I will make it easy for you. You can fight against a little girl."

Roy glances past him.

Kristen stands with her feet shoulder width apart and holds her walking pole diagonally across her body. Sam does not have to look at her, but knows she is staring with a blank expression at Roy.

"What are the rules?"

"First blood, cannot get up from a count of ten, or I call it."

Roy picks up the curved stick. "Agreed."

"When does it start?"

"Now," Sam barely gets the word out when the tip of a walking pole slides between his arm and body. The tip impacts Roy's forehead and sends him sprawling onto the ground with the curb stick still in his hand.

Kristen stands with the pole at her side.

Alf runs over to Roy. "That was not fair. You did not give him a chance to defend."

From the shade Kristoff comments. "How much time did he need? He should have been ready the moment he agreed. The time it took him to ask the question and received an answer, a wolf would be tearing his throat out. If you were watching, Sam made no attempt to block Roy from seeing Kristen. Roy caused his own delay of action. She was faster."

Alf glares at Sam. "If you were out of the way, when you said 'now', she would be unconscious on the ground."

"You think so."

"Yes I do." Alf snaps at him. Geir helps Roy to sit up. A red circle with blood trailing into his hair sits in the middle of Roy's forehead.

"So you are challenging that you can win against Kristen if I am over there when I say 'now'?"

"That's right," Alf answers.

Geir helps Roy to his feet as he wipes the blood off his forehead.

"Okay, I will go over there and call it." He stands next to Kristoff.

Geir and Roy move back to the boulder. Alf picks up the curved stick and takes several steps back. Kristen with her pole still at her side focuses on him.

Sam yells, "fight."

Alf circles her, but stays out of the reach of her pole. Kristen moves her head only to follow him. Geir and Roy yell to distract her as Alf steps in closer to continue his circle around her. Each time he would stop directly behind her, but on the fourth circle instead of stopping he lunges at her. She snaps her head around to look directly at him. Alf hesitates and Kristen snaps her pole around as she steps to the side. A crack echoes off his face.

Alf stumbles and uses his pole to catch himself before falling to the ground. In rapid session her pole knocks his stick out of his hand, stabs his ankle, and as he falls, her pole swings towards his head. A red spot begins to form on his forehead similar to the one Roy received. The center of the spot changes to a bright red and a bead of blood traces back towards his hair. Alf does not move. Kristen back steps and turns. With each step she clicks her pole against the rocks on the ground.

Sam counts. "Ten, does anyone else wish to pick up the curved stick?" No one moves towards it, but they assist Alf to the large boulder.

"Excellent job," He reaches behind a small boulder and unties the top of a pouch. He pours water into Kristen's hands as she drinks.

Kristoff glares at him. "You had this water and did not share?"

"I have to be break them down, before they will work with me. While you were gone, I fill the pouch out of the humid air." He hands the pouch to him. "Be their hero and give them water."

Kristoff snatches it from his hand. "I hope you have more. I am sure those two will want more."

"I'm counting on it." He watches Kristoff walk over to the guards and converses with them. "You ready for the next stage?"

"Do I need to back off?" Kristen asks.

"No, but keep an eye for two coming at you. Take them down or they give up."

"Who do you think will strike at me?"

"Roy." He moves to the center of the plateau and picks up the curved stick. "Who's next?" No one moves. He holds the stick out. "You're up."

Jostein hesitates. Geir whispers something and nods for him to go. Jostein takes the stick. "Sir?"

Sam places his hands on his waist and watches him. "Speak."

"I can understand those three. They are great fighters in hand to hand combat. They use me as the practice target to finish off their training."

Sam's left brow rises. "Your point?"

"She beat two of them and I have no doubt she will win against Geir, so what chance do I have?"

"Do you like them beating on you?"

"No sir."

He points his thumb over his shoulder. "She is physically smaller than you and yet, as you have said, she has beaten opponents larger than you. Why do you think that is?"

Jostein peeks past him. "She has an air of confidence about her, despite the chances she takes."

"Clarify, 'despite the chances she takes'?"

"You barely said now. Her pole went under your arm and struck Roy in the head. What if you had hesitated before saying now?"

A slight grin forms. "You think she guest and guest right? Let me reassure you. However long I waited, she didn't strike until the word is given. She has a different fighting skill, but she is that good."

Jostein looks back at his friends. "Can I at least request she does not leave a mark on my face like their marks?"

He glimpses over his shoulder. "Kristen, do not put the same mark on his face."

Kristen steps out from behind him. "Make it more challenging, sure. I can do that."

"On guard," Sam walks outside of their range and commands, "Fight."

The bottom of Kristen's pole snaps against the curved pole, sending it flying at the other guards. They duck for cover behind the boulder.

With wide eyes, Jostein stares at her.

She asks, "Why don't you do something?"

"Why? I had a good grip on the stick and you slapped it out of my hand like I was not holding it. There is nothing I can do to defeat you."

She grins, "I'll let you get the stick and allow you one swing at me."

He looks for the stick, but keeps his eyes on her while he slowly backs towards it. Kristen watches as he continues to back away. At the last second he turns his attention away from and she strikes.

Several loud snaps echo off the branches above the horses causing Aurora to neigh and the other horses neigh in reply. Sam and Kristoff run towards the horse. After a minute he calms Aurora. His mind scans the immediate area and reveals nothing out of the ordinary, but he places his hand on her head and closes his eyes. He scans further out.

Kristoff asks, "What did she say?"

"A stone hit her. There is no one here, but us."

A pole rattles on the plateau stones followed by the sound of an open hand hitting the stones. He runs back to the training area. Kristen lays face down and her walking stick near the edge of the plateau. He eyes Jostein standing by the curves stick on the ground,

Sam kneels and checks her pulse and breathing. A red blush forms on the side of her face. He blinks his eyes and sees an outline of a fist on her face. No bones are broken. The guards walk over to them.

Roy says, "She slipped backing from Jostein. Her pole almost fell off the cliff."

Sam glares up at Jostein. "Is that what happened?"

Jostein responds as he walks back to the boulder. "I'm sorry."

"It was an accident on her part." Alf comments and Geir agrees.

He rolls her over. Her split lip leaves a trail of blood down the side of her face. He lifts her and carries her to the shade. Kristoff retrieves her pole.

Sam glances back at the guards. A sheen of ice forms over his hand as he touches her face. "Do you believe them?"

Kristoff glances at the guards. "Until she wakes up and says differently or other evidence is provided, I have to believe them."

"Do you believe a stone fell out of the sky and hit my horse leaving an indentation in her coat?" Kristoff shifts his weight to watch the guards. "I have seen birds drop fish, berries, and nuts. I guess if the bird thought the stone was food and realized it was not and dropped it. It could happen."

He shifts Kristen to a sitting position and touches his cold hand to the other side of her face. He rolls his eyes up at Kristoff. "Have you heard there are those who believe man will fly like a bird?"

Kristoff wrinkles his brows together and his eyes dart down at him. "I have not heard of that. Why would someone want to fly?"

"How far can you see from the top of a mountain or the edge of the plateau as compared to being in a valley?"

Kristoff turns his head towards the peak of a distant mountain top. He moves towards the edge of the cliff and looks over. After a minute he walks back. "You would see a lot more from the mountain."

"And if a cloud covers the top?"

"A couple of meters."

"If you were above the cloud or if you do not have a mountain to stand on, or if you are on a ship in the middle of the ocean, lofting yourself above the ground or water would give a distinctive advantage over another."

Kristoff rests his hands on his waist. "Ok, I can see the advantage to that, but what does that have to do with a bird dropping a stone on your horse?"

Sam's left brow rises. "In a few short minutes, you questioned the validity of a concept to accepting the merits of it as a viable option." He grins. "As a knight you will need to be open to all possibilities no matter how obscure they sound. It will be your task to eliminate each possibility until you have one and only one left."

Kristoff sits on the log next to them. "How would I do that?"

"You have some facts. Use them to your advantage, but you have to be careful the facts have not been fed to you. The obvious may not be the truth. TEST . . . EACH . . . ONE."

Kristen starts to move and moans, but her body collapses. He positions his body between her and the guards by sitting on his heels. He lays her back on the top of his legs and leans over her to shade her face. He touches the side of her neck and face as his fingertips glow.

"Now would be the time to ask your question of me or them. This will take some time for her to heal. I will point out the obvious. You can go from there. A stone hits my horse and Kristen is found unconscious. They give you an explanation. What other facts do you have?"

From the corner of his eye, Sam sees Kristoff watching the guards. He shifts his body and scrapes his fingers across the bottom of her shoes. "Her shoes could have caused her to slip on the rocks."

"Did you see the unique steps she used to defeat Roy and Alf? What conditions changed that would have caused those same shoes to slip on the ground?" He purposefully turns his head towards the guards. "You saw where she lay. Perhaps there is evidence of her fall. Also, watch what they do and what they do not do."

Kristoff does not move, but stares at the guards.

"You faced Marshmallow, a blizzard, and wolves. This should be a piece of cake for you. They will not attack as long as I'm here. I assure you they will freeze into a block of ice if they draw a weapon. If anything they will try to distract you and determine if you are on their side or not." He touches the back of Kristoff's hand. "Sometimes being on their side is enough for them to lower their defenses."

"Okay," Kristoff stands and looks towards the castle. With his head down, he moves towards the guards. He kneels where Kristen laid on the stones. Geir marches towards him.

A shot of air blows into his face and he smiles.

"I know who did it."

"Shhhh, I also know who did it. This test is primarily for Kristoff and it clarifies my suspicion of the others. Claim you do not remember until I tell you to reveal the truth." He helps her to sit up. "Who was missing when they hit you?"

"Geir."

He moves her chin to the left and back to the right. "Your mother will be upset at me when she sees the bruise. I can heal it if you wish."

"And miss seeing you squirm in front of mom. For this bruise you are going to squirm," she replies with a half grin. "How long are you going to make Kristoff wait?"

"An hour before dark, I will help him if he does not ask questions."

She taps his arm and points to them.

He looks towards the guards and notes their hesitation. "Slowly point to the guard who hit you and stare at him at every opportunity."

"Make them sweat. Momma said you can be devious when you wish to be."

Sam stands as Kristoff approaches. "What did you find?"

"I have no evidence to verify what they said, but I cannot dismiss it outright."

"Based on your knowledge of this area, if she did slip as they say, what would have made the stones slippery and disappear?"

"It could have been water. Even in the sun there would be traces of water under the dirt surface. None of the stones were turned up except for the two I turned over. They had signs of moisture and vegetation, no marks like a shoe sliding across it. When I wiped the bottom of her shoe, I did not smell or taste anything like vegetation."

"Ewe, you tasted it," Kristen replies with a sour face.

"So what is the likely hood of another possibility?"

Kristoff stares at the ground for several moments. "If I was following an animal, there are always tracks. They may be hard to find, but they are there."

"But . . . you are not tracking an animal." He observes him searching the ground. "Are they telling you the truth?"

"I do not believe they are. A rock hits your horse. Kristen gets knocked out. They claim she slipped." Kristoff snaps his head up at him. "No one checked to see if she was ok until you knelt next to her."

"So who did it?"

Kristoff faces the guards as he clenches his fists at his side. "I do not have enough evidence to accuse any one of them, but I believe one of them did it."

Sam glances at the guards, "So how do you find out?"

Kristoff shakes his head. "I do not know. Do you have a suggestion?"

"Take them aside one by one. Ask them their exact location and what they saw. When you are through with the guard send them over here to keep us company. They will be provided with water."

With Kristoff's hesitation brings Kristen's comment. "I think maybe you were wrong about him. An adult male punched me in the face. What will he do in a seriously dangerous situation?"

He waits several seconds. "Is she correct? Am I mistaken in placing my trust in you?"

Kristoff flinches at the comment. "No, you are not mistaken. I will do this." He marches to the guards.

Sam and Kristen watches the exchange with the guards. One by one they sit on the ground across from them. She stabs a stick into the ground and positions it so it is pointed directly at the sun.

An hour later, Roy flops onto the ground with the other guards. He drinks his fill of water and glares at them. Kristen taps Sam's arm and motions to the shadow pointing east. He nods his head towards Kristoff. She takes her pole and walks towards the horse.

Sam watches Kristen. When she pets Sven, his head snaps around to the guards. Their conversation dies down. "Anyone care to tell me the truth? Which one of you criminals struck Kristen?"

Roy glances over his shoulder, "Who does she say?"

"In a court of law, she will provide an answer. Her mother will provide the punishment for the guilty person to include hanging."

Jostein turns his back to them.

Sam studies Jostein's mannerisms. "If one of you know anything, now is the time to confess."

Jostein peeks over his shoulder, then looks back towards the valley.

"It is admirable to watch out for your fellow guards, but if they break the rules or commit a crime and you do not report it, your silence endorses their actions and makes you as guilty as they are. Will you go to your death, holding the secret?" A rock skips across the ground and hits the side of his boot. Kristen grins as Kristoff walks towards them. "Gentlemen, you have until the Captain gets here to confess or I will push for the maximum punishment."

A few seconds later, Kristoff stops next to him.

"This is too bad. Captain, what did you find?"

Kristoff turns his back to the guards and whispers. "It would be easier to tell you first."

"Life is already hard on its own. When people believe they can get away with a crime, life is that much harder. Guards, come to attention in front of me." They were slow, including Jostein, but they stand at attention two meters in front of him.

He turns his head towards Kristoff, "Please give your report."

Kristoff stares for a moment. He moves his feet together, rolls his shoulders back with his arms to his side. "Based on the evidence I have collected, other than Jostein, they give the same statements. Unless Kristen remembers who hit her, I do not have enough evidence to say who punched her."

"This is too bad. Did you at least determine who threw the rock at my horse?"

"No."

He peeks at Kristen and she shakes her head. He faces Kristoff and places his hands on his waist as he glares at him. Will the intimidation work on him as it had on some many countless others? He waits several minutes, but Kristoff does not move or speak.

"I had high hopes for you. Clearly I am mistaken. It is too bad you did not find the culprit. You missed the obvious here. How can I trust you not to miss the obvious in the future?" He leans closer to him. "Give these men as much water as they can drink, including yourself. We will depart shortly." He performs an 'about-face' and marches over to the horses.

Out of the other's site Kristen asks, "Now what?"

"I need to push harder. Tie their horses together. You will lead them back." He pulls the rope out of a guard's saddle bag and snaps it against his hand. He searches the blue sky with one little cloud near the north mountain. A slightly warm southern breeze does little to diminish the sun's heat, even at this altitude. "I hope no one passes out on the walk back."

Kristoff gives the last guard his water and watches him.

Sam walks over to Jostein and stands in front of him. "Hold this."

Jostein holds the loop in the rope.

He motions with his finger to Alf and Roy. They stand at attention next to Jostein and each holds a loop in the rope. Kristoff sets the water pouch down. Geir stands next to Roy and holds a fourth loop on the rope. Sam waves his hand over the rope and ice forms to secure the guard's hands to the rope. Each tries to pull their hands free.

"Struggle all you want. You will not break my ice."

Kristoff grabs his arm. "What are you doing?"

Sam jerks his arm free. "What does it look like I'm doing? Since you do not know who hit Kristen, we will walk back to the castle. When her mother determines who did it, I will not stop her. Hold the end of the rope."

Kristoff stares at the rope, but take it.

Kristen leads the horses. Aurora and Sven follow beside her.

"Time to go sweetie," Sam lifts her onto Aurora's back and hands her the horse ropes.

She grabs his hand. "How far are you going to take it?"

He studies the group before answering, "All the way to the castle. If he does not surprise me, I will have to let him go. Are you going to be ok pulling on the horses?"

She pats his shoulder. "Aurora is a good horse. The others will not give me trouble, but it will be close to dark before we get back."

He notes a few more clouds moving in from the south. "Dark, I'm not concerned about. The rain will be another story. When I get them turned around, you take the lead."

He moves towards the group. Sven bobs his head, looking at the rope, then at Kristoff.

Sam asks, "What are you doing?"

"Since I have failed to determine who hit Kristen, as you have stated, if I am to be their leader I need to know what they experience." He lifts his hand holding a loop on the rope.

He searches Kristoff's eyes for deceit or desperation and finds neither. "So be it." His hand passes over the rope creating a block of ice around his hand and the rope. "Hold onto Sven and do not fall behind. We will make it back to Arendelle before sunset."

He motions to Kristen. She turns Aurora to lead the group down the hill.

 **End of Chapter**


	91. Chapter 90 The Almost Gift

**CHp-90: The Almost Gift**

 **1 year 6m until Correction**

A southern breeze collects more clouds along the horizon. The tall grass bows to the passing air waves as though pointing to Sam's group of travelers. The breeze brings a tingling sensation across Sam's exposed arms. He glances up to catch Kristen, watching him.

Half way down the hill they stop for a few minutes to relieve themselves. A short time later, as a steady breeze blows into their faces, they reach the Arendelle's outer gates. Other guards and town's people watch the procession pass. Near an alley, Sam assists Kristen off his horse and escorts her to the bottom of the stairs. She runs up the stairs to meet her mother.

"What happened to you?" Brigit asks inspecting her daughter's cut lip.

"It did not go as planned."

"I can see that." She looks at Sam. "Why are you here early?"

"A change in plans," he answers. "I hope to salvage him before it is too late."

Brigit eyes the men standing on the street. "It looks like Kristoff is tied to the others." Sam nods. She continues, "He did not see the obvious, did he?"

He shakes his head and walks back towards the street.

"And where are you going?" He points in the direction of the castle. "Not without Kristen. She did not have a cut lip when she left and she better not have a cut lip when she gets back six days from now."

"I understand. Time to fly sweetie." He stops a meter from Aurora and extends his arms over his head with hands slightly lower than Aurora's back. Bending his left knee and extending his right leg back, he keeps his head in-line with his body.

A barely noticeable patter of feet running across the stones approaches him. Her foot taps his right calf, left hip bone, right shoulder, and she lands on Aurora's back with both feet. She sits with her walking stick tucked under her arm.

Jostein asks, "Can she teach us that?"

Sam stands and grins. Even in the last throes of light diminishing under the clouds, an expression of wonderment shines on Kristoff's face, but not like Elsa's expression when her mind is open to learning.

As he adjusts his clothes back to their comfortable positions, Sam says, "That is my intent."

All the guards glance at Kristoff at the same time.

"Including him," he answers to the stares.

Brigit yanks on his hair and flings it into his face. "I gave you no permission to use Kristen as a practice target."

By the time he gets his hair out of his face, Brigit grips Jostein's arm. He nods twice and shakes his head once, before she moves to Alf.

Sam taps Kristen's foot. "What is she asking them?"

Her brows push together and she focuses on him. "Don't you already know?"

"It has been a number of years. I'm out of practice, so it is for clarification." Sam looks down and shakes his head.

Kristen touches his forehead. "You're telling the truth. Do you feel well?"

"I am concerned. This did not go as planned."

Brigit walks up to him and shakes her fist in his face. "Whatever has your attention, you better resolve it or put it aside before you back out." She punches his arm. "Take care of my jewel or you will lose your family jewels."

Sam rubs his arm. "And that is why I like your mother. She speaks her point with the minimum number of words, just like Krystal did. He looks up at an empty stairs. "Take us to the castle."

Kristen leads the group through Arendelle and across the bridge. The gate guards greet her as she passes through. They snicker when the four guards walk through still frozen to the rope.

"Sven, take them to the barracks. Aurora, go home." Sam follows several meters behind them.

 _My love, we are back. Is Anna with you?_

 _Yes, she is. How did it go?_

 _Not as planned, I need you to come to the front of the stables. Enter through the side room. If Anna insists on following you, have her enter the main gates, but in silence. There will be a guard to escort her in. Kristoff and I should be in the small room. Give me at least five minutes before you enter._

 _Five minutes, I will be there. How are you doing?_

 _I'm kind of disappointed. The next training has to be harder._

 _Have to go, Anna's staring at me._

He stops next to Kristoff and touches the rope. The ice melts off their hands. He angles his eyes towards Kristoff. "Go take care of Sven. We will talk in a few minutes. As for the rest of you, I need to talk to you one at a time." The gate to the stable opens and closes. He waits several seconds to make sure Kristoff has moved away from the door.

"All of you did an excellent job. What is your opinion?"

Roy answers first. "He lacks confidence." The other three nod in agreement.

Sam loops the rope in his hand. "No one lied or gave false answers."

They all shook their heads.

"Overcoming the confidence issue and more training, will you follow him?"

Jostein answers, "He has good instincts. I did not know there was another stream two hills over. He was confident it was there."

"Yeah, he is confident in what he knows. His hesitation is outside of his comfort zone." Geir comments as he nods. "Give him enough time, I would follow him."

"The rest of you?"

The other three agree.

"Ok then, we will train him. Jostein, stand by the side gate and wait for Princess Anna. Get her in without Kristoff seeing her."

"Aye sir."

"Rest of you get cleaned up and a meal in your bellies. I will see you in the morning."

All four snap to attention. Jostein moves to the side gate and the other three walk back to the barracks.

The castle's main doors open and two individuals exit. His eyes close for a long second. A smile forms across his lips. "Our two guests are on the way. I better hurry." Jostein nods and opens the side gate.

A moment later, Sam walks past Kristoff whispering to Sven and continues to Aurora's Stall. Kristen pours a pail of oats into the horse's feeding trough.

Sam kneels next to her. "Let me repair your lip and the side of your face. Grab my arms."

His left hand cups the side of her face with the reddish tint and his fingertips lightly touches the right side of her chin. She holds his lower arms and closes her eyes. His hands glow with a blue tint. The right side of her face and the cut on her lip begins to pulse with the glow of the blue energy. She breathes normally, but after several minutes, she inhales a deep breath and exhales. A blue fog exits her nose. The glow in his hands disappears. As her head drops she rocks forward and he holds her shoulders.

"I've got you."

Her eyes open and they blink until they focus on him. "Oh my God, now I know what mother was talking about. She tried to explain it to me, but I did not understand her references. I don't know if I could explain it to my brother."

"The redness is gone. If you do not tell anyone, they will not see the pink line on your lip. In a few days the pink will fade and no one will ever know."

"So you can fix everything with blue magic?" Kristoff grumbles.

He motions with his head. "Go sit in the room while I speak with Master Kristoff."

Kristen slides through the rails and walks to the side room.

He watches her go around the corner, then stands. He faces Kristoff and grasps his hands behind his back. "If you do not get too vocal she will not hear you."

Kristoff clamps his hands on the top rail. His fingers gradually change from pink to white. The rail creaks.

"Do not destroy the rail because you're upset and failed."

"FAILED, you set me up to fail." The rail pops and crackles. With his jaw clenched tight, his eyes bulge and his face changes to a bright red.

"Mister Kristoff, stop what you are doing and regain your composure." A light frost forms on Sam's hands.

The top half of the rail begins to splinter and Kristoff continues to strain as the rail twists and cracks.

Sam slips out of the stall. The rail breaks free at one end. He covers Kristoff's eyes as his fingers on his other hand connect to the four points on his neck and face. The rail breaks free from the stall. Sam pulls as he kicks his legs out from under him. They crash onto the floor with a thud.

Elsa runs into the stable area. Sam shakes his head and mouths the word 'stop'.

Still gripping the rail, Kristoff fights, but Sam shifts his weight to hold him down. Layers of ice rapidly encase both of them. Kristoff's rage slowly diminishes. The tension in his muscles decreases. His heart slows. The heat in his body dissipates. He relaxes then his teeth chatter.

Sam reverses the energy transfer and the ice melts. He rolls Kristoff onto his side, but keeps his hand over his eyes. "Can you hear me?"

Kristoff whispers, "Yes, I could not stop myself. I was angry, but it kept building. Please do not tell Anna or her sister. I was just starting to understand the hardship of royalty. I thought going on this exercise would help me to cope with Anna's frustration."

Sam moves his hand from his face.

"Please do not tell Anna or Queen Elsa."

"I will leave Anna up to you. As for Queen Elsa, I cannot withhold the information."

Kristoff turns his head, looking up at him. "Why not?"

Elsa leans over Sam. "Because I already know."

Kristoff stares up at her. Tears collect in the corner of his eyes. He turns his head as one races down his face. "Please do not tell Anna. I do not know why I did this."

"I will not mention this to her. At some point later I hope you will tell her." She places her hand on Sam's shoulder. "Do you know what is causing him to act this way?"

"He had an allergen reaction to something, since there is a distinctive redness on his neck. It corresponds to the area, he was hit with the berry splatter. Pabbie assured me the berries would just stain the skin."

"Stain?" Kristoff rolls his head to look up at them. "There is a red berry that grows higher up on the mountain. I do recall Bulda told me never to eat it again."

His left brow rises. "So what happened?"

He turns his head away from them. "It is embarrassing."

"Buddy, either tell us or we will hear it from Bulda."

He lifts the board still frozen to his hands.

"How long did the berries affect you the last time?"

"She said a couple of days."

He presses his hand against Kristoff's neck. If the berries were the cause his breathing and heart rate, they have returned to normal. Other than the red splotch on his neck, he does not detect tension or unusual energy. "I'll unfreeze it, but act strange like you did and I will freeze you to the ground."

Sam places his hands over the ice and it melts. He lays the board against the stall.

A rapid knocking sounds from a gate opening. Jostein runs in. "Admiral, Roy is running across the courtyard, naked."

"Let me in. he is coming this way." Anna runs past Jostein. "Kristoff, why are you on the ground?" She kneels next to him. "Are you hurt? Did he hurt you?" She clenches her fists. "Sam, I will hurt you if you hurt my husband."

"Get as many men as needed to capture Roy and tie him down to his bunk." Sam looks down at Kristoff and Anna hugging each other. "It may take a day or two for the effects to wear off."

Jostein runs out calling for the guards to help him.

"So Bulda knows about the berries."

Elsa slides her arm around his waist. "What are you thinking?"

"The Sariphans recorded they overcame a large army where half of them ripped off their clothes and danced. In the confusion the army was handily defeated." He glances at her. "I think there is someone closer who can help with Roy and tell us if there will be any other side effects."

Sam looks down at the two. "Kristoff, your wife is here. She needs to know what you were feeling earlier today." Elsa squeezes his side and raises her brows at him. "If he hides anything from her, he could be compromised to hide information from me." He looks into her eyes and corrects himself, "or us."

Anna slides her fingers through Kristoff's hair. "What happened today? I thought you would be gone all week."

Kristoff stares up at him. Sam nods towards Anna, but Kristoff hesitates.

"Let me help you to get started. It takes a tremendous amount of courage to appear weak in front of someone you love. It takes more courage to give that person the power of life and death over you. Elsa and I have a trust, yes, we can read each other's mind, but we trust each other not to joke or place the other in a compromised position. Unless something happens, you two have to verbally express your feelings to each other. It may be embarrassing or completely humiliating. To be a team you have to believe the other will not lead you into trouble. If you two have any doubts towards each other the trust will be conditional."

He slides his arms around her waist and gazes into her blue eyes. "Kristoff, you already have an example. You saw for yourself and explained to Alf. Roy agreed to the fight conditions and asked when does it start? I said now. Kristen used me to hide her attack."

"Did you know she was coming up behind you?" Kristoff asks.

"I had a fraction of a second notice when she placed her hand on my back. I knew it was a perfect attack by Roy's lack of an expression until the end of her pole pushed his head back. Do you remember justifying the attack?"

Kristoff bows his head.

"I have great confidence in Kristen skills. I expect you to build your skill sets to her proficiency level so that one day my confidence in you will equal my confidence in her. Don't miss-understand. You will never be able to do what she does and I don't expect you to do it. I expect you to show me the skills you have and to train in new ones. It takes time. I have to look at the team as a whole. Each member compliments each other." He pauses for a moment staring at him. "Kristoff, I expect you to be a part of the team. I will not allow you to drown in your self-pity."

He glares up at him.

"Kristen."

She steps out from behind him and taps the floor with her walking stick.

"Alf and Jostein were not pretending when she knocked them down." He angles his head slightly towards Kristen, but keeps his eyes on Kristoff. "Do not hit Princess Anna unless she is foolish enough to try to protect her man."

Anna and Kristoff's eyes widen.

With a grin she taps the floor twice with her stick.

"You have five seconds to get off the floor before you receive the same mark as Roy and Alf. Time starts now."

Kristoff pushes Anna over as he rolls to his feet.

"Hey," Anna replies to the sudden movement.

Kristoff reaches down and lifts Anna to her feet. He turns around and purposefully stands in front of his wife.

Kristen taps her stick against his arm. "Told you. You owe me."

His left brow rises as he glances down at her. "You are mistaken. It took him six seconds to get to his feet so I win."

Elsa taps his chest. "I counted four."

"Ha, I win. I want three fruit and cream drinks." Kristen giggles.

He stares into her blue eyes. "Why did you count?"

"What do you think we did in the side room?" She gives him her regal smile. "Kristen asked me when was the last time you had prepared your special drink of fruit and cream drink for me. She said if I will say four at the appropriate time, she could get you to make us two drinks. I said make it true, then deal. I said four. She wins."

He withdraws his hands from her and grasps them behind his back. "The three of you will get your fruit drinks."

She continues to hold her arms around him. "Are you upset?"

His head slowly moves from side to side. "No. I am disappointed in myself. There were moments when LadyCat distracted me as you have just done. The Admiral cannot be distracted if he is to be respected by those he commands. We need to clarify our rolls and the chain of command." He stares into her eyes.

"Do you understand Kristoff? You are going through the same thing that everyone else has experienced. Marriage is the ultimate test of trust. What Kristen and our Queen did to me reveals I have allowed my command proficiency to falter. She knows it is best I find out now than to discover it on a battlefield when lives could be lost."

He lightly kisses her nose. "The day Aurora kicked me in the head. I believed, no, I had the confidence you would do the right thing. I gave you my key and you used it for my safety or I would not be here now." His hands separate and move together again around her waist.

He looks at Anna and Kristoff. "Your second moment of trust may not be as traumatic as our moment was, but it will happen and the two of you need to be prepared for that moment. The only way to be prepared is to practice."

"Second, when did the first happen?" Anna asks.

Elsa grins with a wink. "What do you think you were doing when you and Kristoff came looking for me on the north mountain?"

Kristoff turns Anna's head towards him. "I would be devastated if you did not trust me because of my actions." He presses her hands against his heart. "This morning I thought going into the hills to practice survival skills that I know, but as soon as the first rock hit a guard, I seriously considered jumping on Sven and riding back to for you. At the end of the day I didn't think it was fair they had to walk back so I walked with them. By the time we got to the gate I wanted to tell the Admiral what I thought of him, but my head was in so much pain."

"Because you walked with them, you showed courage to me, but more importantly, you are willing to be a part of the team. With that action alone, you earned their respect and they will try to earn your respect. You have the talent. You just need to hone the skills like you sharpen your knife."

Kristoff smiles, then grins. He kisses Anna's forehead. "I have to stop treating you as though you will break and let you teach me."

A loud pop distracts them. "Sorry, I was nodding off with the dribble flowing through here, but I would like my drink before bedtime." Kristen grins as she picks up her walking stick.

"All right funny girl, see if the kitchen has the fruit and cream. I'll make it for the three of you."

Kristoff and Anna follow Kristen out the gates.

He tries to move, but Elsa does not. He watches her expression, but her smile and eyes do not change. She tightens her grip around his chest. "Are you ok?"

"I am late."

His brows push together. "Late for what?"

"Two weeks late," her smile blossoms into a grin.

"You think you are pregnant? Mathematically, that is not possible."

"And why not?" She loosens her arms around him and leans back. "You are not about to tell me your seeds will not germinate, are you?"

It is not possible and yet she believes it is so.

"Well?"

"If you, or we, were ordinary humans, I would say you are mistaken or had relations with another man, before the marriage ceremony." He says and lightly caresses her cheek.

She lays her head against his chest and tries to hold him tighter. "But we are not ordinary, are we?"

He whispers. "No, we are not. Without access to my ship, we need to wait at least eight weeks, before I try to scan you." His exhale flutters the loose strands of her hair. "It never occurred to me that I could be a father again."

She looks up at him.

"Did you tell Anna?"

Her smile fades a little. "Why eight weeks?"

"Anna was at the eight week point, when she lost her baby."

She loosens her grip and steps back as she rubs her abdomen. "Momma said you touched her and verified she was pregnant with Anna." A glare replaced her smile. "It was six weeks when you found me."

"Your mother was almost three months along when she approached me for Anna. You were discovered by accident. This is a critical stage for the baby. I could easily harm the child trying to detect it." He falls to his knees and places the palms of his hands against her belly. "I'm not implying anything. Wait sixty days and I will look."

A tear splashes on the back of his hand. "Do all women lose their first child?"

"No, statistically up to twenty-five percent of women will lose their first pregnancy. I suspect in this age that number may be higher. The problem is twofold. Many may not know they were pregnant and they just miss a cycle or they know of a woman who lost her baby early in their pregnancy. I ask that if you bleed again, do not dispose of it until I can look."

He looks up into her red eyes. "I know it hurts and maybe I should not have said anything. The more people who know and something happens, there will always be one who will remind you of it. You have to be careful. Experience a traumatic external force, a fall, or mental anguish on your part, stress, and it could be terminated. I will cancel my schedule for the next eight weeks and be here for you. I will watch over you."

She places her hand over his mouth. "Do not change your schedule. No matter what happens, I still have to maintain my duties during the next nine months." Another tear falls onto his hand. "This was supposed to be a happy occasion."

He licks her hand and she wipes it on his shirt as he speaks. "It still could be. Because you and I are the only two creatures like us, Unless God speaks to us, there is no science that would explain why you are pregnant now. My concern is will your pregnancy be similar to other human females, or will you create a new science. At what rate will your baby grow?"

She places her hand over his mouth. "You keep talking, you will make me depressed. It will be what it will be."

"You are correct." He wraps his arms around her and listens to her heart and the shudders of her breath.

Sam maintains his schedule. Kristen trains Kristoff to defend with a pole. Two weeks later, the seven members of the Knights of Arendelle prepare to depart for a two week training mission. This time all carries food and water containers with portable shelters.

A light breeze blows from the south as the first rays of sunlight crest the hills. Kristoff and Anna at the bottom of the steps hold and kiss each other.

Sam leans forward and scratches Aurora's neck. She emits a low rumble. "Did the Queen and I take this long to say goodbye?" Aurora nods her head and neighs. "Okay, I hear you. Captain Bergman, time to go."

Anna gives Kristoff a long hug, then she steps up the steps.

Kristoff mounts Sven and looks back at his team. He nods to the Admiral who nods back at him. "Column forward, walk." He leads the team towards the gate. Each guard nods to Anna as they pass. She waves to them. As Aurora approaches, she steps down and grabs the reins stopping her.

He motions to Kristen to continue and slides off Aurora.

With her brows bunched together her right hand slaps his abdomen as his feet hit the ground. "What is wrong with you? My sister needs you more than a bunch of males learning to fight with sticks."

"Kristen is not a male."

"I know she is not." She punches him again. He holds his belly and she holds her hand.

"You may wish to refrain from punching me again so neither of us gets hurt." He glances over Aurora's back. Kristen waves to him as she passes through the gate. "Anna, I would love nothing more than to be here for Elsa. She ordered me not to change my schedule. Her words were; 'Do not change your schedule. I still have to maintain my duties during the next seven months'."

She crosses her arms. "She ordered you? I do not believe you."

"It does not matter if you believe or not. There is a fine line between being told by my wife and commanded by the Queen, but to reassure you I did ask if she was making the statement as my wife or Queen. As you can see I am maintaining my schedule. If she gets into distress, she knows she can call me. If you do not believe me, go ask her."

"Why, so you can sneak away."

He wraps his arms around her, trapping her arms against his chest and lifts her boots off the ground. "Anna, you are a very good sister to Elsa. You know how stubborn she can be. Just don't push her. I think she needs to prove to herself she can do it. I need you to watch her for me." He sets her down and for a moment he looks at the castle. He swings his leg up and onto Aurora. "If she gets into trouble, tell her to call me, I will hear."

Anna knocks on the Queen's door as she enters. Elsa watches Anna with her bubbly smile, walk over to her. She moves her legs so her sister can sit with her on the lounger. With her head resting on the back of the lounger she rolls her head towards her. "What did he say?"

Anna rolls her eyes and flicks the invisible hair from her face with her hand. "Okay, you were correct. I tried to convince him to stay, but his mind was made up. He did say if you get into trouble to call him. He would hear you."

She smiles, "Punching him twice did not work?"

Anna glances down, "I was hoping you did not see it."

"I did not see it. He told me to ask you if your hand hurts." She grins. "I told you what he would do and say."

"Do both of you know what the other one is feeling and thinking all the time?"

She rolls her head the other way and points. "Do you see the books on the shelf over there?"

Anna looks. "Yes."

"Sam explained it to me this way. Those books have information in them, but as long as they sit on the shelf, I do not have access to the information until I open the book and read it. Sam's mind is a book sitting on his shoulders. Everything he sees, hears, tastes, feels, and thinks is in his book. When I want to know what he is doing at the moment I have to open his book. Until I do, I learn what my husband is doing the same way you do about Kristoff."

Anna stares at her and tilts her own head to match her sisters. "So you have to want to open his book to see what he is doing? Can you open his book now?"

She stares at Anna for a moment. "He is at a stream watering his horse and talking to Kristoff."

A smile blossoms across Anna's face. "Can you tell Sam to tell Kristoff, I love him?"

Elsa's eye's close longer than a normal blink. "Kristoff said he loves you too, and thanks you for the berry muffin. He had to eat it before the others took it away from him."

"Maybe I can ride out there and get him another muffin." Anna states as she nods.

"No, do not do that. They do not need you to distract Kristoff. They will be testing his leadership skills." Her hand slides across her abdomen.

Anna points to her hand. "Is something wrong?"

"No, just seeing if I can feel anything."

"Is that why you are sitting here? You are normally restless before the council meeting." Anna touches her hand.

She sort of smiles. "I am fine. I knew I would get tired, but I did not think it would be this soon." She swings her legs off the lounger and picks up her ledger off the bed. "Jensen will be doing most of the talking on his big proposal that has the potential to increase trade to Arendelle."

Anna holds the hall door open. "Do you believe him?"

"I believe he may be up to something to make up for the lost gold." As she reaches the door she groans and grabs her back.

"What is wrong? Are you ok?" Anna takes the ledger and grabs her arm.

With her eyes closed, she slowly shakes her head. After a few seconds she takes a deep breath and smiles at Anna. "I must have twisted my back last night."

"Does Sam know?"

She bends and twists her back. "It is just a sprain. The pain is gone."

"You did not tell him, did you?"

"Tell him what? This is not the first time I hurt my back. Do not make something that is not there." She holds Anna's arm. "I assure you if I am in trouble, Sam would know before I could tell him. Let us get to the meeting before Jensen or Snorre complains."

They arrive at the council room. Kai motions with his head towards the councilmen. Snorre and Jensen smile to her as she passes them. A dull pain jabs at her abdomen. She stands next to her chair waiting for Kai and glances around the room. Anna appears deep in thought as she stares at the table, but Elsa notes Anna did not bring her smile.

She stops rubbing her abdomen and places her hand on the table. Anna looks up at her with a forced smile. Kai slides her chair under her as she sits. The pain subsides. She opens her ledger. "Anyone wish to add comments to our last meeting?"

"Majesty, I would like to add to the last item of the previous meeting," Jensen says.

Elsa dips the quill in the ink well and whispers. "Imagine that."

She holds the quill over the paper ready to record their comments. She looks directly at Jensen. "I am waiting."

He nods to her. "I apologize for the delay. Someone made a comment I did not quite hear and I was waiting for them to repeat it."

"I said imagine that," she vocalizes louder than normal. "Please start."

Jensen stands. "Majesty, if I have offended you today, I apologize. My comment is a follow up to the last item which will lead into today's meeting, which is good news for Arendelle."

Everyone watches her including Anna. She stares at the smirk forming on Jensen's face. The pain eases. "Mister Jensen, you do this every time. I am not feeling well today. Please make whatever statement you are going to make, so we can continue."

Snorre grins as he turns to Jensen. "Please sir, enlighten us on the good news."

"I will gladly do so." He holds up a parchment. "This document is a conditional agreement that will increase Arendelle's imports and exports by one hundred and fifty percent. We will get a better price for our exports, which will allow us to import more products."

"More economy means more growth for Arendelle" Snorre cheerfully comments.

Sitting next to Anna, Councilman Erik asks, "Who is the agreement with?"

"Does it matter? We all profit with this deal." Snorre shoots back with a grin.

"Prince Nick of Weselton said the same thing. A deal all would benefit until the Admiral read every word of the deal. If we had signed it Weselton would have been controlling seventy percent of our exports, and yet," she glares at Jensen, "Prince Nick failed to mention the clause that stated they set the price. Is there a clause in the document in your hand?"

Jensen frowns. "No, I will let you read it to satisfy your paranoia." He moves around the table and hands the document to Anna.

Her eyes close for several seconds, before Elsa inhales a deep breath. The sharp pain in her lower abdomen subsides. She glances at Anna staring at her and forces a smile.

In the hills, a clatter of sticks smashing into each other echoes across the valley. A crack and a stomp followed by a thud and a groan sounds with Kristoff lying flat on his back gasping for air.

Sam shakes his head and picks up the water pouch. He moves towards the two combatants. A sharp pain stabs at his lower belly. His knees bend and clamp together as he bends forward.

"Sir, are you all right," Alf asks.

He whispers even though he knows Kristen can still hear him. "It felt like someone kicked me in my balls." He slowly stands. "Trousers are not tight."

He continues to the combat area and hands Kristen the water first. Roy and Geir help Kristoff to his feet. "Well, Captain, do you want to try a fourth time?"

Kristoff sweeps the dirt off his shoulders. He narrows his eyes at Kristen. "Give me a few minutes. She looks like she is getting tired. I am a lot of weight to push around."

As she drinks from the water pouch, the end of her stick strikes Kristoff right ankle. The motion of her pole swings up as she rotates her body to drive the end of the stick into the left side of his head. He lands face first into the ground.

"Do you want to try for a fifth time?" Sam asks.

He rolls over holding the left side of his face. "No, I will lie here until the pain stops."

Sam glances over his shoulder then turns towards Arendelle. He stares at the hill. "Roy, go over there and tell me what you see. You may have to go to 'Lookout Plateau' to see it."

Roy does not hesitate. He grabs his pole and runs over the hill.

Kristen offers the water to Kristoff. He sits up and drinks. She says, "Everyone usually quits after the second try. You are not going to win without cheating. If you cheat you will have to get past the Admiral then whatever is left of you he will hand you over to my mother."

She leans her face close to his face. "My mother knows how to inflict the maximum amount of pain without killing you. You will beg for death to get relief from the pain. As the Admiral likes to say, if you think I am fanning smoke up your trouser leg, ask about Rragda Gink."

She grins as she walks towards the Admiral.

Sam detects Kristen approaching. He peeks over his shoulder. He watches Alf offer his hand, but swiftly withdraws it. Alf shakes his head vigorously as he backs away from Kristoff. Kristen stands next to him. He whispers. "Rragda Gink?"

She grins.

"For how long?"

"Until he surrenders."

"Just don't hurt him too much. Princess Anna may wish to spend time with him when we get back." He grabs his belly and lets out a low groan as he falls to his knees.

Kristen backs away. Alf and Geir run to him.

"Sir, what happened," Alf asks.

They help him to his feet. "You remember what I said earlier. This time it feels like someone was trying to kick them threw my skull."

Elsa leans back in her chair. "Mister Jensen, if this is with Weselton, no deal. If it is with someone else, please enlighten us of whom and the terms of the deal."

Several hours later, Gerda approaches the council room door. She hears Anna then the Queen yelling followed by the yells of Jensen and Snorre. She asks the guard, "How long have they been yelling at each other?"

"There have been short outbursts the last half hour, but it got serious a few minutes ago."

She runs to the end of the hall. "Chef, go get Kai. He is needed in the council room immediately." She runs back to the council door. She and the guard listen.

Kai runs down the hall just as the yelling begins again. They hear Anna, "If you are wrong, it will bankrupt Arendelle."

They barely hear a male's voice. "It is significantly small."

Another male's voice asks, "Where are you going?"

Kai opens the door. A red faced Elsa starts down the side of the table. "You are an absolute idiot for making the deal without my permission. Get out of my way." She says as she walks pass the two councilmen.

Jensen turns towards her. "How dare you call me an idiot. I demand an apology for myself and Councilman Snorre for your outlandish insult. We have been here longer than you have been Queen."

Snorre adds his comment. "We have kept your Kingdom from collapsing. We deserve your respect."

She stops at the end of the table and stares straight head as the edge of her vision darkens. Her hands rub her abdomen and she breathes through her mouth as her face wrinkles in pain.

Kai grabs her arms to steady her and he yells at the guard. "No one leaves this room until I get back."

Anna runs to her side. "Call Sam, please Elsa, call Sam."

Elsa looks down as she shakes her head.

Kai guides her towards the door. "Majesty, we need to get you to your room." He looks directly at Gerda who nods once.

The guard closes the door at the protest of Jensen. Gerda runs ahead and opens the doors to the Queen's room. She steps onto the balcony as Kai and Anna help Elsa into her bedroom.

Gerda takes several deep breaths. She covers her eyes and call's out. _Samuel, Samuel, you better hear me. Elsa is having a problem. Her baby is in danger. Please hear me._

Sam stops. His eyes search the ground. He twists his body around towards Arendelle. "She blocked it."

"Who blocked it?" Kristoff asks.

"Elsa is in trouble." He runs to Aurora.

Roy trots over the hill. "Admiral, there is a Christiania flag on a ship in the harbor. Jostein says the hull has covered ports."

He commands. "Exercise is over. Captain get your team to the castle and find out why a Christiania warship is anchored at the wharf."

He swings his leg up. "Help Kristen with her horse." He leans forward and places his fingers on specific points on Aurora's neck and head. "I need you to run as fast as the wind. I give you my energy to run." Aurora kicks up dirt and races down the hill.

Anna and Kai hold Elsa by her arms as they guide her towards the bed. Anna pulls the top covers back. Elsa moans drops to one knee as she holds her lower abdomen. He stumbles over her from her sudden movement. She cries out in his language. "Samuel, I need you"

"Elsa!" Anna kneels next to her. "Hold on sister, hold on."

"Grab her legs." Kai slides his arms under her arms. Between the two of them, they lift Elsa into the bed.

Anna removes her sister's shoes.

Kai notices a spot on the floor and steps over it. "Make her as comfortable as possible. Gerda will be here in a moment." He moves towards the door. Gerda slams the door open and runs past him. "She has called him. There is a bright red spot by the bed. I will get towels and warm water."

Gerda spots the blood on the floor.

Elsa whispers in Sam's language. (Samuel please, I need you.).

"Get on that side of her. We need to get her dress off." Anna runs to the other side of the bed and kneels next to her sister. Gerda cups Elsa's red and clammy face. She whispers, "Do you know what is happening to you?"

With her eyes closed Elsa barely nods, "Sam said it could happen."

"What is she saying?" Anna asks as she brushes Elsa's hair out of her face.

Gerda glances up at her. She struggles to control her emotions. "She is speaking his language. She is calling him."

The door burst open and three female staffers enter the room with buckets of water and folded cloth. Kai stands at the door. She glances back at him and shakes her head as a tear rolls down her cheek.

The door closes.

Kai speaks to the guard at the end of the hall. "Tell Captain Larsen, Admiral Ryan will be here within the hour. No one is to get into his way or he will run them over."

"Understand." The guard marches down the stairs.

Kai follows at a slower pace and walks into the council room.

Snorre meets him at the door. "Why are we being held as prisoners? Where is Queen Elsa?"

Jensen approaches. "Yes, speak up man. When will she be back? I have important business to take care of."

He glares at him. "Queen Elsa is not feeling well and will not be back, today."

"That is not acceptable. She needs to decide on my plan before this afternoon. A ship will arrive with the tide and I need an answer before it does."

"Councilman Jensen, I will relay your concerns to our Queen. You can either stay here in the room or we will send a messenger to your business that she is ready to see you. I recommend you stay here. I suspect you will have an answer within the hour, if not two. I will send pastries and tea if you wish."

Snorre smirks at him. "Refreshment will suffice until our Queen provides an answer. If she cannot attend maybe Princess Anna could sit in the meeting and render a decision."

Kai stares at him. "I will pass along your message." He looks at the other councilmen. "Will the rest of you stay?"

The other four shake their heads and gather their documents. The last one out says, "Give Queen Elsa our best wishes that she will be back on her feet soon."

Kai returns to the residential floor.

A half hour later, Sam pulls back on Aurora's reins to slow her to a trot as they reach the edge of Arendelle. They trot towards the wharf. He spots Jostein making hand signals that three officers in uniform and a shiny civilian wait on the pier. He nods to Jostein and continues across the bridge. The gate guard waves him through. At the step he slides off his horse. Aurora breathing heavy walks to the waiting guard near the stables.

Sam runs into the castle and side steps pass two staffers as he takes the stairs three steps at a time. He knocks on the door. "On the count of three I'm coming in, one, two, and three." The door opens.

He scans the room for anyone who should not be in there. His eyes focus on the beautiful red face straining not to show her pain.

Elsa forces a smile and tries to sit up. He runs to her and kneels next to the bed. He encourages her to lie in the bed. With a kiss on her forehead, he brushes several tears off her cheek.

She whispers in his language. "I have failed you."

He replies in his native language. "No, you are very brave. I feel your pain. Did it all come out?" A flood of tears over flow her eyes. "Let me check."

Sam exhales a cold mist onto her face and she inhales. His glowing blue tinted hand slips under the sheet along her abdomen and moves in a circular pattern. It would pause the move. After a few minutes he slides his hand out. "It's not there."

He glances over his shoulder. "Where are her garments and anything that has her blood on it?"

"We have collected everything in the next room." Gerda comments behind him.

He holds her hands for a moment. "I need to check on them. I will be back. You rest. This will help you to relax." He takes a deep breath and slowly exhales a blue mist onto her face. After a few seconds her body relaxes. He tucks her hands under the blanket.

Anna asks, "Is she okay?"

He pats her arm. "She is in a light sleep heading towards a deeper sleep. Not quite like the way she puts me to sleep with her cold hand."

The bed creaks as he pushes himself up. He moves into the next room and locks the door. Gerda holds the bucket with the blood undergarments. He stares at them. He now has a vested interest in knowing, but. "Would it really make a difference at this point?"

"You tell me. Did it make a difference for Anna?"

"She was further along."

Gerda says, "You found Elsa."

Why did she have to bring that up? "Their mother was a few weeks farther than Anna."

She touches his hand. "Does it make a difference?"

The smile squeezes a tear out. "The logic says there is nothing,"

She squeezes his hand. "But?"

"But I need to know for sure. I'll hold the bucket and you hold my arm."

They close their eyes for a moment then open them. Dark green orbs reflect in her light blue eyes. Searching the cloth, he does not see anything more than blood. His emotions lift that there is nothing, but he spots a trail of blood and moves the garment. More than a blood clot sits at the end of the trail. He focuses hard on the group of cells and his heart sinks.

Gerda's voice wavers, "Oh my!"

His finger spreads the clot out. Tears stream down his face. "This was not viable, barely six millimeters. I do not detect a heartbeat, or any other functions. Only stubs, no definitions, this would have passed anyway, possibly in a few days. So what caused it to pass now?"

The green halos around everything disappear. Gerda's eye color returns to brown. He hands her the bucket and turns away. She touches his arm.

"My logic says it is a normal process of life. She must be having more influence over my emotions." He turns his head to her and through his tear covered eyes he asks, "I need your advice. Do I show her?"

A knock comes from the door. "Samuel, Elsa is asking for you." Anna says.

"She knows enough." He wipes his tears on his sleeve and holds the garment with the blood clot. His hand sweeps over the bloody garment and encases it in ice, before setting it in the water basin. "Do whatever you normally do with the clothing."

He opens the door. With her red eyes, she steps to the side and he steps into the room. With her hair loose on her shoulders Elsa sits on the edge of the bed. She holds the bed sheet around her. A surge of emotions choke him. He fights it, then grabs Anna's arm. They walk towards the bed.

He kneels and holds Elsa's hands. The pain in her eyes stab his heart. He starts to speak, but looks away.

She lifts his chin. "What did you see?"

"You would not recognize it. It died within the last twelve hours. Possible before I left this morning. Did you fall or something hit you?"

She slides off the bed into his arms and nuzzles her head into his neck. His heart tears after a tear drop onto his chest. Anna sits on the edge of the bed, but he pulls her down and wraps his arms around both of them.

When the tears stopped for Elsa, he asks, "How did you feel this morning?"

"My body was grumbling like it was hungry. Later in the morning the pain increased. I thought it was a normal event."

"What were you doing when the pain increased?"

She looks up at him. "Sitting."

He knows she is holding back. Instead of bantering back and forth with questions he went to the point. "You were sitting in the council meeting."

"If you already knew, why did you ask?"

"I didn't." His left brow rises. "Does Jensen have anything to do with the three military officers and two shiny civilians on the Christiania ship dock at the wharf?"

Anna sits up leaning back.

Elsa narrows her eyes at him, then reaches up and pulls his left brow down. "You are so smug when you already have the answers."

He kisses her nose. "And you tried to be sly by just saying you were sitting."

"It was the truth. I was sitting . . . in the council room."

"And I did not know for sure until you stated 'if I already knew'."

She lays her head on his shoulder and flicks the tip of his nose. "You know you can be mean sometimes."

"Mean? By this time tomorrow ask Jensen. You can compare definitions with him."

His last encounter left an unfavorable result when Elsa highly encouraged him to leave Jensen alone. With Snorre as an ally Jensen has become quite brazen in challenging the Queen. No doubt, he challenged her this morning. He will implement his plan to remove Jensen and Snorre from the council.

"What did you mean by that?" Elsa grabs his nose to get his attention.

He focuses on her face.

"What are you going to do to him?"

"Throw him on the next ship out of Arendelle, I hope," Anna answers.

She glances over her shoulder as she rebukes her. "Quiet. This is serious."

He snatches her hand from his nose. Her fingernail leaves a red trail where her nail pressed too tight against his skin. The burn begins to sting his nose. He stares into her eyes, but there is no twinkle. Both of her brows rise and her eyes widen, but only for a second. She stares directly at him as if she is searching for a flaw in his defenses. Could it be possible she has mastered his technique in a short period of time.

If she was standing she would be in her regal pose and expression. "You will do nothing to physically hurt Jensen or Snorre. You will not freeze him to his chair or put ice under his feet or chair. There is to be no ice involved. I will conduct business with him in my way. If his actions contributed to my event this morning, the current circumstances have surpassed the event. I seriously doubt he did anything intentionally."

"And if you are wrong?"

"Do I need to make it a command?" Her jaw tenses

He stares in silence for a moment. With a slight nod and a smile he answers. "Yes, so there will be no misunderstanding between us and Princess Anna can be your witness."

Anna moves to the end of the bed. "Do not bring me into your quarrel. You can discuss your differences later. What about Jensen? He is waiting to reveal his plan."

"I promise if he walked into the room under his own power, I will do nothing to impede him from walking out of the room under his own power. No ice, no physical harm, I will listen to his plan. I will assess his plan. I will report to you his plan and my opinion of his plan."

Her jaw tension lessens. "That is all I want."

"You have had a tough day. Why don't you lay down and I will help you to fall asleep. Thirty minutes or an hour, you rest." Her right eye hints at a slight rise. "You don't think I can do it? I will just nudge you into a sleep. Five or ten minutes later you can wake up."

His arm slides under her legs and behind her back. With a rocking motion, he rises to his feet. Anna pulls the bed sheet back. Gently sitting her on the edge of the bed, he lays her on her side. He pulls the sheet up to her chin and kisses the tip of her nose. Anna strokes her sister's hair.

"I will show you my sincerity." He rolls his hands together and forms an ice candle. Flicking the tip of the candle, it glows a soft blue and he sets it on the side table.

"In a few minutes the temperature will drop to a comfortable temperature. Good night my Queen."

Anna follows him out of the royal suite. "Are you going to let Jensen stay?"

He grins. "I have my ways of persuasions."

She slaps the back of his arm. "I knew it."

 **End of Chapter**


	92. Chapter 91 The Monster

**Title: CHp-91: The Monster**

 **1 year 7m until Correction**

Outside of the council room, Sam grabs Anna's arm and closes his eyes for a few seconds. "I guessed right. Snorre is already across the bridge and walking towards the Christiania ship. When we go in, I request you refrain from your quizzical questions. Answer only if asked."

"Why would I do that?" she asks, staring at his hand.

"Because I need you to stay focused. Elsa will ask for details. I do not wish for you to inadvertently give her a reason to think you are hiding something from her."

"Like what?"

He glances at her abdomen. "You will see when we go in." He places his finger to his lips and opens the door.

Anna enters first. Sam steps into the room and notes Jensen staring out the window. He steps back and looks down the hall. "There you are. Queen Elsa needs you to send for the judge to bring Arendelle's law book number eight. He will be explaining my new role to the council." He pauses. "Yes, she is doing better. She needs a little time, before she joins us shortly." He closes the door.

"Did I hear correctly? Our beloved Queen is not feeling well?" Jensen watches Anna walk across the room.

"She has an upset stomach. She will be back shortly." She slides the quill and paper in front of her chair and sits. She looks up at the councilman. "You can explain your economic plan to me and I will make my recommendations to her."

"Recommendations?" Jensen's brows push together with his narrow eyes. "If our Queen will be back in a few minutes, I will wait. If it will take her longer, let us adjourn this meeting until after the noon hour. I have no desire to waste my time repeating myself when I can say it once." Jensen closes his ledger.

"Waste your time? I have considerable knowledge of economics. Explain your plan to me so I can make my recommendations to my Queen." Sam stands at the end of the table and considers pushing Jensen without physically hurting him.

"I will do no such thing. You are not a member of this council. I will explain my idea to the Queen and to the Queen only." Jensen gathers his documents and stops at the end of the table. "You may be married to Arendelle's Queen. You have no authority here. Get out of my way stable boy."

"Actually, he does." Anna comments.

Jensen looks over his shoulder. "What do you mean he does?"

"Queen Elsa wishes for Samuel to hear your plan and he will give his recommendation. I am sure if you do not see Sam worthy to hear your plan, my sister may see that as a slight against her. In either case, I will bet she will accept Samuel's recommendations." Anna answers with a smile.

Jensen turns towards her. "You dare to threaten me."

Anna slowly slides out of her chair and backs towards the service door.

"Princess Anna, please wait." With his fingers touching the four specific points the side of Jensen's neck and face, Sam pushes Jensen towards the councilman's council seat and forces him to sit. He sits next to him and moves his hand from Jensen. "Anna, his mind is easily influenced. Do you want to hear his plan or not?"

She stands with her back against the door. "The whites of your eyes are blue. Is he ok?"

"He is fine. He is a little confused as to why he is sitting instead of walking to the Christiania ship to meet his business partner and the Christiania trade representative."

"Trade representative, we have not been notified of any trade negotiation with Christiania." She moves back to her seat.

"I'm sure that was supposed to be a surprise. He believes Elsa would fall for his explanations and would want to sign the trade deal immediately. If you will sit, the show is about to begin. I will do the best I can and describe what he sees."

He knocks on the table. Jensen looks towards the door. "He believes he is seeing the Judge and one of his clerks caring book number eight of Arendelle law."

Anna observes Jensen moving and speaking like there is someone in front of him.

{ _"Why are you here Judge?_ " _Jensen asks._

" _You requested clarification to Samuel's status and authority as King-Consort of Queen Elsa. I will read his status according to Arendelle law."_

 _The clerk sets the law book on the table and opens it to the appropriate page. The judge moves his finger across the page. "Ah, here it is, page sixty-three, Duties and Statures of the Husband or Wife of the current Monarchy, with the title of King Consort or Queen-Consort._ }

Sam glances to Anna. "The judge is reading the duties of the King-Consort."

{ _"I never heard of such rubbish. Who signed this despicable law?" Jensen vocalizes loudly._

 _The judge turns the page. "It was signed into law fifteen years ago." He slides his finger across the names. "Walz Jens was the first signer."_

" _What? That is not possible. My father never would have signed that."_

 _The judge spins the book around. "Whose name is directly below King Agnarr's name?"_

 _Jensen leans over the table to study the signatures. He slowly sits with his head lowered. "It is my father's signature."_

 _The judge hands the book to his clerk. "As far as the law is concerned, Queen Elsa can authorize the King-Consort to act on her behalf. I recommend you do not say or do anything that you would not say or do directly to our Queen. He has her authority."_ }

Sam leans close to Jensen. "What is this deal you have made with the Christiania trade representative?"

The next half-hour Jensen explains his plan. Sam has to encourage Anna to write and not make comments until Jensen finishes.

"This is an interesting plan and very ambitious of you to take the initiative and speak for Arendelle."

Anna snaps her head around towards Sam and shakes her clenched fist at him.

He responds with an open hand to calm her. "Princess Anna will take your plan to the Queen. You can introduce me to your friends and the trade representative."

Jensen slides his chair back and walks towards the door.

He motions to Anna. "Come on sister-in-law, you are my witness."

Anna quickly falls in line and follows them to the bridge. Sam touches the four specific spot on Jensen's face and neck. The three stop at the midway point on the bridge.

"Let me see if I can get Jensen to resign." Sam moves his hand to his side and stands next to Jensen. He tilts his head down and covers his eyes. He and Jensen move their lips as though they were speaking to each other.

{ _"Under whose authority do you assume the trade duties for Arendelle without your Queen's permission?" He grabs Jensen's shirt and lifts his feet off the bridge._

" _Let go of me, you stupid peasant. I will have you flogged to death for this."_

 _A shot rings out from the Christiania ship. He drops Jensen and grabs his shoulder as he staggers back. "You think one shooter will stop me. Watch this."}_

"I have been shot in my shoulder," Sam says to Anna.

 _{He reaches behind his head and snaps his hand towards the ship. The shooter in the crow's nest lifts his rifle as three ice spikes pin him to the ships mask. The rifle falls to the deck below. A dozen Christiania Marines charge off their ship and stop long enough to stab Arendelle citizens in their way. Three officers and Councilman Snorre with swords in their hands lead the Marines towards the bridge._

" _You will hang for treason."_

" _No, I will not. This is a common occurrence when a change in a monarchy is needed. I will be the new King of Arendelle."_

 _A shot from the shore strikes him in his chest just above his heart. He falls against the rail. Jensen motions for the charging group to run past them. Snorre hands Jensen a sword.}_

"I have been hit above my heart. Marines from the ship are charging the castle," Sam says.

Anna places her hand over his heart. "Does it hurt?"

"Shh."

 _{Jensen tells Snoore. "Go with them. We don't wish for the former Queen and her sister to be raped to death."_

 _Snorre snickers with a sneering smile and charges to the closed gates._

 _Jensen stabs his left side and twist the blade. A pool of blood stains the bridge._

" _There it goes. I will hang your carcass over the gate for all to see the great Admiral Ryan with no ship to command." He pulls the blade out and wipes the blood across Sam's face. "I have plans for your wife and her sister. They will bring lots of money on their backs with their legs open to the highest bidder. Of course, as I negotiate with other Kingdoms for a small fee or favorable conditions, the Kings and nobles will be entertained by those two."}_

"You and Elsa will be forced in to prostitution," Sam says.

Anna holds her clenched fists next to Jensen's face. "One punch is all I ask."

"Not yet. He has to see the end."

 _{"I am a monster."_

 _Jensen grins at Sam. "Aw, did I upset you."_

" _I am a monster."_

" _I will make it quick and let you bleed out."_

" _You did not hear me."_

" _I heard you say you are a monster." Jensen lunges his sword at Sam's chest._

 _Sam holds the blade. "I said I am a monster. Let me show you."_

 _He jams the hilt of the sword into Jensen's neck, causing him to clutch his throat and fall to his knees. Sam crawls to his feet and showers the invaders by the gates with a rain of ice spikes. Many Marines still alive groan and die as their blood drains out. He lifts Jensen to see over the rail._

 _He emits a howl and several barks. A loud crack enters his ears at the same time the rails of the bridge in front of him explodes showering the water with the stone shrapnel. He drops Jensen. Smoke bellows out the barrel of the ship's cannon. Blood drips from his nose. He thrust his fist towards the water in front of the ship. A wave splashes over the side of the ship and freezes instantly. Ice fills the cannons ports and freezes everything and the crew on deck."}_

"Jensen has been shot and I have call my wolf pack down from the hills," Sam says.

 _{A shot removes part of his ear lobe. Two more marines aim at him. He lifts up Jensen, who receives a shot in his lower back and leg. Sam sweeps his hand over the hole in the bridge and a column of water creates a gray barrier of ice as thick as the width of the bridge. He drops Jensen screaming in pain. Sam taps his fists together and an ice bow forms between his hands. His mind and eyes target the invaders. Reaching around the side of the barrier, he pulls and releases the ice string as fast as he can. Each arrow splits into three arrows as the ice feather passes the bow frame. The arrows find their targets. Men groan and moan with arrows piercing their bodies and limbs. Several scream as they are pinned to whatever they were against._

 _The few remaining Marines coordinate their shots to keep his head down. Slight bulges form on the ice where their shots hit the ice. He draws the ice string back and points at the barrier. An arrow slit forms and he fires the arrow. A second later an invader falls. The barrier repeats the arrow slip until he stops. He scans the area. All targets have been disabled or dead."_

"The invaders have been repelled. Jensen has seen the monster," Sam says.

 _{Jensen groans as he tries to crawl away, but Sam lifts him off the ground. Blood drips from the wounds in his leg and back. He holds him close to his face and sees the shiny metallic green of the monster in Jensen's eyes. Jensen struggles to get loose as his face distorts and his eyes widen._

 _Sam recognizes the same expression many have shown moments before breaking. He pushes a little harder. He carries Jensen over his shoulder._

 _The ice barrier transforms back into water and drains into the fjord. Snaps and crackles sound from the Christiania ship rolling onto its side. The main mask smashes into the next pier and parts of the secondary mask shatters against the bridge. Air swooshes out the cannon ports._

 _Sam lifts Jensen's head. "Looks like your friends will have to walk home if any survive."_

 _Jensen groans._

 _He drops him roughly in the town square. Jensen tries to crawl with his arms. Sam sits him up and holds his face. "Look at what you have done. All your friends are dead or will be dead soon."_

 _Jensen closes his eyes. "You are the monster."_

 _He forces Jensen to open his eyes. "Look at your friend."_

 _Snorre lay a few meters in front of them. His eyes were open with an ice arrow in his back and the side of his head. Trails of blood run from his right eye and nose._

" _He died for your cause. You could at least thank him for his sacrifice." Jensen does not speak. "No, how about the marines who died on a foreign soil for your cause, do you have anything to say to them?"_

 _Barks and yelps attract their attention to the other side of the square. A pack of wolves stares at the two of them as more arrive from behind the buildings. They begin to move towards them. Jensen tries to move._

 _He holds his hand up and the wolves stop. "I see my friends have arrived. With all of the blood and fresh meat, I think they are going to gorge themselves." He turns Jensen's head towards several wolves sniffing at a dead body. He leans close and whispers. "Have you ever seen a human body being ripped apart by a pack of wolves?"_

 _He points and several wolves nip and yelp at each other as they clamp their teeth on the body, ripping and tearing. He stands. "I bet it is quite painful to be alive when their teeth sinks into your flesh and rip it off your body." He takes a couple of steps back. "Can you swim?"_

 _Jensen snaps his head around towards him. "Please, I will do anything you say."_

" _Crawl to the water. It maybe three meters away or pray one of them snaps your neck." He walks towards the bridge._

" _Admiral please, please I will do anything you say."_

 _He holds his head high and continues walking._

 _Jensen tries to drag his body to the fjord._

" _Yes, you did. Now feed them."_

 _With a snap of his fingers the other wolves charge. Jensen scream; Bones break; Flesh tears. After less than a minute, all he hears are the wolves eating._ }

Anna waves her hand in front of Jensen's face. "What is wrong with him?"

"He appears to be lost in thought."

With wide eyes Jensen snaps his head around towards him. His body tenses and his mouth opens, but no sound comes out. He backs into the bridge's rail and claws at his face. Screaming he runs and trips at the end of the bridge. His body rolls on the ground. He kicks and swings his arms as if he is being attacked. "Call them off. CALL THEM OFF."

Snorre races to Jensen and pulls his hands from his bloody face. "Stop. What is wrong with you?" He struggles to hold Jensen from hurting himself. After a few moments, Jensen begins to calm down.

Anna asks, "What happened to him?"

They walk towards the end of the bridge. "The human mind can imagine some of the most evil thoughts, but usually towards others." She glances up at him. "I did not force his mind to see anything. I made a few suggestions and his mind did the rest."

The Christiania representative in a shiny suit speaks to the ship's officer who nods and walks back to the ship.

She whispers, "That is Claus Rutger approaching."

He glances at her. "Interesting." He watches the Christiania representative towards them, but Claus starts to walk past them. Sam says, "I hear you came here for a business deal with Arendelle. Maybe you would like to speak to me about this deal?"

Claus looks him up and down. He snorts. "My deal is with your Queen's trade negotiator. Since he is acting like a madman, I will pay my respects to your Queen."

Sam holds his hand out to block him. "Jensen is not Arendelle's trade negotiator."

Claus steps back and flicks at his own shirt as if dirt had fallen on it. "Who do you think you are for touching me?"

"Actually, he is the King-Consort and speaks for Queen Elsa." Anna chides.

"If I'm not good enough, this gorgeous young lady is Princess Anna, sister to Queen Elsa. If we are below you in dignity, I'm sure Queen Elsa would love to speak to you."

Anna grabs his arm. "In the Queen's current condition, now may not be the best time for her to meet strangers."

Sam glances at her with a raised left brow and winks. "Princess Anna is correct." He leans towards the representative and taps his chest. "You know how sisters are. They tell each other everything, even a little insignificant thing like how you are mistaken Jensen as Arendelle's trade negotiator." He looks at Anna, then back at him. "But it does make you look rather stupid for falling for his lie." He points to Jensen getting to his feet.

Anna smiles and nods at him.

Claus nods to them. "You are right. Maybe a letter of introduction should have preceded me before I arrive." He scurries back towards the ship.

Jensen pushes away from Snorre and grabs the representative's shirt. "Take me with you. The monster will kill me if I stay, Please take me with you."

Claus breaks free and adjusts his shirt. "What monster are you referring?"

Jensen points to Sam.

"That is not nice. She is a Princess, mind you."

Anna slaps the back of his arm. "I think he was pointing to you, you monster."

Jensen yells, "See, she knows he is a monster," and runs to the Christiania ship.

Sam sniffs his shirt and his hair. "I took a bath. Is there something in my hair?"

Anna wrinkles her nose at him. They watch Jensen and the trade representative board the Christiania ship.

Snorre approaches them. "Whatever plan he had with them, he did not tell me except to escort the Christiania trade representative to the castle. By chance did he say anything before cracking under the stress?"

He glares at him. "Stress? Maybe his constant scheming got the best of him. Do you foresee him coming back?"

Snorre turns his head towards the ship. "I do not know. I will try to find out."

"I do know. He will not come to Arendelle as long as I am here."

Snorre eyes widen. "I see. Let me check how he is doing." He nods to Anna. "Princess, if you will excuse me. I will get a report on Jensen's status and bring it to you." He casually strolls towards the Christiania ship.

Anna starts to speak, but Sam holds up his hand. She waits until Snorre is a distance away. "Why did you stop me, when he was intentionally rude to you? You are not supposed to allow him to get away with it."

He clasps his hands behind his back and walks up the bridge. Anna catches up with him. "I could have responded as you said and maybe I should, but he got my message. I will be very surprised if Jensen shows his face in Arendelle again. Snorre will talk to him before he decides if it is worth staying here without his friend to lead him into trouble."

"What message?"

He looks towards the ship.

Screams and yells erupt on the ship's main deck. Sailors drag Jensen kicking below deck. Snorre glares at him from the rail of the ship.

He continues towards the main gates. "Do you remember me telling you to report exactly what you see? Your memory will be needed soon."

Several hours later, the Christiania ship drifts out into the fjord with the light breeze. When they had traveled well down the fjord towards the sea, Sam climbs down from the castle walls and walks towards the main entrance.

Anna meets him at the door. "I did as you said and told her exactly what I saw." She looks towards the stairs. "She is very angry at you."

"You did not add or withhold any information or express your opinion as to what happened?"

"No, I did exactly as you said." She replies a little miffed.

"Good, you've done an outstanding job. This may take some time for me to calm her." He glances over his shoulder. "I believe Kristoff is in the stables. His song indicates he is in a happy mood." He glances at her abdomen and up at her. "Spend some time with him. Go through the servant's door if a need arises."

He walks towards the stairs that will lead him to the residential wing.

Anna calls out to him. "I saw where you were looking. Are you sure?"

"There is only one way to be sure." He continues up the stairs.

"Thank you," she replies. Her shoes echo across the stone floor as she runs.

He reaches the top of the stairs and feels a cold sensation on his cheek. With her brows pushed together, Elsa glares at him from around the corner. Her finger motions for him to follow her. The blanket wrapped around her shoulder drags on the floor and past the royal suite. He follows it into his old room.

He barely gets into the room when the door slams shut. Ice forms over the door and the frame, essentially locking everyone out. The ice continues to grow along the walls and ceiling. It finally stops with the balcony doors frozen closed. A blue icy sheen covers everything in the room.

He starts to move towards her.

"STOP," she yells.

He steps back, but slides his left foot half a length back and clasps his hand together in front.

She drops the blanket and transforms her night clothes into her blue dress without the train. She keeps her back to him and places her hands on her waist.

"That is not your normal stance. Are you preparing to fight?"

He waits in silence. She does not move. "The odds were extremely favorable. You would be upset. To answer your question, I have a better balance, in case I have to lean or get out of the way. I will not fight you. You have seen the monster contained in this body. All I ask is that you hear me out."

"You are not going to add the statement you will accept whatever punishment I deem appropriate?"

"Elsa, I love you. I will do whatever it takes to protect you. That being said, I will not leave you. You can vent your anger on me all you want, but I will not leave you. I have thought of many possible directions this could go. I would have preferred to have discussed Jensen with you, but the moment I found out about his true intent, was the moment I needed to make a decision."

She sniffles. "Anna said you told her to tell me exactly what she saw. Is that correct?"

He shifts his feet to shoulder width apart and clasps his hands behind his back. "Yes, I also told her not to add or delete or express an opinion, just give you the facts."

She turns her head just enough for him to see the corner of her eye. "What are the facts?"

"I will answer your question, no matter how you answer my two questions, but I need to ask them." He steps to the side to glimpse more of her face.

She turns her face away from him. The silence seems to drag on, but after a length of time she says, "Ask your questions."

"Did you know the Christiania ship docked this morning? If yes, did you know Christiania's trade representative, Claus Rutger, was aboard the ship?"

She half turns towards him. The puffiness and red in her eyes stand out against her complexion. He has never seen her as distressed. He clamps down on his emotions and does not move towards her.

She shakes her head and scrunches her face as if pain sweeps across her. "No and no." She turns away from him.

"Do you want me to get a drink or something?"

"No, ANSWER MY QUESTION." She moves her hand to her abdomen.

"While I was still in the hills, I received a report of the Christiania ship entering the harbor. As I rode back, I received another report of three officers and a shiny civilian waiting on the pier. Before Anna and I entered the council room, I scanned the area. Jensen was in the room looking out the window. Snorre was talking to the shiny civilian. Jensen revealed his economic plans for Arendelle which in my opinion would make him wealthy. I escorted Jensen to the bridge. We talked for a few minutes, then he began to act strange, even for him. He rolled on the ground in view of everyone, including the shiny civilian, who Anna said was Claus Rutger."

She faces him and clenches hands as sheens of ice form on them.

He continues, "Claus apologizes for not sending a letter to announce his arrival. He and Jensen departed on the Christiania ship several hours ago."

Her hands shake as she grits her teeth. Tears flow down her face as she rocks back and forth. "I need a hug and I need you to calm me down."

Before she could raise her arms, he wraps his arms around her shoulders. She buries her face into his chest. Her whole body shivers. Quit sounds of sniffles and whimpers drift up to his ears. His energy syncs with her energy and a blue mist forms around them. Damp spots form on his shirt. His feet step to the outside of her feet as one arm slides down to her waist and reduces the space between them.

After some time, she slides her arms around his waist. His fingers lightly trace the back of her neck and across her shoulders. She tilts her head back. Despite her red eyes, she smiles up at him. He lightly kisses each of her eyes, then he kisses her forehead.

"Are you ready for the rest of my report?"

"Do I have to let go of you so I can hear it?"

"No, as long as you understand, I did what I did due to your safety and imminent danger that would have resulted if I did not act."

"Would have resulted? Were you that certain?"

"A truth, I lost my first wife and child because I hesitated. There was a real danger to you and Anna. Jensen intended to cripple Arendelle's economy and aggressively remove you from power. If you had survived his take over, he would have used you and Anna on your backs with your legs apart as bargaining leverage to improve his favorability with the other Kingdoms."

Her smile fades and her arms tighten around his waist. She lays her head against his chest.

He feels the tension building in her. "Elsa, listen to me. I allowed him to see the monster."

"I thought you said you could not force your thoughts on another?"

"I can't. His mind was very susceptible to suggestions. I saw the images in his mind. I suggested and his mind filled in the rest."

"What suggestions?"

"The Christiania ship attacked me on the bridge. He had heard rumors of my ice abilities. I suggested the troops tried to storm the gates and I killed them with an ice shower. I suggested I injured his back and he could not walk. He thought about a wolf. I suggested a wolf pack in the town square eating the dead troops. I suggested I dropped him at the end of the bridge and his safety from the wolves was in the fjord. I suggested the wolves ripped him to pieces. That might have been when he ran towards the ship and fell and may have thought the wolves were real." He grins.

She stares at him with her lips apart. "Okay."

"I know it is hard to understand."

"I believe you."

"I need you to trust me that what I said is the truth." He steps back and drops to his knees.

"What are you doing?"

"I need you to see what I am capable of doing. You will see his heart. At that moment I decided to take action. If I am wrong, you need to show me what I should have done." He grabs her hands and holds them to his face and neck. "You have sufficient skills to search without me, guiding you?"

"Are you sure?"

With a nod, he answers, "Yes."

She moves her fingers to the four specific points on each side of his face and neck. Her thumbs rest on his cheeks.

"Let go at any point you wish." He places his hands on her waist and closes his eyes. She searches his mind.

He did not keep track of the amount of time passed, before she steps closer to him and wraps her arms around his head. His arms wrap around her waist. He listens to her heart slowing. She kisses the top of his head.

"Now I understand what you have been trying to say. How often did you let the monster out?"

"Since landing here, it has become a rarity. I think this is the second time. The three years prior to coming here," he looks up at her, "once a week, when they rounded up many, twice to five times a day."

"That is horrible. What type of government would use you in that manner?"

He tries to grin. "Just as you said, a horrible government who did not care for its people. When they could verify my results, I got paid well. It takes a lot out of me. They would give me a twenty-four hour rest before I was to continue."

"I do not know how you survived."

"I had help."

"Krystal?"

"Yes, she knew how to calm me down and helped me to vent the negative energy. It killed twelve billion the last time it broke loose."

"I pray I never do anything to cause you to make those types of suggestions to me."

He chuckles. "That will never happen. You have my key."

Moisture builds in his eyes and he looks away. He holds her tighter. "Elsa, I did not mean for this to happen. Some people have weak minds and my method will destroy their reality. They become simpletons or blabbering idiots. I never know until it is too late. I will do whatever it takes to protect you and our family."

He looks up. Several tears have left their tracks down her face. "You are my strength, my friend, my lover, and my wife, Queen Elsa of Arendelle." He pauses as more tears leave the comfort of his eyes, "I love you so much. Life will not be worth living if I cannot be at your side."

With a smile he asks, "You have a minor cut on the inside. It will heal on its own, but it could create scar tissue that may do nothing or it could make pregnancy a little more challenging."

She interrupts, "Can you fix it?"

He blinks more tears from his eyes. "I believe I can."

"I believe you can too. What do I need to do?"

"Hold still, you will feel a tingling sensation. It will last no more than an hour."

"Then do it."

His left slides to the bottom of her spine. He slides his right hand around front and slowly slides it down. His right hand begins to glow a blue tint. She holds his shoulders. His hand slips lower and the tint begins to undulate. He presses his hands towards each other as the undulation stops. She grips his shoulders and emits a soft moan.

Several minutes pass and the blue tint fades. She partially opens her eyes and wets her lips. "When I am healed can you do that again, but a little lower? This was such a tease."

"The euphoric feeling will last an hour, maybe two."

"I vote for two."

"I would not advise leaving this room until the feeling passes." He lifts one knee and forces her to sit on his thigh.

"What am I supposed to do for the next hour?" She slides her body close to him and wraps her arm around his neck.

His arms wrap around her waist. "Well, what names are Anna and Kristoff thinking about for their children?"

Her right brow gradually rises. "Samuel Ryan, did you make a suggestion to Kristoff?"

"I used only my words and mentioned to Anna that Kristoff is in the stables. I did suggest they should spend some time together."

"I was reminded, not too long ago I have healed many people in Arendelle. A residual effect of the healing is that I can sense the health of the person or if they have been exposed to a high concentration of my energy."

"Like Gerda with my mother?"

"Yes, just like Gerda. I also recalled using a similar technique to see what the others saw without physically being there."

She lays her head against his head. "Is that something you could teach me?"

"I believe I can with great success."

"We will try again. This is a temporary setback." She states with a matter of fact voice.

"Yes, we will. Give your body time to rest. It will happen when it happens." He lightly kisses her cheek.

 **End of Chapter**


	93. Chapter 92 Two Go Out

**Title: CHp-92** : **Two Go Out**

 **6 months until Correction**

In the dining room, Sam sits in the chair to the immediate right of the Queen's chair and continues one of the last habit from when he commanded a starship. This habit became a necessity after the accidental ship launch and becoming lost on the start of his adventure as a star traveler. The thought brings back the memory of the event that should not have happened. No matter how many times he analyzed the data, the people, and the words spoken to him, there are still too many holes to say the event was a random accident. Perhaps the mystery will never to be solved.

Kai drops three sealed letters in front of him. "You consume more paper than it takes to run the Queendom."

The quill dips into the ink well and dances across the paper.

"What are you writing?"

The quill hesitates above the ink well as Sam stares at the three letters. "One day a future generation will determine how my presents affected the events of Arendelle and this time period."

"I think it has changed more in the last year than at any time I can remember. I hear the new harbor they are building up the fjord already has ships docked there. You definitely boosted our economy."

With a fresh coating of ink the quill slips across his paper. "That honor belong to Queen Elsa. All I did is make the contacts."

"And scan them for their honesty."

"Well that too. Elsa made the deals and signed the agreements."

"Our Queen will be down soon. Don't wait too long. She sets her schedule based upon the letters." Kai walks towards the servant's door.

"I know." Sam rest the next to the ink well and grabs the three letters. "I will deliver them to her desk right now."

Several minutes later, Samuel enters Queen Elsa's private study and places the delivered mail on the corner of her desk. He starts to leave when his eye catches a partial Christiania emblem hid under other documents on her desk. With his hands clasped behind his back and his feet shoulder's width apart, he faces the desk and waits.

A quarter hour later the door opens. "What are you doing in here? All you had to do is drop off the mail. You of all people should know she likes her privacy." Kai scolds as he stops several steps past the door into the room.

"I have a curiosity to the health of the former councilman Jensen. Would you happen to know of the poor man's health?"

"It is none of my business what Christiania does with their citizens. You should leave before our Queen arrives. I did see her coming down the stairs."

"I will accept any punishment she deems appropriate for me being in here."

"I'm not going to be a witness." The sounds of Kai's shoe scuffle across the hall floor.

Sam continues to stare out the window. Another quarter of an hour passes. A floor board squeaks with the shifting of a weight on it.

"Darn that loose board. Five minutes, you are getting better." He snickers.

A pair of arms slips around his chest.

"When did you know it was me?" Elsa asks.

"As much pride as Kai has in his appearance while on duty, when was the last time he scuffles his shoes across the floor. That was the icing on the cake. You are never late without a reason."

She squeezes him tighter. "I can hear your heart beating."

"And I know you are about to squeal like a little girl."

"No, I will not." She starts to pull her arms away, but he clamps his arms against his body holding onto her.

His hand sweep back and his fingers tickle her right hip bone. She squeals in laughter and squirms until she pulls her arm free. Her hand slaps against his bottom and freezes his pants before he could reach for her free hand. A moment's hesitation on his part allows her to free her other arm.

She grins at him and walks around her desk. She checks her chair before she sits.

He watches her and smiles. "I would never intentionally disturb your chair if I knew you were about to sit in it."

"Then why are you smiling like something is about to happen? What do you know?"

His left brow shoots up.

"Wait."

"Too late, you asked the question so I will tell you what I know."

She angles her head slightly and squints her eyes at him.

"You have a letter with the Mayor of Christiania's emblem on your desk. So how is the former Councilman Jensen?"

"You read the letter?"

Sam shifts his weight and the ice on his pants crack, but solidifies again. "No, if you did not want me to see it you should have hid it better."

The corners of her lip curl slightly. "Perhaps it is exactly where I wanted it to be."

"Then you wanted me to see the letter?"

"I will not say." Her lips part to a grin.

Both of his brows rise. "You are getting better."

"I have the best teacher."

He nods. "So how is Jensen?"

The door creaks open. She waves for the person to enter. "I asked Anna to be here as a witness."

"For or against me?"

"Both or neither, you decide."

Anna stands next him. "Decide what? Hey, are those ice trousers? Are they comfortable? How well do you move in them?"

He angles his eyes down at her. The dark puffiness under her eyes visually stands out. "Yes, not really, not very well."

She gradually rotates her head towards her sister. "Okay, my guess is you have something to do with that." She eases herself into the chair next to the desk. "I hope this will not take long. My feet are killing me."

"Is your child still dancing?" Elsa watches her.

"I did not know a baby could move so much. I barely got any sleep." Anna yawns as she leans her head back in the chair. She tries to speak through another yawn. "The way it moves it must have more than just two feet and hands."

"You think you may have twins?" Elsa flicks her hand at Sam.

The ice dissipates off his trousers. "I didn't know your mother or father was a twin?"

"As far as I know they were not, but our Aunt could be a twin to our mother." Elsa picks up the letter from the Mayor of Christiania.

Sam watches Anna have a difficult time finding a comfortable position. "I know you are tired and your feet hurt, but do you have other pains not associated with your pregnancy?"

"Of course she does, have you seen her go up or down the stairs? I will read the letter if you do your magic to her feet and lower legs." She raises her brows as she nods her head towards her sister.

"That would be so heavenly if you could." Anna says with her eyes half closed.

"Magic?"

Elsa glances at her sister and nods at him.

He kneels in front of Anna and sits on his heels. "Are your feet ticklish?"

Her lips part, but she does not respond for several seconds. "They just hurt."

He lifts the hem of her dress and exposes her swollen feet and ankles. "Is Kristoff expected soon?" His left hand generates warmth and cups the back of her ankle. "He should be the one doing this." With a little effort he pulls her shoe off.

"Oh that feels nice." With a smile Anna closes her eyes.

"When did you put your shoes on?" He generates cooler air around his hand and massages her foot.

She mumbles, "Early this morning."

"As the King-Consort and with our Queen's permission," He grins and nods to Elsa. "I order you not to wear these shoes until after your child is born. You need to wear similar shoes Kristoff wears, but with more insulation on the inside."

Elsa reads the letter.

He asks, "How is King Oscar?"

She glances at him as her right brow rises. "As long as he stays in Sweden, I do not care."

"Can you teach Kristoff to do that?" Anna coos with a slight smile.

He presses his thumb into the bottom of her foot and a pop sounds. "Oh God, you are good with your hands."

Elsa watches her sister for a moment. "I do not recognize the name of this trade representative for Christiania, but he met with the Duke of Sweden who suggested they meet with me at the next trade union next spring. The Duke expressed concerns about Jensen's behavior here, aboard ship, and after he arrived in Christiania. Jensen warned them not to visit the ice Queen and her monster dog or suffer as he does. Jensen fell to the ground clawing at his skin as if he was trying to rip his flesh off. He screamed the wolves were eating him. The Duke is inquiring about Jensen's health before his break and how long he lived here." She folds the letter and leans back in her chair.

She crosses her arms. "Well monster dog, what do you think about Jensen?"

He shrugs. "As I said before, my lovely ice Queen, his own thoughts made the suggestion and I encouraged his thoughts to their logical conclusions."

His massage releases another pop in Anna's other foot. "Oh." His hands stop. Her eyes open. "Why are you stopping? This is the best my feet have felt in a long time. Keep doing what you were doing."

His hands massage her foot. "If I had influenced him beyond the suggestions, he would be dead by now. The frailty of the human mind can affect the rest of the body."

Elsa angles her head towards him. "Like how?"

Anna stares at him through the slits in her eyes as she rubs her belly.

"In the future, pseudo-medical institutes will create terminology for his mental condition, paranoia, _schizophrenia_. I am sure the two of you have encountered a person who is afraid of something that has no logical basis, but to them it is as real as my hands on your foot."

With a smile Elsa narrows her eyes at him. "Are you saying you push him too far?"

He sets Anna's foot on his leg and begins massaging her ankle and calf. "In my previous profession if I had pushed, as you say, the person would have died or lost their memory permanently." He holds his hand up to Elsa before she asks another question. "If it was a mercy killing, I would freeze their blood going to their brain. They would fall asleep and never wake up, quite painless. Others would suffer the humiliation and discredit themselves by their behavior."

"Should we be concerned if you get upset at us?" Anna asks with wide eyes.

He slides his fingernail on the bottom of her foot. Her foot and leg wiggles followed by a giggle. "My dear sister by law, the time to have been concerned was when the poison," he taps his head, "affected me."

"What is to prevent it from happening again?"

He presses his lips together for a moment. "What prevents you from falling off a cliff? What prevents you from falling into the fjord? What prevents you from falling down the stairs? What prevents you from eating a poisonous mushroom like your mother did, twice. I can go on and on with any number of events that can kill you or seriously injure you. Is that going to stop you from enjoying the world? If you believe that, why did you get pregnant? Your child will have to go through the same things you're going through. I can only look for those things I am aware of. Anything new can kill me." He taps her knee. "I assure you. If I die it will not be the result of any poison on this planet."

Elsa asks, "Name me one thing you did to linger the death of another person?"

His head rolls to face her, "Really?"

She nods.

He takes a deep breath. "Okay, several years before coming here, a person with the stature of a Duke sold his soul to a neighboring Kingdom. His Queen could not have him executed for fear of her people turning against her. She paid me a sum of money. When the Duke and his new friends rode up to the castle, I tripped into him and grabbed his exposed arm. He hit me several times before I got away. He ran after me and threw whatever he could get his hands on. He stabbed his horse and the horses of his two friends, while screaming they would all die. He ran into a garden and swallowed lots of dirt. His sword kept everyone away. He chewed on pieces of wood until he bled to death hours later. I stayed in the area long enough to determine the Queen was safe. Make the traitor look insane and those with him will have doubts about their plans."

Anna and Elsa stare at him, then glance at each other. Anna asks, "You did not do that."

He smiles. "If I wanted Jensen dead, I would have made him believe he was a fish out of water."

Anna sits up holding her belly and lets out a low moan. "Oh God the baby is dancing again."

Elsa places an arm around her shoulder. A slight bulge forms on the right side of her belly. A second one forms on the far left side. Anna grits her teeth and screeches, "Please stop."

"Please help her."

He holds Anna's hand. "I need to touch your belly, okay?"

She nods as a tear falls onto her shirt.

"I need you to slide to the edge of the chair, but do not fall off."

Anna scoots to the edge. Elsa supports her back. He kneels and pushes her dress down between her legs. His hand touches her belly as he closes his eyes. After a few seconds he leans back onto his heels.

"Did you see anything," Elsa asks.

"I'm not going to take a chance of radiating your child with my energy. I need to touch your belly directly to minimize the effect. Where is the top of the dress?"

"This is a one piece dress. It is the largest she can fit in."

"Two things, then, once you get out of the dress, do not put it back on until after the child is born. Two," he stares at Elsa, "you need to be where I am and reach up to her belly."

He and Elsa trade places. She slides her hand under Anna's dress and onto her belly. He places his hand in the small of Anna's back and slides his other hand behind Elsa's neck. His eyes close again. His mind's eye travels through Elsa's hand.

In less than a minute his eyes open. A sharp spike extends a half centimeter from the tips of his index fingers. He slices the sides of Anna's dress releasing the pressure on her belly.

"Oh, that feels so much better." She slumps back into the chair.

"Anna, you need to wear loose fitting clothes for the time being. What did you have to eat this morning?" He asks.

"I think it was cheese, the smoked chicken and a glass of milk."

"I think your tight dress is the biggest culprit. You have pressure building up in your digestive track and will feel a lot better when the gas works its way through. You either limit the smoked foods and dairy or the herbalist can give you an herb drink to take with your meal. Which do you choose?"

Anna points. "Why is she grinning at me?"

"She is waiting for you to decide on modifying your meals or the herbal drink."

Elsa taps the back of his hand repeatedly with increased speed.

"I think she wants to tell you something."

She grabs Anna's arms and blurts it out. "You are having twins. They look like a boy and a girl."

Anna looks up at him. "Is she making fun of me?"

His head slowly rotates from side to side. "She is correct, a boy and a girl."

A twin ear piercing scream echoes in the room. He holds his hands over his ears. The door swings open and two guards with their swords drawn, burst into the room. He moves past Elsa and motions for the guards to stop. The joyful screams stop.

Gerda peeks around the corner. "Is someone dying in there?"

"No one is dying. Go back to your post gentlemen." He escorts the guards out the door.

Gerda looks past him. "It has to do with Anna, doesn't it? Her dress is torn." She pats the back of his hand. "I told her she will have to get a dress that is not too tight." She clamps onto his hand and grins. "Is it true?"

"Is what true?"

"I will call you a liar if you deny it." She runs over and hugs Anna and Elsa.

Three high pitched screams echo in the room until he closes the door. He walks down the short hall.

Kai walks down the stairs with Kristoff several steps behind him. "What on earth is that noise?"

"You may wish to step to the side and let him pass. His wife needs him in a hurry."

"Is something wrong with Anna?" Kristoff asks as he hurries past Kai.

"Actually, there is. She is in Elsa's study."

Kristoff launches over the last four steps and hits the floor in a run.

Kai stops next to him. "It must not be that important if you are standing here. What is going on?"

With a grin he answers. "I am almost one hundred percent sure there will be the sounds of two babies between three and four months from now."

Kai looks in the direction of another trio of screams echoing down the hall. "Is Gerda with them?"

He slaps him on the back and moves towards the main doors. "Why don't you go down there and find out?"

"I can wait."

"Suit yourself. I will be in the stables."

Near the end of the day, in the stables, Sam washes the dirt off his face and wrings out the water in the hand cloth. He watches a drop of water fall into the pail of water. He waits several seconds. Aurora stomps the floor and emits a low rumble.

"Yes, I know our Queen is standing there. She has gotten better at stepping over the loose board."

Her shoes crunch the sand and hay on the floor. She pinches his side and takes the hand cloth. "You missed several spots. How did you ever get your back clean before you married me?"

"How many times have I bathed in the fjord since our marriage?" He peaks over his shoulder.

She snaps the cloth across his bottom.

"Oh, you are such a tease. Do it again, but harder." He moves his brows in an up and down motion.

She removes the leather strap used to keep a horse from moving in their stall and snaps it against the post.

He spins around to face her. She snaps it against the floor. Immediately his hands shoot up to the surrender position. She grins back at him as she raises the strap again.

"You know that will cut flesh."

Her hand flicks the strap around the post. Her eyes partially close as Elsa tilts her head and sashays towards him with the, I know something you don't, smile. Stepping behind him she bends down and picks up the washcloth. She slowly rises and gives him a tempting view. She dunks the cloth in the water and slaps it onto his shoulder as her body presses against him.

His eyes follow the sparkle in her eyes and he enjoys the show.

After barely a minute she stops and looks up at him as her smile fades. "What is that?"

"What is what?"

"Something hard is poking me. Do you have a horse's brush in your pocket?" She reaches her hand between them and slides it up and down. His body responds. She gives it a tempting squeeze as she searches the area. "If you think we would not be interrupted, we could spend some quality time here."

"As much as I would love nothing more than to bend you over a rail or on the floor," he wraps his arms around her. "Excluding you, there is nothing soft to protect your delicate skin from the stiff hay."

She gleams at him. "I bet you could work out something if we did it in here."

He bends his knees and lifts her up. With a peck on her lips, he inhales deeply. "You have a different fragrance about you and it is not your perfume."

She sniffs her arm. "I do not smell anything different."

"If it is coming from your pores you may not notice."

The gate creaks open. Two pair of shoes scuffles into the stable. The gate closes.

"I think they are busy. We should come back later," Kristoff says.

"This is important. It may not happen again. Ew?" Anna steps behind Kristoff and pushes him towards them. "Tell them to stop what they are doing and he should put on a shirt."

Sam and Elsa stare into each other's eyes. The shuffling shoes stop next to them. Elsa starts to speak, but he whispers. "Shh, don't say anything. Maybe they will not notice we are here and go away."

"I noticed. Put my sister down and cover your half naked body. This is serious." Anna replies.

Sam gently lowers Elsa onto her feet and nips her nose with a smile. He turns his back to them and slips his shirt on. He assumes they will talk for a while as he picks up the water bucket and walks towards the service door.

"Um, love, I think she wishes to speak to you," Elsa comments.

He sets the bucket by the door and turns around. "What can I do for you?"

She takes his hand and places it on the right side of her abdomen. "Do you feel it?"

His head slowly moves from side to side. She moves his hand and starts to insert it into the dress opening on her side, but he jerks his hand away.

Anna places her hands on her waist. "Elsa said you will not use your magic to scan them. How are you going to tell me what is happening in there?"

Pulling his lips tight his head slowly rotates to Elsa. She stands in her regal pose and grins at him.

Kristoff moves behind Anna and slips his arms around her. "Go ahead, do not go too high or too low or I will punch you."

Both brows rise to his widened eyes. "I understand and will expect you to follow through with your statement."

He drops to his knees and slides his hand into the opening of her dress. "Where should I be feeling? Wait . . . right there?"

She places her hand on top of his hand. "That is it."

His head moves slightly with the thump against his hand. His smile transforms into a grin. He touches his thumb to her ear. "Father-to-be touch your ear to my little finger."

Kristoff touches his finger and they both hear the thumping in her belly.

Anna asks, "What is this one doing?"

"That my dear is a hiccup. It is a normal event that happens just like when you get the hiccups. It will stop soon." He withdraws his hand and buttons her dress. "Wait until both of them have the hiccups at the same time."

"Maybe Else wishes to hear the hiccups?" Anna asks.

Elsa moves next to him and slides her arm across his shoulder. "I did hear and felt it in my hand." She flicks Sam's ear. "He will not say it, but I will. Unless something happens in the next three months, you should be holding two very healthy twins."

He slips his arm around her waist. "I could not have said it better, but she is a little tense." He tilts his head up. "Maybe, you could let them use the royal tub. He could wash her at the same time he is giving her a full body massage."

She grins at him. "And if he happens to fall in with her?"

"As long as he falls in and not on her they can help each other release their tensions."

Anna turns to Kristoff. "Let us get out of here before they fall on each other."

They snicker, but Elsa comments first. "Anna, I know you and Kristoff need time together for whatever you choose to do. Sam and I can stay in his old room. I will walk the walls with him."

He interrupts with a snicker. "What about a road trip to your ice castle?"

A gleam sparkles in her eyes as her right brow shoots up, but there was a moment of hesitation. "When can we leave?"

"I can have your horse and Aurora ready in fifteen minutes."

"Good, I will escort them into the castle and let Kai know where will be this evening." Elsa wraps her arm around Anna and leads them out of the stables.

At slightly more than fourteen minutes, Sam holds the reins of two saddled horses by the steps and waits. Less than one minute later the castle doors open. Kai carries two cloth bags tied together and two leather bags with rectangle bottoms. He flips the cloth bag over Aurora's neck

Kai hands Sam the leather bags. "Be careful with these." Glasses chink together. "These were Ingrid and Charles special cups they took with them everywhere."

"Except the last trip," Sam comments as he places the bags across the saddle.

"Superstitious people believe that was the cause."

He turns around.

On the top steps, Gerda points her finger at him. "Two go out and two better come back." Her finger curls next to the rest of her fingers and she shakes her fist. "I will stab you in your back if anything happens to our Queen."

Kai forces her fist down. "Come on, my dear. He is the most qualified person here to protect our Queen. If it was anyone else, I would be standing beside you shaking my fist at them."

"Who are you shaking your fist at?" Elsa asks as she slips her gloves on and suggestively walks down the steps.

Kai answers, "Gerda was expressing her concern about you leaving without a guard escort."

Elsa stands next to them and lightly kisses Gerda's cheek. "If it is with someone else, I would take the guards, but if you have not noticed, Samuel is scarier than anything out there. Would you agree?"

They turn their heads towards him. He sees them, but his mind is preoccupied with the data his eyes are sending. His eyes trace her black boots to her knees and follow the curve of her black trouser up to her waist, not too tight, but tight enough to tantalize the shape of her legs. The brown belt in the loops of the trouser cinch around her narrow waist and holds her light blue shirt tucked. She crosses her hands as she does in her regal pose to cover the goal of his desires. Her arms apply a small amount of pressure to cause her shirt to enhance the shape of her breasts. His eyes stop too long on the enhancement of her shirt that another part of his body responds. They finally move up, but hesitate as she sweeps the tip of her tongue across her parted lips.

A message finally reaches his brain. He glances into her eyes.

She grins the smirk that she wins again. "Samuel, would you agree?"

"I agree with whatever you say."

"Now that is terrifying. He is scary and smart. Is he smart enough to have you on top?" Gerda snickers.

"Okay, he and I will not get out of here if we continue to torture him."

"I am not doing the torturing. You are doing it all by yourself." Gerda comments and walks towards the castle doors.

Kai bumps his arm. "Good luck."

"I already have."

He kneels on one knee and holds his hand up. Elsa takes his hand steps up onto his thigh. She steps into the stirrup and swings her leg up and over as he leans out of the way of her boot.

Kai hands him a rolled up blanket, "Just in case."

"Hopefully, we will not need it, but I do sense a storm developing over the ocean. We will have to pick up the pace." He swings his leg up and onto Aurora. "Shall I lead or will you, at least until we get pass the wall?"

She winks at him. "I know the way." She guides her horse out the gate with Aurora following close. They ride in silence until they past the wall.

He nudges Aurora to move along side of her. Elsa looks everywhere, but at him.

"Okay, you're up to something."

"I am not up to anything. I am observing the area. I do not get out of the castle for obvious reasons, so I am enjoying myself while I can." She does not look in his direction.

"Okay, so I guess you wish to limit yourself to seeing only that side of the road. You may miss something wonderful on this side." He pulls Aurora back, then nudges her to the other side of her horse.

Elsa swings her head to the other side of the road. "Oh, you are correct. I would have missed the flowers in that field. They are pretty."

He does not sense any tension from her so he nudges Aurora to take the lead. "My dear, I have a concern about what Gerda said before you came out of the castle. I am hoping you may have an insight as to what she was referring?" He gets no response. "Elsa?" Still no response, his head snaps around. She and her horse are not on the road.

His mind switches to tracking mode and finds her horse standing several meters off the road, but he does not see her. He rides back where her horse left the road. He detects her weak energy signature among the boulders. Sliding off Aurora he races to the boulders and leaps over the smaller boulder. He lands with three ice spikes between the fingers of one hand and an ice sword in the other hand.

Elsa falls to the ground holding up her frost covered hands as a shot of cold blast splits by his sword. Two small areas of vegetation behind him freeze.

He drops the spikes and the sword. "I am so sorry for interrupting you." He helps her to stand.

She wipes the dirt and grass off her exposed leg.

He turns his back to her. "I will leave you in peace to finish your business."

"After that I don't think I can go again."

He scans the area for any intruders.

"Maybe further down the road I will have to stop." She walks past him and glances back. "What is wrong?" She places her hand on his arm. Small sparks leap out to her fingers. "Sam?"

His eyes open to the blue tint before they return to normal. He wraps his arm around her shoulders and holds her tight. She slips her arm around him. In a whisper, he asks, "Are you okay? Did I injure you?"

"I am okay. You startled me. I apologize for shooting my ice at you. At least I have something to tell Anna that will make her laugh." She presses her hands into his back. "You feel tense. Are you okay?" She looks up at him. With the cuff of her sleeve, she wipes a tear from his eye. "Obviously, you are not okay."

He sniffles and kisses her forehead. "I am doing a lot better than I did a few minutes ago. For a moment I could not find you. You frightened me. Ever since our wedding day, I expect to wake up and find that is was just a dream, that life played a cruel joke on me."

Her hands cup his face. "I am so sorry. I thought you would be watching me all the time and that you saw me stop. I promise to never to assume you are watching."

"We will have to make an agreement as to when I should not be watching you. I will teach you how to open and close your mind for your privacy. Just to let you know, if for whatever reason you are unconscious your mind will be open."

"Is my mind open? Can you see in?"

"Yes, I can sense you."

"Am I able to sense you?"

He grins. "You can. It may be difficult being in close proximity of me, but I know you have reached out to me in the stables. Think of it like this. The door to your mind is open. If I walk past the door and look in, I will see you. You can close the door and I will not see you, unless I can open the door to see you, but you can hold the door close. The same analogy works for you when you wish to look in the door of my mind. When I rode past you, I moved too far past your door. When I looked back, I did not find your door. Being out in the open, I became afraid that something may have happened to you. If I cannot find your door," he pauses and pulls his lips tight against his teeth.

Her brows push together. "If you cannot find it, is it because I am dead."

He nods.

"Oh, I understand your anxiety, but you did find me."

"If I had been looking at your door and saw you preparing to water the grass, I would have stood in front of the door with my back to you. My physical body would still be on Aurora and I would be scanning the area."

"Watering the grass, is that what you call it?" A partial smile forms across her lips.

"Well, what do you call it?"

"Relieving myself."

"Can you do it standing up, by yourself?"

"If I hike my dress up, yes, but in trousers, no."

"I can write my name in the snow from a standing position. Can you?"

"With great difficulty, I will remember you saying 'watering the grass.'" She pinches his side.

He backs away with laughter. She pushes her attack and grabs his sides. His laughter disrupts his focus and he slips across a flat boulder almost buried in the ground. She jumps onto his chest, pinning his arms to the ground with her knees.

"You think this will stop me?"

He starts to lift his arm. She grabs his hair with both hands and slides down his body enough to plant her lips squarely onto his lips. Her tongue darts past his lips for a final duel. He quickly surrenders to her assault and passionately returns a kiss to her. Their lips separate and sparkles twinkle in her eyes.

"You could have asked."

Her right brow shoots up. "This is more fun."

He nips the tip of her nose. "Okay, you are right about this, but I thought we were going to your ice castle to play."

She nibbles on his cheek. "You asked me what did Gerda mean about two goes and two better come back?"

"Yes." He grins and turns his head to give her a better access to his neck.

She lightly kisses his neck. "She was not referring to you and me."

"Um hum." His eyes partially close. The rest of his body responds to her stimulation and wants to take her on the grass now.

"She was referring to me only."

"Um hum." After several seconds he detects she is not nibbling his neck. He opens his eyes.

She leans over him. "Did you hear what I said?" He rolls his head to gaze directly into her eyes. "Gerda was referring to me when she said two go out and two better come back."

"Two?" His eyes focus on her and dart between her eyes.

No deceit, her face moves with her smile as she slowly nods. "Two go out and two better come back."

"You did it." His eyes trails down the front of her shirt and stares at her abdomen. "We did it."

She nods vigorously as her tear falls onto his chin. She whispers, "Yes, we did."

His arms slip out from under her legs and he wraps them around her pulling her close. How far along do you think you are?"

"The first time I spotted. I wanted to make sure. This month will be the second complete miss and Gerda knew Anna was pregnant before she even told Kristoff."

"And of course she thought I would play too rough with you."

"No, I asked her to say what she said to give you a clue." She grins.

"Wow, I completely missed it. See, if I'm not focused, it is the little things that will trip me up."

She pushes on his chest and sits up. "Will you do me a small favor within your safety standard?"

His left brow rises. "Okay."

She places his hand over her abdomen. "Please show me our child is doing okay."

An excitement builds and almost overwhelms him as the grin on his face begins to hurt. "It would be my honor, but I need my hand against your lower back and I must be able to slide my other hand across your abdomen." He points to a small boulder. "If you sit over there I can do it."

She pushes against his hands and sits on the boulder. He rolls up onto his feet and scans the area. Their horses walk into a field across the road. He kneels beside her.

"You will have to loosen your trousers for my hands."

She unbuttons the front. He slides his hand to her lower back and generates a minuscule amount of energy to synchronize with her energy. His other hand touches her belly button and slides straight down.

"That is different."

"What, what is different?" Her hand slides to the back of his neck. Her hand touches four specific points of his face and neck. A smile forms as her eyes change to light blue orbs.

Gently he slides his hand to her left side.

She slips her hand into her trousers and guides his hand. "There, right there, can you tell if it is a boy or a girl?"

With the barest of movement they see her answer.

"It looks like a boy."

"Yes, he is."

"Is he looking at us?"

"At my hand." He moves his hand to her right side.

She clenches his neck. "Is that a girl?"

"Congratulations, Mom, you have a boy and a girl." He pecks her cheek. "Well. Let see if you are about three months along, that will put their birth at . . . uh-oh."

Her blue orbs focus on him. "What do you mean, uh-oh?"

He slides his hand around her waist and her eyes change back to her beautiful blue eyes. "Possibly they will be born close to someone's birthday and it will not be mine, but that would be interesting if they are born on the winter solstice."

She presses her forehead against his forehead. "My birthday, why would it be interesting?"

"Long ago, about twenty-five years, I told Gerda I was not aware of any folklore or anything magical about the solstice. If they are born on the solstice, I will have to tell her I was mistaken and there is something magical about that day." He puckers his lips and she presses her pucker lips against his.

He slides his head next to hers and wraps his arms around pulling her close. "I have no doubt you and Anna will make great mothers in the year of twins."

A new hunger invades his mind. A hunger he had not felt for a long time. He wants to be with her all the time not just in the same room, but within her personal space. He will protect her. He will take the arrow, no questions. He would be at her beckoning no matter the time of day. He will heed to her suggestions and commands without a rebuttal. She is the mother of his children. He just smiles.

"Why did you stop? I liked what I was hearing?"

He gives her a good squeeze. "Until I get under your feet, you will push me away."

She runs her fingers through his hair. "I probably will, but until then, I will enjoy you being there."

A shadow passes over them blocking part of the sun. He glances up. A dense cloud leading the edge of a weather front blocks the sun. Progressively darker clouds follow. In the distance a flash of light strikes the ground.

Elsa turns her head in the direction of the lightning. "I guess we should get to the ice castle before it rains." She stands and buttons her trousers.

He moves to the edge of the road and scans the area.

She touches his arm. "Where are the horses?"

"I'm not seeing them." He points to a wooded area across the field. "There is a short ravine over there. I hope they are in it."

They cross the road and move into the field. In the distant lightning flashes. A light gray curtain flows from the clouds to the ground. Vegetation begins to wave. As the breeze reaches them the temperature drops. They get close to the ravine. The head of Elsa's horse pops above the edge.

"Aurora?" He calls.

Her head pops up above the edge as she chews.

"Come on out we have to go."

She neighs as she shakes her head.

"What do you mean no?"

They stand at the edge of the ravine. Both horses munch on the green leaves at the bottom.

"Looks like they ate most of the berries."

"Yes, it looks like they came down that trail." Sam points to the meter wide path leading into the ravine.

"Are you doing this?" The hairs on her arm stands up.

His white hair floats up around him and his legs propel his body at her. They roll to the bottom of the ravine as a bolt of lightning strikes the ice shield where she was standing. The ice and dirt sprays the area as a clap of thunder rattles the horses and they run out the open end of the ravine.

 **End of Chapter**


	94. Chapter 93 Wolf Pack's Queen

**Title: CHp-93: Wolf Pack's Queen**

 **6 months until correction**

The steady tones lessen as the variations of the ringing in Sam's ears change. A strong breeze rattles the tops of the trees and the aroma of charred wood awakens his sinuses. The rustle leaves and small twigs fall to the ground.

A finger taps the side of his head. His eyes open and he partially rolls as he pushes his chest up.

Elsa grimaces. "You can get off me. I know that is not you jabbing my back."

He scans and detects no broken bones. Where his other hand held her close to him as he fell, he holds onto her and rolls onto his back. His hand covers the painful spot on her back and generates a pulsing energy.

"Awww, that feels good." She rests her head on his chest. "Are they ok?"

"Our children, yes, the horses have gone past my limit until I can get higher."

Elsa rests her chin on her hands. "You have dirt on your face." A moment later she asks, "Why are you smiling?"

"I'm not smiling at the smudge on your face, if that is what you are asking."

"Where is it?" She pulls on his shirt and wipes her face. "Did I get it?"

His eyes widen as his lips draw tight to prevent his grin from getting larger.

"What? Did I miss it?"

"No, you did not miss it. I'm rather surprised at that big smear came from that small smudge."

"Argh," She pulls more of his shirt up and wipes her face again.

"Okay, you got it except for the spot on your forehead. I will get it for you. Hold still." He holds her head with both hands and licks from the tip of her nose to her hairline. "All better."

She wrinkles her face and wipes her face on his shirt. Her eyes open looking down at him. "It is too bad we are not in the castle. I bet your tongue would stick to the ice." She tickles both of his sides.

"Oh, stop." He laughs and bucks underneath her.

She locks her knees on his thighs and continues tickling.

Between laughter, he tries to speak. "I give." More laughter, "I give, you win."

She snickers. "Wow, I learned something new about you."

She lets him up and they brush the dirt off each other. He walks a short distance, before noticing she is not behind him. He stops and reaches for her. She takes his hand and leans against his arm.

"Are you okay?"

"Sometimes I get short of breath. I have never been that close to lightning." She peeks up at him. "What would have happened if I had been struck by the lightning?"

His hands cup her face and he passionately kisses her. As their lips separate, he answers, "I will not answer that question. Our children are safe as you are. At the first opportunity, I will give you a full body massage and answer your questions, but not now. We need to get the horses."

She wraps her arm around his arm.

They follow the horse tracks to the end of the ravine that opens to a thicket of bushes. Broken and twisted branches reveal the opening where the horses pushed through. On the other side, they spot the horses grazing on a sloping hill.

Elsa comments, "This hill has very little vegetation except where they are." She glances behind them. "Look. The thicket appears wider than what we passed through. I cannot see the other side. I do not recall this hill on a map. We could not have traveled that far outside of Arendelle."

Sam squats and starts to dig into the soil, but jerks his hand back.

"Your fingers." She reaches for his hand.

"Stop, do not kneel." A thick layer of ice forms over his hand. He peels the ice off and his fingers bleed from the many cuts.

She studies the ice. "What are the specks?"

"I think it is glass."

"Glass out here? Where did it come from?"

He forms an ice spike and stabs it into the ground. The ground fractures and breaks with the sound of glass breaking. He pushes the spike to one side and a sphere of amber glass pops out of the ground.

He rolls it in his hand. "I don't feel any edges to it."

She takes the glass sphere and holds it up to the light. "I do not see impurities in it. Expensive wine glasses are made from this type of glass. So how did it get out here?"

"A very hot furnace would burn off the impurities." He scans the area for stone works or heavy metal parts. "I do not see any evidence of a furnace. If this came from a glass factory and some of it broke in shipment, why would anyone go this far off the road to dump it."

A breeze sweeps over the hill causing the ground to sparkle in the light.

"This glass covers the hill."

She taps his shoulder. "How did they get up there, unless their hooves are coated in the glass?"

He observes the horses. "They sure don't act like they are walking on glass."

A bright light flashes into the tree line off to their side. He pulls her down to him as he sweeps his arm over their heads and a loud crack sprays them with dirt. For a second a light radiates from the ground.

He pushes the ice shield off of them. "That explains why the glass was not seen immediately."

"I did not feel my hair stand up like last time."

"The glass is a highly effective insulator. We were not in contact with the ground, so we were not a path for the lightning."

She points to the horses. They followed a trail down the hill and follow the thicket to where they crossed back through. "Why did they not get struck by the lightning up there?"

"They must have been standing on the glass."

"Let us follow them off this hill."

"Do you feel that?" He stands.

She looks up at him. "I feel your energy going out of sync."

He shakes his head. "That is not my energy." He stares at the hill. "It is coming from up there. It is like an echo from the past." He turns to her. "I need to find out what is up there. If you do not wish to go, follow the path where the horse went through and move a distance up the ravine, just in case."

She holds his hand and stares into his eyes. After a few seconds she answers, "I will go with you. We are in this together, correct?"

"I don't know what that energy source is –"

"Shh," she places her finger across his lips. "As long as we stay on the glass, we should not get struck by the lightning."

With a nod, he tucks her arm under his arm and holds her hand. They slowly trudge their way up. More glass crunches under their feet as they get closer to the top. On top of the hill, a gray rectangle stone lays partially buried in the ground.

He kneels next to it and sweeps the dirt and pulls the grass to reveal symbols. His finger traces one symbol.

"Those letters are Runic."

"Can you read them?" A tear falls into the symbol.

Elsa wraps her arm around him. "No, I will have to find someone who can translate it. What is that symbol?"

"It is the name of my ship in Sariphan language. The energy radiating from it feels familiar. Someone wanted me to find it."

He digs until he exposes a two meter by one meter stone. A breeze blows a little harder from the north. The clouds overhead darken.

"Sam, we need to leave. The rain will make the glass slippery."

He continues to dig around the stone until he finds a seam. Ice extends from his finger and into the seam. The stone lifts. Symbols etched in the polished underside radiate a blue light. At the bottom of the stone box a silvery substance in the shape of a human body glows. He holds his hand in the light and the substance floats towards his hand.

Large drops of water splash around them. A corner of a bag made of a plastic like material, sticks up through the dirt. He pulls the bag out which contains a document in Runic letters and a medallion.

He hands it back to Elsa. "Please hold on to this and do not lose it." She takes the bag.

He sweeps his hand over the silver substance and absorbs the fine powder. His hand radiates a blue tint that reveals another symbol in the stone. He presses his hand over the symbol to remember it and drops the stone over the box. A light rain sprinkles on them as a curtain of rain moves up the hill. He sweeps his hand over the stone. A swirl of air forces the loose dirt to the fill in the spaces and partially covers the stone.

Standing next to Elsa staring at the glistening wet glass covering the ground, Sam points to her feet. A sheet of ice forms under her boots and continues to the bottom of the hill.

"Hold on." He holds her waist and pushes off. They slide down the hill. "Close your eyes and mouth."

They meet a cushion of air at the bottom and step off the ice with the curtain of rain following close behind them. They run through the thicket and both horses wait for them on the other side. He helps Elsa onto her horse. As he swings his leg onto Aurora, a rush of noise billows from the canopy trees above them.

"Stay close. There is a shelter nearby. They race to the end of the ravine and out into the field. The rain spits large drops at them. Down the field, he guides them along a river and maneuvers up a path he had not used for many years. He finds the opening and scans inside. Thankfully, no one is home. He slides off Aurora and guide both horses into a cave.

Elsa slips off her horse dripping wet. "Why are your clothes not wet?"

He grins. "A trick I will have to teach you."

Her teeth chatter. "The cold does not bother me so why do I feel cold?"

"You are supplying energy to your little ones. Maybe you need to increase your nutritional intake."

Her teeth chatter again.

"Take your shirt off and wear mine." He unbuttons his shirt and slips out of it.

She stares at him. "Here?"

"I assure you there is no one out there. It will rain for some time before we can leave." He holds his shirt out to her.

She stares at his shirt before handing him the plastic bag. With her back to him she removes her shirt, folds it, and places it on several stones.

He helps her to slip on his shirt. She overlaps the front of his shirt. "Thank you, it is nice and warm."

He begins to remove his boots as he says, "Take your boots and trousers off."

She glances past him. "Are you sure there is no one out there."

"Yes," He stands in his birthday suit and holds his trouser. "The longer it takes you to get out of the wet clothes, the longer it will take me to get wood for a fire."

She sits on a small boulder and removes her boots. Turning her back to him, she removes her wet trousers. Slipping into his dry trousers, she bunches the waist together to keep them from falling off of her.

"I'll be back."

She spins around. "You are going out there like that?"

"Well, I can't wear your clothes, even if they were dry." He hands her the plastic bag. "I will be back within the hour."

"Hour, what am I supposed to do?" she clutches the bag to her chest.

He wraps his arms around her shoulders. "This is not what I expected. As far as I can see it will be raining for a couple of hours." His fingers comb her wet hair. "I will be back as quickly as I can."

He kisses her forehead and sprints out into the rain.

Elsa watches Sam, naked as a new born baby, run through the rain. As he runs down the path a metallic-green and rainbow colors flash across his body. His long hair moves slightly side to side, but is not matted against his body.

A flash of light momentary blinds her followed instantly by a loud thunder that echoes in the cave. The noise startles the horses to move them deeper in the cave. When her vision clears a boulder rolls into the cave and transforms into a troll.

"Grand Pabbie, why are you here?"

"Queen Elsa, I must make this quick before Sam detects me." He points to the plastic bag. "Has he seen it?"

She looks at the document. "He pulled it out from under a rectangle stone on the hill with the glass."

"Yes, but has he read the letter or examined the medallion?" Pabbie asks and glances out of the cave.

She holds the bag up. "No, he has not."

"Did he see the symbols on the top and bottom sides of the stone?"

"He traced the symbol on top of the stone with his finger and said it is the name of his ship in Sariphan, then he shed a tear."

Pabbie rolls his head towards the cave entrance. He taps his stony fingers together. "Not good, not good at all."

She looks into the rain. "Is the stone significant to him?"

He turns his head and taps it. "I know he has a connection to you. Does he hear your thoughts all the time?"

"No, we still need to talk about that, but for now, he does not know what I know unless he feels I am in danger or unable to respond to him."

"Good." Pabbie faces her. "Whatever you do, do not let him read the letter until after your children are born. He will need you and a reason to hold onto you. If he determines the purpose of the stone, be prepared for the worst he could do."

She peeks out of the cave. "Tell me now."

"Queen Elsa, I will not. I made a promise to a special friend that I will not break." He hesitates and points to the letter. "That is the answer you and he seek. If you cannot find someone to read it, send Kristoff to me with the letter and I will read it to him. I have to go." Pabbie rolls out of the cave and disappears in the rain.

A slightly curved sheet of ice moves into the cave. A short block of ice slides on the sheet of ice and dumps a stack of wood into the cave.

She moves closer to the entrance. The sheet of ice curves and follows the path towards the river. Another block of ice slides on the sheet and into the cave. Two frozen fish stare at her. She notes the particles in the ice as though they were frozen directly in the river.

Both horses move to the ice sheet and lick the ice with the fish. She gazes out into the rain, which is a different perspective from her room in the castle. Despite the breeze shifting the rain and splashing her, she stares, entertained at how the breeze and rain dance together. In the distance a curtain of rain pushes towards her. She glances towards the river, then back at the rain. The breeze splashes her again, but this time a clean and refreshing fragrant enters the cave.

"Is this why he likes coming out here, to watch nature? Even the rain is peaceful to listen."

A rumble sounds next to her. Aurora sniffs and bumps her with her nose.

"Is it a little confusing detecting my fragrant mixing with his odor in the clothes?"

"Okay girl, she is mine." Sam comments as he enters the cave.

Aurora turns her head to him. Elsa leans past the horse. "Which girl are you claiming as yours?"

His hands cover his private parts as his eyes glance between them. "Clearly a bad choice of words, since both of you are female and both of you are mine so I will rephrase. "Aurora, Elsa is my wife and you better get used to it. If you don't, you can be replaced. I will keep Elsa no matter what."

Her right brow rises as she grins.

Sam stacks several pieces of wood in the old fire pit. He clenches his left hand several times and it begins to glow white. Placing his hand in the middle of the wood, Sounds of searing and wisps of smoke rise from the wood. Tiny flickers of red and orange flames. He removes his hand and gently blows the flames. The one piece of wood catches fire and soon the others do also.

Elsa kneels next to him. "I have never seen you start a fire like that."

"Actually, you have, but you were just a wee one at the time."

She reaches for his hand. "Does it hurt when you do that?"

"Does the ice hurt your hands?" He asks with a smile.

"They tingled the first time I did it and when I almost froze the Duke." She rubs his left hand.

"What about when you were icing the Weselton men at the Lookout Plateau?"

"If they did, I was too upset at you to have noticed."

He kisses her forehead. "I am sorry you had to go through that event. I hope I have gotten better since then."

She returns a kiss on his lips as her hand slides up his thigh. "I could not help, but to notice my friend rising up to see me." She giggles.

"Your friend wants to do more than see you." He grins at her.

"In my condition, I do not see how my friend can do what it enjoys, do you?" She grins back at him. As she moves her hand from his thigh it brushes against her friend.

He inhales several breaths. "If you are going to be that way, give me my clothes and you can dry your clothes over the fire."

Her right brow rises. "Well, as your Queen, I am not taking these clothes off until my clothes are dry. It would be very humiliating if someone found me in here with no clothes on."

"But it is okay if they find me with no clothes?"

"Yes." Her left brow drops enough to give him the indication she is about to make a decision he may not like.

"Compromise?"

"I am listening."

"I will teach you to remove water and dirt from your clothes with your ice."

She stares at him for a moment. "And."

"And?" his left brow slowly rises.

With slightly wider eyes, she raises both brows, then narrows her eyes at him as her hand grabs the inside of his thigh very close that her friend responds.

He removes her hand. "Unless you tell me to sense your mind, you will have to tell me."

"You do have control." She nuzzles her face against his hand. "I thought you wanted to take advantage of me in here."

"I did think about it, but it will be under a mutual agreement. I need to be focused as to what is happening out there. There are a lot of animals that could kill us before I could react."

"Oh, I did not think about that. I am sorry for teasing you." She starts to look away. He lifts her chin.

"What do you wish to know?"

A slight smile forms across her lips. "I wish to know what you know. You survived on your own for many years. I was trained to rule. Without the guards I do not live and I almost did not, if it was not for you more than once. Teach me to see people as you do."

"I have many years of experience. A lot of it was trial and error. That error included people dying."

She stands on her knees. With two fists full of his hair, she turns his head and leans close to his face. "You mentioned the attack on Lookout Plateau. Earlier, I saw you run in the rain. I saw a greenish rainbow glisten across your body. That is when I noticed your hair was mostly dry. You can create an energy barrier around yourself, or expand it to protect me. If I was in sync with you, you would not have had to knock me out. We would have defeated the raiders."

Her eyes, moving back and forth between his eyes, search for his understands as to what she is asking. She has a long way to go to see into the person as he does. The hard way it will be. "My mother said out of your hand a sword appeared. Between your fingers spikes grew and you threw them into and through men trying to kidnap her."

She still does not see any deviation in his eyes. "I have seen you practice with an ice sword in the lower room. Your movements appeared complicated and deliberate. I never saw the blade touch your skin."

This time his eyes move. "Wait, when did you see me practicing?"

She hesitates and glances away. "About two weeks ago, you were not in the bed and I thought I heard your voice. As I reached the stairs, Anna was sitting on the steps."

"Anna?"

"She said she heard groaning and went to see who was doing it. She saw you and had just sat down when I approached her."

"You and Anna watched me?"

"I am sorry," she says more out of the embarrassment for Anna.

"Don't be, I assume the two of you saw me during the most intense part of my training."

A seductive smile crosses her lips. "I don't know what intensity level you were practicing, but it was intense for me seeing your hair matted against your glistening back."

He stares at her in silence for a moment. "I guess it was just as intense for Anna."

With a grin she slowly nods her head.

"Does Kristoff know she watched me?"

Her nods slowly transitions into a side to side motion.

"If . . . he . . . asks."

She shakes her head vigorously.

He begins to nod his head. "I will tell him."

"Let me talk to her first." She nips his nose. "Back to what I was saying. I have heard you can create an ice bow that will shoot one ice arrow and in flight, it will split into two ice arrows. I would like to be able to do those things that you do."

"Other than the barrier for defense, the others are offensive in nature as in somebody could die. I did not think you want to kill."

"As I said I have to rely on the guards or you, but what if I am not with you at the moment and something happens?"

The pupils in his eyes barely fluctuate, but she does see them move. She smiles.

"Why are you smiling?"

"Tell me the truth. When I said what if something happens, did you have a slight emotional moment?"

His left brow rises. "Yes, I did. What did you see?"

"Enough."

"Great. If you saw it, someone else could see it. If you do not tell me and someone else sees it, it could be used against me, then against you."

She grabs his ears and wiggles his head. "They will only see it if they are this close. How many people have been this close to you to see it?"

He stares into her eyes. "Three." His brows push together. "Four." The pupils in his eyes fluctuate again and he answers, "Four for sure, maybe five."

"If I wait longer will the number go up?" She grins.

"My eye did that thing again, didn't it?"

"I'm not saying." She kisses the tip of his nose. His hair slips through her fingers as she sits on the heels of her feet.

They stare at each other for many seconds, neither moves.

"Great," he comments as he blinks. "I always lose at the staring game."

He brings his hands together and separates them to reveal a short ice knife the length of his hand. He slides the knife between his finger and thumb. He sets the knife on the ground between them. "Create an ice knife just like that one and just as sharp."

Her right brow rises. With a wave of her hand a second knife solidifies next to the first knife.

"Okay, let me test to see if it is as sharp as my knife?"

He slides her knife across a centimeter of his arm and the hairs fall like trees. He nods his head to her.

"Why would you think I have never created a knife made out of ice?" She tilts her head slightly and smiles.

His left brow shoots up. "Because, I have not seen you do it, but I suspect you will teach me a lesson, so I will make a recommendation." He wraps his hand around the handle of his knife and holds it with the blade down. His thumb covers the end of the knife. "Hold your knife as I hold mine."

She picks up her knife and holds it like his. A quarter of the handle and blade sticks out past her hand.

"This is one of the cases where you will have to adjust the length of the knife to fit your hand or if it does not hinder you, keep it the same."

"I like it the way it is."

"Have you ever cleaned a fish?"

"Off my plate as I ate dinner."

"Okay," he glances at her wet clothes on the rocks. "Clean your clothes so I can get my clothes back."

She wrinkles her nose at him. "I suspect you clean your clothes differently from what everyone else does."

He grabs her bloomers and slides them through his hand. They freeze and he hands them to her. She stares at them. After a minute, he says, "Remove only the ice and they will be dry."

She continues to stare at them.

"You have not done this before, have you?"

She gradually shakes her head.

He touches her hand. "I know you can do it. You removed all the snow and ice from Arendelle that July. You did not see every gram, but you did remove all that you created. Removing the ice from the clothing uses the same principle."

She looks at him. "But this is not my ice."

He takes the bloomer and snaps the cloth in the air. A shower of glittering ice slaps against the wall and melts. He hands her bloomers back to her. As she feels them, he hands her trousers to her.

"I can do this." She holds up the trouser and wiggles her fingers at them. A sparkling mist floats away from the cloth.

Several minutes later, they are in their own clothes.

She comments, "This actually smells cleaner without the perfume the staff puts in the laundry water. Maybe I can help with the laundry."

"Only if you do our clothes, you do not wish to put some of the staff out of a job."

The movement of her head gradually increases as she nods in agreement. He hands her the ice knife she made.

"What do you want me to do with it?"

He walks over to the frozen fish and smashes the ice with his fist. He walks back, holding the two fishes. "Which one do you want to clean?"

"I guess this one." She wrinkles her nose and takes a fish.

After a quarter-hour, two fish cleaned and skewered on sticks lean over the fire. He freezes the left over parts of the fishes and sets it by the cave entrance.

She stands next to him as he searches the outside of the cave. "Now what?" She points towards the rain, "Is that a deer?"

"Yes, it is. How far do you think that deer is from us?"

"Thirty or forty meters," she is silent for a moment. "It is in a field. We crossed a field some distance away. How far away is it?"

"One thousand, eight hundred, and forty-six meters," he answers, "Give or take ten meters."

Her brows rise as she looks up at him. "How can you be so sure of that distance?"

His hand sweeps above them. "This cave was my home for a few years. It is not like I have a lot to do when I was here. I walked the distance one day."

She steps back and searches the cave. "You slept here by yourself?"

"Most of the time I did. Occasionally, the neighbors would come by and have dinner with me."

"Neighbors? Who were the neighbors?"

"My wolf pack mostly, a fox couple stayed here a week at a time when they passed through the area." He glances at her. "Do you see Aurora?"

She points to the back of the cave. "She is right there."

"You can see all of her the way others with normal vision can see her?" He glances to the back of the cave.

"Yes."

He focuses on her eyes and points out of the cave. "See if the deer is still in the field, then look at Aurora."

She slowly turns her head towards the field as her eyes stare at him. At the last second she looks out of the cave. "Yes, the deer is still in the field."

She turns her head back to Aurora. "And your horse is still in the back of the cave."

"You don't feel lightheaded or nauseous?"

"I feel fine." She squints at him. "Should I not?"

He slips his arm around her shoulders. "Do you remember the evening you asked the people if they were ready? You met me on the bridge and I helped you to see the sail of a ship on the horizon. Do you remember how you felt immediately afterwards, when you tried to refocus on something close?"

"I remember." She looks out the cave.

He hugs her. "You have progressed a long way since then. Are you willing to take the next step?"

"What step?"

"You said you wanted to do what I do. I do more than create weapons and ice." He turns her to face him and kneels. His hand sweeps across her belly as he kisses the heads of his children. He looks up and focuses on her eyes. "You need to protect our children. A case may occur where I am not with you. In your ice castle, you stopped a Weselton arrow that should have killed you. Afterwards you almost died because you did not kill, or at least, did not disable them. And I hate saying this, but Hans saved your life from Weselton, despite what he tried to do afterwards.

He wraps his arms around her and she wraps her arms around his head. His head rests against her chest. "I need to teach you to observe your surroundings, see any potential threats, defend against it, and if need be, to kill the threat."

She kisses his forehead. "I don't think I can kill anyone."

He taps on her belly. "Even, if it means the death of your children?"

"I have never been in that position. I hope I will respond accordingly."

He raises his head to search her eyes. "Hope, a moment of hesitation will get them killed and if you are not prepared, the shock of seeing them die will get you killed."

She grabs his hair and ears. "What are you trying to say? I know many women who have children, and they did not have to kill to be a mother."

"How many of those women were part of a monarchy?"

She stares into his eyes before looking down at her belly. "Hans tried to kill me to take over Arendelle."

"Only because he thought Anna would freeze to death before anyone found her." His hands sweep across her belly. "I can tell you my experiences only. With proper training you can disable ninety-nine out of a hundred people, but the one will not stop and you have to kill them."

"How will I know when the one approaches?"

"At what point did you know Hans wanted you dead?"

She holds the back of his hands against her belly. "Anna told me afterwards."

"Even the ice and snow did not stop him, but if you were aware of his actions and had been looking for it, you could have deterred his actions by freezing a part of his body. You got half of the Weselton men to stop. Until they drop their weapons, you should have spiked the weapon arm."

He forces a smile. "At the Trade negotiations, both Weselton goons who attacked you came back. I could have killed both of them. I had within my rights to kill the assassin, but instead I injured or maimed him permanently. He can defend himself, but he will never be the aggressor as an assassin."

He stands and wraps his arms around her. "I want you to have so much confidence in yourself that you will not have to think about it, but act on it. With a flick of your finger ice forms under the person's shoes and with just enough of a nudge, they fall to the ground or freeze them in a block of ice, but not freeze them solid. Skate across the courtyard and leave only small puddles of water where you touched the stones."

He steps back and touches his hands together. His arms rise to shoulder height as he holds an ice bow with an arrow pointing out of the cave. The arrow flies and at a distance it explodes into a shower of ice crystals. As quickly as the bow appears it changed into an ice broad sword. A flick of his hand and the blade points down. With a smile he offers the hilt of his sword to her.

She glances at the sword and look up at him. The corner of her lips gradually curls upwards as she reaches for his sword. Her fingers curl around the hilt. As she lifts the sword from his hands, she grins and a sparkle twinkles in her eyes. She uses both hands to rotate the blade up.

"This is heavier than your sword."

The blade starts to fall forward, but he catches it with his hand. His other hand slides across her shoulder until his thumb and fingers lightly touch the sides of her neck.

She focuses on the sword.

He whispers in her ear. "Allow it to be one with you. When it becomes an extension of your arm, you will not feel any weight to it and that will give you the advantage over the attacker."

He moves behind her as his hand releases the sword. She traces the symbols above the hilt. In the polished blade her eyes glow a hint of blue. "Allow me to show you a fighting stance that will make others hesitate."

She shifts her weight with her right foot forward. Her right hand slides against the guard and her left, slides to the end of the hilt. She raises the sword to the side and above her head with the business end pointing out of the cave.

"Show me the angry face you gave to the Weselton goons." He steps to the side. "That is it. An attacker will hesitate. The goons still would have shot at you because they are professional soldiers. They underestimated your abilities. When you began to defend yourself, they made a critical mistake that allowed you to take the advantage and you almost gave it back to them if Hans was a few seconds late."

She lowers the sword. The twinkle in her eye fades along with her smile. "They should have killed me."

He takes his sword from her and forces it to disappear into his hand. "It is called situational awareness. Your mind will recognize the changes and present the correct response. Your body will move with the response and defeat the attackers. With confidence and control of your ice, you will freeze the arrow to the crossbow or freeze the firing mechanism. They will hesitate. You charge them with your sword and they will run."

She interrupts, "If they do not?"

"Expect one to sacrifice themselves, so the other can escape. Strike the one with one blow and swing around towards the other with your bow and arrow."

"What if they both charged at me?"

"Charge between them and at the last second, step to the side and strike the one. If you do it correctly, your strike on the one will carry through to block and hit the second one."

She stares at him for a moment. "What would you do?"

"Bow and arrow, aim between them. As the arrow leaves the bow, it will split and strike both of them." He grins.

"I guess I have a lot of work to do."

"One step at a time." he sniffs the air and holds his hand out. "I believe the fish is ready."

She takes his hand.

As they walk back to the cooked fish he comments, "Despite your pregnancy, you looked good holding my sword. Your expression and my sword made you look very enticing. For a moment I wanted to take you right there."

She kneels by the fire and her hand brushes against the front of his trousers. "I know. You like strong women who are not afraid."

With a grin he kneels next to her.

The rain stops and a short time later, breaks in the clouds allow the evening sun to shine on the bottom of the upper clouds.

Elsa comments, "It will be dark soon. Do you think we can get to the ice castle before it gets completely dark?"

"Probable no, you're not thinking about going back to Arendelle, are you?"

She rubs her belly. "I did promise to give Anna and Kristoff time to themselves, so I would not be hovering over her."

"They will be alright. We can either stay here for the night or go to your ice castle." He crawls over to her on his hands and knees. His nose presses towards her and sniffs. He sniffs along her cheek. The tip of his tongue sweeps across her ear.

She lifts her shoulder to her ear. "What are you doing?"

He continues to sniff across her shoulder and down her arm.

She glances towards the cave entrance. Four wolves stand outside of the entrance as the fifth wolf sits inside of the cave. They appear to be staring at her.

She taps the back of Sam's head. "We have visitors."

"I know. They are my family. I am showing them you are mine and a part of my family. Do nothing that will appear you are attacking me."

She stares at them. Her head gradually turns to him, "The wolf dance?"

He growls and roughly pushes his head against her shoulder. She falls back. He howls. The wolf inside of the cave stands and howls. The wolves outside of the cave howl and join the fifth wolf in the cave.

Elsa rolls onto her hands and knees. She growls as she pushes her shoulder into him. He moves behind her and sniffs her bottom. The lead wolf moves closer to them. He slides his cheek up her back. She exposes her neck and he lightly bites it. She growls and whimpers.

He whispers, "One by one, they will move closer and sniff you. Do not flinch."

She turns her head towards the wolf and presses her head and shoulders against the ground. She exposes her bottom as a female wolf would. He drapes his leg across her lower back and mimics mounting her. She lowers her bottom as she draws her knees to her sides. He holds his weight off of her, but mimics copulating with her.

The lead wolf steps closer and sniffs her hand. Its nose moves towards her face and licks her cheek. The wolf races out of the cave. Each wolf edges closer to sniff, then licks her hand and arm.

As the last wolf runs out of the cave, he arches his back and howls a long growl. Elsa sits up and he sits next to her. The wolves howl and jump and nip at each other. They race down the path and across the field.

She pats his head. "Good doggie, good doggie, I knew you could."

He snorts at her as he grins.

"Are they going to tell their pack you have chosen a mate?"

"As a matter of fact, yes, you are now a part of their family and they will protect you."

"I never thought marrying one would make me eligible to become a member of a wolf pack."

"Not just a member, but a Queen of the wolf pack." He bumps her with his shoulder. "I'm sure Anna never expected to become a part of a troll family, either."

He nods to the dim light outside of the cave. "It is up to you."

She pushes on him to stand. "After what happened today and the wolves, I do not believe there is anything scarier than you out there. Let us ride."

An hour later, they ride up to the ice stairs and dismount from the horses. Elsa walks up the steps as her clothes transform into her ice blue dress. She waits at the top of the steps. The door opens.

Sam unsaddles the horses and creates an ice dome to protect them from the weather. His hand sweeps an area and melts the snow to reveal the vegetation underneath. He runs up the stairs and into her ice castle. Marshmallow closes the door with a grumble.

 **End of Chapter**


	95. Chapter 94 Asbjorn and Joan

**Title: CHp-94: Prince Asbjorn and Princess Joan**

 **6 months until correction**

Sam walks across the icy floor and watches Marshmallow walk towards the side room. Movement from behind a frosted door catches his eyes. He searches for Elsa, but the movement draws him to the door. Pressing his ear against the door, scratching and what sounds like children giggling peaks his curiosity. His face detects no heat from the other side. If anything the room feels colder than the room he is in.

"What creatures do you have in there?" Placing his hand against a door, he generates an energy pulse to see inside the room.

"I would not do that if I was you," Elsa says.

He peeks over his shoulder. The hesitation lasted long enough for the door to smash against him as it opened. Hundreds of small snow globe sized snowmen run out the room. All of them talk at the same time and waddle out past him. Several tried to climb up his legs. He brushes them off and backs away, but they follow him. In the background, Marshmallow rumbles a low level laughter.

"You should not have opened the door." Elsa snickers. The miniature snowmen turn and rumble over to Elsa.

Sam asks, "Were they a failed experiment?"

The snowmen move out of her way to let her pass and follow behind her. "No, they are not an experiment. The summer after my coronation I tried to give Princess Anna a birthday party, but I caught a cold." She stops in front of him. "I recall you were not there."

"Yes, we were still having the issues communicating with each other at the time." He points to the little snowmen watching him. "So you became bored and created them?"

Her brows push together and her eyes twitch from side to side as though she is searching for an answer. Her body shifts into her regal pose with her hands crossed in front. "No, I did not mean to create them. Every time I sneezed, several of them appeared."

Sam lean's his head to look past her and glances at the snowmen. The corners of his lips curl. "You seem to have sneezed a lot. Do you create one every time you sneeze now?"

Her right brow slowly rises as she stares at him. "I have sneezed several times since then and no, I did not create more."

"I know why you keep marshmallow up here, but why didn't you let them melt in Arendelle?"

"They were created by accident." She holds her hand out to them and several stands on top of each other to touch her hands. A moment of sadness sweeps across her face. "I do not know how I create them, but I feel they are part of me. I cannot watch them melt any more than I can watch Anna die."

As quickly as the moment of vulnerability appears, the door to her emotions closes. "As long as you have an emotional attachment to them, they will exist." He reaches for her as he takes a step.

And just as quickly the little snowmen group together to create a barrier between him and her. Their expressions tell him to stand back. A slight vibration radiates through his boots and a shadow sweeps over him. Not waiting the trap to close around him, Sam's legs explode with a burst of energy and propels his body towards the only opening to him. He slides to stop with his back against the wall. With his body in a defensive position, he holds an ice sword in each hand. A momentary glimmer of metallic green flashes across each of his swords.

Elsa skates around the snowmen and Marshmallow as she holds her hands up towards them. "Leave him alone. He is a part of my family as all of you are." She walks over to him. "You will have to learn not to become so defensive. You of all people should know they were trying to protect me."

He watches her, but also glances at the balls of snow behind her. She steps between his swords and pushes his hands apart. "Just as you showed your wolf pack that I belong to you and they will protect me, I will show my snow friends you belong to me and they will not harm you."

The snow creatures continue to watch her. None appears interested in attacking him. Unlike in his mind Marshmallows snow fist is more of a surprise than a physical impact. In this reality, Marshmallow's fist with all the weight of the water in his snow can crush a human's head. Sam tries to keep his eyes on him, but Elsa's attempts to distract him slowly breaks through his defenses.

"They are watching."

She nibbles on his neck. "And the wolves watched us as you demonstrated the proper technique to claim ownership of me. As you said they understood what you were doing and accepted me into their pack." She smiles up at him. The tip of her tongue moistens her lips. "To help my snow friends understand you are a member of our family, I have to demonstrate how important you are to me."

His eyes finally focuses on her. "How will you demonstrate it?"

She wrinkles her nose at him. "The same way you did, but short of actually becoming one. We can save that for later."

Elsa turns and seductively walks towards the stairs. With each step her bottom glides against the softness of the material. She considers different options to entice Sam, but her dress does more of the enticing against her body. Stay in control. Do not let him win without a fight. As she reaches the stairs, she peeks back at him.

A glazed expression covers his face. His hands grasp together as he rocks back against the wall. The muscles in his arms and shoulders tense as if they were fighting against each other. The slightest movement reveals another member pressing against his trousers.

At least she has his attention. The question is will he cooperate? "Samuel, are you feeling well?"

He stands and nods, but his eyes stare lower than they should.

She places her foot on the first step and drags her finger along her dress up to her waist. With the side of her leg and part of her round bottom exposed, Sam shifts his weight and adjust his trousers. Even from this distance, a slight pulsing move in the front.

"Do you like what you see?"

He nods with a grin.

"Do you want to see more?"

He nods vigorously.

"Good." She turns her back to him. "I need you to do one little thing, before you can see more of me. Do you agree?"

He barely nods.

"Good." Her dress falls to the floor and she steps out of it. A sprinkle of magic from her hand rains down onto the dress. Light reflects off the integrant design and transforms the dress into a white shirt and black trousers. She glimpses over her shoulder. His eyes stare low. To determine exactly where he is staring, she bends forward and grabs the trousers. A groan comes from his direction. Keeping a close watch on him, she slips one leg and then the other into the trousers. She pulls them up to her waist. Her body rotates a quarter turn and his eyes look up, but stop below her shoulders. She bends down again and picks up her shirt. If she slips it on just right to expose more of herself, perhaps he will do more than groan.

She turns her back to him as she buttons the front of the shirt. A sensation drifts past her. She slowly rolls up her sleeve. As she starts on the other sleeve, a slight chill sweeps across her neck. Calming her nerves, her mind starts to peek behind her when a sharp spike touches her back. Her arms hang to her side.

"Wrong, wrong, and wrong."

She looks over her shoulder. Expecting a grin, but his expression displays more of a disappointment or the early thresholds of anger. "I suspected it was you."

"Suspected?" He drops the spike of ice in front of her. "If I was a common robber, the spike would be deep in your back and you would be on the floor bleeding out." He circles her. "At what point did you know it was me?"

She glances away. She thought she had him, but he turned the tables on her.

"Yes, you tried very hard to distract me and ended up distracting yourself." He walks behind her and his hand slides across her bottom. "Your teasing had me going until you looked back. I knew for sure when you looked back the second time and you put on your shirt." He stands in front of her and holds her shoulder.

His disappointment drifts over her as she glances down. She stares at it for a moment and fights to keep the smile from crossing her lips. To catch him off guard, she has to act and leaps at him. Forcing her leg between his legs, she presses her thigh against his bulge and thrust her waist against his. The moment of hesitation on his part is enough for her to wrap her arms around his chest and strike ten of her slightly longer ice nails into his back.

"Would you have been able to stop all ten from piercing through your back?"

"That depends?"

"On what?"

"If you were committed to killing me."

"What if I just wanted you to back away?" She presses her nails into his back.

His emotionless face cracks. "A hand or fist into my chest and saying stop would have worked." He steps back as she releases him.

Streaks of red follow where her fingers slide across his shirt. The tips of her finger appear as though she dipped them in red ink. "I apologize." This is not what she wanted. How can he accept her family if it will cause him pain. The slightest movement causes her fingers to sparkle from the crystals in his blood.

He grabs her hands and presses them against his chest. They begin to glow a blue tint and the sparkles float away from her hand and are absorbed into his hand. "I thought we were coming here to play?"

"When I did not detect you as you sneaked up on me and one of our children moved, a strange thought occurred to me. What if it was not you?"

"One of my jobs was to think of any possibility to overcome a target." He lowers his head onto her shoulder. "If someone had caught you unaware, they would have done more than take advantage of you. Afterwards, they would sell you into slavery."

"Why a slave?"

"Once you put up a fight, they would have no need for you. For their efforts they would want some compensation. Dead and they get nothing."

"Is that what I am, a victim waiting to happen?"

He kisses the back of her fingers. "You are a beautiful creature deserving a happy life. I can't be with you all the time and each time that I'm not, my heart aches as it wonders if you are okay."

"Then teach me."

He steps back and stares at their children. After what seemed like a long time, he answers, "I will train you on the basics." He looks up and grins. "Kristin will be the best at teaching you the specifics."

He taps his fists together and snaps them down. Two meter ice poles form from his hands and leans one towards her. "You will practice with this. Prepare to defend yourself."

She takes the one and awkwardly point holds it with both hands with the end pointed at him. He takes several steps back and flips it around his neck. On the third time as he holds his ice pole near the end, it sweeps out towards her. Before she can respond, her hand strains in a losing battle. Her pole clangs against the floor and bounces towards the wall. Her hands shake from the stress in her arms.

"Lesson number one, grip the pole just enough to keep it under control, but loose enough that if it gets knocked out of your hand, your hands will not shake."

He walks over to pick up her pole. "Are you ready for lesson two?"

"No, but I will learn."

He turns around and a long ice sword points close to his throat. "Then let's begin."

The following day, the warmth of the Sun and a light breeze greets Elsa and Sam as they pass the outer wall. The Arendelle's clock chimes the noon hour. The people stop their activities for a moment to bow, curtsy, or wave to their Queen. A few of the older men glance at Sam before they bow.

As their horses start across the bridge, a baby eagle squawks from the top the castle wall. A screech sounds from above them and the baby flies after the bigger eagle.

They ride up to the castle steps. Sam assists Elsa off her horse and they walk up the steps. A stable boy takes the horses to the stables.

Gwen, the residential floor attendant, runs out the doors and curtsies to Elsa. "Majesty, Princess Anna's water broke and she is asking for you. Please hurry."

Elsa looks up at him.

He was not sure if her expression was fear for her sister or the thresholds of joy trying to escape her royal mask. "Go ahead," he encourages.

He stops as Elsa races through the doors followed by Gwen. He looks around to see who is watching him. Everyone goes about their business. The clopping sound of a reindeer attracts his attention to the gates. Kristoff rides on Sven trotting past him and towards the stables. Sam nods to them as they pass.

"I wonder if he knows."

 _Kristoff does not know. If you see him, tell him to get up here and talk with Anna before she goes into labor, that is, if he wishes to give Anna a good luck kiss. The staff has already sent for the jordmor. When she arrives, do not say anything and get out of her way._

"Why would you assume I would get in the jordmor's way, and why should I not say anything to her?"

 _Because Mother said the jordmor threatened to walk out if you did not leave the room for interfering with her instructions._

"Interfering? Had I not interfered when your mother was preparing to give birth to you, your mother would have suffered needlessly because of the way that old jordmor had her positioned on the bed. And to let you know, your mother told me a short time later that my interference reduced her pain and gave her encouragement, since her mother and sisters were not there for her."

 _Yes, Mother did say that. She also said she asked you to be nearby just in case. I am asking you when the time arrives, please be nearby. Now, has Kristoff arrived?_

"Sven was carrying him to the stables." He catches movement from the corner of his eye and turns his head towards two of the kitchen staff and a guard. They stare at him with wide eyes.

"What? I was talking to our Queen."

They take short steps and move past him. He gradually rotates his body to keep his eyes on them until they enter the main doors.

He hears Elsa snicker.

"Very funny," he walks down the steps. "You want to tell me why Kristoff needs to get up there and talk to Anna?"

He continues across the courtyard, but hears only the sand crunching under his boots. "I can hear you not wanting to answer." He stops and stands with his hands behind his back. "Shall I by-pass the stables and Kristoff will show up whenever he shows up?"

 _Alright, Anna was not happy when Kristoff left this morning. They exchanged words and she told him to stay out all day if he did not care what happen to her._

"Ouch, does she know her comment threatened him as a man?" He continues towards the stables.

 _She said it took her a few minutes to calm down. She did not mean to speak those words. By the time she sent a staff to look for him, he and Sven had gone._

He stops by the gate and grabs the handle. "Does she want him to be there when the children are born?"

Several seconds pass before Elsa answers. _She does not think he will be here._

"It is a yes or no question. Ask her again until she answers yes or no."

The door pushes open and Sam stumbles back.

Kristoff leans out of the door. "What is 'yes or no'?"

"My question implies the answer is yes or no. Do you want to know what the question is?"

"Not really." He moves back into the stables.

 _Go after him. Do not let him run._

Sam follows Kristoff. "I understand the ramifications. Please let me handle it."

"Handle what?"

"I was surprised to see you riding Sven today."

"I did not take him out yesterday so I let him run this morning."

 _Ask him what time he left this morning._

"Were you taking a chance you might miss your children being born?"

"I was told since this is her first child, even after her water breaks, it could take most of a day before the children are born." He picks up the bucket and goes outside.

 _Why did you not ask? Ask him why he left so early this morning?_

"Because I was letting him speak, he may not want to talk. If I push too hard, he will shut down on me."

Sven toots as he sniffs at him.

"See, even Sven thinks I should not be pushy. I will encourage him if the conversation slows, but you have to have patience."

 _Fine, as you are taking your time, ask him why he left before sunrise._

"Why are you focusing on this morning? Is that when the comments were made?"

Walking behind him Kristoff carries a bucket full of water. "What comments are you talking about?"

 _Ask him_

"I thought today, you would want to be close to Anna."

He pours the water into Sven's trough. "I am close to Anna. If she needs me she will send a runner."

 _What if my sister has a problem during birthing?_

"Really?"

"Really what?" Kristoff narrows his eyes slightly at him.

 _What if something happened to Anna while he was chasing with his reindeer? I was not here for her either._

Sam slaps the side of his head.

 _You did that on purpose. You hit me._

"Your mouth is moving. Who else can see you?"

Kristoff steps back. "I have to move my mouth to speak. You are the only one here." He looks around. "Is there someone else here?"

He sighs as his head barely moves from side to side. "Queen Elsa is physically not here, but she is here." Kristoff leans against Sven's stall and rest his head in his hands. "Is she asking why I left early this morning and not nearby to help Anna?"

"Sorry dear, you got caught. I told you have to be patient."

He slaps the back of Kristoff's shoulder. "Evidently words were spoken between you and Anna. Elsa is concerned, as well as I am. I'm not trying to be pushy despite what our Queen wants. I will back off if that is what you want, but I did tell you not to take it personally when her hormones fluctuate. She will say things that are uncharacteristic of her. So what did she say?"

"I had already decided to take Sven out anyway. This morning gave me time to think."

"About what she said?"

Kristoff shrugs his shoulders. "I have had a lot worse spoken about me. During Anna's pregnancy, she threw comments and I brushed them off. This morning I don't know when it started. She seemed to be getting agitated just by hearing my voice. I told her I had to get Sven out of the stables to stretch his legs. She told me to stay out all day. As she left the room, she said I didn't care what happened to her."

He rattles the gate, then turns towards him. "I thought she would come back into the room, but a half hour later she did not, so I took Sven for his walk." He shakes his head in his hands. "What was I supposed to do, go after her?"

Sam stares at Sven.

 _Tell him yes._

"It is not that simple. I know exactly what you went through."

 _What? What did you go through?_

"She may not have realized she put you in a no-win situation. If you went after her immediately, she would see you being pushy, trying to dominate her. At some point from the time she left the room, her emotional pendulum swung to the other peak. When it began to swing back, she became angry at you for not going after her."

Kristoff holds his hands up in surrender. "What? How am I supposed to know what she wanted?"

Sam snickers as he points his finger at him. "And that is the problem all fathers-to-be have had to face. Throughout time no one has been able to answer that question, thus a no-win situation."

"So what do I do?"

"You be patient with her. When she tells you to leave, you ask when you can come back then you wait nearby." He looks away as he shakes his head. "It is a strain on the both of you because she doesn't know what she wants. Short of her killing you, you take everything she throws at you. In a strange faith that only God knows, the experience will bond the two of you stronger together. So what should you do? Go to her. Hold her hand when she gives birth to your children. The experience of being there when they come into this world is a memory that will keep you going through anything. You will never forget the moment."

Sam smiles, "I almost missed seeing the birth of my child because I was in that no-win situation. If she told me to leave, her pride would not have allowed her to call me back. I would have left and our marriage would have died. I beg you, Kristoff. Go up there and hold her hand. Do whatever she asks. When the time arrives, do not let anyone force you out of the room, not Elsa, not even that old jordmor. You can tell her I called her old."

Kristoff slaps his back. "Wait until your twins show up." He walks out of the stables.

"Okay, my dear, he is on his way up. He should be there shortly. Please make sure no one chases him out, including Anna." He scratches Sven's ear.

 _Did that really happen to you, your little girl?_

"Yes, I almost missed her birth. If her mother had told me to leave, I would have departed and waited for her to call me back. Our relationship was not that great at the time. I do not believe she would have held it against me, but in my mind, I would have held it against her." He takes a deep breath. "I still have a lot of emotional baggage I need to remove."

For several minutes silence speaks to them.

"Anyway, I will be here in the stables or in the kitchen, if you need me."

 _Sam, I pray I will not do that to you. When it is time I want you to hold my hand as our children arrive in this world._

"Is that the Queen or my wife speaking?"

 _Your friend.  
_

Several hours later, through Elsa, Sam hears the cry of Asbjorn and a minutes later, the cry of Joan.

"Sounds like they have two healthy children."

 _They are two beautiful babies. Mom and Dad is doing well. Come on up and meet your niece and nephew._

"In due time, I will. I still have work to do in the stables." He stare up at the residential floor. "By chance do either have of them have blonde hair?"

 _Asbjorn does. Why do you ask?_

"Planning for the future, my dear."

The castle bells ring for the new Prince and Princess.

 _ **End of Chapter**_


	96. Chapter 95 Close the Past

**Title: Chp-95: Close the Past**

 **6 Days until Correction**

For three days the storm layers a meter of snow over the mountains already covered in snow. During the night, Arendelle received its share of the snow. The castle guards will have to clear the streets again.

Due to an accident, two members of Kristoff's team maintain a vigilant for snow movement on the mountain. Sam delays his morning contact with Queen Elsa, until the team focuses on their tasks at hand.

Later in the afternoon, while the team rests, Sam finally contacts Elsa. "Hello my dear. I am sorry for the delay."

 _Let me get Anna. She is worried, as am I. Your heart is troubled. Are you okay?_

"My heart is saddened, but I am doing well."

 _Anna is here. What happened?_

"First tell Anna, Kristoff and his team is safe. Despite the delay, we will reach the final camp site before sunset."

Elsa asks, w _hat caused the delay?_

Sam edits his report to leave out the gory details. "A small avalanche swept a rider and his horse into a deep ravine. The rider lucked out with only a broken ankle and a few scratches. I wrapped his ankle in ice and helped him down to his horse near the bottom of the ravine. I ordered the others to continue up the trail. The rider insisted he would take care of his horse."

His heart quivers at the memory, but he continues. "Blood covered the horse's face and thrashed in pain as we approached. I calmed with my hand against its head. I gave the rider an Ice sword and the horse stopped moving. I waited a short distance up the hill. We caught up with the team. Sometime later, a rumble echoed and a cloud of snow blossomed in the ravine where the horse laid."

Sam glances towards Arendelle. "We will continue to our last camp site, so we should be home the day after tomorrow."

 _I still feel sadness in you. You are repeating yourself. Are you okay?_

"I feel tired, but that will pass soon. I will contact you in a few hours."

As the sun races towards the horizon, they have less than an hour to set up camp by the frozen waterfall. Sam rides to the top of a hill. Whitish gray clouds move towards them from the northwest. A glimmer of sunlight reflecting off of Elsa's ice castle. The temperature begins to drop.. He arrives at the camp as the last of the sunlight illuminates the bottom of the gray clouds. A cold breeze blows into their camp.

Sam removes Aurora's saddle and reins. He calls out, "Everyone pair up. No one sleeps alone tonight. Move Sven and all the horses together."

He touches the frozen ground and sweeps his arms up. When the faint glow in his hands fades, an ice dome covers an area large enough to hold Sven and the horse. He leads Aurora and Sven into the dome. The other horses follow.

Sam passes out a white stone tied to a leather string to each guard. A small arc jumps from his finger to the stone. After several seconds the stone emits a soft blue glow.

He yells above the breeze. "This will last approximately eighteen hours. I recommend you do not hold it to your skin for too long or it will burn. Once you get a little warm, stick it in your pocket or tie it to your tent post. The stone interacts with live organic materials, so if you are using a branch you cut off a tree the stone will interact with it. Is everyone paired with someone?"

All nod.

"Captain, after we eat, you have first watch at eighteen hundred. Get me at twenty-one hundred. If the weather breaks, which I think it will after midnight, we will push on to the next valley."

The storm became progressively worse as the night marched on. Several guards nearly stripped out of the clothes to retrieve their stones they dropped into their trousers. Nothing a little snow did not cure. The wind blows out any attempt to start a fire, so they eat dried sausage meat and drink cold water. They settle down for the evening. Kristoff stands behind a tree to block the wind as he starts his watch. Midnight will come too early for some. For a short time, Sam sits in the horse's ice dome and reports their progress to Queen Elsa.

At twenty-one hundred, Kristoff taps on the ice dome. A small panel of ice slides open and he steps inside.

He pulls the collar down on his jacket. "It is rather hot in here."

"Only because you were in the wind. That stone around your neck will adjust to the ambient temperature surrounding you. I do not recommend you take your furs off." He points to the hole at the top of the dome.

Sven stomps over to Kristoff and sniffs. Sven gives his 'where is the carrot' expression.

Sam holds his hand out. Kristoff glances at him.

"Anna, said to give you a kiss from her. I told her a handshake is the closest to a kiss you will receive from me."

Kristoff shakes his hand.

"Elsa said it started snowing about two hours ago as the wind picked up. I told her the storm is still blowing up here and is very cold. She said all the work the guards did today to clear the streets, they will have to do it again tomorrow. I will wake you when the storm lets up."

Sam steps out of the dome and closes the ice panel. A quick glance at the camp and twelve small mounds in the snow have formed where the men stake their tents. His vision shifts to see twenty-four stones glowing under the mounds. He scans the area and finds an outcrop above the camp site. It will give him a good view of the valley and allow him to spot any approaching intruders.

With a sweep of his hand, he clears a spot of snow and ice off the outcrop. He removes his shirt and shifts his vision to the blue spectrum. Below the camp several small animals run across the snow. Further down the mountain a large animal, with two small ones, appears to look directly at him. He watches them until they move into the valley.

Dark lightning flashes across the clouds. One flashes above him. He presses the palm of his hand against the ground and holds up his other hand. A bolt of the dark lightning connects to his hand. The surge of energy refreshes every cell in his body. The tingling creates an enjoyment he has not felt since he was last on his ship. He breathes deeply.

 _What are you doing?_

He searches for the voice.

 _Can you hear me?_

"Elsa?"

 _Who else can speak to you in your mind?_

"As far as I know you are the only one."

 _I see something striking the ground from the clouds, but it is not acting like the normal lightning bolt. I was wondering if you can see it._

He looks around. "Where do you see it?"

 _East of my castle, maybe close to where you are._

He lowers his hand.

 _It disappeared._

He raises his hand and after a few seconds the dark lightning connects with his hand. "Is it back?"

 _Yes, are you doing it?_

"Yes, I am."

 _How are you doing that? What does it feel like?_

"On my ship, I have a device that cleanses my body down to the cellular level. It helps my body to process the Tytrianiam crystals. This dark lightning performs a similar effect, just a little slower. As for how it feels, the initial contact is like a static arc, only more painful. Once it's connected, my body tingles from the energy passing to the ground. It is like working up a good dirty sweat and washing up afterwards. The cleanliness is refreshing."

 _It sounds heavenly. Will the procedure have to be performed on me?_

"I have no experience of someone born with the ice. I don't know if my mother was born or cursed as I am." A thought crosses his mind and he looks towards Arendelle. "How are you able to see the dark lightning? Anyone else would just see me holding my hand up."

 _I saw the clouds moving strangely. I don't know how much time passed, but I started to see the outline of the mountains. I tried to focus on you, like you taught me. A darker shaped funnel dropped from the clouds._

"Sounds like you have been practicing without me." He lowers his hand.

 _I did not mean to. I can wait for you._

"No, you do what you are comfortable."He glances at the clouds. "The wind has calmed. A few snowflakes are falling, but not as heavy as it was. Looks like the clouds are breaking in the north."

Several minutes of silence are spoken between them.

"Did you fall asleep?" He waits another minute. "Good night my Queen."

A star with a long tail shoots up to the sky. The distant light shines above the castle's location. It appears to float in the sky for several minutes, before it winks out. His head smacks into the ground. Sitting up and expecting an intruder, he jumps to a defensive position ready to attack. Nothing moves in the dark. He must have fallen asleep, since the trailing edge of the storm is well south of them. Breaks in the clouds allow the stars to peek through. A small sliver of the moon shines through the clouds, then disappears as do the stars.

Within an hour his team, barely awake, including Kristoff, have their horses saddled. Sam allows injured rider to ride his horse. With an invigorating supply of energy, he leads his team and creates a path through the meter deep snow for the horses to navigate to the next valley. They reach their destination with five hours until dawn. Sam clears an area to group the horses and Sven together.

At the edge of a cluster of trees, the next phase of their training begins. The first skill of an assassin is stealthy movement. The second skill which will become the first over time is the kill. He teaches them the skills of an assassin and they practice.

At first sunlight, they eat a version of Pemmican taught to him by the inhabitants of a certain tribe in the American Southwest. The Pemmican gives them the energy they need for combat training. They train all day and into the night. Sam provides a camp fire to allow them enough light to set up camp.

At the third hour of the third day they began their trek home. They reached the outer walls and Sam stops the team. The morning sunrise provides enough light for him to see the rugged and tired faces. He slides off his horse and faces his men.

"Gentlemen, my intent was not to expose you to the elements for your first serious training as a team. Despite the circumstances, I am proud to say, all of you stuck it out. Every one of you gave your heart to this mission. A couple more times and you will give the military a run for their money, but I don't want you to match them. I want you to beat them that they will know you beat them, if that makes sense to you. I will hold my head high and walk to the castle. If you wish to join me, you can, if not, you are dismissed. Clean up and eat before you head off to sleep."

He walks with Aurora at his side. Kristoff walks with Sven. The others fall in line behind them.

As they walk a short distance, the injured guard riding with another rider points towards the harbor. "It looks like we guest in the fjord."

The top masks of three ships gradually sway. Sam asks, "Do you see a flag?"

"Yes sir, I can see only the one anchored in the fjord, but it is a red rectangle flag with the Nordic cross. In the upper left corner are red and blue triangles with a yellow cross."

"Does the flag form three points away from the mask?"

"Yes sir, it does."

Sam stops. _Elsa?_

He waits for a response. _Should I let the dogs out?_

Kristoff asks, "What is wrong? Is there a concern with that flag?"

He turns his head. "I'm not receiving a response."

Kristoff grips the hilt of the practice sword. "Then we have a problem."

"Sir, to your right," comments the injured guard.

Along winter coat covers an individual standing in the alley. They peek around the corner and motion for him to come to them. Sam detects a familiar energy signature which is verified by the yellowish glow radiating from a few strands of their hair.

Kristoff takes Aurora's reins. Sam walks towards her. She grabs his bare hand and pulls him into the alley.

"Brigit, what is going on?"

She pushes the coat's hood back and glances towards the castle. "You saw the three Norwegian naval ships out there?" She continues before he can answer. "They are very interested in a letter that was sent to them. They claim to be here on a diplomatic mission and the military ships are for protection."

"How do you know?"

She grins, "Kristen was in the castle helping Princess Anna and her babies."

"Are they ok?"

"Yes, Princess Anna and the twins are fine. It is our Queen who seems to be stressed." She squeezes his hand. "It may explain why you are not able to contact her."

His other hand clenches. "When did they arrive?" Why are they here?" He narrows his eyes at her. "How do you know I can't contact Elsa?"

"They arrived the following morning after you departed. As I said, our Queen is a little too trusting. The one she asked to translate the letter, made a copy of it and sent it to Christiania. She and the diplomat with a couple of their guards and Captain Larsen are in the library."

He looks around the corner and clamps onto her hand. "What are you not saying?"

As she places her hand against his face, she stares intently into his eyes. "Your Elsa is deeply concerned, the letter you dug up, may cause problems for Arendelle with Christiania."

"War?"

"I don't know. I do not have experience in this area. What is in the letter that would cause other's concerns?" Her hand slides down his face to his neck.

He pulls her hand from his face and speaks in her Sariphan language. "What are you looking for? Shall I search your mind and find out what you are hiding?"

She pulls her hands away and steps back. She replies in her language. "I know it was one of my ancestors who helped the warring King to devastate this area. If you act without consideration the people in Arendelle and the surrounding countryside, you could trigger Norway and Sweden's military to come after you. How many will die as you try to protect your Queen."

"There will be no try. I will protect her." He steps into the street.

She speaks in the language of Arendelle. "Admiral, Kristen is in there. Don't do anything that will take her away from me."

His mind shifts to targeting mode.

"Admiral, you can't protect all of them at the same time. Who will you sacrifice for her?"

He holds out his hand. "Aurora." His head gradually rotates towards Brigit. "You did that on purpose."

"What did I do on purpose?" Brigit turns her head and a flash of light reflects off the beads in her hair.

Sam stares at the light until Aurora slides her head over his shoulder. "Gentlemen, go to your homes. Hug those you care about. Do not engage those soldiers. Anything that happens will strictly be on my shoulders. I will protect everyone in the castle." He points to the northern sky. "I think it will snow some more."

He jumps onto Aurora's back. "Captain Kristoff, you need to see your wife and children. I will escort you into the castle." He glances at Brigit. "Tell Kristen, I am on the way. I will get into the castle."

He taps Aurora's neck. Kristoff rides Sven and catches up with Aurora as they walk towards the castle.

They ride through the gates and are greeted by two guards and two military personnel without the Arendelle's crocus on their hats.

The Norwegian military guest comments, "Is that him? We have a soldier who is as big as him. If you stay out of the reach of his arm, we easily defeat him every time."

The Swedish military guest comments, "Was he not the goof?"

The two snicker at each other.

Sam turns his head slightly and motions to him. Kristoff clenches his teeth, but continues towards the castle.

The castle guard tries to calm them. "Gentlemen, he can hear you."

"All the way over there, he cannot hear us. Who rides a reindeer except one who knows no better?"

The Norwegian says, "The sophistication of your Queen and her sister is quite diminished by lowering themselves to share their beds with the likes of them."

Kristoff grumbles. Sam pulls on the reins.

The castle guards back away from their guests. "I highly recommend you apologize to them."

"Or what? Will he fall on us?" The guests snicker as they bump into each other.

Sam and Kristoff dismount. "Stay four meters behind me. If either gets past me, have at them. You remember I showed you how to make an ice sword."

Kristoff grins as he slows his pace. "I remember."

The guest faces them. "What is this? If you did hear us, we give you fair warning. We are the champion swordsman in all of our United Kingdoms. We were one and two of the grand champions for the last three years in a row. All competitors fell in a matter of minutes."

Kristoff comments, "I hear a lot of noise. Their chatter is giving me a headache."

The guests look at each other. "Let us give them a real headache."

Swords slide out of their scabbards and point at Sam. He continues to march towards them and focuses on the Norwegian. The Swedish moves to the side.

Sam stares at the Norwegian soldier as they close the distance quickly. Sam's right hand freezes as it snaps up and rotates the sword out of the soldier's hand. The sword stabs the Swedish soldier's foot to the ground. The Swedish tries not to move and the Norwegian holds his broken arm to his chest.

Kristoff stands next to Sam. "I wonder if they will be grand champions next year."

Sam pulls the sword out of the Swedish foot and slings it at the Norwegian. With wide eyes the Norwegian looks down at the sword stuck through the inside of his pants. The castle guards clear the way for Sam and Kristoff to collect the reins of Aurora and Sven.

Kristoff comments, "I don't think you will be making friends with the Kingdoms."

"Good, they came here to intimidate and I replied." He points to the castle doors. "It looks like they receive the message."

Two Swedish and Norwegian military officers with two civilian personnel watch him. Kristoff takes Aurora's reins. Sam marches up the steps and walks between them.

Kai meets him inside of the door. "What did you do out there?"

"Replied to their message."

"What message?"

Sam stops and focuses on a shiny spot on the floor reflecting light.

"Sam, what are you doing?" With no response Kai touches his arm. "Are you okay?"

He looks around as though he is searching. He concentrates on Kai. "Where is our Queen?"

"She is in her study with King Oscar of the United Kingdoms, His elder son Prince Carl, and Captain Larsen. Is something wrong?"

With a smile he answers, "I need to assess the situation. Ask me that question at the end of the day." He marches to the Queen's study. Before knocking on the door, he places the palm of his hand on the door frame and detects only the four Kai stated. He slaps the door, causing a loud echo to radiate down the hall.

A few seconds later, Larsen opens the door. "Could you have knocked on the door like everyone else?"

"Not today, prepare to close the gates and escort our guest to a cell."

"Are you sure?" Larsen asks.

With a smile he gradually nods once.

"By your command," he whispers and exits the room.

Sam enters his Queen's study.

Queen Elsa glares at him. "Admiral." She pauses for a moment, then her right brow rises. "Why all the noise and where did you send the Captain?"

He bows to her. "My Queen." He stands, "I apologize for my missed judgment on the echoing effects in this room since I normally knock with my knuckles, but I was thinking about the distraction in the courtyard, which caused me to knock with the palm of my hand. Due to the respect of your guest, I ask for your forgiveness for my distraction. As for the Captain, I requested he investigate the distraction involving the two swordsmen wearing the Norwegian and Swedish uniforms. At present I am not able to distinguish what they wear."

Queen Elsa raises both brows. "What distraction?"

He opens his hands away from his body and wrinkles his face as he looks up. "I saw a sword. I distinctively heard a pop, snap, tear, and scream followed by a second scream and tearing again."

She narrows her eyes at him. "And what were you doing when you saw the sword and heard the noises?"

He rolls his eyes. "You know how I hate having the pointy end of a sword moving towards my face."

"Admiral," She commands.

He walks through the motions as he describes them. "I grabbed the sword with my right hand, the pop. Twist it out of the aggressor's hand, the snap. Threw it down at the other one's feet, the tear, but he moved and his foot slid under the blade, the scream. My intent was not to injure him so I removed the sword from his foot, the second scream. I tossed the sword back to its owner, the tearing. Because he did not move, it tore only his trousers. I'm sure his family jewels are happy he did not move."

The Prince moves in front of him. He detects the sword sliding in the scabbard. Sam takes two steps and closes the distance with the Prince. His hand rests on the Prince's hand gripping the sword.

Prince Carl clenches his teeth as his face blushes to a darker red.

"Had that sword, by chance, completely exited its scabbard, I would have removed your hand from your wrist."

The Prince snatches his hand out of Sam's grip. "How dare you assault me."

He interrupts, "And how dare you threaten my Queen with your sword in her presence."

King Oscar pushes the Prince back and offers his hand. "My son is an honorable man. We were passing by and I ordered the ships to stop here so I could congratulate Queen Elsa on her ascension to Arendelle's throne. He was trying to protect your Queen."

Sam grabs the King's hand. "Protect her? Is that why your ships are anchored so they could fire three broadside shots at the castle? And why is there a Swedish ship traveling close to the shore and not near the center of the fjord?"

"What are you talking about?" King Oscar pulls his hand from his grip.

Prince Carl moves between him and the King. "An Admiral would know about the water flow and the ships may need two anchors to hold their positions. Obviously they signaled the Swedish ship to sail close to the shore, instead of fighting the heavy water flow."

Sam grins. "Or the Swedish ship dropped off seventy-five Marines up the coast. It is too small to carry an additional four hundred soldiers, so unless there are four or five more ships moving down the fjord, they traveled overland." He glances between them. "Why are there four hundred and seventy- five soldiers outside the wall?"

King Oscar steps back and turns towards Queen Elsa. "I do not know why there are soldiers outside of your wall. If we are attacked and die, a declaration of war will commence once the news of our deaths reaches Stockholm."

The Prince moves next to his father.

Elsa tilts her head towards him. "Are you sure?"

Sam touches both the King and the Prince and their eyes partially close. Sam steps back to the door. Elsa stops next to the King and snaps her fingers close to his face.

She waddles next to Sam. "I wish I could do that. It would make negotiating less stressful."

He pecks her cheek. "How are you feeling? Oh, closing the connection is a good tactic to give me warning."

"They arrived uninvited early this morning. I barely had time to eat." She wraps her arms around him and lays her head against his chest. "What are they dreaming?"

"The Prince is riding a horse, conveniently left untied at the steps, to the outer gate where he will find a bloody battlefield of four hundred and seventy-three bodies in Norwegian and Swedish uniforms. The two struggling for life will report a group of men passed through the gate. A minute later, a man on top of the wall shoots an unusual shaped arrow into the sky where it shatters. Ice shards the length of his hand rain down on the men."

He sniffs her hair and massages her back. "The Prince will inspect several bodies to find holes pierced through their bodies. A dark haired male will comment to him, 'Almost five hundred dead in a matter of minutes from one archer. What do you think would happen to an army if we have ten archers against five thousand soldiers? Wait, this is simple math. Five thousand would be dead.' The Prince rides back visibly shaken."

With a soft moan she asks, "what about King Oscar?"

He begins to nibble on her ears. "The King is watching his ships sink. Along with the splashing of the sailors in the water, sea creatures from the deep are feasting. Body parts float in the fjord. A large snowball has crashed onto the deck of the Swedish ship. The ice expands and rips the ship apart."

She pinches his side. "You have a demented mind. Why would they believe that?"

"I enhanced their fears. The King read a report of sailors being eaten alive in the Pacific Ocean. There are sharks in the Pacific capable of eating a human." He stops. "In future wars the statement will become a truth."

She leans back to stare into his eyes. "He is afraid of being eaten by a sea creature."

"Evidently the report gave explicit details of the event."

"And the Prince?"

"I believe he also read a book or a report describing the aftermath of a battle. He dwelled on the subject and feared he would lead soldiers into battle with the same results."

"Why are you smiling?"

"It usually takes longer to reach this stage of suggestions. I have run across too many heads of states screaming their thoughts, so they are easily manipulated." His forehead wrinkles as he narrows his eyes towards the northern mountains. "If the mind of the Warring King was as noisy as these two," he stares at her. "The Sariphans easily manipulated him. I understand they traveled a year before picking him." He grins.

"What thought crossed your mind?"

"I need to get you trained as quickly as possible. You would have a major advantage over everyone in negotiations, but I would insist you follow the ninety/ten rule. This rule states you sell at ninety percent instead of one hundred percent you could get. You buy at ten percent above the lowest price you could have paid."

Her right brow rises.

"Before you ask, if you follow the rule, you can hide in plain sight and no one can say you are taking advantage of them."

"Is that what you did?"

"I did as much as possible, but not always. Certain individuals deserve to lose all they had."

"Demented, devious, and very good with weapons, I bet you were rich as well." She lightly brushes his cheek. "Have you ever wondered what life could have been like for us if momma and papa had listened to you more and allowed you to teach me the ways of the ice?"

He half smiles. "I have and the probability is you would not be pregnant with my children. If I was not working in the stables, my house would be on Lookout Plateau. I would be watching for up there. I wish your parents could see their grandchildren."

The King emits a groan.

"They are about to wake up. Go back to where you were when they went under. I will bring them out."

She flaps his bottom lip as she moves back to the end of the table. He snaps his finger next to their ears. As they groggily wake up Sam grabs the King.

"Majesty, are you alright."

King Oscar rocks back and looks at him. "What?"

"You staggered and I thought you were about to fall."

Prince Carl pushes his father and steps between them. "Touch my father again and I will slice your hand off."

He glances towards Elsa as sparkles of light flash from the window. He runs behind the desk and looks for the sparkles outside the window.

She touches his arm. "What did you see?"

Gray puffy clouds cover the sky. He moves to one side of the window, then to the other side. The clouds appear the same. She steps in front of him and looks out the window.

He bends his knees until his head is at her level. "What are you looking for?"

She starts to turn her head, but for a fraction of a second he sees two dark blue orbs in the window. She kisses his cheek. "I am trying to see what has your attention." Her right brow rises. "What did you see?"

"I saw two." He stops.

"Tell me what you saw."

He rests his head against the window. "I must be tired. I thought I saw two—" He turns his head towards her and places her hands on his face. "Do I feel warm?"

"I am not a doctor, but you feel a little warmer than normal. Why do you ask?"

He places his hand on the window. "There is snow on the ground. This window should be cold, but it is not." In the window, he sees a flash behind him followed by a click of the door latch.

He races out from behind the desk. "Where are they?"

She touches the back of his neck. "You mean the King and Prince?"

"Yes, they were just here. Where are they?"

She taps his arm. "They left several minutes ago after I signed a treaty with them."

He moves towards the door and opens it.

"Where are you going?" Elsa grabs his hand and turns him towards her.

"They arrive uninvited then rush away. I want to speak to them." As he steps out of the room, he bumps into Anna caring her two children.

"Here, hold Joan." She practically drops her red head little girl into his arms as she struggles to hold onto a wiggling Asbjorn.

He rolls Joan into his arms.

She grabs his lower lips and he emits a low growl and pretends to eat her hand. Joan pulls her hand away and holds them over her heart. Her expression of fear and the tears swelling up in her eyes slams Sam's heart.

He cuddles her against his chest. "I am so sorry. I did not mean to frighten you. I truly do not know why I did it." He lightly kisses her hand.

Joan watches him and a tear rolls down her cheek.

The pain in his heart acts like a knife twisting. He kisses her cheek and strokes her hair. He softly chants. Joan lays her head on his shoulder. He sweeps his hand over her and generates a blue field around her. She pulls on his collar and snuggles against his neck.

A cold hand presses against the back of his neck. Elsa whispers in his ear. "Samuel, I need you to follow Anna down the stairs.

His eyes open. Half-way down the stairs Anna turns to walk the rest of the way. He cuddles Joan and bends his knees to walk in a fluid motion without the sudden bumps and thuds of going down the stairs. He senses a difference in the way he is moving.

The cold hand taps the back of his neck. Elsa whispers, "Samuel, bend your legs and sit."

He looks behind and sits. His hands are empty. "Where is Joan? I was holding her. Where did she go?"

Elsa sensually kisses his lips. She adjusts her dress and sits in his lap as she wraps her arm around his neck. She points across the table. "Look over there. There is Anna holding Joan and Kristoff holding Asbjorn."

He smiles at them. Anna waves Joan's hand at him. Confusion strikes like an assassin striking from the shadows.

"What is wrong?" Elsa asks.

"I was in your study, then at the top of the stairs, and now I'm here in the dining room." He glances around the room. "Along with Brigit, Kristen and Captain Larsen." He glares at Larsen. "Should I bother guessing at how many guards are in the hall ready to burst in here?"

Her hand chills on his neck. He grabs her hand and pulls it around in front of her. His eyes bore into her eyes.

"Sam stop, the children." Elsa grimaces.

He looks down. His hand has her hand twisted. He would prefer to be kicked in his head by his horse than to see he is causing pain to his beloved wife. He holds her hand to his face. The emotional dam in his mind begins to breach. He tries to speak, but the tears swelling in his eyes choke his words. He mouths the words 'I'm sorry'.

"Samuel, it is okay. I pushed you too far. I was trying to help you, but you caught on before I was ready." She lays his head against her shoulder.

"Was it before or after I told you to do what is comfortable." He glances up at her and smiles. "You distracted me. I am absolutely impressed. I knew you could do it." His smile fades. "Why did you do this? What are you trying to hide?"

She places her finger across his lips. "Shh, I know you have done this to others. What does your logic say as to why I did this?"

He focuses on Brigit for a moment. "Hide it in plain sight. She told me the truth. Everything else was a distraction. When I was up in the mountain, the flashing star was the start. When I came to the castle the flashing light occurred more frequently. I asked questions that you could not answer with a smooth transition, but Anna and her children were excellent distractions. Maybe next time you decide to project yourself into some one's mind, make sure you use the most recent image of yourself." His left brow rises as he turns his head to her. His hand slides across her children.

Elsa nips the end of his nose. "I will remember for the next time."

"Are you going to tell me why you did it?"

"Because I read the first page." She sweeps her hand towards the others. "I asked them to be here to show you are loved by our family."

Brigit hands Kristen the old document he discovered under the Sariphan stone.

Sam eyes the document. As it gets closer to him, his heart beat increases as does his breathing. Elsa places her cold hand on the back of his neck. Kristen stops. She motions her to come closer.

Kristen stands next to him. She covers the back of his hand with her hand. "Why are you afraid?"

She flinches when his eyes snap up at her. She speaks in his language, "Sam, how do you know this letter was meant for you?"

He draws his lips tight. Pressure builds in his mind and heart. The cold on the back of his neck increases.

"Do you know who wrote this?" Kristen asks.

"Shi ach'é'é," Sam replies.

Elsa turns his head towards her. "No, speak our language that we understand."

He stares into her eyes and with each blink his vision blurs through the excess moisture building up. He repeats, "Shi ach'é'é."

Elsa replies in his language. "No, I know this hurts. I can feel the pain in your heart.Are you my good soldier?" He starts to reply, but she interrupts, "No, answer in our language."

A tear races down his cheek. "My daughter wrote the letter."

As they look at each other in bewilderment Brigit comments, "I thought you said she died."

"I saw my ship explode and the connection with her closes. This is a clear indication that she died."

Elsa whispers into his ear. "How do you know she wrote it?"

"When I touched it, my energy activated the crystals on the paper. It is her energy signature that radiates from it." He glances down. "Unless someone has discovered a method to extract the crystals from her body, she is dead."

Elsa holds a cleaner document.

He asks, "Please read it to me."

"You need to do this for your mind and soul. I am here for you."

He tries to hold back the tears as he smiles at her. "No matter what happens, I love you."

"I am with you. Nothing will happen that we cannot get through." She kisses his cheek.

"Does this include my emotions I have held in for all these years?"

"Especially now," she dabs the tears from his eyes. "It is time for you to read."

He holds up the document.

She points to the top line. "This could not be translated."

"It is the salutation of the letter. It is my language." He grins, "You know what it says."

She nods, "But they do not."

Anna comments, "If it is too personal, we can leave."

He searches the faces in the room. There is no deceit. "No, you are my family now. I have nothing to hide. If it does not scare you away, at least you may have a better understanding of me."

He rests his hand with the paper on Elsa's leg. "It says, To my father Samuel Christopher Ryan, Admiral, Flag Officer, USS Aurora. . ."

 **End of Chapter**


	97. Chapter 96 Painful Memories

**Title: Chp-96 Painful Memories**

 **2 days until correction**

Elsa scrapes her fingernails on the back of his neck. Sam's muscles do not yield, but tighten more as if his shoulders are turning into stone. His body becomes as though petrified. He appears not be breathing. Had she pushed too far? His eyes glisten and a tear falls onto his cheek. Her hand generates cold against his neck. His chest barely moves and expels a fine blue mist that disappears at the edges of his parted lips.

She points to the top line. "This could not be translated."

"It is my language." His head barely turns towards her as his eyes stare at their children. Another tear rolls down his face. "You know what it says."

She nods. "Yes, but they do not." She motions to the others in the room.

Anna comments, "If it is too personal, we can leave."

He looks at the faces in the room, but hesitates a moment longer at Brigit and Kristen. "No, you are my family now. I have nothing to hide. If it does not scare you away, at least you may have a better understanding of me."

She massages his neck and the tension lessens as her hand increases the cold.

Two more tears slide down his face. His hand holding the letter rest on her leg. "It says, 'To my Father, Samuel Christopher Ryan, Admiral, Flag Officer, United Star Ship Aurora'."

With several breaths Sam reads the letter aloud. "In case you do not know who my father is, my name is Sara Catherine Ryan or as my father calls me SaraCat. This is how I came to this land of beauty and nature. I wish you and Mom could be here. You would love it. There is a small fishing village on the shores of a bay. The locals call the bay a fjord, which places me in one of the countries north of Europe, but I do not know which one. Most mornings I watch the sun rise from a small plateau above the village. I have seen a few small schooners sail to the village, but hardly any other traffic. They are a nice group of people. I hope they survive. Every winter they bury someone and some of those wooden boxes are rather small.

"I digress. I am writing this letter in the hopes that you will find it and know that I survived the destruction of the Aurora. Mom's sacrifice was for us. She gave us enough time to leave. She died as she wanted and took several of the Sariphan ships with her. After your friend Queen Elsa pushed you through the portal, it lost power. The auxiliary power kicked in and kept the portal open. She asked me to go with her, but I had to stay at the controls or she would have been lost, if she did not come out the other side. Another hit on the ship threw me off my feet. The deck above me began to glowed orange and radiated heat. I waited to die as I stared at the pendant with the pictures of you and mom. A green image reflected off the pendant. There was no external power to the portal, but it was still open. The green changed to red and I saw humans in a valley and a river. As you have repeatedly told me, you have nothing to lose if you already know the results of one path, so I jumped through the portal.

"I passed through the gate and fell onto a sandy area on an island in the middle of the bay. The gate moved along the water. It mimicked a large green cloth fluttering in the air, but the ends undulated opposite of each other. It fluttered exposing its red underside. In the center I saw your ship, my home, the Aurora explode, but the gate stayed open. I watched it for as long as I could and it did not close. It gave me hope. As long as it was open I knew you were alive. I determined the transmitter, I forced you to swallow in the ice cube, was still transmitting. I guess this verifies your theory. If one end of the gate closes and a signal continues to transmit into the other end, the gate will stay open. Based upon your theory, I believe your transmitter responds to the echo and transmits a signal that keeps it open. As long as I saw the gate, I prayed it meant you were alive and it gave me something to live for.

"A fishermen saw me fall out of the gate. I did not know what he was saying, but others came to see where he was pointing. The water was very cold, but I slid in and swam to the shore well away from the village. I watched the gate disappear into the sky. Years later after I learned their language, my friend told me, the fisherman saw a green dragon spew me out of its mouth. I became their good luck charm, because that evening a bounty of fish filled their nets.

"During a swim, I detected something shiny at the bottom of the fjord. I touched it and did not feel cold, but comfortable. My body tingled and I felt energized. I found a small piece and made a neckless out of it. Over the years I mapped the crystal. It starts in the bay and passes under the island. It passes through a cave north west of the village. My small crystal tingles when I get near the larger crystal. It helped me to find the end of the large crystal under a hill. I have to be careful if I use my powers, when villagers are nearby. I have to cover the crystal or they will see it shining.

"When the crystal shines, it draws the fish closer to the shore. I tried very hard not to be their good luck charm, but was almost caught swimming, so I froze a rock and tossed it into the water to distract them. Each time the crystal glows, my abilities increase. I remember how you made fire and ice. I have to make sure to keep my emotions under control, so I practiced. I think I'm as good as you with controlling the air. Unfortunately, I may have caused a few early winter storms.

"Soon after arriving, my hair changed to snow white and I let it grow out. A couple of fishermen wanted to trim a lock of my hair for good luck. Both had their fingers broken. The villagers gave me a wide path. Unfortunately, one female thought I was trying to take her husband. Her nose is not as straight as it was before.

"I found a nice location in the upper mountains. It is high enough that my home does not melt in the summer. It is well protected from intruders. I discovered my senses have become enhanced. I feel others more than I see them.

"I discovered a species in the area that I had seen in old books. They are short and dark gray. I ran across their unusual tracks that look like heavy stones rolling across the ground. They do not come above the snow levels. They say they prefer to stay in contact with the ground. I discovered and I assume you can also, see their warm breaths radiate above them. That is how I found one of them well above the freeze line. He was barely breathing. I created an ice sled to carry him back to the thermal vents in the valley. Despite the vents I detected forty-eight smaller thermal waves radiating from the small boulders. Only when the Warring King attacked the area, did they reveal themselves to me. Their leader left a sign for me to follow. I met them halfway down the mountain. The boulder I returned to the valley was their leader, Eldridsno. He had seen me use my ice power to free a wolf trapped under a tree. He tried to reach me on the mountain.

"Eldridsno said the warring King had captured and killed many humans in the north and west. He said their numbers were too many and will destroy the fishing village by the bay. I have friends there, who helped me. I decided I would fight with them. Eldridsno said my skills would be better used if I could make snow to cover the valley. He also told me other trolls did not survive after the warring King past through their area. He discussed his plan and I agreed with it.

"On that night with a quarter-moon shining, he asked me to stand on the hill. I saw their camp fires littering the valley. He told me I needed to take my shoes off. He was right. I felt the energy rise up from the ground. I channeled it into the atmosphere. Northern clouds moved over the valley. Within a half hour, heavy snow fell in the valley. Everything had a blue tint around it. I saw the blue energy flowing from my hands to the clouds.

"Eldridsno tapped my foot. I lowered my arms and my blue vision returned to normal. He said it was time for the trolls to move and he disappeared into a snow bank. A young gentleman, whom I had seen in the village, rode his horse up to me. He introduced himself, Arin Elle, commanding a small unit searching for the Warring King. He said he received a report the King's army was in the valley. That is when the screams began. I told him the screams are the ones he was searching. He did not believe me. I asked him to wait. While he was not looking, I swept my hand towards the clouds.

"Did you know I can hear the horse's thoughts, along with other animals? I now have a wolf for a friend.

"When the clouds broke, the moon showed the red snow. The screams had died down to moans. I suggested to the young man he should attack and end this war. He wanted to wait for re-enforcements. I pointed to some of the enemy moving towards the village. They charged in with snow shoes. I guess there were about a hundred and fifty. More cries and screams echoed for several hours, then it became quiet.

"I walked back up the hills towards my mountain. I guest Arin sent for the other troops. Two to three times Arin's troops rode over the hill into the valley. The following days, wolves and every other carnivore came from all around to feast in the valley. Over the next month a few from the village collected the military hardware. It is funny the way nature takes care of the garbage the humans leave behind. Even the bones had been removed.

"Sometime after the battle, Eldridsno sent a message. He located a strange cave where two of the warring Kings companions were hiding. I went to investigate. It was the Sariphan's ship that we saw pass through the green dragon three years prior to them destroying the Aurora. As I crested a ridge, I saw two males and six females. I drew my ice bow, but one of them must have detected me. She dropped to her knees. She yelled they surrender and motioned for the others to kneel with their hands up.

"She said she killed the leader and his partner before he could activate the destruction of the team. She said when they crashed here they agreed to hide and stay out of the human's history. The leader changed his mind once he found he could influence the King. The others wanted proof of the two's death. I took a chance and entered their ship. I made sure the two Sariphans were really dead. I arrived as the others were about to leave. You probably could pronounce the female Sariphan's name, but I could not. She took the name Krystal.

"We became friends. The others knew they were not going home. They stayed with me and over a year all move to other parts of the country. If you see someone with blond hair ask them if their relatives are Sariphan. I guess a generation or two they will not know.

"Krystal stayed with me until she met a fisherman.

"I finally know the name of the fishing village, Arendelle. It is nice they named it after that young gentleman I met. He has a pretty wife. She is expecting soon.

"Over the years I look at Krystal and have to ask, why go to war with them. She married the fisherman. I do not believe her husband knew who she really was. They were just happy. They tried to set me up a few times, but after the second broken nose of the one who grabbed where he should not, they gave up. All of the men and most of the women gave me a clear path. Too many of them called me the Snow Queen or the Ice Witch. Krystal always took up for me. The children always greeted me when I entered the village.

"Ten years ago, her husband went fishing one day and never came back. A mother should not have to bury her children, even though it is common for this age. She buried her four children and seventeen of the twenty-two grandchildren. We lived well past the expected life for these humans. She visited the other day. I knew something was wrong, but she would not say. She said she wanted to be with her husband. Her wish came true during the early hours of the following morning. I buried her yesterday.

"I wish you and mom were here. I don't know how many years have passed since I stopped counting my birthdays at 116. Dad, I wish you would come through the gate. Every time I see the dragon, I pray you will come through, but so far you have not. As long as the gate is open, I know you are still alive somewhere in time. My last readings of your location before I stepped through the gate showed you landed in the first ten years of the 21st century. If I had more time I could have located the exact time and location. I will leave you a message, but even in that time you may not have a ship to pass through the dragon.

"I spend most of my time on the mountain or in the valley of the living rocks. I met Eldridsno's grandson, Pabbie. He is a smart little guy. He asks lots of questions and is very in tuned with nature.

"If I am repeating or the letter sounds rough, please forgive. I try to write this letter every few years to increase the possibility you will find it.

"I'm tired. I am so tired. Pabbie and his friends have picked out a nice spot for me to sleep. He has agreed and understands my request. If you have found a medallion, there should be enough power for two hundred years. After that I have requested Pabbie's family to dig up the medallion and destroy it. If you are reading this, either you have the medallion or Pabbie's family is gone. They have created a stone cover with markings that only you will understand. The box with the stone cap will allow my body to lie on the ground for maximum exposure and hopefully nature will dispose of it before anyone finds it. I am hoping the star dusk does not mutate anything that eats it. Pabbie said he could burn the body, but I explained the fire could induce energy into the dust and change it into the world's largest campfire.

I saw the dragon pass in front of the moon the other night. I may not see it when it returns in two years. I know you have the ability to heal yourself. I wish you had time to teach me. Where are you? I am so tired. Save yourself. Do not let us die in vain.

Saracat.

"I am so sorry," Elsa whispers as she wipes tears off his cheeks.

His body tenses. "I should have been here. Something must have happened that caused me to fall short of this time. If I had landed in the correct timeline, I would have been here when the dragon spewed her out. I missed her by a hundred years.

A tremor begins to shake in his hands as every muscle tense. His eyes squint close and his face distorts. His head drops and his body hunches forward. His lips pull back, exposing his clenched teeth. A low rumble growls deep inside of his body.

The curvature of his body twists her arm. "Sam stop, you are hurting me." She clamps her hand on the back of his neck and generates the coldest cold she is able. The back of his shirt and hair freezes as the ice layers build across his back and his shoulders.

The papers slip from his hand as his fingers extend outward and creates a blast of air that propels Kristen and Brigit across the room.

If he gets away from her, she may have no choice to regain control. Slapping her hand over his mouth and nose, she expends a tremendous amount of her energy into her hands. His left hand moves with a blink and wrenches her hand off his neck as his right hand peels her hand off his face. The movements twist her hands over her head. He stands and her body flies upward. As her body twist, the downward motion suddenly stops with her shoes hitting the table. A cold sensation covers her back. She turns her head and looks at an expressionless face as though there were no emotions behind his eyes.

She speaks in his language. "Hear my words . . ."

He interrupts her with a tap on the side of her head. Her ears hear the distinctive crackling of a spark. The outer edges of her vision closes towards the center. Before her eyes close a flash of metallic green sweeps across his hands and arms.

"Get away from her you monster," Anna screams as she and Kristoff struggle to push the table pinning them to the wall.

Captain Larsen and four guards with swords in hand rush into the room. Larsen holds his hand up and commands, "Halt."

The guards stop behind him.

Sam lightly brushes Elsa's cheek. "I'm sorry too."

"Captain, why are you waiting? He attacked your Queen." Anna growls as she strains against the table.

One guard moves towards Brigit as she moans.

Sam steps away from the table and drops his hands to his side. In a gravelly voice he states, "Captain, if your men will not obey, you need to resign and I will control them."

Larsen barks at his men. "PUT YOUR SWORDS AWAY. We will all be dead before the first body hits the floor.

"ANNA STOP." Kristoff yells as she slides under the table.

Sam steps back and turns his head towards the motion under the table. Ice forms around his right hand as his fingers point to Anna.

The Captain slides on the floor and his body stops in front of Anna. "She is no threat to you. She is trying to protect her sister."

"Let me up. If you cowards will not make him leave, I will." Anna fights to get Larsen off of her, but he holds her back.

Sam moves to Elsa. He moves his hands along the edge of the table, then turns his palms up. Ice lifts her body off the table. The ice stops growing as it inclines her body and slightly bends her knees. Lifting her hands, he inspects the deep red print on the back of her left hand. He covers the burn area and for a moment stares at their hands.

Anna screams as she scratches Larsen and hits the bottom of the table. "Get away from her. If she dies I will kill you. Do you hear me Samuel? I will kill you and have these cowards executed for not protecting my sister."

Sam glances at Elsa and flexes his hand. A layer of ice forms around her hand covering the burn.

Elsa moans, then Anna fights harder. Kristoff finally slides under the table and receives several kicks and scratches that miss Larsen.

Sam turns towards the door. He watches Anna struggle. "You have been healed by him. I understand your pain, but I am not him."

Cuddling Kristen in her arms and blood oozing out of her nose, Brigit asks, "Then who are you?"

He shakes his fist at her and speaks in her language. "Sariphan, you caused me to be here. I still have a chance to save my family, but I have to punish the toad first."

He marches out of the room. A cushion of air moves in front of him and slams everything and everyone out of the way. Furniture slides across the floor. Women scream as he passes them.

After a few minutes Anna calms down and crawls to Kristoff. Tears boil from her eyes. "I could not stop myself."

Kristoff helps her out from under the table. "What did he mean he had to punish the toad?"

Anna continues, "I had so much anger in me. If you and the Captain had not stopped me, I would have done everything in my ability to kill him." She pushes past him to hold her sister's hand. "He was hurting her."

Brigit comments behind them. "No Anna, he was not trying to hurt his wife. In an obscure way he protected her."

"How is slamming her onto the table while she is pregnant protecting her." Anna stomps her foot. A soft cold hand grabs her arm.

"Anna." Elsa rolls her legs off the table as she tries to sit up.

Anna holds her shoulders. "You should not be getting up."

Larsen touches her arm. "I agree with Princess Anna. Lie back on the ice and wait for the doctor."

"Let me up." Elsa slips off the table and stands on wobbly legs and steadies herself with Anna's help. "He was not trying to hurt me. I triggered his aggression by trying to calm his emotions with my cold hand on his neck. The noise you heard was not my body slamming against the table, but the cushion of air compressed under me. The sudden movement surprised me."

"But he knocked you out."

"Yes, as I tried to use his key against him. He defended himself." She holds up her left arm and taps the ice on the table. "If he wanted to hurt me, he would not have created this inclined ice or heal my hand. It will be alright."

"No, it is not alright."

She wraps her arms around Anna. "What you saw was his defense mechanism of being afraid."

"Afraid of what? Did you see the color of his skin?"

"Anna, why do you think I induce a vision in his mind to get him in here with us? He still has a strong attachment to his previous family." She rests her head against Anna's shoulder. "I thought after all this time, but I under estimate his love for them. I pushed too hard. This is my fault. I have to go after him."

She lifts Elsa's head. "I will go with you."

"No," Brigit says, "He told you he had healed you. Your energy and his energy were out of sync significantly. That is what caused your anger towards him."

"Why did it not affect anyone else?" Anna asks.

Wiping her bloody nose, Brigit hugs her daughter. "It did affect us. It took all I had to keep it from crushing Kristen."

"He taught me how to deflect his energy around me. That is why he knocked me out so I could not stop him." Elsa smiles.

They glance at the men behind them. Larsen comments, "These guards and I have been healed by him."

Brigit states. "You became submissive at the beginning. Anna and I put up a fight and it pushed our energies further out of sync."

They look at Kristoff.

He asks, "What? He never healed me. So what did he mean by his statement about a toad."

Kristen moves next to him and slaps his arm. "Then the table saved your life. If you had gotten free and challenged him, you might not be standing."

Elsa grabs Kristoff's arm. "It is up to you and me. We have to get to him. Everyone stay here, until we will be back."

Larsen grabs the door handle, but does not open it. "I need a location, just in case."

Elsa glances back at the others, "the bare spot where the lightning strikes the hill."

With wide eyes Kristoff turns his head to Elsa. She grins at him. "Do not worry. The source attracting the lightning has been removed."

Larsen opens the door. "If you are not back within the hour, I will have a full regiment out looking for you."

"Captain, you stated it earlier. All of the guards would be dead before the first body hits the ground. Will you sacrifice all of your men trying to find me? If I fail, you will need to protect Queen Anna."

He nods to her. "You are correct. Good luck to you."

As they walk down the hall, Kristoff asks, "Queen Elsa, what did Sam mean by his statement."

She holds up her hand and says, "Shh," As she glances over her shoulder. "I will explain it along the way. There is no need to upset Anna any more than she is, but we need to contact Pabbie."

Sam runs into the courtyard and is temporarily blinded by the sunlight reflecting off the snow. He closes his eyes and listens for anything that might be a weapon. Guards talking at the gate and along the wall. Snow crunches under several shoes near the stables. His eyes gradually open to the snow covered area. Few take notice of him as he jogs through the gates and through Arendelle.

He does not see the people. They are no threat to him. A wedge of air in front him pushes dirt, leaves, and other loose object out of the way. Two individuals were surprised by the sudden blast of air that pushed them out of the way. As he passes through the gate of the outer wall, his wedge expands to cover the whole road. The wedge leads him by three meters. Every tens of meters he spots a thermal vents above a snow covered boulders on the side of the road. He is sure the trolls will be waiting for him. He will attack them if they try to stop him.

Sam follows the road to the spot where he and Elsa exited into the field. The snow and grass moves as the wedge of air passes over it. A clear and visible path remains behind him. His memories lead him to the Sariphan stone site and he falls onto his knees. A shallow depression in the snow marks the grave site. Carefully, he begins to sweep the snow off the stone.

A short time later, a shrill echoes in the valley. A tear drops onto his hand as he scans the area. Other than the local animals he detects no one nor does he detect the thermal vents from the boulders.

"What are you doing toad?"

The shrill sounds again. A distinct double echo sounds against the hills. He slowly stands and searches to the east. Nothing has changed. He kneels and continues to sweep the snow and dirt off the stone. Several minutes later, a flurry of noise erupts in of the forest. Two large animals race through the forest. A thud against a tree sends birds screeching into the sky. A red tailed fox races along the edge of the forest. The sound of a large animal moves deeper into the forest.

He shifts his body to face the noise and scans the area of the noise. A reindeer races away. He does not detect another large animal or reindeer, which raises a concern as to what caused the noise. Several birds circle the area before landing in the trees. Two foxes frolicking where the forest meets the hill. A cloud that developed over the northern mountains reaches over his hill and partially blocks the sun. A light breeze accompanies the cloud and blows a dusting of snow back onto the stone. He kneels to brush it off again.

Snow crunches behind him. He glances along the path he walked up the hill, but does not see anything. A spike made of ice forms in his hand. He digs along the edge of the stone to create a space for his hand. His fingers slide under the stone and lifts. The stone cracks the ice around it. A sudden pain delivers a savage blow to his mind. He grasps his head where his horse had kicked him and falls forward. The stone traps his fingers. Raw emotions break free from his heart. An amplified shrill deafens his ears as a brilliant light blinds him. He draws in as much energy as he can and prepares to strike out at whatever or whoever comes close. The attack has begun.

The sound of snow crunching moves close to him, but the pain in his head holds him to the ground. The snow crunches near his head. He wills his eyes to open, but they do not respond. A ruff stone scrapes his face.

 _I will not die like this. My family needs me._

A gruff voice asks, "Which family needs you?"

 _My family needs me_

A surge of pain grips every muscle in his body.

Stones scrape both sides of his face as it forces his head to turn. Nausea churns his internal organs. The gruff voice whispers into his ear. "If you want the pain to stop, tell me the name of your family."

He strikes at whatever holds him. The stones leave indentations in his skin. Blood fills the cuts and runs down his face. He crawls towards the stones that held him. The saliva overwhelms his lips and drips to the ground. His internal organs invert. His stomach contents spill onto the ground. Lying on his side, he whispers, "LadyCat, I am sorry. SaraCat, I failed you."

"He has not released the final memory block." The stone sends a spark into the side of his head.

Another burst of pain explodes in his mind. He channels his energy to encapsulate the pain. His body rolls onto his hands and knees as his head swings loosely from side to side. A low rumble sounds from his parted lips and it grows into a growl as his head rises.

A voice calls behind him. "Run Pabbie. He is targeting you."

Sam's green vision searches then locks onto a stone shaped troll. His mind searches for the owner of the voice, but detects no one behind him. Weak in his knees, he stands. Ice crystals swirl around his hands. The stone creature transforms into a boulder and rolls downhill. The air around his hands draws in more ice energy. His eyes target the boulder. Closed fists hold next to his head and ready to fire. His fists thrust towards the rolling boulder as he opens his hands.

"Now," screams a female's voice behind him.

The boulder changes course. His hand stop for a fraction of a second to reacquire the target. Down the hill, a flash of white light radiates. An overload of energy surrounds his body and disrupts the targeting of his energy at the boulder. A violent, kinetic burst of energy throws his targeting off. A blast of air and ice shoot through the forest freezing everything in its wake.

His feet leave the ground as his body tumbles through the air. The energy numbs his body and he rolls to a stop. With his eyes partially open he forces his head to roll to the side. A person with long braided, white hair and wearing a white uniform runs up the hill. His mind searches the person, but does not detect them. As she gets within ten meters of him, he recognizes the details on the weapon he had carried in his past. His hand extends his fingers towards the attacker. The end of the weapon flashes a beam of light. His body tries to protect itself, but the intense energy overloads his defense. His body slides and rolls across the ground and finally stops on his back as his eyes close.

Whiffs of smoke drift up from his body.

"Is he dead?" the gruff voice asks.

A soft female voice answers. "No, he has been incapacitated. I did not wish to do this. When his senses come back on-line, he will be in a lot of pain. Do what you need to do. Let him see the truth."

Pabbie waddles next to Sam's body. "I have never seen any metal produce lightning. Does it have the same magic as the Sariphan's medallion?"

She walks up to them. "Similar, but different." She kneels and places her hand on the center of Sam's chest. "His heart is weak. I do not detect any damage. He should recover once the effects wear off."

Pabbie places his stone hands on both sides of Sam's face and chants.

She slowly walks around them as she scans the area. Her eyes track all living creatures and shift her vision into the different light spectrums. She searches for anything that may harm Samuel in his vulnerable state. Her weapon holds the energy to repel any human attack on the hill, but also enough energy to force Samuel into unconsciousness if needed. She has almost completed a full circle around them, when she spots a light moving through the forest. The color frequency of the energy is a darker blue, but she recognizes the energy signature to be identical to her Samuel.

She raises her weapon towards the light and positions her eye close to the lens of the scope. The light becomes brighter. Her finger adjusts the scope and details form in the light. A trotting reindeer pulls a small wheeled sleigh. A blonde male controls the reindeer. The passenger, a blonde female radiating the light, rides next to him. She checks the distance of the riders. She points her weapon where they will have to exit the road.

She calls out to Pabbie. "Unless there is an opening in the forest for the sleigh, they will have to walk. You have an estimated ten minutes to finish. If there is an opening, you have five minutes until they get here."

She walks back to Pabbie. "Did you hear me?"

With a grumble he replies, "I heard you. Somehow the block has moved. I am having great difficulties getting past his defenses. It is as though, he is moving it." Pabbie steps back and glances up at her. "I don't think he wants it to be opened."

She lowers her weapon at him. "My instructions from him were very specific." She taps Pabbie's shoulder. "Try it again. Try harder. If you fail, he dies."

Pabbie stares up at her. "Why does he have to die?"

She motions to the movement down the hill and on the road. "It is the only way he can protect her."

Pabbie glances down the hill, before placing his stone hands to both sides of Sam's face. "Then I will try harder."

In the distance a reindeer trumpets as it pulls the sleigh off the road. She enters a code into her weapon's command port. The weapon responds with a momentary high pitch buzz. The display indicates the weapon is ready to spew its lethal death against anyone it touches.

She comments as she walks down the hill. "When I tell you to move, any hesitation will result in your death."

Pabbie continues to fight against Sam's defenses, but gradually, he overcomes them. He hears Kristoff's sleigh roll into the open field. No doubt Sam will die if he cannot open the block.

Queen Elsa says, "Hurry, I see him on the hill."

His defenses move away from the memory block upon hearing Elsa's voice. Once it stopped, Pabbie easily opens it. A rainbow of colors shoots out of the box as it dissolves.

"What are you doing?" Sam asks, looking up at Pabbie.

He pushes Sam to roll over. "Get up, get up before she shoots you again."

His eye color changes to the dark green targeting mode. He rolls onto his hands and knees. Ice crystals cover his hands and the ground where he touches. His head snaps around towards the edge of the forest. He rocks back onto his feet.

"I see you. You lost your chance to kill me." Sam raises his head up. "I know you."

Movement catches the corner of his eyes and he glimpses the two humans approaching him. His heart flutters upon seeing her. An overwhelming emotion of joy moves him towards her, but she raises her frost covered hands towards him. He stops and slowly backs up.

"My love, what are you doing?"

A ruff stone taps his leg. "Behind you before she shoots you again."

He turns. Half way up the hill, she points her weapons at him. His mind reverts to search mode as he rotates his palms up. He speaks to her in his language. "Mom, what are you doing?"

She does not lower her weapon, but replies in his language. "What is the pass code?"

He starts to speak and glances to Elsa. "I do not remember. It has been so long since I last had to use it." He moves towards Elsa.

The weapon tracks his movement.

He reaches for her hands, then they touch. "Are you safe?"

She nods and eagerly steps into his arms as they wrap their arms around each other.

His energy surges and becomes one with hers. "I don't know what happened. Did anyone get hurt?"

A muffled sound against his chest with a shaking of her head, he kisses the top of her head. He detects movement getting closer to them. "I do not know the passcode. If your orders are to kill me, do it while I stare into the beautiful eyes of my beloved wife."

She asks, "When did she take your heart?"

Elsa answers for him, "When he saved me, I took his heart." She stretches up and their lips meet.

 **End of Chapter**


	98. Chapter 97 Sad Memories

**Title: Chapter-97: Thanks for the Memories**

 **1 days until correction**

S5 points her weapon up and watches them. Movement by Kristoff catches her attention as he stands next to Sven. She walks over to them. "What happened to the redhead, you were sniffing after?"

His eyes widen, "Sniffing after, her name is Princess Anna."

She glances at his left hand behind his back. She smiles at him. "Did you marry Princess Anna?"

"Yes."

"Do you have children?"

"Yes."

She tilts her head as she grins, "Twins? A boy and girl?"

Kristoff gradually nods.

She lowers her weapon onto his left shoulder. "You understand, if you had tried to show me the knife in your hand, your hand would be on the ground." She shrugs. "Or at least what would be left of it."

"S5, why are you here? Why did you shoot me?" Sam asks as he partially stands in front of his wife.

"S5? You are S5?" Kristoff asks as he glances towards Sam. "You look different from the last time I saw you."

She cradles her weapon in her arm. "I do not wish to stand out in a hostile environment." She rubs the back of Sven's ear which he seems to enjoy. "I had to get close enough for a kill shot, if it was needed."

"Kill shot?" Elsa peeks around Sam. She pushes his hands down and steps in front of him. "Who is your target?"

S5 smiles and faces her. Kristoff ducks as her weapon's barrel sweeps over his head. She bows, but keeps her eyes on Sam. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle," She starts to comment, but her eyes shift to Elsa's pregnancy, "oh, I see you are with child." A twinkle flashes in her eyes. "No. Wait. Two babies, twins?"

"Yes," Elsa answers with a noticeable hesitation.

S5 glances at Kristoff and Sam. "Is there something in the water around here or do the females normally produce two babies during their pregnancy?" She focuses her gaze on Sam. Her weapon lowers as she moves towards him.

Elsa steps in her line of sight.

S5 stops and points the barrel of her weapon towards the sky. She stares at Elsa's pregnancy. "Did my Samual put you in this condition?"

Elsa does not answer and stands defiantly.

S5 tilts her head to see Sam's eyes searching the ground. "Son, why are you allowing your wife to defend you in the condition she is in? Do you know she is in pain?"

As if on cue, Elsa's breathing increases. Her hands clench and release. She takes several deep breaths. Kristoff starts to move towards her, but she waves him away as she shakes her head. She steps back and turns towards him.

After a moment he looks up. They watch him. He blinks. "Elsa, are you in pain?"

"Admiral, what are you thinking?" She asks.

He searches the sky and folds his hands one over the other. "The area is not right. Something is wrong. I can feel it."

S5 stands next to Elsa. "Samuel, the green dragon is not here. You defeated it a year ago."

His breathing becomes labored as he gasps for a breath. His eyes dart from one point to the next point in the sky as his body moves in a circle. "No, I can feel its presence. It is here."

His hands separate and he holds two ice swords. His exposed flesh glistens with a metallic green and rainbow color sweep through the green. He yells, "COME AND GET ME. I AM WAITING FOR YOU."

Elsa starts to move towards him, but S5 grabs her arm and whispers. "Wait."

She begs as she tries to break free. "He needs me."

Pabbie transforms next to Kristoff. "Elsa, you are in danger. He is in conflict and has to overcome it himself. I did not place the last memory block in his mind, nor did you. There is only one other here who he would have trusted to enter his mind."

Elsa stops struggling and glares at S5. "Why?"

"If I had not, we would not be standing here and his future would be the same as he left it." S5's dark green eyes stare into Elsa's ocean blue eyes. "When I pushed him through the gate, he landed in this time period. When I stepped through the gate, within a year I met a frightened young boy wanting to die." She points to Sam. "I helped him to get his humanity back."

Elsa breaks free. Her brows angle together and her hands clench. "You were with him on his ship? You saw him as a little boy and you are here now?" She shakes her head. "How is it possible?"

S5 taps her chest and grins at Elsa. "This body is not the flesh and blood as your body is. In my memories are the thoughts and history of the female he knew on his ship. The one who pushed him through the gate, he knew as S5." She points to him. "That S5 placed the memory block in his mind when he was just seven years old. The block was to be opened when he encounters the Queen in the future on his ship."

Elsa steps back. "He carried the block from a child into adulthood?"

"Many years into his adulthood."

She stares at him and considers if all of her efforts have been in vain. "Could it be that is why he has these outbreaks of strange behavior?"

S5 glances to Elsa. For a moment she stares at the ground, then looks at Sam. A smile forms. She points her weapon at the gravestone. "She figured it out. That is why she sent him this far back." She stares at Elsa. I only have the memories that were added. I know pieces were left out. The human mind, with all of its illogical thoughts, makes the human race a very unique species in this universe."

She slowly moves her head from side to side. With a chuckle she nods her head and places her hand on Elsa's shoulder. The weapon points towards him. "Which makes Queen Elsa of Arendelle and Admiral Ryan, more unique than all of the humans ever born."

With a glance at Elsa's abdomen, she continues. "Very soon that number will double."

Elsa tries not to clench her hands, but S5 notices it. "How far apart are your pains?"

"This is the second one since I arrived. I had one when we were crossing the field."

"He does not know, does he?"

Sam turns his head to peek over his shoulder. "Know what? What do I not know?"

S5 whispers, "Since he is distracted, now would be a good time to push him over the edge."

Elsa whispers back, "Push him over what edge?"

"In a state of confusion, his mind will need to use more and more resources to clear the confusion, including letting go of the memory block. The trick is to survive long enough for him to open it."

"Survive long enough?"

With a wink and her weapon resting on her shoulder, she walks towards Sam.

He slowly rotates his body to face her. Both ice swords point at her. His eyes stare at her with a steely dark green.

S5 angles towards the right. "My son, why are you doing this?"

He moves the tips of his swords to follow her, but he does not respond.

She stops and angles her head towards him as her left brow rises. She snaps at him. "Samuel Christopher Ryan." Her foot stomps the frozen ground. "Have you lost all respect for me? Have you forgotten who you are and your mission?"

The tips of his swords droop. His eyes changes to a light blue. She takes small steps towards the right and counts the seconds between each of his blinks. "Do you know who I am?"

He answers, "You look familiar. Should I know you?"

She continues stepping towards the right. "I am the one who created Samuel Christopher Ryan."

The tips of the swords drop to the ground as his eyes change to his natural Hazel color. "You are my mother?"

S5 turns her body to take larger steps to his right. His body rotates to keep her in front of him, but his swords drag on the ground.

She stops. A partial smile forms, and she looks in his direction, but not at him. "Do I look like your mother?"

She takes several more steps. "You are not showing me your respect. Why do you not answer me?

His eyes blink. She counts until his eyes blink again. "You have several features similar to my mother."

"Your mother, are you sure you saw your mother and not some else?"

The time between his blinks shorten to several seconds.

S5 pushes. "I do not believe you saw your real mother, but a surrogate mother."

"Surrogate?"

"Yes, a surrogate mother or maybe an adopted mother. Do you know the differences between a surrogate and adopted mother?"

His brows move closer together.

"Well, do you know?" She takes a step towards him.

"Yes, I know." His eyes focus on her shoes. "A surrogate mother becomes pregnant with the genetic material from a couple not able to produce a baby. She intends to give the baby to the biological couple."

S5 steps closer. "And the adoptive mother?"

"For whatever reason, the biological mother gives up her parental rights to another to raise her child, according to the laws of the land."

"So, which of those descriptions describe your mother?" She takes three steps towards him.

His eyes narrow, but he still watches her shoes.

Elsa starts to speak, but S5 holds her hand up to stop her. Sam's head gradually moves from side to side with his eyes still fixed on her shoes. His head and upper body moves to look behind him.

She moves the toe of her shoe to flick up a rock. She flings the rock sticking his chest.

His head snaps back towards her and his eyes change to the dark green.

"Do not look away. Have you lost all of your manners? I asked you a question, Mister. I will even be generous to you, despite your disrespect towards me. Which description describes your mother, surrogate or adopted?"

His eye color changes back to blue quicker than the last time. His hesitation takes longer for him to reply. She pushes. "Admiral Ryan, I command you to answer me, surrogate or adopted?" She lifts her weapon off her shoulder.

He stares at the weapon. "My mother loved me. She had no choice."

She growls, "Who was your mother, SURROGATE or ADOPTED?"

His eyes focus on her and his lips draw tight. A chink in his armor shows. She takes a step towards him.

He grips his hands together against his chest and replies in a quiet voice. "The woman I knew was my adopted mother."

"Who was your biological mother?" She slowly walks towards him.

He loses focus on her and stares at the gravestone. "I never knew her. I don't even know what she looks like."

S5 stops and shakes her head as glances at Elsa. "My son, I know you are hurting, but you must get past this." She shifts her weapon to both hands. "It is now or never."

His eyes search the ground. His head moves from side to side.

"He is fighting a losing battle."S5 glances at Elsa.

His head turns towards Elsa, but S5 interrupts him. "Why do you think your mother abandon you?" She waits. "Could it be she suffered unbearably birthing you?"

He stares at the stone and his brows push together.

"After all of the pain you put her through, maybe, she could not stand to look at you?"

His hands begin to glisten with ice particles, but he does not look at her.

With a whisper she states, "Okay son, hang in there." She glances at Elsa. "No matter what you see, do not interfere."

S5 takes small steps towards him. "Did your mother throw you away? Is that what happened? Someone from the research facility saw you dying in the trash. Did they see you as nothing more than a resource to be used? Why not, your mother did not care for you, so no one would look for you no matter what they did to you."

She stabs her shoe into the ground and flicks up a large rock. With one hand she snaps the rock with enough force at him that the sound of it hitting his hands startles even Sven.

He clenches his hands and a thick layer of ice forms on them. His head turns towards her as his Emerald green eyes lock his focus onto her.

S5 shakes her head and glances to Elsa. "I have and I will always love my son. I know this is what she wanted." In less than a blink of an eye, she rotates her weapon and fires as the end of the weapon lines onto his chest.

A blinding ball of white light exits her weapon and strikes his frozen hands as they fire a shower of ice. An explosion of steam rapidly expands and obscures Sam. Elsa screams and drops to her knees. A heavy mist and light rain coats the area. Kristoff sprints and wraps his arms around Elsa as he kneels to block her view of Sam.

S5 maintains her weapon pointed towards Sam. She runs to his location and finds him lying on his back. A dark red color covers every exposed centimeter of his flesh. Several whiffs of smoke rise from his clothes. She slowly moves towards him. He stares up at the sky. He does not acknowledge her presence. The fringes of his clothing begin to freeze to the ground. His chest barely moves with his breathing. A tear rolls from the corner of his eye and merges into his hair.

"Samuel, do you know who I am?" She leans into his line of view. His eyes do not move.

Elsa struggles to get away. She screams, "Leave him alone. Get away from him." Layers of ice form on her hands.

S5 calls out, "Kristoff, do not let her go, not yet."

"Elsa, please stop. Your ice is freezing me."

She stops and looks at the ice on Kristoff's sleeves. She draws it back into her hands and lays her head on his shoulder.

S5 stares at Sam's blinking eyes.

"Samuel, who am I?" She continues to lean over him.

"Your appearance is that of my mother, but I know she is long dead. Unless you are a distant relative of hers, you are the android appearing as Scientist number Five."

"That is correct. Do you know where you are?"

"I do not know. I do not see any stars."

"Good, what do you need?"

"I need the key to complete the reset."

Her left brow rises. "Where is your key?"

"I gave it to—" A blank stare sweeps across his face.

"Who did you give the key to? Who has your key?"

"A young woman," he touches the small indentation on his forehead. "A horse kicked me."

"Yes, you are correct. Who is the young woman?" She kneels next to his head.

His breathing quickens. His eyes move as though searching. "I . . . do not know . . . her name." His eyes glisten as he stares at her, "Mom?"

"I'm right here." She lays her weapon on the ground and places her hand over his heart. "I'm right here."

His chin quivers and tears roll down the sides of his face. "I lost the key. I don't know where she is." He rolls into her and locks his arms around her arm. "Momma, I have lost it."

She strokes his head. "Shh, I will help you." She turns her head towards the others. "Queen Elsa, Do you love him?"

Elsa raises her head. Her puffy red eyes glisten with moisture. "I always have and I always will."

"No matter what, it will cost you?"

"No matter the cost."

"Let her come near."

Kristoff helps Elsa to her feet. Locking his arm across her back, he escorts her up the hill.

When they were close, S5 holds her hand up towards them. "Queen Elsa, you saw what happened to him. The steam damaged his face and arms. You must be prepared for what you will see. In his current state, he cannot initiate the healing process, but you can."

"Yes, he taught me how." She kneels behind Sam's back.

S5 places her hand on Elsa's shoulder and prevents her from leaning over him. "Queen Elsa, listen to me. You have a twofold mission that has to be performed at the same time. In your condition, you cannot lean over him."

Elsa studies the ground. She reaches back to Kristoff.

He helps her to stand.

"Roll him onto his back. I will lift him up onto an ice table."

S5 rolls Sam face up.

Elsa covers her mouth as she shakes her head. She turns and steps away. The contents of her stomach spill onto the ground. Kristoff hands her a cloth. She covers her mouth with the cloth and snow floats up to her hand. She brushes the snow across her face and turns back to them. "Please forgive me. I have never seen anything like that."

S5 holds out her hand. "It is ok. I will guide you as best as I can."

Elsa holds her hands together and for a moment she bows her head with her eyes closed. As she opens her hands, sparkles of snowflakes drift down to cover Sam. She rotates her palms up and lifts. Snow forms under and around him to cradle his body. It lifts his body to a height that would be comfortable for her. A snow chair forms at the head of the snow table with room for her children. She sits in a comfortable position, where she would never sit in the public view. For a moment she stares at him. Her hand tries to cover her quivering chin. Her vision begins to blur. A tremor runs through her hand as she pulls strands of his hair out of the dried fluid on his face. A strand rips open a white pocket and the clear fluid gradually leaves a trail to his hairline. Her eyelids cannot hold back the flood that stream down her face.

Snow crunches and a boulder rolls up beside her. It transforms into Pabbie. He touches her hand. "Queen Elsa, he cannot do it by himself. He needs you. I am here to pull you out on the second part of your mission."

Her moistened eyes glance towards him as she wipes a tear on the back of her sleeve. "What do you mean you will pull me out?"

S5 lightly touches her arm. "Majesty, multiple events could occur. You need to be prepared for any of them. While I represent the image of his adopted mother, I believe she would speak to you as her daughter."

She rests her hand over his heart. "The best possible outcome will be for him to wake up and remember you and all you have done for him."

With a slight smile she glances at his face. "My son, despite my love for him, is a danger to you and your children. If you choose to walk away, I will take his ship and we will hide. You will never see him again."

Elsa shakes her head and her hand holds in a muffle.

"Depending on what state his mind is in, when he awakens, will determine how long he lives. No one will blame you. It will be his time to go home. He has a family waiting for him across the river."

"But I am his family now. What happens to us?"

Pabbie taps her arm. "Your children need you. Soon they will arrive into this world. You will tell them the stories of their father."

S5 wraps her arm across Elsa's shoulder. "My dear, there is a real possibility he may not make it or he may not remember you or Arendelle."

"Die or not remember, which would be worse?"

S5 kneels next to her. "For him, there are three possibilities, but for you, there are four. One, walk away now and you live your life with your children. Two, go into his mind and come out. He remembers most, some, very little, or none of the events the two of you had. You will have some time with him, but the quality of your life and his life will be diminished. Three, you go in and come out, but damage has been done to your mind. The quality of your life is greatly diminished and you may not be able to care for your children. I will take care of Sam. I believe Master Kristoff and Princess Anna would be able to take care of your children and you would not be Queen. Four, You go in and you do not come back. The only reason you do not is because the two of you died. Your children could still be born."

Elsa rests her head on S5's shoulder. "So there seems to be only one good outcome in this."

"Nothing like a good challenge to get your blood moving," she comments.

Elsa snickers with a smile and wipes her eyes. "That is something Sam would say."

"Where do you think he heard the saying?"

"His mother?"

"He truly loved his adopted mother. She gave him hope."

"Is that why he appears reckless at times, because of his hope?"

"There is a difference between being reckless and having confidence in oneself. Samuel does not do anything reckless. It is all calculated." She taps his forehead. "Unfortunately, he did not have all of the information and this is the result."

Pabbie taps Elsa's hand. "It is time. Raise me up high enough to hold your arm. You need to go in and determine the damage to his mind." Elsa sprinkles ice dust over his head and an ice column raises him to the table's height. She positions her hands over Sam's face, but a slight tremor runs through both hands.

S5 gives her a comforting hug. "You will be alright. This is the event Sam prayed would never happen. He had confidence in you. If he believes, it is up to you to believe your training will get you past this. It is time."

Elsa focuses on Sam's face. Her hands glisten as the frost moves down her hand and around his face. She closes her eyes.

Pabbie touches Sam's shoulder and Elsa's arm. The crystals around his neck glow and his eyes close.

S5 picks up her weapon and walks over to Sven.

Kristoff asks, "How long will it take before you know if he will be healed and the Sam she married returns?"

She shrugs her shoulders. "I guess it will depend on what she sees in him and the state of his mind. As long as Pabbie is in contact with both of them and she does not withdraw, we could surmise things are going well."

"In other words you do not know."

"What gave you the clue? The two words I started with, 'I guess'."

Kristoff darts his eyes at Sven.

She taps his hand. "I must have assessed your relationship to Sam incorrectly. I determined you were acquainted with Samuel's snarky comments, but your expression indicated my comments stung. Is that a correct assessment?"

"I was . . . well, we have become better friends since I first met him. I know Queen Elsa has gone through a lot to be with him." He glances in their direction.

"From what I understand, you were instrumental in helping Elsa to reach him. It was very clever for her to growl at him, but then again, was he also instrumental in helping you to ask Princess Anna to marry you?"

He nods as he continues to watch the three. "He did. If he was not here, I don't think I would last long in the castle."

"But you have two children."

With a grin he glances back at her. "I never imagined myself to be a dad. I know it has been a long time for him, but I think if he can get his mind under control, he can be a dad again."

She pats his hand. "I sure hope so."

A cold breeze picks up the loose snow and swirls it above Elsa. The snow reaches high into the sky and clouds form together above them. As the clouds increase in size, the wind increases and creates a cone that surrounds Sam, Pabbie, and Elsa. Kristoff holds onto Sven.

S5 brushes her hair out of her face as she smiles. "I do believe Queen Elsa has made contact with Samuel."

Kristoff holds his hand above his face. "It looks like two different colors of snow swirling together."

"That is a correct statement."

A blinding snow drives stinging ice at her from all directions. The back of her hands and any exposed flesh suffers from the ice. Her clothes protect the rest of her. Elsa moves her hand enough to glance down. Her clothes are not moving as they did, when she ran through the snow storm to escape from Hans. Her hands glisten with a thin layer of ice.

"If this is his mind, I should be able to block this snow." She pushes her hands out and a clear sphere surrounds her. The snow and wind fights to reach her. She moves her hands again and the sphere enlarges by several meters. Beyond the sphere, the snow moves in different shades of white. Lush green grass sways against her leg. It reminds her of the green hills during the summer. Above her a bright, warm light shines down on her. She holds up her hand to the light and it cast a shadow on her face.

A thought occurs to her, "if I am creating this field without the snow," but a shadowy outline appears in the snow. She flicks her hands at the shadow. Her sphere expands to reveal a green field and a version of Sam she has not met.

"So he has allowed another in here. That is too bad."

She holds up her hands to defend herself. "What time period are you from?"

"You understand if I wanted you dead, we would not be having this conversation. Your ice parlor tricks will not work on me. I am too fast." He faces her with a sneering smile. "You have no clue as to who I am, do you?"

"I suspect you are a version between the Sam who left home and the Sam who was the Captain of his ship."

His left brow rises as he looks up. His eyes move as though he is searching.

"What is your age?"

He stares at her with no emotion, but his sneer returns. "To the point, it is a very good question. My age is twenty-seven. You were correct about me being between the Sam who just left home and the one who Captains a crew or should I say the crew who followed him. You know, there is a difference between leading and choosing to follow." He walks towards her.

Pabbie appears near her. "Elsa, do not let him touch you. He will draw your energy away."

His eyes change to the targeting dark green. "You little troll. I should have destroyed you when I had the chance the first time." His finger points at him with a snap. Ice bounces off a barrier surrounding Pabbie. He looks at the end of his finger. "Well, I did not expect that."

Pabbie commands, "Strike him. There is a reason you did not meet him."

This Sam searches the sky.

Pabbie commands again, "Strike him while he is distracted."

Sam bares his teeth as he emits a low growl, "Too late."

He raises his hand and sparkles of light collect around his hand into a ball. He slams it into the ground. A brilliant light flashes under his hand. A tingling sensation passes through her body. Pabbie shakes for a moment and disappears as he throws his hands up.

Elsa raises her hands towards Sam. "What did you do to Pabbie?"

Sam rises to his feet, clenching his hands to his side. Several shades of metallic green glistens over his exposed flesh. A metallic rainbow slides across his flesh. "The question is, why are you still here? You should have departed when that stupid rock did. Clearly I have underestimated your abilities. I will destroy you."

"Why?"

"Why do I want to destroy you? Truthfully, if you were not in here, I would not. Since I will have to draw more energy to overcome your defenses, and I will, there will be very little of your mind left. The advantage for me will be the things I plan to do to your body. And what a pleasing body you have." He charges towards her.

She flings her hand open. He changes directions. An ice pole vaults him a distance away from her. He rolls on the ground and is slow to get up.

"I have seriously underestimated you." He snaps his fingers and a small shadow forms at her feet. It grows until it blocks the light above her.

Elsa looks up. A white ball, falling towards her, grows larger. She moves to the side and the shadow follows her. Her hand sweeps vertically at the last second. The grass around her lays flat from the torrent of snow. She wipes the water from her face and pushes her hair back. Her hands sparkle. "If he can do it, so can I."

The sparkles jump from her hands onto her clothing. Her saturated clothes freeze. She taps her arms and shoulders. The frozen ice peels away from her clothes.

Sam's head slowly shakes as he crawls onto his knees. "That is not possible. I can't do it so how are you able. Your energy should be maxed out to keep the snow at bay and to do your tricks, you must truly be a witch."

He stands and searches the area. "I do not see an external source, so where is your energy coming from? I see mine and," he studies the ground for a moment. His dark green eyes target her. "I would not have thought it possible, but you are drawing on his energy. Let me see if I can sour the milk."

His exposed flesh flashes over to the metallic green. Sparkles of rainbow colors collect around his hands. He slams his fist into the ground. As if a rock is dropped into water, a large wave radiates out from his fists followed by several smaller waves.

The first wave rises to her height. Before she can raise her hands in defense, the arcs of multiple colors strike her. The pain radiates from every point the arcs contacts her flesh. Those arcs that contacted her clothes, travel down to the ground. She looks up as the first wave smashes into her. Her body sails through the air and crashes into an ice boulder rising out of the ground. The ice rolls and pins her to the ground. The first of the smaller waves, splashes dirt over her face.

Elsa groans and collapses onto Sam's shoulder. She gasps for air. Her hands begin to slide off his face.

Pabbie holds her hand against Sam's face. "Elsa, do not let go."

S5 touches her neck. "Her heart is racing. She is in trouble. Can you get her out of there?"

"That would not be the best course of action. She must be fighting Sam at twenty-seven."

"Twenty-seven," S5 picks up her weapon and thumbs a switch to charge the weapon. "You have to get her out of there. The twenty-seven year old is a Sam who gave up on life. He became a tyrant and served whoever paid the most. It is during this time, many died, including the Sariphan's home planet. If he finds a weakness in her, he will exploit it to her death." The weapon signals it is ready to fire.

"Wait. You still have the medallion?"

She reaches into her pocket and pulls out the leather bag, but her fingers fumble trying to open it. Kristoff steps next to her. "Here hold this." She pushes the weapon into his chest.

He wrestles with it until he gets both hands on it and under control.

"Whatever you do, do not stick your finger into the loop and press the trigger."

Kristoff holds the weapon with both hands and away from his body.

She removes the medallion and places it over his heart. She forces Elsa's hand over the medallion.

Pabbie comments, "If she truly is his key, she will know what to do with it. Do not let her hand break contact with him or the medallion."

They watch her, after a short time her body relaxes.

Kristoff asks, "She does not look like she is breathing. Is she alright?"

"I will count to thirty. If she does not move, I will try to bring her back." He counts, "one, two, three, four . . . Twenty-seven, twenty-eight, twenty-nine."

A golden light illuminates from the medallion under Elsa's hand. The light runs through the colors of the rainbow. It begins to oscillate between green and blue. The colors merge and holds steady to a greenish-blue.

Pabbie whispers into her ear. "Elsa, your help is in your hand. Call on them."

Her hand grips the medallion. She gulps in a deep breath.

She spits out the dirt from the first wave. The second wave moves towards her. Her body does not respond. _I cannot move the stone. He will bury me. Admiral Ryan, where are you._

The second wave covers her with more dirt. Despite her struggles, the stone holds her arms to her side. The third wave dumps more dirt over her face. _Is this how I die?_

Movement pushes against the dirt as if something is burrowing towards her. A female's voice calls to her. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, do not let the ice hold you down. Do you have ice powers or not?"

The dirt is brushed from her face. A young female with long flowing brown hair grins down at her. The female stands with hands on her waist and her feet shoulder-width apart. Even in white trouser and a white shirt, the woman's expression reminds her of the first time she caught him watching her.

"There is another wave of dirt coming your way. If you cannot move the ice, I am sure mom will gladly do it for you."

"Ice? Mom?" She turns her palms up against the ice boulder and focuses her energy. The ice boulder shoots into the air and disintegrates. She crawls to her feet as she brushes the dirt off her dress. The young woman offers her hand and assists her out of the dirt depression.

"You have got to be kidding me," A male's voice comments just before the ice hits with a thud.

"Either that was a good throw or you were very lucky," comments an older female with sandy blonde hair.

Elsa eyes the two females standing to either side of her. She asks the older female. "Are you, Mom?"

The sandy blonde female looks past her and points to the young woman. "To her I am."

"I have never seen clothing like that." Other than the thick-sole and multi-brown colored boots that stopped a third of the way up her calf, the one piece suit has more pockets on it than five uniformed soldiers combined. The clothing accentuated the muscular undertones in her arms.

"This is the way I appeared to him the last time he saw me." She turns her body with her feet together to face her. She holds out her hand. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, My name is Catherine, or as the Admiral calls me, LadyCat."

Elsa shakes her hand.

LadyCat motions behind her. "That is SaraCat, my daughter. That is how she appeared to him before you pushed him through the temporal gate."

"So you are just memories in here?" She rubs her hands together. There was no temperature difference or texture. They appear as real and as a human female as she does. Is this the same nagging feeling she had the last time she came to Sam's snow covered mountain?

"That is a good question," SaraCat asks as she grabs her arm. "So he did bring you in here before now. I sense you came in without his help, this time."

"I knew it. He gave you his key. That is the only way you can get into here on your own." LadyCat smacks the side of her shoulder. "We were concerned he would become very destructive before he dies alone."

LadyCat wraps her arm across her shoulders. "Hopefully, you have learned to deal with his strange behavior. You know there is only one like him."

SaraCat holds up her hand. "And Queen Elsa is also a one of a kind. Not like you and not like me, but in-between."

"In-between?" LadyCat turns Elsa to study her face. "If he did not give you your powers, are you a child of his?"

"I sure hope not, since she is caring his children." SaraCat answers as she shakes her head. "This would be so awkward, if she is"

Elsa stares at LadyCat. How does one know, but not the other?

"Because, mom's powers are the residual effect of spending so much time with him, where my powers are the result of my parents, not one hundred percent like his, not fifty per cent like hers. You have noticed that I resemble my dad. I can do most everything he can, but some things only he can do." She lays her head on her shoulder. "Your powers are closer to his powers than are mine. If you are not his child, how did you get your powers?"

She glances back and forth between them. "I almost died before I was born. A wolf attacked my mother. She did not know she was pregnant. Samuel said he considered letting me die and not telling my mother to save her life." An emotional lump stops in her throat.

"Your mother lived long enough for you to be born. You spent your life with him?" LadyCat asks.

"No, that is not it. If he considered letting you die and your mother did not know, you must have been in the early stages of development." SaraCat eyes search the ground. She focuses on her eyes and grins. "At that stage there is only one thing he could have done. He gave you a blood transfusion. There were no rejections. Your body would not have known the differences and would have changed as he did, except without the pain."

SaraCat turns away from them. "The way he was created and the transfusion before you were born, make both of you one of a kind. There will never be another like either of you." She turns back to them. "I know the real me would love to meet you and your children."

"They will be a whole new species, not human or not Sariphan." LadyCat steps past her to hug her daughter. "In his painful way, he understood his mission. The bridge will be built."

"No, it will not," growls the young Sam as he throws an ice spear. It splits into three spears on its downward arc.

LadyCat and SaraCat appear to move far too slow to get out of the way. Elsa taps her fist on top of her other fist and draws her hands apart to create an ice sword. She steps in front of them. The spears are taking longer to reach them. She moves towards the first spear. Her sword swings with no effort across her body and shatters the first spear into water droplets. She swings it back, shattering the other two. The droplets accelerate to normal speed and splatter onto her friends.

SaraCat's eyes widen. "Did you see that? She moved like Dad."

LadyCat wipes the water off her face. She snaps her head around and targets the young Samuel. "That ungrateful brat, he tried to kill us." She slaps her hands together and draws out two swords. "Take Queen Elsa to the memory box and help her to open it. I am going to teach that teenage boy a lesson that even Admiral Ryan will feel the butt whooping in the future." She charges the young Samuel.

"Should we help her?"

"No, He has never seen her, but she knows him." She turns and points to the horizon behind them. "She will give us enough time to complete our mission."

She watches LadyCat repel every attack. With two swords, there is always one defending while the other attacks. Her attack pushes the younger Samuel back.

"Come, my Queen. You have to open the box before he overcomes her defenses."

She runs to catch up with SaraCat. "If you know LadyCat will fall, we should help her."

SaraCat continues to walk towards the horizon. "We are just memories. We both died believing my father, her husband, will find a solution that will repair our future. My mother once again is fighting to give us a chance. She is doing what she has always done."

She grabs SaraCat's arm. "If that is the case we need to get to the box now."

The sky changes to black. Darkness covers everything except for the orange rectangle box in front of them.

SaraCat stares at her with wide eyes. "Now that is a cool trick. Hopefully that Sam does not know the trick just yet."

"What do you mean just yet?"

"He is a part of my father. If father knew how to do it during 27's time, he will be reminded and show up soon. You need to open this box in a hurry."

She stares at it. "I do not know how."

"But you are the key. You have the information." She points to the box. "You have done this before."

She walks around the box. There are no indications where something would be inserted. Even the corners disappear into the smooth surfaces. She reaches out and the surface undulates as it pulls away from her hands.

"You must allow your energy to flow into it. It moves away because your energy is different."

She glances at SaraCat. "Different?" Her hands begin to sweep across the surface without touching it. She smiles. On the second and third passes her hands move closer and her smile broadens. On the fourth pass her hands touch the silky-smooth surface. Her hands submerge into the block. No warmth or cold, but a tingling sensation travels up her arms. Images and sounds form in her mind. She detects a presence radiating comfort and carefree. It changes to sadness and pain, then nothing. A void, a blackness, light does not enter. Affection follows with desire, but strength stands out above the others.

"No, No, NO, get away from there," screams a gruff voice flying through the air.

Elsa's vision changes to see all with a blue tint. SaraCat moves in slow motion as she steps to the side and an ice sword forms in her hand. Her arm swings up and back before her head turns. Flying through the air, a body swings a sword in a downward motion. The two swords crash into each other and showers the area with white sparks.

SaraCat's sword breaks in-half. Sam-27 lands on his feet, but his momentum carries him past her. Her right fist slams into his head, low and behind his right ear. He falls to the ground in a crumple state.

"I must find my mother." SaraCat fades as she runs into the darkness.

Elsa moves her arms in the block. With each pass the orange color transitions to a transparency as though it was changing into clear water. She opens her hands and moves her arms faster. Movement approaches from the left and right of her. Two individuals glowing with white and blue sparkles kneel onto all fours. Two gray wolves walk into the light and watch her.

Sam-27 groans and rolls onto his side.

The two wolves watch him. Another individual walks to the edge of the light and squats. It changes into a larger wolf as it steps into the light.

More than half of the orange memory block has changed to a transparency. She moves her arms faster, but they are losing strength. Her shoulder muscles burn and radiate a pain down her back.

Sam-27 stands and glares at her. "You waited too long. If you were me, you would have been done by now."

A large red wolf with fiery red eyes steps out of the darkness and sits in front of her. Its nose flares as if sniffs at her. It emits a low growl as it bares its teeth.

Sam-27 moves with purpose towards her. "Well, it looks like we are all here. You grow weak not that I expected you to succeed. Your arms can barely move. All I have to do is imprison you into the memory block." He motions to the wolves as he turns in a circle. "Then my brothers and I take over your Queendom. I will declare myself King. I will succeed where the Sariphans failed."

The red wolf turns its ear down and growls at her as it begins to step back. Sam-27 snaps his head around. "I do not recognize you. Who are you?"

The reflection of a large gray wolf in the clear liquid stands next to her. It bares its teeth and lays its snout onto her shoulder. A large paws presses into her back. It sniffs her hair. A musk odor assaults her sinuses. She turns her head away. The paw presses into her back and a surge of energy releases her pain. She moves her arms and clears more of the orange out of the block.

"Who are you? I demand you answer me?" Sam-27 takes a step closer and points his fingers with the ice spikes at her.

The musk changes to the musk she recognizes. The gray wolf whispers. "I know you can do it. This is why I gave you my key. My faith in you has been rewarded." The gray wolf transforms into her husband.

The red wolf and the other wolves tuck their tails as they try to scurry into the shadow.

"Don't run away. Together, we can take him. STAND YOUR GROUND," yells Sam-27.

"Yes, do not hide. Show yourselves to my Queen as to who you really are."

Each wolf turns back and stands as it transforms. The smallest wolf changes into the seven year old Sam, followed by the teen Sam. The farthest wolf transforms into the Commander Ryan and finally the Red wolf transforms into an older Samuel Ryan.

Sam-27 watches the wolves change into the humans. "How is it possible, they obey you?" His head curves around to her. "What magic does that witch have over you?" His hands snap forward sending six spikes of ice towards her.

Her husband sweeps his hand past her face. Her hands stop as she watches the spikes fall to the ground. He whispers to her. "You are doing so well. Please continue." Her hands move again.

Sam-27 slaps his hands together to form an ice sword and charges them. The other four Sam's transform into wolves and escape into the darkness. His sword swings back. A hand moves out of the darkness and fires a spike of ice. It pierces Sam-27's wrist and into the sword handle.

Sam-27 slides to a stop on his knees and screams as he struggles to remove the spike. He pulls on the spike, but it refuses to release his wrist. He shrieks, "I will kill you and all who know you. STOP." His hand flicks an accelerating ball of ice towards her.

The ball slows to a snail's pace and the individual ice crystals and spikes are revealed. In the center of the ice mass, a large spike grows in length and diameter.

Her husband tucks several strands of her hair behind her ear as she watches the ice mass move towards her. He sniffs in her ear and whispers, "Stay focus. When you complete your task, he will be harmless and I will be with you."

She continues to draw the energy out of the memory block. He tilts her head as the first of the ice crystals fly to within a few centimeters of her face. She swishes her hands and the memory block releases the last of the orange color.

The ice crystals and spikes slowly shatter. The ball accelerates to normal speed and creates an air blast throwing her to the ground. The ball litters the ground behind her with snow.

Sam-27 holds the sword in his uninjured hand and charges her. His sword swings above his head. On a downward trajectory, it crashes into two swords swinging upwards. The momentums of the two swords throw him back several steps. He glances at the both of them and bares his teeth.

"I killed you."

"I'm already dead, little boy. I am a part of his memory." LadyCat's sword clashes against his sword pushing him back.

The swords clash and echo a thunderous roar with showers of ice chard flying in all directions. The chards shatter and float to the ground as snow.

Sam-27 falls to the ground and rolls to his knees as he holds his sword in a defensive position. The four wolves march up behind him. In unison they emit a low growl.

SaraCat, with two swords, moves next to LadyCat. "So, you can't win by yourself. You need the others to help you to beat two girls."

Sam-27 stands and rests his sword on his shoulder. "Beat no. Delay until I get past you to kill the snow witch, yes. And I don't need to get close to kill her." He points his sword and the four wolves run past him.

Elsa watches the battle. Sam-27 does not move, but continues to eye her. LadyCat and SaraCat hold their own. They give ground as the wolves try to separate them. She glimpses through the battle. Sam-27 is in the same spot as earlier.

The red wolf darts between them and at the last second turns to LadyCat. Its paw strikes her leg pushing her off balance. The hesitation is enough for the other two wolves to knock her down.

SaraCat stabs her sword into the red wolf's side. "Get off of her." She scatters the wolves enough for LadyCat to stand.

She peeks past the battle. Sam-27 is not in the light. A layer of frost forms on her hands. She searches for the Sam, but the noise of the battle distracts her. Movement to the side catches her eyes. Sam-27 charges out of the darkness. He thrust a spear at her, but the sharp end does not reach her.

A large gray wolf holds the spear in its teeth. The wolf turns his head with the emerald green eyes. Sam-27 flies over the clear rectangle. The other wolves stop their attack to observe where Sam-27 lands. The gray wolf jumps over the rectangle and lands between the wolves and the two females. A swipe shoots the smallest wolf across the ground and into the darkness. Two more swipes tuck the tails of the middle wolves and yip as the run into the darkness. The red wolf clamps onto the gray wolf's leg. With a howl the gray press its jaws tightly across the red's neck.

Sam-27 sits up and rolls onto his hands and knees. LadyCat and SaraCat with swords in hand, move past the red and gray wolves. For several moments they stare at each other. Finally, the red wolf collapses. The gray opens its mouth dropping the red to the ground. Sam-27 lowers his head to the ground.

Elsa walks around the rectangle and stands next to the sitting gray wolf. Its ears rotate and twitch as though he is searching for any sounds around them. A little boy, Sam-7, steps into the light, followed by Sam-17, and Sam-44. The red wolf transforms into Sam-54 behind them.

A snicker leads to a loud laughter as Sam-27 pushes himself up to his knees. "I hope you did not think this was over." He rises to one knee and points his ice sword at them. "Take them all down, but leave his Queen to me."

LadyCat and SaraCat lower their swords. The others do not move.

Sam-27 peeks over his shoulder. "Did you hear me? Attack them, NOW."

He starts to stand and crunching snow sounds behind them. Just as he pushes up to stand, Sam-7 lands on his back with both feet. The momentum throws him to the ground. The others pile onto him. Sam-44 and 54 lifts 27 to his feet. 17 press his fingertips into the side of 27's neck and face. All their eyes glow a blue tint. 27 loses the struggle and closes his eyes as his body passes out.

Sam-54 asks, "What do you want us to do with him?"

The gray wolf transforms into Elsa's husband and he moves towards them. "The clear box will keep him safe. Because of him, we are who we are."

The others nod in agreement. The liquid in the clear rectangle undulates and increases in height as the top of it arches towards Sam. The others drop Sam-27 and the rectangle draws him into the liquid. It returns to its previous shape with Sam-27 floating in the center.

"What about us?" asks Sam-17.

Elsa's husband looks at each of them. "I need all of you. All five of you are a part of me." He points over his shoulder with his thumb. "Even, he will be a constant reminder of what I am capable. Maybe someday he will be needed to save my life. Go where ever you wish. I have my family to support."

Sam-44 and 54 nod and shake his hand. Each fades as they walk towards the darkness and disappear.

Sam-17 peeks past him. "It looks like I did pretty well. I like the next generation, she is tough." He brings his feet together and locks his arms to his side as he stands at attention. His right hand snaps up to a salute. Elsa's husband returns the salute. 17 performs an about-face and fades as he marches into the darkness.

A sniffle sounds behind him. He kneels next to Sam-7. "What is wrong?"

7 wipes the tears from his eyes. "Everyone has a life and many memories to keep them company. I have very little."

"I would not say that just yet."

A little girl's voice yells, "Are you a baby or what? Get over here and hug our mother before I bust you down to sweeping dirt."

His eyes brighten as he wipes the tears away. With a beaming smile he looks up at him.

"I would not keep her waiting. I recall, she kicked my butt a few times. Why don't you give our mother a great big hug for me?"

Sam-7 nods and sprints across the snow. Elsa's husband stands as Sam-7 launches himself into S5's arms. They hug each other tightly. The little girl slaps Sam-7 bottom. With a giggle she fades as she runs into the darkness.

Sam-7 leaps to the ground and gives chase. "I will get you Krystal." He fades as he runs into the darkness.

He bows to her as S5 walks over to him. "I see you have made excellent progress in building the bridge between our worlds. Congratulations, I see the next generation is also progressing wonderfully." She stops in front of him.

The water works in his eyes start as a trickle. A tear races down his cheek. He drops to his knees and wraps his arms around her. "Mom?"

"Shh, my son, you have a strong companion. Without her you would still be struggling with your memories, and Krystal and I would not be here. She freed your memory and we live again." She lifts him to his feet. "You are the handsome man, I knew you would grow into."

A pop and thud sounds in the darkness followed by a threat from a young girl's voice. "Samuel Ryan, I'm going to get you for rolling me over with that snowball."

S5 backs away. "I better catch up to them before someone gets a bloody nose." She nods and waves to him and fades as she steps into the darkness.

He lets the tears roll down his face and clinches his hands to his side.

"And I thought you were making it up, but she is too beautiful to have produced you." Ladycat pokes him in his side as she walks past him towards the darkness.

A strong emotion rips at his heart. "Where are you going? I finally get you back and you're leaving."

SaraCat interlocks her arm around his arm. "Dad, we died a long time ago. Our chapter has been closed. We are a segment of your family as the others are a part of you. I know you are not going to let our deaths be in vain. We worked too hard to get you to where you can build the bridge." She begins walking backwards away from him and points. "She is your family and the four of you have a great start on the next chapter."

LadyCat and SaraCat interlock their arms. "We have always believed in you. You will do the right thing." They fade as they step back into the darkness.

A cold hand slips around his wrist. His hand relaxes and she slides her hand into his hand. He tries to look away, but she turns his face towards her. A tear runs down her face ahead of the others on the verge of jumping off her eyelids.

He draws her to him as he wraps his arms around her. "What am I to do?"

In a muffled voice she replies, "What do you want to do?"

The light shrinks as the darkness moves closer to them. A thump, thump, thump beats in his ears as his heart beats faster. Coldness moves up his legs. "Elsa, I want to go home . . . with you."

He falls back, but his body does not hit the ground. His hands lie in a wet cold. The light shrinks into a tiny dot. A voice in the darkness calls to him. "Sam, do not let go. I have you. You will be okay."

The voice sounds familiar. _Who is that?_ His hair moves to one side, then moves to the other. Ice pellets sting his exposed flesh. A tree branch cracks and crashes to the ground in the background. _Why is it dark? Why can I not move?_ The white dot disappears. The darkness lightens to a dark blue and tiny pinholes of light appear. The lights form patterns. His mind recognizes constellations, _Cassiopeia, Orion the hunter._ A green cloud of different densities dances across the lights.

A shadow moves from the top of his view to block most of the blue field and lights.

A female's voice calls to him. "Samuel? Wake up. It is time for you to come home."

A rumble from his chest moves past his throat. "Home?"

"Yes, Sam, it is time to go home."

Definition forms in the shadow above him. The shadow's edges splits into many tiny strands swaying in the breeze that moves his hair. An outline of an ear forms. Green clouds move above them. An image of a green tinted face forms with a small button nose that appears above the curved red parted lips.

 _A smile. That is a smile._

Tiny drops of water land on his forehead, then another. Blue eyes appear above the nose.

 _They are such beautiful blue eyes._

He asks, "Why are you crying?"

"Because I have missed you," she answers. "You have been gone for several days."

He rolls up to a sitting up position and scans the sky. His eyes scan the hill and the forest beyond. They search the ground until they spot a pair of browns shoe peeking out from under a green dress. His eyes follow the dress up to a pair of hands with one crossed over the other. A simple ring with two crystals at the base of a larger crystal rests on the third finger of the left hand. Each crystal sparkles its unique color. He stares at them. The hand gradually slides over a large bulge under the dress. Her hand hesitates on the top of the bulge. Just below her hand, two small round bulges protrude for a second and disappear. A miniscule spike of energy tugs on his heart. It causes his face to form a smile. The hand travels up the dress. He watches sparkles from the ring. The hand stops at the small and delicate neck, but his eyes continue scanning up.

The blonde hair moves with the wind as does his hair, but her hair seems different. It shines with the sparkles of the stars. Her rosy lips widen to form a smile. His own smile changes to a grin. His eyes continue to scan up past her button nose. His eyes lock onto the most beautiful set of blue eyes that draws in his heart and mind. It does not pull, but locks onto his eyes, drawing them into the depths of her soul. They call to him and his body responds. His legs force him to stand and turn his body towards her. Her lips separate as she exhales a blue mist. He swallows with the hunger to press his lips against her lips and inhales her mist.

Two small bulges protrude from her belly as if it was reaching for him. The movement breaks his trance and his eyes focus on the two bulges. He falls to his knees and his hands reach to touch the bulges, but stops.

He glances up. "I think this is a new experience for me. May I touch them?"

With a smile she grabs his hands and places one on each bulge. He stares at her hands as the bulges push into his hands. With a deep breath, his lips part to exhales a cold, blue mist. Suddenly, an energy charge leaves his hands, and his mind sees two tiny faces looking at him. His head jerks back as if he was struck in the forehead. His eyes snap up to focus on the blue eyes. He starts to speak, but the tiny hands move as if they were trying to get his attention.

His head rises as a thought occurs to him and a smile forms. "You are pregnant."

She gradually nods.

He slowly moves his hands across her belly and the tiny hands also move to stay under his hands. "You can feel that?"

She nods.

"Wow, I have no memories of ever feeling this. Do you know you are having twins?"

Her right brow rises and she nods.

He starts to pull his hands away, but she grips his hands and applies pressure to keep them in contact with her. "Does your husband know you are pregnant?"

She grips his hands and nods again.

"Will he be upset with me touching you like this?"

"No."

"Why would he not?"

 _Because you are he._

"What do you mean? Wait." He stands, but she continues to grip his hands. "If I, am he, then they are my children?"

"Yes."

"I am your husband?"

"Yes."

"So I get to go home with you?"

She pulls him towards her and leans over her belly. Only a few centimeters from his face, she whispers. "Yes, you can go home with me." She exhales a cold mist into his face.

He inhales the mint of her mist and his chin quivers as his eyes partially close. His mind trembles for a moment. The mental noise calms to silence. Images and sounds race to their proper places in his mind. His eyes open as his left brow rises. "Since I am your husband, may I kiss my Queen?"

He leans ever so close as the tip of his tongue sweeps across her lips. She closes the distance. Their lips meet and he wraps his arms around her.

The winds calm. A light snow begins to fall around them. Snow crunches beneath two different weights behind him.

"Well, I guess his mind was creating the winds. Once again, she has calmed the beast in him."

His ears recognize the voice, but his mind has doubts. He cradles his wife into his chest. Her fragrance tantalizes his nose and he hungers for more of her. Images of uncertainty and anger disrupt his good feelings. He loosens his grip on her.

She looks up at him. He turns his head and she rotates his head towards her face. "Why did you stop? What is going on?" She pulls his head down as she raises her heels. Their foreheads meet and she closes her eyes. "Show me your thoughts."

She settles back onto her heels and swipes the moisture from his cheeks. "Oh Sam."

"Before you get too worked up over him, you need to let his mind process his thoughts."

Elsa looks at S5.

"No doubt, you have seen something very stressful to him. He just needs time. Just like putting pages back in a book in the correct order. His mind is doing the same thing."

Elsa asks, "How long?"

"As long, as it takes for him to understand where he is. The 'why' will take a little longer."

"Her statement is correct." With a smile he pulls his wife closer to him as he turns his head towards S5. "You shot me. Could you not have discovered another way?"

S5 places her hand on his shoulder. "If you had given me more time, Pabbie and I may have come up with another plan, but you didn't. I needed to get you under control until Queen Elsa could do her magic." Her brows flicker up twice as she grins at him.

His left brow rises as he stares at Pabbie. "And how long did it take you to stop looking for an alternate solution?"

His head shakes as he answers. "Your stubbornness of not asking for help pushed you to the edge. If you could not get the lost one under control, he would have taken over. Anything, short of what she did would have endangered all of us."

His fingers stroke Elsa's hair. She stares up at him. A short sigh passes between his lips. "They are correct again. I am ninety-nine percent sure I would have done the same thing."

S5 runs her fingers through his hair observing the length. "Besides, Pabbie has never seen an energy weapon from the future fired. I think he enjoyed it, especially, when it hit you the second time."

His stare changes to a glare and he starts to move towards Pabbie. "He did, did he?"

Elsa tightens her grip around his waist.

S5 holds his hair out and lets it fall back. "It is too bad you didn't have long hair at the other locations. You would have been a trend setter in the business world. I think you are quite handsome."

"I do not have to think. I know. He is handsome." Elsa comments as she continues to stare up at him. After a few more seconds, she holds out the medallion to S5. "I guess you want this back."

Sam wraps his hand around the medallion, but does not take it from her. His vision immediately changes to see the blue tint. Multiple colors radiate from the medallion. An emotional surge grips his heart. "This belonged to SaraCat. I gave it to her on her fourteenth birthday. Only three of us can make it work. Two are long dead."

The tears create dark spots on his shirt and a tear lands on Elsa's blouse. "I'm sorry."

He turns his head towards S5. "Do you have access to the ship?"

"Yes, I do."

A blue glow sweeps between the face of the medallion and his thumb. He holds it in the palm of his hand. "Pabbie, I will leave it up to you, but I request, you allow S5 back into my ship where she will recover the data on this disk. Due to the nature of the disk, I will not ask for any conditions, nor will I imply there are any."

S5 slides the medallion from his hand and steps to where Kristoff had been watching the events.

Pabbie waddles to the grave marker stone and speaks in his language. "Who are you?"

Sam slides his feet together. His clenched hands fall to his side as he stands at attention. Elsa's smile fades as she steps back from him. Her hands cross in front and she stands in her regal pose.

Sam continues to focus on her blue eyes and replies in his language. "I am Samuel Christopher Ryan, Admiral, Commanding officer of the United Starship Aurora."

Pabbie asks, "What is the purpose of your ship?"

"Exploration, meet new people, protect the weak, and fight to the death if need be."

"Where is your ship, Aurora?"

"The ship was destroyed to save me." Moisture builds in his eyes again.

"How did the death of your ship save you?"

He waits in silence as he breathes faster and his heart quickens its pace. A tear from each eye rolls down his cheeks.

For several seconds the falling snow makes the only noise. Elsa commands, "Admiral, answer Grand-Pabbie's question."

"The death of my ship gives me the opportunity to save my family."

"You said your family was long dead. How can you save them?" The grave marker begins to radiate a light blue glow.

"If I am in the same timeline as my family, a change now, could save them, then. If this is not the same timeline as they are, nothing I do will change their deaths."

The stone glows brighter. The crystals around Pabbie's neck glow brightly. "If this is the same timeline, how will you know if you have succeeded?"

"I will not know. That is why they pushed me through the gate." The stone's color changes to a teal color.

"Why are you here?"

"To complete my mission."

Queen Elsa asks, "What is your mission?"

"To change the future by building a bridge between my world and your world," he answers as his eyes dart back and forth between her eyes.

"But you will never know if your actions will save your family," Elsa says.

"I will know."

"How?"

"The clues were always there. That is what SaraCat tried to tell me." His left hand breaks formation as it extends to her with his palm up. "Queen Elsa of Arendelle, you are my family. The son and daughter, you will give birth, are my family. Princess Anna and Master Kristoff are a part of your family so they are my family. They will carry the message to her and her mother LadyCat. They will know that I had succeeded."

The stone flares between blue and green. Elsa takes his hand. He steps to her. "I love you so much." His hand touches her children. "We will teach them to honor family and those who are our friends. They will defend and fight for those who need our help. While, we will build the cornerstone of the bridge, they will continue building a bridge and save both of our people."

"Sam, SaraCat was my friend. This is what she wanted and I am happy to have completed her mission." He transforms into a boulder and rolls down the hill.

S5 pulls his hair up and lets it flow through her fingers. "I better follow him before he changes his mind. I will report back with the data." She places her hands on both of their shoulders. "Both of your mothers would be proud to have you as a part of their family."

She walks away from them and stops next to Kristoff. She speaks in his language as she retrieves her weapon from him. "What are the names of your children?"

"Asbjorn and Joan."

Sven sniffs at S5. She pulls a carrot out of her pocket and he eagerly eats it.

"God-bear and God is Gracious, interesting names." She presses a switch on the weapon and it emits a hum that decreases in pitch. Slinging the weapon over her shoulder, S5 follows the path Pabbie traveled.

"My Queen, your time is very soon. Out here would not be the best place to give birth to our children." He holds her hand on his arm. "Master Kristoff, it is time we get Queen Elsa back to the castle. I may not be sure, but Princess Anna may be worried, we are taking so long."

Kristoff leads Sven to the front of the sleigh. "Oh, I'm sure she is worried."

Sam helps Elsa into the sleigh and positions himself so she could recline against him. She nuzzles against his chest.

Kristoff climbs onto the sleigh and comments, "Elsa, you are glowing?"

She smiles at him. "Thank you."

"My dear, you are glowing." A yellowish tint radiates from her exposed flesh.

She tries to get closer to him. "You two stop. You will make me blush."

"No, really." He lifts her hand. "Look at the dark background."

She holds her hand out towards the dark forest. "Why is my hand glowing?"

"Your body is glowing. Do you feel well?" He holds her hand and scans for unusual anomalies, but other than she is radiating yellow energy, he does not see anything wrong.

Her hand rotates and clamps onto his hand. She emits a soft moan.

"Where are you hurting?"

"You do not know, Oohh?" Her other hand rubs low on her belly.

"Kristoff, get us back to the castle as safely as possible, but with some urgency."

"Come on Sven. Let's get back before I become an uncle."

Sven trumpets and pulls the sleigh down the hill onto the road that leads back to Arendelle.

 **End of Chapter**


	99. Chapter 98 It Is Time

**Title: Chapter 98: It is Time**

 **Half a day until correction**

A short time later as they pass through Arendelle, Sam spots Kristen at the foot of the stairs to her apartment. He yells, "Kristen, tell your mother it is time I speak with her."

With a slight nod and a grin Kristen races up the stairs. Before the door closes, he hears her yell. "Mom, Sam is finally ready to talk."

In a swish Sven pulls the sleigh down the street which leads to the castle. Arendelle's flag snaps at attention for a moment to display the yellow crocus on the green and purple background. The flag waves and snaps as if to say, welcome home my Queen. The break in the clouds allows the sun to shine its light through the trees on the top of the western hills. The clock tower strikes the bell three times. With their coats of snow the trees also stand at attention. Several sway as if they were waving to their Queen. As many times as Sam had seen the same image in the background over the years, this time they appear different. The trees are alive along with the cool air. Something is definitely different from yesterday.

Was it yesterday he raced out of the castle to uncover the stone that had his answer? He did not remember. Everything is familiar. A bright spot on the flag pole shines directly into his eyes. He glances down. Elsa smiles up at him. How many times over the years did he look down to see her blue eyes staring up at him, but this moment her blue eyes pierce his heart. That is what is different. She saved him, but this time she saved him from himself.

The sleigh rocks as Sven runs onto the bridge. The castle wall casts a shadow over the bridge. The temperature noticeably drops as the sleigh passes through the gates. The sleigh rocks to a stop in front of the castle.

Elsa grimaces, but she tries to maintain her smile.

Anna, wearing a blue and green dress with wool boots and cape, races down the steps to the sleigh. "Where have the three of you been hiding? Elsa, I have been so worried about you."

 _I am afraid._ Elsa calls to him with her thoughts.

Sam stares at her. "I will not leave you. I will stay with you during the whole process."

Kristoff jumps down as Kai reaches the sleigh. They both reach into the sleigh.

Elsa tightens her grip onto his arm as a tear rolls down her cheek.

"Kristoff, I need a blanket to cover our Queen. I will carry her into the castle."

Reaching under the seat, Kristoff pulls out his emergency blanket and drapes it over Elsa.

"Bring it over my shoulders. No one is to see her."

Kristoff and Kai tuck the blanket around Elsa and over his shoulders.

Sam stands. "Everyone back away." He blinks a long blink and an ice stair forms next to the sleigh. He whispers into the small opening in the blanket covering her head. "I will try to minimize your movement as much as possible." He receives her reply with a groan and her teeth sinking into his upper arm.

He stops at the bottom of the steps and issues orders. "Kristoff, you need to get some water to wash off the damp spot where we were sitting. Kai clear a path between here and the royal suite, also send for the jordmor. Time is very short. Anna, you and Gerda, who will be here in a minute, proceed to the royal suite, or the designated area for our Queen to give birth to our children."

A louder groan sounds from under the blanket followed by a muffled word. "Sam?"

As he moves in a fluid motion up the stairs in front of the castle, everyone follows his instructions.

Gerda meets them at the door. "Is it –"

He interrupts as he passes her, "It is time."

After a few minutes, Sam eases his wife onto her bed. Anna pulls the blanket off her head. Beads of sweat drench Elsa's face and stains the top of her dress. She does not let go of his arm.

Gerda gasps as she covers the rip in his sleeve. "Sam, you are bleeding. Let me look at that." With wide eyes she stares up at him. "What happened?"

"I owe you an explanation, but in due time."

Gerda tilts her head up at him. "How are you feeling?"

He pats her hand. "My heart rate is elevated. I can feel her pain. It is uncomfortable."

"I bet you were feeling comfortable under the circumstance that put her in the condition she is in now," comments a gruff voice.

Bent slightly over the bed where Elsa is still holding onto him, he peeks under his arm. Walking towards him she nods her head. He replies, "I knew those words would come back to haunt me. I was hoping it would not be you."

The old jordmor, Teah, pinches his bottom. "It is not funny now is it? She has a good grip onto your arm." She slides her hand on Elsa's face. "Why is she in pain? Why have you not used your magic to reduce her pain? Maybe I should grab your lower lip and pull it over your head so you can have an idea as to how much pain she is in."

"I am quite aware of her pain. Is Leda on the way or will I have the privilege of listening to your insults that I'm sure you are begging to throw them at me." He answers.

She grabs a fist full of his hair and pulls his head towards her face. His body torques as he tries not to disrupt Elsa's hold on his arm. "My daughter will be here soon enough. I still say the husband should be out of the room until after the baby is born, but I cannot deny our Queen's mother had a less stressful time, twice. Princess Anna seemed in better spirits as well, after her children were born. The husbands definitely showed more respect for what their mates had to go through."

She twists his hair more. "You help to ease their pain, so why not help the Queen's pain?"

Elsa groans as she rolls onto her back and releases his arm. "Because he is doing as I have asked of him."

Teah releases his hair and slides her hands over Elsa's belly.

"Sam, if you can do anything to help with the pain that will not interfere with the births or knock me out." Elsa groans as her body tenses.

"First, let's remove your clothes."

The Teah and Sam rolls Elsa onto her side away from them. He kneels at the side of the bed and probes her lower back. Gerda reaches over him to help the Teah unfasten Elsa's clothes. They slip her arm out of the clothes. Anna, on the bed, kneels beside her sister and removes the ornaments holding Elsa's hair up. Sam slides his hand along her back and inside of her dress. His fingers expel a minuscule spark into Elsa's lower back. She tenses for a moment and relaxes immediately.

"Oh God that feels good," she coos.

"You have two minutes to position her, before the pains come back." He continues to press her lower back.

In less than a minute, they had Elsa's clothes off. Gerda carries them out of the room. Anna and Teah cover her with a blanket. Leda with a satchel bag enters the room.

Leda checks Elsa. "This may take a while. I do not detect either one moving to be born first."

"Here you go old man." Leda slaps a warm cloth wrapped around a bunch of husk against his neck.

He places the warm cloth under the blanket and slides the cloth down her abdomen. "Say when?" The cloth presses against her thighs. "You did hear my comment to say when?"

She nods with a smile.

"Lower?"

Her head barely nods.

His hand slides between her knees and lifts her legs. He pushes the warm cloth further down.

Elsa grins.

Anna slides a pillow between her knees where his hand was. "I know this can take some time before either of them will move. We can watch her. I am sure she will let you know if she needs you."

"Thank you." He covers Elsa and sniffs her ear. "There is a disturbance outside of the castle affecting my energy. I will be back shortly."

Elsa turns her head towards him as she grips a fist full of his hair. "You said you would be here the whole time."

"The anomaly is probably someone having a strong emotion. Let me make sure. I don't want any surprises. Our children are side by side. Until one moves to be born, you will be here several hours from now. Let me go check. I'll be back before you know it and I'll rub your lower back."

She releases his hair and pulls him to her lips. After the kiss, she bites his nose. "Do not forget me, Samuel Ryan."

"I will not forget. That is my promise to you and our children." He stares into her eyes. She is struggling with her fear. He whispers, "Let me ease the pain just enough, so you can sleep. It will wake you up. When the pain subsides, you will fall back to sleep." His lips brush across her cheek. "I will stay in the castle until our children breathe the cold air."

He brushes the few strands of her hair off her cheek. A tiny spark leaps from his finger to the slight indentation behind her eye. After a few seconds her eyes close. She takes a deep breath and sighs. He stands and tucks the blanket around his Queen.

His hand slides across her abdomen. "Okay, it is time for you to come out."

By the door the Leda narrows her eyes at him. "You think you can command them to come out?"

His finger crosses his lips as he glances back at Elsa and whispers, "They will arrive when they are ready. I just let them know it is time." He walks past her into the hall. The door closes behind him.

Kristoff meets him at the top of the stairs. "You're not staying?"

He points to the foyer. "There is a disturbance in the force and I believe it is about to enter."

A guard gets the latch unlocked and turns the handle. A cold gust blows the door and the guard against the wall. Snow charges into the foyer and litters the floor with droplets of water. Kai runs towards the door and helps the guard to close it.

Kai says, "Is he expecting you?" A momentary twinkle flashes in the foyer like the head of a match sparking to life. "I understand. You are always welcomed here."

Sam detects only Kai and the guard, but what he does not detect, tenses his muscles to spring into action. She steps into the lower hall and stares directly at him. He pushes Kristoff back against the wall and jumps over the rail. The movement of her eyes watches his feet hit the lower floor and his knees bend to rapidly slow his body. The absorbed energy from the fall explodes to extend his legs. He sprints across the floor.

His mind does not see her, but his eyes register she is there. Even her hair radiates the yellow glow belonging to only those selected to be a part of the Sariphan First Contact team. The distance between them closes rapidly, but she does not raise her arms in defense. His feet decelerates as fast as they started and stop at shoulder width apart with his right foot ahead of his left foot. Less than a meter from her, her feet dangle above the floor as he holds her up against the wall.

A groan of a whimper barely escapes her lips as she struggles to release his hand from around her throat. A short bladed ice knife forms in his left hand angled back to strike a death into her body.

Her hair glows brighter and he hears in the Sariphan language. _Samuel, have you forgotten me?_

He replies and his hand closes. "No, Sariphan has ever broken past my defenses. How have you done so?"

Two small arms wrap around his knife arm as a pair of legs stand on his left leg. With a high pitch scream stabbing into his ears. His friend screams at him. "Let go of my mother."

He stares at her before his mind understood what she was saying. "Kristen?"

She pulls the knife from his hand and turns it towards him. She screams again. "Let my mother go."

The point of a sword presses into the base of his skull. "Let her go or you will not see your CHILDREN," growls Anna.

His head turns. Despite her purplish red face and bulging eyes, he recognizes his one friend who always believed in him, no matter what. His hand loosens its grip from her throat and he eases her to the floor as he kneels. The cold ice of the knife presses against the side of his neck.

"Get away from my mother." The blade cuts through the first layer of skin.

Slowly he steps to the side with the sword still pressed into his neck. Gasping for air, Brigit pushes her daughter's hand away from his neck. She motions for Anna to back away. In a scraggly voice she whispers, "It is not his fault? He does not remember me."

"But you are Brigit, my friend." He shakes his head and looks down.

"Is that how you greet friends by choking them to death? I should have known better. You have not changed. You may fool Elsa, but you do not fool me."

"Anna, what are you doing?" Kristoff wrestles the sword from her hand.

"He tried to kill her, while her Kristen watched. He deserves to die." Anna kicks at Sam and the toe of her boot impacts behind his ear, causing him to fall onto his side. She kicks her foot at him again.

Kristoff picks Anna up and turns her before her boot hits Sam. He carries towards the stairs. "What has gotten into you? He is Queen Elsa's husband. This is not the way royalty treats others, even if you do not like him."

A small warm hand, radiating a different, but familiar energy touches the cut on the side of his neck and head. The tips of her hair flicker between red and orange like that of the sun. The warmth of the sun awakens and focuses a part of his memories once locked away in the cold dark corner of his mind.

Sam rolls onto his back and his hand mirrors a touch to the side of her neck. Comfort and peace overcome his doubts. She leans forward and he closes his eyes as her head touches his forehead. The memories of their past actions give him a wealth of warmth. The emotions open the spillway for his tears and flow they do.

"I'm sorry. I am so sorry for what I did."

She sits back and whispers, "You have nothing to be sorry about."

Barely auditable he whispers, "On the hill I buried you, Krystal."

Standing behind her, Kristen rest her hands on her mother's shoulders. Half way up from the tips, her hair undulates between red, orange, and yellow colors like the sun. She smiles down at him. "Use your logic to answer your comment." She asks, "If you knew Krystal had not died, would you have become involved with Queen Elsa?"

"Probably not." He tries to smile, but the sting from the cut behind his ear radiates a throbbing pain.

"Probably?" Krystal asks.

"You are correct. Her father would not have been of any value to me. King Agnarr and Queen Iduna would have died before Elsa could be born, let alone her sister." He forces a smile despite the pain. "We were a great team. How did you, fool me and why?"

She shrugs. "I suspect you were too distraught to detect my low life signs and you buried me. A certain troll dug me up."

"Why am I not surprised he would be involved." Krystal and Kristen help him sit up.

Anna wraps her arms around his neck and falls into him. "I do not know why this keeps happening to me. You get angry and I get a strong urge to hurt you."

"Do you want me to fix her?" Kristen grins.

"Can she?" With his left brow raised, Sam glances at Krystal.

She shrugs.

"Watch." Kristen touches four specific points on the side of Anna's face and neck. Her other hand grabs his neck. A flash of light encompasses them and it fades. "Mister Kristoff, your wife will be disorientated for a few minutes. Tell her she also most passed out from the excitement of her sister's pregnancy."

Kristoff stares at Kristen. "Why would she believe that?"

Krystal grabs his hand. "Because you believe it. Right?"

After a moment Kristoff blinks. "Yes, her excitement. Come on Anna. Let's get a drink of water before going back upstairs."

Sam waits until Anna and Kristoff disappear down the hall towards the kitchen. "I thought it takes many years of practice to do what Kristen just did."

"She has her brother and a few his of friends to practice on." Krystal slowly turns her head towards her daughter. "But obviously not under my supervision, just in case something went wrong."

Sam stands. "And how many times did I say that to you?"

Krystal glances past him. "Kristen is not the only one who can manipulate others." She grins.

"What are you smiling at?"

"Listen."

"When did I take your heart?" A sweet voice asks from the top of the stairs. Queen Elsa leans against the second floor rail. She adjusts the blanket draped over her shoulders to keep from exposing herself.

Sam stares up at her. His vision tunnels to see only her.

She asks again. "When did I take your heart?"

In a sprint across the floor, he takes the stairs three steps at a time and stands on the first step from the top. Guilt drapes its blanket over his head. With a hard swallow, he answers, "When I saved you." Pulling on her blanket she steps closer and he wraps his arms around her.

"Why are you out here?"

"I felt your distress. You were sad. I wanted to remind you, you are not alone. We are in this together."

"I'm sorry. My mind is still sorting. I hope afterwards I will be able to control my emotions projecting onto you." He looks at her belly. "You are in pain."

Clenching her jaw with a forced grin, she holds her breath.

"Do you want me to help," he stops and focuses on her eyes. "Your mother told you to do this. The close proximity of my energy has induced your labor. Do you need help back to the room?"

She nods her head rapidly.

With a wave of his hands, an incline chair of ice forms behind her. He guides her back and wraps the blanket around her with the opening in the back. She maintains eye contact with him. He lowers her onto the chair and moves the blanket to allow her back direct contact with the ice. The tension in her jaw lessens and her eyes partially close.

As he tucks the blanket around her, he whispers into her ear. "I will not leave you. You are my wife and companion. Soon you will deliver two healthy children. I will hold your hand through the process if you wish."

She barely nods and whispers, "Thank you."

Snapping his finger and motioning in an upward motion, a cushion of air lifts the recliner several centimeters above the floor. He holds her hand and easily slides the recliner across the hall floor. He notes the door to the Royal Suite is open and hears running behind them.

Kristoff and Anna runs into the room. "I told him he could get his own drink of water. Has she started?"

Sam lightly pushes Elsa's hair back and kisses her forehead. "My love, I know they can be a pain, but they are here to help you." He kneels next to the recliner. "I will be right here."

With a smile Elsa cups his face. "What happened to your neck?"

"A slight misunderstanding,"

"You probably deserved it." A twinkle in her eyes flash at him as her hand strikes his face with a loud pop. "You did this to me, you brute."

"I do not recall you complaining last spring. Your mother did tell you the circumstances that would cause these two babies to get in here." His finger taps her belly.

She grabs his hand and clenches her eyes closed as she moans, "Awwwwwww, one is moving."

"Don't hold your breath, keep breathing."

Her eyes open with a hint of anger as she snaps at him. "I am breathing. You did that on purpose."

"Three females, so far, are you trying to get all of them mad at you?" Kristoff grins.

"That has never been my intent." Sam pushes the ice recliner into the next room.

Elsa giggles.

"What is funny?" Sam asks.

"My water broke." Elsa giggles again.

"It will not be long now." Leda comments. "This is a nice setup with the recliner. You know, if it splits enough to allow the babies to be delivered, it will make life easier for her."

"In due time we shall see." He grins back at her.

The rest of the evening passes with moans and finger nails piercing flesh. The tower clock strikes eleven. The stars continue to wink out as clouds roll across the area. Small snowflakes ride the gentle northern breeze into the valley. As time progresses, the small snowflakes gradually become larger and more frequent. The breeze increases into a strong wind driving the snow at an angle.

Several castle fireplaces crackle and pop to keep the few staff members warm as they wait for the new arrivals, including the fireplace in the Queen's outer room.

Kristoff enters the outer room and warms his hands by the fireplace. Anna lies on the covered floor with Joan and Asbjorn snuggles next to her. She slips away from her children and tiptoes to her husband.

Kristoff peeks at his children. "How are they doing?"

"They are doing fine. They would not sleep if I was not in the same room as them. I wanted to be near Elsa when the time comes, but they sure are taking their sweet time."

He tucks a couple strands of red hair behind her ear. "I do recall those two took their sweet time arriving."

Anna shivers, "It seems to be getting colder."

He positions her closer to the fire. "It is. The more it snows, the faster the cold wind blows down from the north. The ground is already frozen and covered with a layer of snow. At this rate, we may have a meter and a half or two by morning." He glances at the bedroom door. "Do you think she is making it colder?"

Anna rolls her eyes, "If she is, it will be really cold before morning."

A loud moan resonates against the bedroom door. Anna glances at her children, then rests her head against his chest.

"Why not go in there and see how your sister is doing? I'm sure she would enjoy your company." He kisses her forehead.

She peers up at him with a smile, then looks past him. "If they wake up?"

"We will be alright. Go be with her."

She pulls his head down to her and passionately kisses him. "Thank you."

The bedroom door opens and closes behind him.

With wide eyes Anna asks, "What happened to your arms?"

Sam chips at the ice surrounding his arm. "It was bad enough she gripped my arm, but with each moan, it has progressed from piercing her fingernails to freezing my arm."

Elsa reaches out to her. "Anna, please forgive me. I am so sorry."

"Sorry about what?" Anna holds her hand.

Tears roll down her face. "When you moaned and complained before Asbjorn was born, I thought you were playing for Kristoff's sympathy, but God this hurts. Please forgive me. I did not—" Elsa's face grimaces.

Sam roughly removes Anna's hand and grips Elsa's hand as she generates frost. Anna holds her hand close to her heart as she backs away. Frost wraps around both of their hands. Elsa relaxes onto her recliner and the frost gradually melts.

The clock in the outer room chimes. He gazes at the windows with the layer of snow collecting against it. The clock strikes the twelfth chime. The air pressure in the room drops as a gust of wind slams against the window. Several others comment about their ears popping. He kneels next to the chair and strokes her face.

She opens her eyes and rubs her belly as she smiles at him.

"Happy Birthday pretty lady, at least I only have to remember one birthday for my family."

"The pain has noticeably eased."

He kisses her forehead. "Good, it will give you a chance to drink water and to move around."

Early in the morning the clock in the outer room chimes four times. The wind outside of the window, dies down. Everyone looks towards the window. Elsa emits a low moan that gradually increases in pitch.

Sam reaches for her hand, but she grabs his leg. A layer of ice forms on his trousers. With a sharp inhale and she holds her breath, her body tenses pulling her to a sitting position. Four ice spikes drive into his thigh.

"Please get them out. God, it hurts."

His fingers slide two-thirds of the way down her spine and presses between two vertebras. His finger fires a small electrical arc. He shifts his weight off his injured leg.

Her moans rapidly decrease and her upper body sways. He lowers her back onto the recliner. Anna dabs the sweat from her brows. She rolls her head and smiles up at her sister. "How did you do this? You seem to have tolerated the pain far greater than I am."

The Teah reaches under the Else's blanket and comments, "I will have to disagree. She did her share of moaning and complaining before her twins were born." She glances towards his injury. "I hope that is not blood staining your trouser."

"It's mostly water with some blood." He slides his hand over the dark spots. A thick layer of ice forms around his leg

Elsa looks in his direction and leans towards him. "I am so sorry. Let me apply the ice."

Anna grabs her arm.

He holds her hand and pushes her back onto the recliner. "My leg will be alright in a couple of hours. Hopefully, it will be healed so I can hold our children."

He kneels holding a cup. "Just relax and take little pieces of ice to quench your thirst."

She sighs as he lightly strokes her face and her eyes close.

A short time later, Elsa opens her eyes and grins. She wraps her arms around his arm and giggles.

"Why is she laughing?" Anna asks.

"I think that is only temporary. I may have reduced the pain too much. When they start out, she will not be laughing."

Teah pulls the blanket up. "Don't let her grab you. The first one has moved."

He pushes on her shoulder. "Lean back."

Leda looks up at him as he jams his four fingers into the ice in front of her. His hand slices through the ice to Elsa's bottom. The ice moves along the split to create a 'Vee'-shaped recliner.

"This is a very clever idea. Keep the mother inclined and allow a jordmor better access to assist in delivery without having to constantly move the mother. You could make money with this idea."

"Then I give it to you and pray you will make a fortune with it."

Elsa leans forward and moans. A gale force wind howls and slams into to the window.

The Leda darts her hands in as a tiny head crest. The first child slides out. Elsa drops back on the recliner. The wind stops as quickly as it started. Anna wipes the sweat from her sister's face.

The Teah and a staffer tend to the baby who shortly emits a soft moan followed by a healthy crying sound.

The Gerda announces, "Majesty, you have a Princess."

Anna says, "And look at that hair."

In the outer room the clock chimes five times. Elsa groans and leans forward.

Teah hurriedly hands, his baby girl to him. "Dad, be useful and hold your Princess."

A large tear races down his cheek upon seeing his baby girl. Memories from his past invade his mind. As SaraCat brought him to an emotional high, this little girl brings him to the same level. He gently rests her head against his neck. Her cries quickly subside. His hands completely hide her tiny body.

In the background, Leda says. "Number two is on the way." Elsa groans.

His world focuses on his little girl. Her heart beats rapidly and her tiny hands open and close. He lightly combs her hair with his fingers and closes his eyes. In his mind, he hears a tiny laughter and a tug on his heart. He smiles.

"Majesty, you have a Prince."

A cold hand touches his arm. His eyes open to a blurry vision of their Princes resting in Elsa's arms. He kneels next to her and close the 'Vee' in the recliner.

Anna pulls the blanket up to cover most of her sister as Elsa reach for her baby.

Sam lowers his baby girl into Elsa's arms, "Erika, this is your mother, and my wife. You should be able to recognize the sound of her heart beating."

Through her own tears, Elsa asks, "How did you know I wanted to name her, Erika?"

He wipes the tears from his face. "Always Rule, that is what your mother said. She hoped you would always rule. Erika means 'Always rule'.

Elsa snuggles Erika and she opens her eyes for a moment and looks at him. "I can feel Sara's heart beating."

"Sara?" His eyes dart to her.

"Erika Sara Ryan." She pulls his face down to her and kisses his cheek. "Do you mind? In honor of your SaraCat, her efforts brought you to me. She is the next stone to your bridge."

He lightly strokes both of their hair and kisses her. "I am sure SaraCat is honored as you have honored me."

Anna stands next to him. He looks up as she lowers his son into his arms. "So young man, what will we call you? What about Agnarr?"

"Second name maybe, how about Christopher Agnarr Ryan?" Elsa smiles at him.

He stares at his son for a moment. "Are we setting an expectation or standard that he may not be able to meet."

"You do not like Christopher Agnarr Ryan?"

"In the order of his name, it means 'Bearing of Christ, Edge of sword warrior, and Kingly. He would be a Kingly warrior with a tongue as sharp as the edge of a sword proclaiming Christ."

Both her brows rise as she continues to smile.

"You may be correct to honor him, but it could be a tragedy if he fails."

"Samuel Ryan, you will allow our children to fail?"

His son opens his eyes at him. "I will teach, no, we will teach them all we know, but a time will come when they will have to choose."

Anna slaps the back of his head. "She said if they turn out like the two of you, they will choose correctly." She leans on his shoulder. "Well, mom, are you going to waste your milk or feed your children?"

Anna positions a pillow to support Erika. Teah assists Elsa and Erika latches on. He rocks back to his feet before the jordmor pushes him out of the way. Anna positions another pillow. Teah takes Christopher from him and in a few seconds, he latches on for his first feeding.

Leda turns Sam towards the door. "Blow your wife a kiss and get out until we can clean up this mess."

He turns his head and with a nod, he blows a kiss to Elsa. The door closes behind him. He staring at his hands.

"I guess the smile on your face is an indication everything came out ok." Kai holds a drink in front of him.

Gerda passes Kristoff a drink as he comments. "The storm stopped a short while ago, very strange."

Sam takes the drink and gulps down half of it. He barely nods his head as he comments. "I have a baby girl and a son." He wipes his eyes with the back of his hand.

"Oh, I know that feeling." Kristoff walks over to him. "I will proclaim what you said to me. I will be there for you."

Gerda rubs the back of his arm. "We will be here for you and the birthday Queen."

He glances over his shoulder. "We will be here for her." He glances at the balcony window. "Birthday? When did the storm stop?"

Kai glances between Gerda and Kristoff. "Maybe a half-hour ago."

Sam stares at the clock. The face reads 5:25. "A half hour ago?"

Kai stands next to him and opens a small book. "Let me see," he turns the page and slides his finger down the page. "Aw yes, the winter solstice was scheduled for fifty-four minutes and fifty seconds after 4 o'clock this morning. About the time the storm stopped." With a grin he asks, "Gerda, my dear, who else do we know was born on the winter solstice?"

Gerda hooks her arm through Sam's arm as she taps her forehead. "Let me see. It was some time ago. I know she grew into a beautiful blonde hair little girl."

Kai comments tapping his chin. "That's right. She had that horse's arse wrapped around her little finger and caused him to lose his mind. Now who was she?"

Kristoff snickers. "It sounds like Queen Elsa."

"So it is." Kai grins.

Gerda slaps his back. "So which one came out first?"

Sam bows his head with a half-smile, "Erika Sara Ryan."

"A girl," Kai chuckles, "I had hoped I would live long enough to see a precious little girl torture you, again."

"She has her mother's hair." He fluffs his own. "And my son's hair is just like mines." He grins at both of them. "This time no one will stop me from teaching them how to use their ice powers responsibly. And yes, I will get her permission when she is around"

A moment later the door opens and a snow ball hits the back of his head. The door slams shut. They watch his expression.

He smiles. "Okay, she has completed their first training session. Hopefully at some point, I told her every time she uses her powers around them, they will be watching and want to mimic her."

He gulps down the last swallow in the glass. A twinge pulls on his heart and he looks towards the window. A flash of color reflects off the window in a specific sequence. The hall door slams open. Sam races down the hall and up the stairs. Down the hall and up more stairs, he runs. Finally, he climbs the ladder and slam his shoulder into the door. The lock releases its hold and the door swings freely. Sam holds the north window open. A cold breeze surrounds him. A stream of multi-color sparkles floats up from the northern mountain. The twinge on his heart lessens. They were not just lights. His heart knew the meaning as if she was telling him, he did save their future. As the last sparkle races after the others, it fades. He falls to his knees. His eyes do not hold back the flood. "You were correct all alone my sweet pea. SaraCat, your mother and I have always been proud of you."

 **Correction Completed**

 **End of Chapter**


	100. Chapter 99 The Future Knows

**Title: Chapter 99: The Future Knows**

 **4 months after completion**

Four months later.

"Please take her. She will not go to sleep until you sing to her." Elsa lays Erika in his arms before he could protest.

Sam cradles her and slips out from under the bed sheet. "Well, if you are going to stay awake, maybe we should take a walk and see if we can catch a guard nodding off."

Elsa rolls onto her other side holding Christopher. "Ok, young man, it is your turn to eat."

Erika pulls on his shirt. He lifts her up to his shoulder as he slips on his boots. She holds her head up.

"Elsa look. Erika is pushing her head up." Her arms collapse and she head-butts his lower lip. "Oh, never mind." She mouths his shirt.

Elsa giggles, "She did that to me yesterday."

"Why didn't you tell me this yesterday?"

"Because it sounded like it hurt you as much as it hurt me." She giggles.

"Very funny."

"I did not want you to be deprived of her activities. And I will not tell you what she does when she pushes on your chest."

He holds Erika away from his chest and makes a face at her. "Are you conniving with your mother against me?" The whites of her eyes change to a barely noticeable blue. "Uh, sweetie, I think she is testing her powers."

"In what way?"

"Her eyes have a hint of blue in them."

"I noticed it the day before yesterday, but I was not sure." She adjusts Christopher and slurping sounds from him. After a moment the slurping changes to swallowing.

"What other signs are they doing to show their powers?"

"Let her pee on you and you will find out."

"The joys of being a parent." Sam grabs her blanket as he walks towards the door. "Now Sweet Pea, what magic can you do with your pee." The bedroom door closes.

An hour after breakfast, Anna and Kristoff sitting next to each other near at the bottom of the stairs hold Joan and Asbjorn. Elsa carrying Erika and Christopher walks out of the dining room. Gerda and Kai follow her and carry two baskets.

Elsa glances around the lower room, before looking upstairs. "He said he would meet us here. Where is he?"

"I believe he said he would be back in a moment before running back upstairs." Kai answers.

"That was ten minutes ago." Gerda grins as she looks up the stairs.

"Oh shoot." Sliding on the handrail, Sam flips back off the rail several steps above Anna and falls to the floor with a loud thud. Slowly he rolls to his feet. Erika begins to cry.

Elsa frowns at him. "Why did you have to scare her? Why did you not just walk down the stairs like everyone else?"

He picks up the papers and quills he dropped from the fall. "Really, when have you ever seen me do anything like everyone else, especially the stairs, right Princess Anna?"

She rebuffs, "Do not bring me into this. I know how to slide down the rail without falling."

Erika buries her face in her mother's dress and wails. Elsa glares at him. "You did this. No magic, get her to stop crying or this trip is cancelled."

Setting his papers on the floor, he cradles her in his arms so she can see him. With a blink his vision sees a momentary blue tint. Erika watches him and her wailing reduces but not completely.

"What do you want me to do?"

She sneezes and coughs at the same time. Her tears begin to roll.

He hums his disagreement with her as he wipes her sneeze off her clothes. Her blue eyes lock onto his eyes. "Really, I think I know what may help."

Elsa narrows her eyes at him. "You did not do what I think you just did?"

With a grin he continues to focus on Erika. "She did it first. My sweet girl, do you like music? I hope this song will soothe your heart." As his fingers lightly touch her face, he begins to sing at an octal higher than his baritone voice.

" _Come stop your crying. It will be alright. Just take my hand, and hold it tight_ , _"_ he touches her hand and she closes her hand around his small finger. Exhaling a puff of air into her face, her eyes stay focused on his eyes.

" _For one so small, you seem so strong. My arms will hold you, Keep you safe and warm. This bond between us, Can't be broken, I will be here, Don't you cry."_ Her tears stop and she grips his finger tighter.

" _Because you'll be in my heart,"_ Erika grins. _"Yes, you'll be in my heart. From this day on, now and forever more, You'll be in my heart. No matter what they say, you'll be here in my heart, Always."_

Elsa stands next to him and positions Christopher, in her arms, so he can see his father.

A quick glance at his son and wife forces his cheeks to move and his lips to curl up. He continues without missing a beat. _"Why can't they understand the way we feel, they just don't trust what they can't explain. I know we're different, but deep inside us, We're not that different at all"_

He focuses on Elsa. _"And you'll be in my heart, Yes, you'll be in my heart, from this day on, now and forever more."_

He quickly puckers his lips as if to kiss her. _"Don't listen to them. Cause what do they know? We need each other, to have, to hold, they'll see in time, I know."_

He kisses Erika's little hand. _"When destiny calls you, you must be strong. I may not be with you, but you got to hold on. They'll see in time, I know, we'll show them together."_

He looks to Christopher. _"Because you'll be in my heart, believe me, you'll be in my heart. I'll be there from this day on, Now and forever more."_

He shifts his arm holding Erika so his hand can grab Elsa's arm. "You'll be in my heart, no matter what they say. You'll be here in my heart, always. I'll be with you. I'll be there for you always. Just look over your shoulder."

He touches Christopher. _"Just look over your shoulder."_

He blows Erika a kiss. _"Just look over your shoulder, I'll be there, Always."_

"You made up that song?" Anna asks.

"No, it will be written by a gentleman named Phil Collins. He will make this song to change the hearts of those who do not know." He lightly kisses Elsa's forehead. Erika yawns and with a deep breath sighs as her eyes close. She continues to hold his finger.

Christopher sleeps in Elsa's arms.

Gerda stuffs his papers and quills in one of the baskets. "I don't know why you are bringing this. It looks like your hands are full." She grins as she walks towards the doors.

Sam retrieves Erika's blanket and drip cloth from Elsa's shoulder. Placing the drip cloth over his shoulder, he gently lays Erika's head on his shoulder and wraps her blanket around her. She grabs his collar and positions her head against his neck.

"And you did it with one hand," Kristoff comments.

"Practice my dear sir, even though it was a very long time ago, I still remember as if it was yesterday." He adjusts Christopher's blanket as Elsa wraps him. She repositions her son on her right shoulder. Sam holds out his hand. Elsa loops her arm around his arm and adjust Christopher's blanket. Sam stutter-steps, so their legs next to each other move together.

They follow Gerda out the castle doors. At the bottom of the steps an enclosed Royal Coach with four horses wait for its passengers. Eight non-descript riders wait near the gates.

Sam holds Christopher while Elsa enters the coach. Anna follows her. Anna takes Joan and Elsa takes Christopher. Anna takes Asbjorn. Elsa reaches for Erika, but she wakes and her lower lip protrudes out.

Sam looks inside of the coach. The modification to the front bench to hold four small inclined cushioned seats worked great. The children can see their mothers and mom does not have to hold them on the whole trip. He closes the door as Erika sheds a few tears.

Kristoff jumps onto Sven's back. Sam climbs on to Aurora, then a wailing cry sounds from inside of the coach. Everyone looks in the direction of the coach, including the two guards crossing the courtyard.

Kristoff nudges Sven next to Sam. "She has a very healthy voice."

He grins. "Just wait." In a few second increments, each of the other children begins to cry. "Come on Captain. Our women folks need our help."

He climbs down. Just as he reaches for the coach door, it swings open. Elsa holds Erika out to him. He snuggles Erika in his arms and strokes her hair. A wet spot forms where her tears touched his shirt. As quickly as she started, she calms down. Holding the collar of his shirt, she nuzzles his neck. Kristoff holds Asbjorn and the cries in the coach diminishes and shortly stop. Kristoff passes Asbjorn back to Anna.

Sam stands by the door and starts to lift Erika, but she whimpers. He glances into the coach.

With a raised right brow Elsa comments, "Really? You wish to start the crying again?"

He stares at Elsa and grins. "If you are okay with her riding with me, I will take good care of her."

"If I did not know better, I think you did that on purpose, so she could ride with you." Elsa winks at him.

"I have no doubt he did it on purpose." Anna smiles at him.

Aurora sniffs Erika's hair and snorts with a low rumble.

From inside the coach Elsa snaps her fingers at Aurora. "That is my baby you are talking about. You behave or I will have your hair trimmed like the other horses." Aurora shakes her head, causing her hair to float in the air. "Yes, I will," Elsa responds.

He grabs Aurora's reins and touches his head to her. "Why would you pick a fight with your Queen? Have you not learned, she commands both of us?" Aurora emits several rumbles. "You do know your Queen can understand what you are saying?"

Aurora turns her head towards the coach. Elsa shakes her fist at her. Sam sweeps his hand and creates an ice stairs. He walks up the stairs and swings his leg on to Aurora. As his boot separate from the ice, it begins to melt. He glances into the coach and mouths the words, 'are you sure?'

She nods. He feels a tapping on his boot. Gerda holds up a worm folded blanket.

He sweeps his hand and the almost melted ice reforms.

She walks up the ice stairs and loops the folded blanket over his left shoulder. "Slide your right arm through."

"And what am I supposed to do with this?"

She ignores his question and goes about her work. After a few minutes of adjustments, Erika still sleeps holding onto his collar and snuggled against his chest. "See, it frees both of your arms and holds her securely against you. Loosen it here and she will be held in the pouch." She makes a final adjustment. "You don't recognize it, do you?"

"It looks familiar, but I have seen several women carrying their babies in this."

She grins. "Ingrid carried her blonde hair little one in this particular one." They both look at a smiling Queen.

Gerda walks up the stairs to the castle and stands next to Kai.

Sam taps Aurora with the heel of his boots and she walks towards the gate. The eight non-descript riders mount their horses. Sven and Kristoff lead the coach in line behind Aurora. Sam stops Aurora in front of the eight riders. He nods to them. Each wears the subdued patch belonging to the Knights of Arendelle.

He motions to Kristoff. "Captain, lead the way."

Four knights follow Kristoff. He nudges Aurora behind them. The coach follows him and four knights follow the coach. Through the town, many citizens wave to the parade of horses passing them. Several women make comments. "Ah, Daddy is taking his little girl on her first horse ride. Too bad the men around here are not as carrying." And he received negative comments. "Maybe, he wants to know what it feels like to be pregnant. Looks like he is trying to show the wife who has the bigger boobs." But one comment gets his attention. "The Queen obviously cannot feed both of her children, so the one he carries will be left for the wolves."

Aurora turns around and walks back towards the older man wearing the symbols for the Jensen family. A young boy and a younger man stand next to the elder.

"Samuel, what are you doing?" Elsa calls from the coach as it passes by him.

One of the rear riders stops short of the three men. Sam slides off Aurora. As his boots hit the ground, his left hand covers Erika with an ice shield and he swings his right arm up with an ice sword. The tip nicks the elder's chin.

The young man pushes the boy into a door frame and reaches for a sword hidden in a bundle of firewood. The rider leaps off his horse and runs onto the wooden sidewalk. The tip of his sword slides between the young man's hand and the sword's guard to prevent its removal. The young man grabs the young boy and scurries through the doorway.

The elder man takes a step back and wipes the blood from his chin. His left hand reaches behind his back.

"Are you willing to die for a stupid comment?" Sam glares.

The elder man takes another step back and slowly reveals his empty hand. "My mistake, I meant no harm."

The rider removes the knife tucked in the back of the elder's trouser and holds it up for all to see. "Your mistake is thinking he would not hear you."

The elder moves back until he is against the wall and the sword presses against his throat. Sam emits a low growl. "I can barely tolerate someone making comments against my Queen, but to threaten the life of my child." He presses the sword into the elder's throat. "You are marked. This is your one and only warning. Next time I will not hesitate to kill you and ten of your immediate family or friends. I don't care as long as there are ten bodies for all to see."

Sam steps back, and the sword falls cutting the elder's shirt and the side of his trousers. A thin red line forms where the sword touched the exposed skin. The rider mounts his horse. Aurora moves next to Sam and watches the older man. Sam mounts Aurora as she and the rider's horse trot up the road. They catch up to the others as they exit through the wall.

He rides alongside of the coach. He pats Aurora's neck and she rumbles a sound. Sam closes his eyes and scans the area. He can never be too careful after an encounter. They may have been the distraction while others wait in ambush further up the road. The only thing he sees and feels is a warm gentle breeze. A few flower blooms sway, but no intruders.

After several minutes, he holds up his right hand and signals. Two of the rear riders move in line behind Aurora. Sam closes his right hand and creates two small disks of ice. He flicks one disk over his shoulder. The first rider catches it and slips it into his mouth, then leads his horse off the left side of the road. Sam flicks the second disk. The second rider consumes the disk and leads his horse off the right side of the road.

Aurora nudges closer to the coach. Sam grabs Elsa's hand. "See what I see." Through the eyes of the two riders riding on the ridges to either side of the road, each rider scans the area. The right rider glimpses in the direction of Arendelle. A few shimmering lights reflect off the castle's window. As his head sweeps the area, colorful images of the animals shine through the forest. Smaller animals scurry across a field. The left rider also glimpses in the direction of Arendelle, but sees dark blues snaking its way through the landscape. The most important is what Sam does not see, no humans in the area.

Elsa taps his hand. "How far can you see like this?"

He sits back on Aurora as he adjusts Erika's blanket. "From the castle, you saw me up on the mountain. It is not the distance that matters, but who is there. With enough concentration, I see what the person sees and they can be physically on the other side of the Earth." He glances towards the riders moving through a bend in the road. "I do not believe the King and Queen understood when I said," He looks directly into her blue eyes. "There is no place on this planet they could hide you or your sister. I would find you."

From inside of the coach Anna asks, "Would you really have taken us away from our parents?"

Considering his answer, he decides to speak the truth. "Shall I point out the obvious? They did not have a strong advisor to show them their mistakes. The ones, they trusted, were setting them up for failure. Not by my choice—" he looks down at Erika. She moans and he snuggles her closer.

He passes Elsa a half-smile as she stares intently at him. "Let me retract my comment. I was afraid my abilities would be used to subjugate the people. In a previous timeline, I did nothing and the monarchy's family was murdered. As a matter of fact, this is the fourth time I have passed through your timeline."

Anna and Else glance at each other. They narrow their eyes at him.

He turns his body to see how far from the bend in the road they had traveled. He commands the coach driver. "Stop the coach under those trees. We will take a ten minute break to check the horses."

The driver steers the coach off the road and stops under a canopy of branches that creates enough shade to cover the coach and horses.

Sam slides off Aurora and opens the coach door. On the floor, with ice, he draws a crude drawing of the castle's hall intersection "This will be quick, but I hope I will give enough explanation for your understanding without too many details."

He drags his finger along the drawing. "Imagine, you are walking along this hall and you stop at this intersection. There are four possible directions you can go. Turn left, straight across, turn right, or go back the way you came." He glances at them. "Do you agree?"

They nod.

"Now imagine, whichever three choices you make, something disastrous happens. A few seconds after the disaster, a door opens and you see it is the point where you stopped at the intersection, so you step through. Three directions, three disasters, there is only one direction left for you to travel. What do you do?"

Anna answers, "You have to go in the fourth direction."

Elsa asks as she stares into his eyes, "What happens if the fourth direction is also a disaster?"

He does not smile. "What do you suggest?"

"Do not go to that intersection." Elsa places her hand on his arm.

"If you knew how far back to go to prevent yourself from being at the intersection at that specific time, things change."

Anna wrinkles her forehead and asks, "If you step through the door, you are back at the intersection. You already know what is going to happen, so how do you go to the point before you reach the intersection?"

"Initial inspection of any doorway, you would be either in one room or pass through to the other. The next time you open a door, look at the door frame. You will see tens, if not a couple of tens of centimeters between the two rooms, the door frame."

He draws two, three sides squares a centimeter apart with the open end facing away from each other. Using his fingers to simulate walking, his fingers start in one square and steps into the other square. "This is what most people see and do, but what if they stand in the space between the squares?"

Neither answers immediately, but Elsa comments, "They go in, but do not come out."

"Now imagine, you look to your left and right to see other doors. You go in one direction. Peek through a door to see after the disasters. You turn around, backtrack to where you can and go the next door. You recognize the scene to be an hour prior to you walking to the intersection and you step through. You discover the events lead you right back to the same intersection at the same time as previously. What do you do?"

"Since you already know what is going to happen, it makes no difference which path you take. Chose one and go through the door again, except this time you walk further past the first door." Anna answers.

"Suppose the door you step through takes you back to one year ago. To the best of your ability you know what is going to happen as you relive the year, but you make changes along the way. What if at the sixth month point you make a change that makes everything worse?"

Elsa comments, "But you know where and when the door will let you step through again."

"Yes. How many times do you step through the door to make it right?"

"As many as necessary," Anna answers.

"Okay, you go through the next door, then the next one and next one, but on the fourth time the door you have been passing through does not open."

"So you search for another door further in the future." Elsa comments.

"If you know where one is, yes, but if you do not?"

"Will you live long enough to find the door?" Anna glances at her sister.

Sam nods. "If you find a door, you go further back in time. You live the same years over and over to get back to where and when you know a gate will open. You are growing old. The world around you is not. You know when, where, and what the future holds for all you knew. How many more times do you try?" He glances at the both of them.

"That is a horrible way to live," Anna comments as she looks at her children napping.

"Suppose, just as you give up, you see a distortion similar to glass that is not perfectly smooth and it shimmers, but it is located in an area where nothing should cause the distortion like an illusion. You notice the distortion does not touch the ground and suddenly it widens. The shape of a door forms and you see a younger self step through it. What do you do?"

"You could tell the younger you the futility of continuing what they are doing," Elsa comments. Anna nods in agreement.

"Okay, that the young person is you, two years after what would have been your coronation day. That Elsa is going to convince her parents not to travel. That Elsa tells you she is alone. King Hans killed Princess Anna and has taken over Arendelle. He allowed her to live once she thawed his kingdom. He continues to allow her to live as long as she threatens or freezes his competitors into submission. All the other kingdoms and Arendelle are afraid of him. That Elsa decided to stop Hans once and for all and maybe get her sister and parents back. So what are the odds, she will listen to you?"

Neither says anything, but Kristoff, listening from the other side of the coach, opens the door and asks, "But that is not what happened."

Anna startled by Kristoff's sudden presence, slaps his forehead. "You scared a year out of me. How long have you been listening?"

Asbjorn laughs.

Kristoff rubs his forehead and points to his son. "He saw me the whole time I was standing here."

Joan giggles at them.

Her right brow rises enough for him to see it. Elsa asks, "So how is it possible to have two Elsa's, one fighting for her family and the other under a shade tree with her family?"

"That Elsa made an incorrect decision in her life."

"Or someone made it for her and she is trying to correct it," Elsa says.

He slowly nods. "Remember the example of the hall intersection? Years in the future a few humans will have a revolutionary theory. They will theorize the linear time they live in will create offshoots at specific points in time. Think along the lines of a berry vine. If you travel from its roots to the tip of the vine, you will encounter branches that will grow berries, leaves that collect the sunlight, and the berries, the doorways. Are they all part of the root system? Yes, they are.

"Now imagine you are at the intersection with four possible directions. You choose a direction, but look back and for the briefest moment you see three of yourselves, each walking in one of the other three directions. For each of them, their choice is as real to them as the choice you made. That young Elsa took a different vine early in your life. Along the way she learned to jump from her vine to your vine via the doors."

"She could prevent you from correcting your mistake."

"Not a mistake, both are trying to correct a future event. The problem, each is trying to correct a different point in the future." He glances at Elsa looking down as she shakes her head. He touches her hand and she draws her lips tight.

With a contemplating expression, Kristoff stares past him. "They compare their lives and search for the point where it divided. Queen Elsa tells the other Elsa what she did to avoid the disaster."

"Very good, as time moves forward, Queen Elsa encounters the other Elsa several more times. The other Elsa has become Queen of her Arendelle and she has her own family with her sister's family. That other Queen Elsa passes through the door expecting to see the Elsa, who helped her through the years, but she does not find her. No one knows who she is talking about. As she is about to step through the door back to her timeline, an older woman gives her a letter. The elder woman says her friend made her promise to give the letter to the young woman who will look like her at a specific time and location. The letter gives a final warning. If she continues to jump through the time lines, she may cause a disaster far greater than the one she tried to avoid. Her life has exceeded what time had allotted her. Cherish every moment forward as though it could be your last. One day it will and no one will know that you ever existed.

Elsa maintains her grip on his hand. "It was you. Is that story true?" A layer of frost builds around their hands. "Tell me you made up that story."

Anna asks, "What are you doing?"

"Please," her voice quivers. She reaches through the window and pulls him closer to the coach with his hair. "Please tell me. Am I wrong?"

He pulls her hand out of his hair and places her fingertips at the four specific points on his face and neck. The whites of his eyes change to a light blue tint. His head gradually moves from side to side. "You are not wrong. It took a young child to show me that I was wrong." He tries to smile as moisture blurs his vision.

"Show me what you saw a few minutes ago." Her eyes dart back and forth searching his eyes. He is not deceiving her. A fountain of colors shoots up. He focused on the white sparkles that drift up the fountain before shooting into the sky. With each sparkle a pain strikes his heart as if each hair on his head is pulled out one strand at a time. His heart beats increases. His teeth clench together and his facial muscles tighten.

Releasing his hair, she opens the door and leans out and stretches to see past the driver. She glances back at him. "Can you still see it?"

His head turns in the direction of the fountain and the color of his eyes change to a blue. "Yes, it is there."

She searches again. "I do not see it"

He blinks the blue out of his eyes. "When we get closer, you will see. We need to travel to the glass. I will stay with the coach until I have to walk."

She grabs the back of his neck and tilts his head up. "Not you, we will go together." For a moment, she presses her lips against his lips, then pushes off of him to get back into the coach. The door closes.

Aurora lays her head over his shoulder and emits a rumbling sound.

Leaning his head against her, he pats her face. "I like her too." Stepping around Aurora, he climbs into the saddle and makes adjustments. He calls to the driver. "Okay, get it rolling." Signaling to the guards, they mount their horses.

The driver skillfully guides the horses to pull the coach back onto the road. The guards fall into their formation in front of the coach. Aurora walks along Elsa's side of the coach and Sven walks on Anna's side of the coach.

Anna touches her arm. "Are you going to tell me what that was all about? Was he telling us a story or was it true?"

His emotions of seeing the fountain pulls at her heart. The noise of the coach and her surroundings silences with the racing thumps of her heart.

 _Breathe before you scare Anna._

Her lips parted to take in a short rush of air. Holding her breath for several seconds, her heart slows as she exhales. As if in slow motion her head and eyes gradually turn towards the window. Her eyes finally stop to be focused on him.

The corners of his lips curl up.

Reality snaps back to normal speed. She removes a kerchief from her sleeve and dabs the corner of her eyes. A smile tries to blossom, but her lips tighten to prevent it. She glances at Anna. "The story is his way of telling us about what he went through to get to this moment."

Her lower lip quivers. She breathes deep and holds it for two seconds, before breathing out. "The intersection with four possible directions is the number of times he has passed through our timeline."

"You believe him?" Anna slides next to her and holds her sister's hand.

"Usually, he prevents me from seeing. This time he did not." She squeezes her hand. Her lip quivers again. Her eyes close as she holds her breath for another moment.

She breathes. "The intersection was his arrival to Arendelle. He went through the four directions. The four disastrous results are the deaths of our parents."

"You mean they drowned in all four?"

Again her eyes betray her as the moisture builds and streams down her cheeks. "They drowned here." Her lips draw tight as she tries to focus on her. "They died before you and I were born in the other three timelines."

"Elsa?" Anna's hand covers her waving voice.

She interlaces her finger between Anna's fingers and cups her head against her shoulder. "It explains why he insisted on keeping his oath to our father, even after I released him."

They sit in silence and watch the scenery outside of the coach. Anna fidgets until it gets the best of her. She asks, "Why did he not try to save them after the first time here?"

Elsa squeezes her hand. "Please understand. He arrived from a world where the government used his abilities to harm others. He had a strong hatred for any type of government. He could have walked away before he encountered the intersection in his story. In his second pass through here, he recognized an event that proved to be the intersection. It is what he did not say that haunts him today. Within a very short time of arriving, he encounters our mother near the baker's shop where Weselton men tried to kidnap her. After that, he makes four choices."

"Choose to do what?"

Her lips move for a smile, but again the smile fails to appear. She answers, "whether, he will intervene on her behalf or not. The first time he watches the kidnappers take our mother. The second and third time, our parents die a horrible death. What we know about our parents is the longest they lived and he was fully involved with their lives, until that day, they got on the ship."

"He could have tried harder." Anna sulks.

"He did. Kai told me, on the day they sailed he sent a message telling them to delay their trip by one day."

"Why did they not listen?"

"Because of these," she says as she holds up her hands. "They were going to meet someone who had powers to control my ice abilities."

"Was there such a person? If there is, will they be a danger to the two of you and your children?"

"I do not know. He said he had never encountered trolls except here. Maybe somebody does have the power to control his ice. I do not know if he is aware of them."

Anna lightly strokes the back of her hand. They sit in silence until Elsa sees what Sam saw earlier. She points out the right side window. "That is it."

Anna looks in the direction. "I do not see anything except the light haze through the trees."

"The haze is the location. I am sorry you do not see it. It is a fountain of multiple colors with white sparkles."

Hearing Elsa's enthusiasm, Sam peeks through the coach's window. He commands the driver, "Move the coach to the right side of the road. There is a small opening on the right that is just large enough for the coach to pass through." He nudges Aurora ahead of the coach and stops her in front of the opening through the thick bushes.

The driver stops the coach and looks where Sam is pointing. "You want me to take the royal coach through there?"

"I have great confidence you can do it." He grins.

The driver stands and rubs his chin. "I know I can get it through there, but the coach will lose a of lot paint, not to mention the bottom dragging the ground when we cross the ditch."

"That is where I come in." Sam motions to the lead guards. "Go across and secure the other side."

The two guards edge their horses across the ditch and reach the other side. Less than a minute later, one guard nods to him.

"Okay little girl, let's don't get jumpy. You stand still." Aurora whinnies her reply. Sam stands in the saddle and holds his arms out from his side. His palms change to blue, a cold breeze blows in from the north. Like water poured out of a bucket, the breeze pours ice crystals into the ditch. The ice bonds together to cover a larger area of the ditch and grows in height. After several minutes, an ice bridge forms, creating a leveled surface. Lowering his arm and his hands returning to its tan color, he signals the driver.

The driver calls back to his passengers, "Hold on Majesty and Princess, we will go slow, but I can't prevent the coach from rocking." He snaps the reins and the four horses pull the coach forward. At the last second he pulls hard on the right reins. The lead horses hesitantly step onto the ice, but they continue to pull.

As the coach rolls onto the bridge, Elsa leans out of the side window. "Show-off."

Erika and Christopher squeal and both clap as they look out of the window.

"They seem to have liked it."

Good to the driver's word, the coach maneuvers across the ice bridge and through the thicket without bouncing.

Sven follows the coach and Kristoff comments, "I can't compete with that"

"So don't. You have to keep an eye out and seize the moments with your children. I guarantee they will see you as their hero." Sam sits on the saddle properly. Aurora follows Sven. The four rear guards cross last.

The Driver follows a narrow path created by the four horses walking through the knee high grass. They lead the coach around a flat stone protruding above the ground. The coach travels across a small open field. Across the field a forest stands guard. The riders pick a path between the trees that allow the royal coach the pass. They chose a good path. The coach moving slow, barely rocks except for the two tree roots, they rolled over and the branch that slide against the coach as it makes the final turn into the larger field.

Puffy clouds separate and allow the warm beams of sunlight to dance with the light breeze. The tall grass also moves with the breeze as it waves to their guests.

Sam rides up to the coach driver. "All stop."

The coach rolls to an easy stop. Sam dismounts off Aurora. Sparkles flash in the grass. A sparkle temporally blinds him with the intensity of the mid-morning. He walks towards the path with no vegetation. The grass waves and causes more flashes to blind him. Aurora tries to follow him, but stops and neighs as she stomps the ground. The crunching and sounds of glass breaking draws his attention back at the coach. The window shades are closed. Tiny sparkles reflect off the coach. The driver holds his hand out to block the light out of his eyes, but the breeze moving the grass makes it difficult.

The ground on the east side of the path shimmers as a white layer of ice forms. He watches the ice grow the base's width and from where he stands to the top of the hill. He steps to the east of the ice wall and sweeps his right hand above his head.

The coach door opens.

On the southern side of the glass field a wall of ice rises out of the ground and stops a meter above the height of the coach. He sweeps his left hand and a similar ice wall rises to completely block the pockets of light flashing on the horses, riders, and the coach.

Elsa walks past him. "You are showing off again. Let me show you how it is done." She stands on the center edge of the path. With her arms out, she points to the ground on either side of her and slowly raises her hand until they come together over her head.

From the ground, the ice rises on the west side of the path. When it reaches the height of the eastern ice wall, they grow together and form an arch over the path. Through the tunnel and up the hill the ice tunnel curves. The sound of the ice forming continues for several more seconds.

When the noise stops, Elsa glances over her shoulder and grins. "That is how you make ice rise out of the ground."

He moves behind her and slips his arms around her waist. "Now who is showing off?"

Kristoff walks past them and slides his hand along the tunnel wall. "Absolutely perfect and I'm not going to cry." He slides his hand along the wall Sam created and glances back at them. "Not as smooth, I will stay with Queen Elsa's ice.

He presses his cheek against her ear. "It looks like you left the lights on."

A wavering shadow moves along the wall as though someone carries a torch. The shadow disappears as the light moves around the bend in the cave.

"Wait, their hair is on fire." Elsa points.

The young lady sweeps her hand through her hair and the flames appear to disappear except at the fringes.

"That is your friend, Kristen. Why does her hair do that?"

"One moment."

Kristen stops in front of them and curtsies to Elsa. She speaks in Sam's language, "Greetings Majesty, so one of you have seen the blue flame."

Elsa grins up at him. "I thought I was the only one who could speak your language."

"That is the language my mother taught me. At the time I spoke only English. In the short time I knew her, she taught me how to understand other languages. You would be surprised at how many others speak her language."

Kristen smiles and points her finger at him. "Mom is waiting for you. You don't want her to come and get you." She peaks past them. "Oh yea, you brought your children." She runs past them.

A commotion draws their attention back to the royal coach. Erik and Andrea stand on the sideboard of the coach as they look inside. Kristoff trots past them towards the coach. Two guards run to the coach.

Sam calls out. "Captain, they will not hurt them."

Kristoff slows to a walk and motions with his hands towards the guards.

Kristen yells, "You boys better get down from there before I tell mom." They do not listen.

With a smile Anna peeks out the window and waves to them. Erik must have asked her a question by the way he stares at her as she talks to him.

Sam recognizes her voice in the tunnel. "Your children will be alright. I guarantee Kristen will see nothing happens to any of them. You have my honor on that."

They turn towards the tunnel. He grips Elsa's hand.

"What are you waiting for?" She asks.

What does he feel?

"I am with you. We must cross together."

With a slightly longer glance at her, she dabs the corner of his eye as the drop of moisture leaps onto his face. His eyes close. He inhales a deep breath which applies a layer of frost on the front of his shirt. She squeezes his hand. Slits open across his eyes. Deep blue reflects off the walls closest to them and gradually transitions to a light blue. The blue in front of the bend transitions towards green with a solid green in the bend. After the bend the green transitions into a yellow.

Elsa squeezes his hand again.

He turns his head with a slight nod and motions with his other hand. "Majesty."

"This is your time." She steps closer and a half step back. "I am your wife. I will be by your side and follow you."

With a gentle smile that fades, his body shifts into the Fleet Admiral's posture. He steps forward. Marching in the military's heel-to-toe march, his wife matches him step for step. As they enter the bend in the path, he releases her hand and raises his hand to be parallel to his waist. She slides her hand into the crux of his arm.

Around the bend his friend of many lifetimes nods to him. Her golden hair glistens at the tips with the colors of the sun.

Elsa grips his arm. He pats her hand to calm her. They stop two meters from the Sariphan.

Krystal curtsies. "Majesty, you honor me with your presence. I know Admiral Ryan can get a little emotional at times." She winks at him.

"You imply this will be an emotional moment for me." His left brow rises slightly.

"Do you have a sister," Elsa asks. "There is a mature woman who looks exactly like you, other than your flaming hair."

"Receptors." He corrects.

"What?"

"Her hairs are receptors capable of drawing in energy. The flaming tips are absorbing the surrounding heat to keep the temperature on the cold side." He narrows his eyes at her. "Which begs the question, why?"

"Because of this," Krystal replies and pushes on the wall behind her.

A large section of the ice wall slides back. Pabbie waddles through the opening and motions for someone to follow him. Stones crunch the ground as the other trolls push a large stone covered under a grass cover.

Pabbie nods to Queen Elsa. He stares at him. "Admiral."

"Pabbie."

Elsa pinches Sam's arm. "If we are going to live together in this valley, you two need to amend whatever is between you."

"He tried to kill me when I arrived here." Sam stares back at him.

"And if it was not for my friend who told me to watch for you, you never would have seen us." Pabbie snaps back.

 _Are we going there? I'm not the fool with the broken heart and cloudy thoughts when I crashed here._

Elsa vigorously shakes his hand. "We can hear you, love."

He glances at Elsa and puckers his lips at her. He squares his body towards Pabbie. "Who is that friend, so I can thank them properly?"

"See, I told you he would ask." Krystal grins at them and opens her hand towards the large stone without the grass cover.

From the stone, an elegant middle aged female holds a staff in her left hand. The top of the staff holds a carving of his snowflake. Her open right hand reaches for something out of view that her eyes stare. Long flowing hair reaches below her back. Her facial features are similar to his LadyCat when he met her. The dress sparkles with brilliant tiny lights.

A crystal around Pabbie's neck glows. The tiny lights on the statue's dress shimmer in blue. Images of snowflakes and a flower form on the lower half of the dress.

Elsa points at the statue. "That looks like my dress." She looks at Pabbie. "Is your crystal projecting the images on the stone?"

"My crystal projects the light only," Pabbie answers.

"What is causing the snowflake?"

"Possibly the same thing that is making his color change," Krystal answers in his language.

Sam looks down at his hands.

Elsa steps back. "What they said is true. I read the reports of people seeing a man shimmer in different shades of green."

Sam glances between his hands. His head rolls up and the whites of his eyes change to a light green. The sparkles on the stone's dress change from blue to the same shimmering green.

"Welcome back Admiral." Krystal nods to him.

"What did she say that," Elsa asks.

His head turns as he holds his hand to her. "On my ship this is my normal color. I know you have questions. It is time for me to answer all of them. First, I am as human as you are, but we are different from all humans. This is my curse for allowing my emotions to become too intense."

Clasping his hands close to his face, Sam bows his head and whispers a chant. A halo of dark green radiates from him.

"Admiral NO," Krystal yells as she moves towards him, but stops. She grabs Elsa's arm. "You need to do it. Don't let him put his thoughts of her into a mental block. Help him."

"How?"

"You are his wife. Distract him as you have done previously. If his eyes change to blue before you can stop him, she will be lost and your battle to save him the past few years will be in vain. Talk to him."

Elsa steps in front of him. Her icy blue hand covers part of the light green halos surrounding his hands. Her cold blue energy battles against his green. The green moves along her fingers.

"Samuel."

His eyes slowly roll up. Her lips separate. She exhales a blue mist that assaults his nose. Minty, cool, calming, he drinks in her mist. The icy blue moves up his arms as the green retreats from his hands. He watches her lips separate as she exhales another cold mist. His mouth opens to receive her mist. The minty taste fires up his taste buds. He hungers for more. His lips pull his head towards her lip, but his eyes roll up and focus on her eyes.

"What are you doing?"

She replies with a puff of cold mist into his face. He blinks. "I am trying to keep you from making a serious mistake."

"Explain."

"Do you miss LadyCat and SaraCat?"

"Yes."

"Why would you want to forget them?"

He peeks past her and stares at the statue. His eyes search in every direction until they focus on the ground. It is a cruel joke his mind releases all of the images of his family. He searched the galaxy to find home, but instead, found LadyCat, a human female where there was not supposed to be humans. She wanted to go to her home, but never stated where it was located. When she became sick, he feared for her. They had good times, happy times, and funny times. There were sad times, angry times, and helplessness times, but all the way to the end, they stayed together. For twenty seven years they survived long enough to produce a baby girl name SaraCat. Now they are gone.

Dark spots form on his shirt. Elsa lifts his chin. She presses her fingers into the four specific points along both sides of his neck and head. Tears fill her eyes and race down her cheeks.

"It hurts."

"I know. You love them as much as I love my parents and yes, it does hurt." She slides her arms around his chest.

He wraps his arms around her shoulders and presses his face against her cheek. Her fragrance with a hint of coconut tantalizes his sinuses. His nose leads his head to a point below her ear. It is the point of the strongest fragrance. His nose sniffs and his mind releases the bonds. The cloud dissipates. The memories flow from the darkness. Memories locked away shortly after the dragon spewed him on to the Earth the first time. It was the only time. He wanted to die and was prepared to do so.

More memories leap to the front of his mind. He tried to find a secluded spot, but encountered another already there. A dark haired male beats a blond female. She did not fight back, but lay on the ground holding up her hand. The male picked up a large stone over his head.

It was none of his business what they did. The authorities would find two bodies instead of one. His heart and mind fought for control. Logic and emotion fought to a standstill. Neither yielded and neither gained an advantage. His eyes spotted the blood covering her face. Her eyes looked directly into his eye. As her hand wavered and started to drop, the sounds of the world became quiet. His ears heard the one word, HELP.

His heart and emotions threw logic out of its way. They demanded action. No one deserves to die that way. Either he has lived for truth or he is a liar. Logic relents and issue commands to his body. His feet clench the ground as his legs propel his body forward. His right hand scoops up a fist size rock and aims it at the male. As the rock leaves his hand, he generates a blast of air to complete the rock's trajectory. It impacts against the stone with a snap to push the stone's center of balance out of the male's control. The stone falls away from the female and traps the male's arm against another stone.

He raced down the steep hill to the shoreline as fast as his feet could move. A flash of the sunlight reflects off the male's hand. His knee lands on the male's arm holding a weapon. His right fist slams into his chest. The male gasps for air. He lifts his hand up ready to jam the three ice spikes into the male's chest again. Air bubbles in one hole. Two holes pulse the blood out.

"How," the male gurgles. His blood stops pulsing. Red flows into the sand underneath him.

He kneels next to the female. Covered in blood his heart reaches out to her. Logic points to her blonde hair, then points to the red light pulsing at the back of her neck. He pushes her bloody hair out of her face. Through the bruised slits her eyes move. Sweeping his hand a few centimeters above her body, he detects many broken bones and yet she shows no pain.

The light pulses increase. The swelling closes her eyes. A string of blood sways as it drips between her separated lips. The blood bends with the movement of her breath.

An ice chard forms in his hand and it cuts into her flesh, exposing the device with the flashing light. She does not make a sound. Exposing the base of the light, he pulls out a two centimeter capsule and freezes it between his fingers. Placing it on a flat rock, he crushes it with another rock.

Changing the ice chard to a thin pick, he probes the hole in her neck. His blue vision allows him to see the ice pick. Only one execution capsule hid in her neck. The ice pick expands and fills the hole. She will have a scar, but she will live. His hands, cover her broken bones and cuts and bruises with a layer of ice.

A dog barks in the distance alert him of the time to dispose of the male's body. His right hand, freezes the body solid. Lifting a heavy stone over his head, he drops it on the frozen body, causing it to shatter into tiny pieces. Rotating his left arms over his head, it creates a hot up draft. The thermal wave lifts the shattered ice and carries them over the bay. For several seconds, ice rains into the water. The dog barks again. It is time to leave before strangers find him.

He sits up the female. Her non bruised eye stares at him.

Sam says, "I know you are not from this planet, Sariphan. We are both out of our timeline. Unless your ship can make the dragon, you are stuck here as I am. We don't have to fight each other. If you wish to leave I will not stop you, but at least let me give you a fighting chance to survive."

She cups her hand on his shoulder and speaks in his language. "Why?"

"I know you fight for your people as I fight for mind. Unless your ship can open a temporal portal, we are both lost with no way home. If the opportunity arises for you to kill me, please make it quick."

Watching her until she closes her eyes, he picks her up in his arms and carries her up the beach. The memory fades.

Sam rests his cheek on Elsa's head. Krystal smiles as she nods to him. He returns a smile to her.

Elsa turns his head to her and touch the four specific points on his head and neck, but his eyes focus on the statue. "Listen to me. As long as you hold onto me, you will not fall." She takes a deep breath and blows a steady flow into his face.

His lips parts and inhales all that she gives. A strong mint flavor mingles with the coconut fragrance radiating from her wrist. His vision blurs with a blue tint surrounding the statue. Movement to his right catches his eye.

He looks down at the display mounted to the rail of the upper level walkway. Two large sixty foot rectangle containers slide into the cargo area of the fleet transport ship. His hand touches the screen to change the status of the last cargo ship to depart his ship. Soon the starship Aurora will be heading to the war front to lead the fleet in its break through to the Sariphan planet. A red light flashes on the flight deck. A clear blue electronic curtain forms around the three sides of the cargo ship. The overhead lights switch off and the cargo bay door slowly opens. The ship lifts off the deck and passes through the opening. Once the door closes completely, the overhead lights brighten.

Someone brushes against his arm. His finger slides across a control and the display changes to an outside view of the ship with points of data marking other ships nearby. A shoulder slams into his arm, causing his hand to slide across the panel. He stares at the two images reflecting on the blank display.

"Well, I guess there is nothing important happening outside of my ship." He turns to her. "Now I have time to see that my SaraCat has changed her hair color." He squints his eyes. "Wasn't it red last week or was it blue?"

She rolls her eyes. "It was reddish brown. Blue was on Earth."

He grins. "That was a while back."

"Dad, I know you're busy." She flips her waist length, braided hair over her left shoulder and flicks the end at him. "Look."

"It's white." He rolls a few strands between his fingers. "Okay, it's very white. What am I supposed to notice?"

"When I went to bed last night, I had reddish brown hair. I woke up this morning and this." She fluffs her banes. "I tried to wash it, but it stayed white."

He grabs the braided. "I detect a lower temperature around your hair."

"I'm not surprised."

"Oh?"

"Guess what else I can do?" She rolls her right hand open and a fountain of ice crystal shoots up. "And I can do this." She rolls her open left hand up and an equally tall blue flame rises above her palm.

His left hand snaps onto her hand to distinguish the flame. With wide eyes he turns her left hand over next to his left hand. A matching fire symbol glows on the back of their hands. He turns her right hand over next to his right and a matching snowflake appears in her hand.

She gazes at her finger tracing the outlines of the symbols on his hands. "Does this mean I have powers like yours?"

With a gentle smile he wraps his arms around her. "It means I cannot block it any longer. It means no one can deny you are my child who is growing up."

"And my hair?"

He kisses her cheek. "Ask your mother, but wait until she is in a good mood. I do recall when I let my hair grow long, it changed white." He whispers into her ear, "Happy early Birthday, Sweet Pea."

As she walks away with her braided hair over her left shoulder, the darkness at the edge of his peripheral consumes his vision. The light merges into a white dot. No sound, no movement, and no sensation, all is calm. The white dot flashes between blue and orange. The dots explodes at him with an onrush of nausea. The flashing light strikes pain in his mind.

He closes his eyes and the pain eases. His senses tell his brain someone his holding his left arm. A hand pushes his head back. Another hand forces his lower jaw open. A small cold, oblong object is forced into the back of his throat followed by shaved ice. He swallows. The hands release his head. The ice cools the burning in his throat.

He takes a deep breath as his eyes open. SaraCat wipes her hand on the back of her black trouser as she walks towards a control panel. Her short brown hair reveals a violet colored scar, starting below her ear and trails down her back into her shirt.

He does not remember how she got it. "I thought you had long white hair."

"Seriously." She watches him with no emotions. "The last time I had long hair was over four years ago. It was never white." Her eyes narrow. "Are you okay?"

The room shifts and vibrates for a moment. He steadies himself against the glass doors. "That was an explosion. Did we hit something?"

"That was a Sariphan torpedo, class-5 warhead. Our shields are holding, but the three battle-cruisers closing on us will have class-10 warheads that will eventually breach the shields." SaraCat focuses on the control panel in front of her.

"Why are they attacking us and where did they get a battle-cruiser, let alone three?"

A warm hand turns his face towards the blue-eyed, fair-skinned, and blonde haired Queen of Saripha. Her smile distracts him. "Admiral, Saripha has had battle-cruisers since the beginning of the war. One of those three has already reported your location. A battleship will arrive soon. They will destroy you."

He glances at the flickering lights as a vibration passes through the deck. "Why are we not returning fire?"

"The main guns are still being repaired. We have to wait until their ships get closer."

"How close."

"Primary weapon range," SaraCat answers still focused on the control panel. Her hands in constant motions adjust the panel.

"Then we jump to another location and make repairs."

The Queen touches his face. "You will leave your fleet to be massacred by them. They will not take survivors."

He stares at the floor, but no strategy comes to his mind. "Then we fight to the death."

Nausea attacks his senses. He grabs the glass door to steady himself. A blue mist flows past his legs. He turns around and stares into the mist filling the glass chamber. "This is how we will save them. We will send them to a safe planet."

"Long range sensors have detected a battleship. Another appears behind it. We are not going to have time to save everyone." SaraCat moves to another panel and taps her fingers across the controls.

With a half-smile he slides his hands along her arms. "Maybe you would have lived longer if you stayed on your ship."

"Captain Hans had orders that I was not to return home."

"Elsa, I am so sorry. We can at least open the gate to send you and a many of the crew with you."

"We do not have time to recalibrate. You have to go."

"Where?"

"Back to the beginning."

"Beginning? I tried that. The Sariphans have temporal monitors around their planet. As soon as the dragon opens its mouth, they will capture me or come through here to capture my ship."

She turns her head away from him. "No Father, you are going further back than was possible before now."

"How far? What will I be looking for?"

SaraCat Answers, "With each of your jumps, I found a common thread that started four years ago above the Sariphan planet. It stops on Earth 600 years ago."

"When I go through, jump the ship out of here and open the gate for me to come back."

"Father, this is a one way trip. You will not be coming back." She adjusts the controls.

Static builds on his body. "Recall your mother. The four of us will go through."

Holding the locket in her hand, SaraCat stares at the pictures. With determination, she faces him. "She is gone. She gave you enough time to make a difference. Only you are going."

"How will I know if I succeeded?"

"You will not."

SaraCat glances to his left and nods.

Queen Elsa steps in front of him and blows into his face. His hands let go of the doors. With a peck on his cheek, she says, "We are counting on you." She pushes him into the portal.

The static energy blinds his senses. He feels nothing. He cannot determine how much time is passing. In front of him a small, round object rapidly expands. From white to yellow to red then to blue, his senses detect a change.

Warm hands hold his hand and arm. A cold spot touches his forehead. His vision focuses on the glass in front of him. A wave of rain sweeps across the tops of the concrete and steel building of all sizes in this city. An elder man's reflection stares at him in the window. Next to the man stands a shorter female with the light blonde hair of a sunny day.

He moves his finger and the man in the window also moves his finger. A reflection of people laugh and talk in a language he has not spoken in years. They wear uniforms covered with metals and other emblems of a military.

Men and women enter through a door as they carry trays. The uniformed people cheer and move to their seats. An odor of spices and burnt meat wafts in his direction. His belly rumbles.

"Are you okay? You feel tense," The young woman speaks to him, in the Sariphan language.

An energy surge grabs him through the window. His arm pushes against the glass. A green light pierces through the clouds. They separate to reveal an undulating wave. It opens its red mouth, the dragon. The mouth expands as the center darkens and the red moves to the edge. Flashes of light followed by mini blossoms of red and orange. Images form into irregular shapes. In the center he recognizes his ship the Aurora. She releases her energy in a light blue cloud that consumes herself and all ships around her.

A nauseating pain stabs his heart as his mind registers the sensation of falling. His eyes blur. His life energy departs his body. "I can't feel her. She's gone."

"I know. Please hold on. Push through it." A sweet voice reaches into his mind.

He recognizes her citrus fragrance with coconut. Her body presses closer to him. Her delicate curves and softness fits next to him as two stone blocks precisely chiseled to fit together as one. His heart beats in time with her heart. Her icy energy flows through him. His mind calms and feels his knees pressed against the ground. His eyes open. Through the blur he looks up and sees a stone carving of his little SaraCat.

He slips his arm around her kneeling next to him. His voice quivers, "She knew." He kisses her cheek. "Elsa, she knew. My little girl grew up to be a beautiful Ice Princess. It was not I who built the first stone for the bridge. She did."

He points to Pabbie. "You knew. I would have used my ship to go back to get her. Is that why you allowed me to destroy the temporal generator and strand myself here?

Pabbie waddles over and touches the back of his hand. "Would you have gone back if you had known?"

His voice wavers. "Yes."

"She told me you would. I kept my promise to her as you will."

Elsa wipes the moisture from under his eyes. "How do you feel?"

"That chapter closed a long time ago, but I keep holding onto the last page, hoping more would be written." His fingers comb through her hair. "I have to let go of that page. Several chapters have been written since my ship exploded. My chapter with you has many blank pages that need to be filled."

Elsa turns his head towards her. "How do you feel?"

"My heart still hurts for them. They are not coming back, but I can honor them as you honor your parents." He holds her hand and holds his other hand out.

Pabbie stares at his hand.

"I give you the opportunity to search my mind. Find what is still hidden. Let my Queen see what you find." He glances at her. "I will allow you to decide the best course of action." He squeezes her hand. "All that you have done for me, I trust you."

Pabbie grabs Elsa's hand and touches the side of his head. A moment later, Pabbie steps back. "I detect nothing, no shadows, no memory blocks, or anything in hiding. The two that were there when he arrived are gone."

"Thanks for a clean bill of health, toad."

"So you are not going to let that one go, will you, you old goat?"

He grins with his teeth clenched.

Elsa pinches his side. "Who would put them there?"

Sam shrugs.

"I know who did it." Krystal moves towards them. The tips of her finger sweep up his arm. The orange and yellow at the tips of her hair reach out to him. "Do you remember? The last scene on your ship before you entered the dragon. She did it."

He stares at her and replays the image in his mind. He looks to his beloved wife. "It was you."

Elsa's brows push together. "What do you mean me?"

"Not you, Queen Elsa of Arendelle, but Queen Elsa of Sariphan." He glances down as his fingers brush across his lips. I thought it was a static charge from being too close to the dragon's mouth. It was the quick kiss."

"Why would she do that?"

Krystal tilts her head to see his eyes. "Knowing that there is something missing, she knew Admiral Ryan would not give up, no matter what. Am I correct?"

Half his face tries to smile. "She is correct. I would have taken a different course of action." He focuses on Elsa's blue eyes. "We never would have met. I would have pushed past this time line. I can blame this on your father."

"My Father?"

He takes both of her hands. "The night you were born. Your father came to me and we talked. He gave you your name, Elizabeth. Something clicked in my mind. I said Elsa would be a great Queen. He nodded and saw you born. It is at that point, I decided to protect you. I didn't add two and two together. Queen Elsa of Sariphan took your name because I could not pronounce her name in her language. She knew enough of Earth history to know about you." He presses her hands against his chest. "She knew only you would be able to open it."

"But how?"

"I don't know. She was definitely intuitive to lots of things. She made sure there was only one course of action to be taken. Maybe that is why she was Queen." He wrinkles his nose at her.

"She was smart and beautiful." Elsa pinches his arm.

"Kind of like our Queen." Kristen walks down the ice hall towards them.

"Hey? Do you remember what you said on the bridge the day of the great thaw?" He asks.

She looks up as though she is searching for something. "Let me see." Her eyes close tighter. Her fist lightly taps her forehead. "What did I say? Oh yes, I remember." She stares at Elsa for a moment, then turns her head towards him. "I said good luck with that."

He bows his head and his right fist covers his heart. "I thank you for blessing me with the challenge and your mother's push." He nods his head towards Elsa. "Did I have luck or not?"

Kristen walks to him and places her arm around his neck. "Your luck was that she pursued you. If she had not." She snickers and shakes her head.

"Very funny," he grins. "Pabbie, I request another statue of another female. She will be holding a sword."

Little Sam slams the book close. "I know what they are."

"You know what is?" The elder woman asks.

He leaps out of the chair and turns to them. "Outside, I saw workers taking a box apart. There was something covered in the box." He pulls on her hand. "Come on. I know what is under the cover."

"Wait." She pulls her hand free and stands Liz onto the floor. She tucks the book under her arm. "First, we will not run down the stairs or run anyone over as we go out the door. Second, I will carry the book. Third, you will be a gentleman and offer your arm to escort Elsa down the stairs. Are you a gentleman?"

"I think I am." He bows to Liz then holds his arm out.

Liz giggles and grabs the middle of his forearm.

She sets the book in the chair. "Let me help you. Bend your arm and rest your hand on your tummy." She maneuvers his arm and hand in the proper position. "Liz, slide your hand under his arm and hook your hand on the inside of his elbow." She adjusts Liz's hand to rest in the crux of Sam's arm and positions her to stand next to him.

Picking up the book, she stands on the other side of Sam. "Since my arm is not long enough to hold your arm, I will hold your hand."

He smiles up at her. After a moment he looks at her hand. "Your hand is cold."

"Does the cold bother you?"

He shakes his head. "No, I like the cold."

"I like the cold too," Liz chimes.

"Your hand feels like Erika's. I have to watch out for her. She likes to touch her cold hand on the back of my neck. It makes me sleepy." He shrugs his shoulders like something cold touched his neck.

"Interesting?" The woman's right brow rises. "I know someone else who falls asleep when I touch his neck with my cold hand."

She adjusts her book in her arm. "When we walk down the stairs and if you start to fall, grip my hand as hard as you can. If Liz starts to fall, it is your responsibility to make sure she does not fall. I will let go of your hand to save her."

He nods once at her.

"Okay, we are ladies being escorted by our gentleman."

Liz giggles, "Okay."

They walk at a pace Liz can manage down the hall. They stop at the top of the stairs. The noise below fills the lower room. After a moment the noise transitions into gasps and whispers.

Sam hesitates and looks up. "Why are they looking at us?"

"Maybe they have never seen such a distinguish gentleman escort two beautiful women."

Liz fluffs her hair. "That's right. I am a beautiful woman."

"Uh-oh," Sam looks at the wall.

She shakes his hand. "What is wrong?"

"My mom is crying."

"I see many women crying. Can you be a little specific as to which one is your mother?"

He points towards the main doors.

"Well, you have cut the number down by fifty percent. Can you narrow it down a little more?"

"They are standing next to my sisters."

Liz stands on her tippy toes and waves as she yells. "Joan, Erika." Two young ladies wave back at her.

"Is that your mother and father standing behind those two who waved?"

"Yeah."

She rotates her hand and points above them. A cloud gathers and sprinkles snow on them. "Now are those your parents?"

"Yes."

"I would like to meet them."

People point in their direction. They whisper and form into groups.

The woman glances at everyone in the room. "It appears they are distracted." She pushes on Sam's shoulder. "You go on down the stairs. I will meet you outside in a moment."

Sam and Liz slowly walk down the stairs. When they are half way down she turns to walk back to the hall, but a sparkle of blue light glitters in the foyer. She smiles as she walks down the hall. "I was wondering if you are going to show. Watch over these two."

From the lower floor whispers rise and change into excitement. "Did you see that?"

"Who was she?"

"That couldn't have been her."

"Why now after all these years?"

"Look at the painting?" The mass of people in the room turn to the painting hung on the wall below the stairs.

"It is her."

"It can't be. She would be almost two hundred years old. That lady did not look two hundred."

Everyone moves closer to the painting and discuss what each saw.

In their distraction, they do not see Sam and Liz walk out the castle doors.

When the doors click close, Joan (Blonde) looks back. She grabs the back of Erika's arm.

Erika glares at her. "What?"

"I think Sam and Liz went out the doors."

She scans the crowd. "Are you sure? I don't see them in here."

Joan taps the side of her face and shakes her head. "I'm not detecting him."

"Nor am I."

They move swiftly towards the exits. As they reach for the door handle, the crystal around their necks glow.

Sam helps Liz down the front stairs and they run to the canvas covering something near the wall. He lifts the canvas edge and peeks under.

"What are you doing?" an old man's baritone voice sounds behind them.

With wide eyes they turn around and Liz tries to hide behind little Sam. Neither speaks.

"I asked you a question," he barks at them.

Liz hides as much of herself behind Sam. She holds her hands close to her chest and tears roll down her red cheeks.

Sam steps forward and holds his hand out to keep the stranger at bay. "Stop scaring her. She did nothing wrong. I did it."

The woman from upstairs rushes in and picks up Liz. "Don't let the big wolf scare you."

"Wolf? I stopped them from damaging the stones?"

"My Prince." the woman touches his face. "Let him speak, before you condemn them."

He places her hand to his heart. "For my Queen, I will listen." He wipes a tear off Liz's face. "I apologize for scaring you, but I would be devastated if these statues are damaged."

Liz giggles.

His left brow rises. "Okay young man, what were you going to do to these statues?"

Sam lifts up a corner of the canvas. "I wanted to see if these are the statues Admiral Ryan saw in the ice tunnel?"

Erika and Joan sneak out the castle doors. They watch for a moment. Joan stabs her finger at them and with giddy asks, "Is that –"

Erika clamps her hand over Joan's mouth and whispers in her ear. "Shh, that has to be them."

"Make it look good, love." The woman wiggles her finger at him. "We are about to have an audience."

Liz giggles as she wiggles her finger at him.

"That we shall, my Queen." He whispers back to her.

He stops next to little Sam. "Okay young man, listen to me. You hold this corner. I will grab the other corner. I will count to three. Together, we will lift this side of the canvas. I will say 'let go', and you will let go of the canvas. A gust of cold air will lift the canvas completely off the statues. Do you understand?"

As he explained the instructions, Joan enters the castle. A moment later, everyone exits the castle."

"Are you ready?"

Sam nods to him.

"One." They grab the corners.

Elsa whispers to Liz. "Do you want to help me?"

Liz nods.

"Can you roll your hand and flick your fingers like this?" Elsa rolls her hand under and opens her palm towards the canvas.

"Two." They lift the corners slightly.

Liz rolls her hand just as Elsa does.

Sam's eyes shine with anticipation. Even a twinkle flashes through his eyes.

"Three."

As if they had practiced it many times, the side of the canvas lifts. Elsa and Liz flick their hands and a shower of blue ice slips under the canvas and lifts it up and over the statues.

Sam studies the closest statue of a woman holding a sword. "I'm not sure who she is." He stares at the second statue of a young woman holding a staff in one hand. Her other opened hand points up and out. "I know her."

The old man stands in front of the young woman.

Sam shuffles his feet towards him. With a grin and a shaky hand pointing to her, his voice wavers. "I know her name."

"How do you know her name? She has been dead three hundred years."

"She is in the book," Sam replies.

"What book? Are you making fun of me?" The old man glares down at him as he clenches his hands. His vision sees a green tint.

Sam bows his chest out. His hands clench slightly behind him. His eye color changes to a crystal green. "NO. In the book, 'My Queen of Arendelle', a statue was made in honor of SaraCat. That is her name, SaraCat."

The old man's eyes change to normal color and he kneels next to Sam. "Okay, young man, what is your name?"

"Samuel Christopher Ryan." Young Sam's eye color changes to normal. "What is your name?"

"Admiral Ryan." He points to the first statue. "SaraCat is my first born daughter." He points to the second statue. "Her name is LadyCat. She is SaraCat's mother."

Sam stares into his eyes. Behind them his family fills the courtyard. After a moment he leans close and whispers. "Does she know you were married before you married her?"

"Does who know?"

He points his thumb over his shoulder. "Your wife holding Liz, does she know?"

The Admiral glances up at his Queen. "How do you know she is my wife?"

"Her picture is in the castle." Sam taps his heart. "I feel it, so I know."

"Then the answer is yes. My Queen does know."

Several people close enough to hear their conversation gasp and a murmur passes through the family with all asking, "Is it really Queen Elsa and Admiral Ryan?"

Little Sam mimics and holds up his hand as SaraCat holds her hand up. He moves his hand left, then right, up then down. "It is wrong."

"What is wrong?" The Queen asks.

"Her hand is pointed away from them. She is not pointing to the star."

"What star," Admiral Ryan asks.

(Find location of Orion in relation to the castle)

Sam holds his left hand like the statue and aligns it to the east of the flag pole on the castle's tallest peak. "There is where she should be pointing."

He kneels behind Sam and lowers his head so his eye sight travels along Sam's arm. Sam's middle finger lines up with the constellation Orion's belt. His left brows flick up as he grins.

Elsa's right brow rises as she smiles and nods.

"I see three stars. Which star are you pointing?"

("Do you see the third star that is not in a line with the other two?")

"Yes."

"Behind the star is her planet. I can't see it from here, but I know she is there." Sam squints while he searches.

A cold mist passes across Ryan's lips as he asks, "Do you wish to see her planet?"

Sam's arm drops to his side as his head snaps around towards the Admiral. He stares into Ryan's eyes and exhales a cold mist. "I hope you are not joking. I want to see her planet."

"Take your shoes and socks off."

Sam sits on his knee. In less than a moment a pair of shoes with sox tucked into them rest on the ground.

Slipping his arms around Sam's waist, Ryan lifts him up and moves behind the SaraCat statue. "Place your feet here."

Sam steps into the two depressions on each side of the statue's waist. He locks his arm around the statue's neck and holds onto the statue's extended arm. He lays his on the statue so his eye sight travels alone the statue's arm.

The Admiral grins at his Queen as he speaks to Sam. "I need you to hold on. I will rotate the statue. You tell me when her middle finger lines up with the flag on the tallest pole."

Sam closes one eye and he stares along the statue's arm.

Ryan rotates his hands in a circular motion and lifts his hands a few centimeters. The statue gradually rotates.

Sam continues to stare.

Ryan rotates it more.

"STOP."

"Is it lined up exactly?"

"Yes, in the center of her finger." Sam does not see his family moving closer to them.

"Lights out," Ryan commands. All of the lights in the courtyard and the immediate area outside of the walls go out. The sky blossoms with twinkles of more stars. "Sam, do you see Orion's belt?"

Sam nods.

Ryan places his fingers on four specific points along Sam's head and neck. His vision changes to see a blue tint, but mostly he watches his energy flow into Sam. He whispers, "Sam, I will help you to tune out the noise. I need you to focus on the Sariphan star." He hears what Sam hears. "In just a moment all will be quiet. You will hear music. Let me know when you hear it."

A surge of energy flows into Sam and he responds. "I hear it. I HEAR IT. WHERE IS IT COMING FROM?"

Ryan exhales a cold mist into his ear. "That is the sound of the Sariphan star oscillating. As long as you hear the music, you can find your ancestral home. One day you must go there and meet your Queen."

He feels what Sam feels. The stress Sam felt upon hearing the music is acknowledging that it was real. It removes his doubts because others could not hear it. The music creates tranquility in his mind. His body begins to relax. Ryan presses Sam's body against the statue to keep him from falling.

"Do you want to see it?"

Sam barely nods his head as he maintains his focus on where the star should be.

The Admiral motions for all to move closer. Elsa and Liz roll their hands together. Liz's hand opens and a delicate snowflake floats above her hand. Elsa whispers and Liz rest her hand on the statue's hand and slides it out. The snowflake gradually rotates in the statue's hand.

Elsa places her hand on the Admiral's shoulder. The snowflake rotates faster. Joan holds Liz's hand. Erika holds Joan's hand. As others of his family link hands to them, the snowflake spins faster and faster. The courtyard glows with a blue tint. When all of his family connects to the link, the snowflake stops. In its center, a yellow star shines its light on a blue and green planet.

The image zooms onto a spot on the green area. Thousands and thousands of males and females linked together as they touch the one in the center.

She speaks to Sam in a language he does not know, but Elsa translates her message to him. "You are the one we have been waiting. I know it has been a long time since I last saw you, my son. You will need to wait a little longer."

His heart reaches for her, "Momma?"

"Yes, my son, I am here. When you have completed your mission on that planet, you will be able to come to me and we will be a family again." She holds her hand out towards him.

Sam reaches for her. "Momma?"

"Are you a good soldier?"

He nods. "Yes, Momma."

"Who is that behind you? I sense something familiar about him."

Sam lifts his head and looks back. "This is my friend from the book. They call him the Admiral."

"Admiral?" Her eyes focus into his eyes. "I sense power, but I see darkness. You are not human."

"I have been told I was born human. I suspect the genetic engineering with a certain crystal has made it a half truth."

"Then your power is that of Sariphan." Her eyes twinkle with a spark of the blue snowflake. "But not my Sariphan."

"You are correct. The Sariphan that I know is long dead. My mother was the Queen of the Sariphan from my timeline."

"Timeline?"

The Admiral touches the snowflake. The world around them stops. "Now, I can speak to you freely. They will not hear, but will see a flash of light."

A tidal wave of memories floods his mind. For a fraction of a second his pain shines with the fire of a star. He closes his eyes and the door to his mind.

"Samuel?"

He looks towards his wife. She motions her head towards the snowflake.

"Please look at me, Samuel."

His vision changes to see the blue tint before he looks at the Sariphan Queen. She stands alone. None of her people are within the view.

"I am sorry for what she did."

"I suspect the reason my mother left me is the same reason, you left your son on this planet. To create a bridge between these two worlds, you needed a representative whom the people of Earth would see as one of their own and trust what he will say in a number of years from now."

"That is the reason I sent him there. I believe a war is coming that will consume both of our planets."

"In 446 earth years from now, the war will destroy all life on the Earth."

"And Saripha?"

"In my timeline, Saripha was destroyed a thousand years before the war. Your son hears the music from your star. Unless you are talking to me from the past, you are alive in the same timeline as we are in. Your son is ten years old. He has none of the characteristics I had when I was ten years old."

"What happened to change you?"

"I was told my mother abandoned me in an orphanage where the government took me to a military base. They injected me with the crystal particles from a certain star."

"That is horrible. Why would anyone do that to a child?"

"Because they could," he snaps. "No one was going to look for us. They did what they wanted and created six monsters. They wanted the ultimate killing machines and we were it. Six of us lived longer than they expected."

"So what happened?"

"Another Sariphan Queen took me under her leadership and gave back my humanity. It is because of her I am alive and you now see my decedents. I came to this timeline by accident, but in reality, it was my Queen who you should give thanks. This Sam, your son, will not go through the pains I endured to become the person you see."

She states, "You appeared to have surpassed your pain. I do not sense the fluctuation of emotions in you that I have sensed in other humans."

"And yet I have had my moments, in which, you would not be able to distinguish me from the other humans. It is a daily struggle to keep the assassin part of me from eliminating those who abuse their powers."

"Then you are at the correct time to teach him to control his emotions. Teach him all you have seen and done. Teach him to be the builder you are."

He looks down at Sam. "I don't know if I can." He glances back at his Queen still holding Liz. "At the right moment," He smiles at his wife. "Someone discovered me, believed in me, and fought for me. He needs to find that someone."

"If she still believes in you after all of this time, allow her to guide you in teaching him. We still have a number of years to prepare for his arrival."

The Admiral stares at Sam.

"Now I am detecting hesitation. Does this time have the same humans who changed you?"

"They do, but I have made sure they will not create a secret program to make weapons of children."

He looks back at her. "In twenty to thirty years from now. A young Sariphan male will question the possibility to cross timelines. I highly recommend you prevent him from doing so. He creates the first dragon that leads to the destruction of Saripha in my timeline."

"What is his name?"

"Arcturus," he snickers with a grin.

"Twenty to thirty years, he may have already been born. Why did you smile?"

"Arcturus was my friend. He found me severely injured and influenced the crystals in my blood to heal me. He must have known of my capabilities. He showed me not everyone wished to use me as a weapon, and helped me to understand my powers can be used for good. We discussed the possibilities of other timelines and crossing over to them."

Ryan's smile fades. "He opened the dragon's mouth and entered. It closed before his return. I vowed my life to find him and that was my mistake. Centuries went by. I watched my crew and friends die of old age. I became obsessed and lost my family. I wanted to go home and I crashed here."

"So you never found your home."

"Actually, I did find it." He pulls Elsa in front of the snowflake. "She is my home. I want no other. I have no desire to leave for however long I live. In due time, this Earth will be ready for their first contact with you."

"Did you find others like us?"

"Sariphans? Yes, I did." He stares at her as a thin blue line sweeps across her eyes followed by a sparkle. His left brow shoots up. "I believe you already know the answer, so why did you ask?"

The whole time of their conversation, she did not break eye contact, but this time she looks down. "We had to be sure." She stares directly into his eyes.

He senses and after a moment he feels caution and sadness.

"We saw you go through three previous times and you did nothing. You were so focused on yourself. She practically pushed you and you resisted. When you refused to go again, I gave the order to eliminate you."

"Eliminate?" He tightens his grip on Sam and prepares to push Elsa out of the way.

"Yes. Because of who you are and what you know. You did it once, you could do it again. We were prepared to destroy your Earth. There was one who advocated for you. She said if you were dropped in the future and saw the hate the humans have for each other, the disdain could be enough to cause you to change the past and save your family."

"Crystal?"

"Yes."

"Her original mission was to kill me."

"Yes, and you saved her. It seems there was a split in our timeline. Can you guess when it happened?"

"When I first encountered your planet?"

"Yes. Do you know why you destroyed Saripha?"

He shakes his head, no.

"We are talking to each other across many light-years. I know you encounter other Sariphan because I know of the green dragon, as did others. I saw the future of your world and mine. The human actions left a bitter disdain in you. The Sariphans' actions broke my heart. I gave you the coordinates to the timeline that would stop the Sariphan expansion into the galaxy. You took me aboard your ship and I told you exactly where to attack. That timeline for the Sariphans ended that day." She sweeps her hand in front. "You dropped me here and said you would return."

She nods and glance at those around her. "With my knowledge the Sariphans did not go down the same path. I did my best to lead them in another direction." She smiles and points her finger at him. "The same as you are doing now. I met a human male on Earth and you see the results."

"This Sam will not be like me. Do you know what the future holds for the humans and Sariphan?"

She shakes her head. "This is all new to me."

He nods, "As this is new to me, I better make sure he is prepared."

"Then we will be Ohana again." She waves her hand at the snowflake.

The Admiral releases the snowflake and the world moves at normal speed.

She waves. "Sam, do you see me."

"Yes, momma."

"Sam, I want you to train with the one called Admiral. He and his Queen Elsa will teach you all you need to bridge our two worlds together. Only then will you be able to come home. I sense you have a large family with you already."

Sam glances at his human family with their eyes glowing in a blue hue. "They are my family. Soon Sariphan and Earth will be Ohana."

The image fades to a clear snowflake. Sam looks back at the Admiral. "Are you coming to my home? I can show you the hills I like to run and the tree I like to hide in from Erika."

He sets Sam onto the ground so he can put his shoes on. "I would like to visit your home. Would you like to stay here in the castle?"

"Would I?" Sam responds with a smile and latches the Velcro on his shoe. Enthusiastically, he looks up at the castle. "Liz and I can explore. I'm sure there are many places to hide from Joan and Erika."

"And while you are here, I will show you the magic in the snow." He beams.

"Admiral?" Elsa wrinkles her nose at him. "Admiral dear, maybe you should ask his parent's permission to allow Sam to stay."

The smile diminishes as he nods to her. "You are correct, my Queen. Thank you for reminding me of my duties." He kneels and places his hand on the back of Sam's neck. "Sam?" His hand slide onto his shoulder as his fingers touch four specific points on Sam's face and neck.

Sam slowly blinks as his head gradually turn towards him.

"I need to get your parent's permission for you to stay here. If they say no, I will honor their request."

"My parents?" Sam groggily asks.

Elsa touches his other shoulder. "Yes, we have to ask your parent's permission. They are standing over there with your sisters."

Sam looks in the direction Queen Elsa and the Admiral are pointing. He races towards them. "Mom, Dad, Queen Elsa and her husband want me to stay in their castle." He bounces. "Can I please stay? Can I? Can I?" Sam bounces.

With a smirk Elsa glimpse at him. "Once again you are the Queen's husband."

Liz giggles. "Queen's husband."

"She gets it." Elsa smirks again. She sets Liz on to her feet and Liz runs to her family.

"Go ahead and laugh now. When he is old enough to fly my ship, we will see if he remembers the name of Admiral Ryan's wife or not."

Elsa wave of her hands. A colorful shower of ice falls onto her and Ryan's clothes. The old and bland change. His clothes transforms into a forest green shirt tucked into black trousers with a maroon sash around his waist. The collar of his shirt has the markings of a fleet Admiral. His long white hair flows down his back. Her dress transforms into a high neck, Arendelle ceremony dress with her gold crown centered in her French braided blonde hair.

A noticeable gasp and murmurs erupt among the family members. "Look. It's them. They're really here. They have chosen."

Sam' father pulls his son to stand next to him. They bow. His mother and his two sisters curtsy. The men and women of the families follow their example.

With a smile and a glimpse to his Queen, the Admiral commands. "Arise, and let us see you."

They rise. No one speaks.

Admiral Ryan offers his arm. Queen Elsa rests her hand in the crux of his left arm. They walk towards little Sam's parents as the families murmur again and louder. Ryan holds his hand up and the murmurs lessen after another moment they fall silent.

Lowering his hand, Ryan searches their faces. All watches with anticipation. "Ladies and Gentlemen, Family, Ohana."

"Ohana," they reply.

He nods to his wife. "Majesty, I would like to present to you, John Bergman and his wife Elizabeth . . . Sara . . . Westergaard."

"Westergaard? She is related to him?"

He smiles. "And how many brothers did he have?"

Her right brow rises as she looks up at him. "Of course, you know which brother, right?"

"The one who had an interest in you." he smirks.

Her eyes narrow. "Prince Georg? I though he said he was married to the military?"

"Maybe before the military discharged him, someone stole his heart."

"If you are saying it, there is no maybe. It happened." Elsa offers her ungloved hand to Elizabeth.

With a slight hesitation Elizabeth holds her hand and curtsy. "Majesty, when they said it could be possible that we would meet you, I thought they were jesting."

Elsa smiles, "We have been waiting for your son for many years." She offers her hand to John.

He takes her hand and bows. His eyes speak it before he says it. "You are so beautiful."

"Yes, I know," The Admiral comments.

John's face flushes a red tint as he lets go of her hand.

"Before you make everyone uncomfortable, do you have something to say to little Sam's parents?" Elsa bumps his arm. She shifts into her regal stance.

"Yes, my Queen, you are correct." Ryan shifts his feet slightly apart and grasps his wrist behind his back. "John, Elizabeth, hopefully you are aware of the family stories that has been read for many generations. I am to testify the story is true."

He glances between them and observes the others moving closer to her. "It is not one hundred percent complete, but the important parts were recorded. Our mission is to complete the bridge between our world and her world. The past three decades at approximately the same time each year, this planet received a signal from space. Many governments have recorded the signal. The best minds and computers tried every known method to translate the meaning and failed. Several governments came to us for help. We told them to use the Chinese super computer or perhaps they have already translated the signal."

"Did they?" John asks.

"Even if they did, no matter how fast a computer they use, they will not break the code. Currently there are only three individuals in the world who have the capacity to read the code. I am one." He turns and nods to his wife. "Queen Elsa is the second."

They smile at little Sam. Elsa says, "He makes three."

John kneels next to Sam. "Why didn't you tell us, you translated the signal?"

Sam slowly shakes his head.

"You ask the wrong question." Ryan looks down at him. "Sam, when did you first hear the Sariphians music?"

Sam looks around as confusion creeps onto his face.

Joan kneels next to him and cups his hand. "Last year you told me you heard a girl's voice in your head, before your birthday. Do you remember?"

"Yeah, that was the birthday, I saw Mom and Dad crying. I could not make the crystal light."

"Yes, you were very sad. That night I found you lying on the hill talking. You said you were talking to her. I asked if you knew where she was. Do you remember what you did?"

"I pointed to her."

Joan presses her hand against his chest. "Will you point to her now?"

Sam points to the southwestern sky.

The Admiral smiles. "If you follow his arm, he is pointing to the northern star of Orion's belt (name)

John sits low on the ground and looks up Sam's arm. He looks up to Elizabeth. "He is right. That is where he is pointing."

Elizabeth kneels and hugs her son. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"You said I must have been hearing someone nearby."

The Admiral says, "For the last 30 years, I have been hearing what he heard last year. I also heard him reply to her. That is how I knew the time had arrived." He offers his hand to Erika and motions for her to kneel with her family.

He kneels behind Sam. "Mom . . . Dad . . . Erika . . . Joan . . . I ask a request which all must agree one way or the other. This young man started life much the same way I did. The difference is a loving family adopted him. A government stole my childhood. You have preserved his childhood. I request Sam stay here in the castle and Arendelle. We will teach him, who he is, and who he will become. I have the knowledge that he will need to travel to Sariphia safely. I request to teach him."

He glances at Sam's sisters. "I think I can influence the University of Arendelle's director to make room for the two of you. If I can't, I'm sure Our Queen would have no problem."

"That would be so cool to go skiing and ice skating most of the year." Erika comments with a grin.

Joan nods in agreement and whispers, "Snowballs." A twinkle flashes across her eyes.

The Admiral glances up at his Queen and motions his head towards Joan. "Yes, but you will have to earn the privilege to stay here by passing your classes and contributing to the most advanced university on this planet."

Sam and his two sisters give their parents, their best puppy dog expressions.

"Mom, Dad, I know this will be a big change for the both of you. You basically have three options. Say 'no' and when they are of legal age, if they choose, they will come here. Two, you allow them to come here for school and I will fly them back to see you three times during the year during their two week break. Three, I can get you a job and all move here as one. You can sell your property or keep it. I have friends who could rent your place, if you chose to keep it."

Elizabeth asks, "We have many friends back there. What will we say?"

"Tell them you are taking a temporary job in Norway to be with your children. When they are all adults, if you wish to go back home, go home."

Her expression says the move will be painful.

His finger lightly brushes against her arm. "Don't make a decision now. Stay two weeks for a vacation. See what Arendelle has to offer. Meet the people. Visit the world's eminent Medical and Research University. I believe the solar panels on your ranch home and battery barn that makes you energy self-sufficient were created at the Energy and Manufacturing campus up the road. The campus research along with the university pushes well beyond the limits.

I don't want you to leave with any unanswered questions. You need time to make an informed decision. When you get back, you will have an adventure to tell your friends."

Elizabeth looks at her children's faces. Even John's expression was of hope. She relents. "At the end of two weeks, we sit down and discuss our options. We must all agree to the decision. Agreed?"

"We agree," they answer in unison.

They all rise. The Admiral motions for quiet. "Family, we have found the one who will lead the humans to the completion of the bridge. To commemorate this event, tomorrow we will celebrate with a great feast."

Loud cheers flow over the castle's walls.

Queen Elsa slips her hand under his arm. "Well, what does she think?"

"She is afraid, but open to the idea."

"Maybe four is your lucky number."

He turns and bows to her. With a kiss on the back of her hand, he smiles. "I did have to pass through four times to get to you. Why not four to get it right with little Sam."

THE END

Love For Elsa lives in the hearts of those who believe.

Thank you for reading my story.


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